The Housemaid Series in Order (Every Book + the Movies)

Millie needs a fresh start badly enough to take a live-in housekeeping job with the wealthy Winchesters, no questions asked. That’s how The Housemaid opens, and it’s how Freida McFadden’s 2022 thriller grew into three novels, a bonus short story, and a Sydney Sweeney movie that made about $400 million worldwide. If you’re wondering what to read next, here’s The Housemaid series in order.

I haven’t reviewed the Housemaid books on this blog yet, so there are no ratings from me here. You’ll get the reading order, a spoiler-free look at each book, whether you can skip around, and the dates for both movies.

Read The Housemaid series in this order: The Housemaid (2022), The Housemaid’s Secret (2023), the short story The Housemaid’s Wedding (2024), and The Housemaid Is Watching (2024). All three novels follow Millie, and each one spoils the books before it, so start with The Housemaid even though McFadden says they work alone.

Let’s dive in.

The Housemaid Books in Order

1. The Housemaid (April 2022)

2. The Housemaid’s Secret (February 2023)

3. The Housemaid’s Wedding (November 2024, a short story)

4. The Housemaid Is Watching (June 2024)

Yes, the short story came out after book three. It takes place between books two and three, so I list it there, but reading it last spoils nothing.

1. The Housemaid (2022)

This book is about… Millie, desperate for a fresh start, takes a live-in cleaning job with the wealthy Winchesters, and their secrets turn out to be more dangerous than her own.

On Goodreads: about 4 million ratings and a 4.26 average, the most of any McFadden book. It also won the 2023 ITW Thriller Award for Best Paperback Original.

Read it first? Yes. Every later book builds on what happens here.

2. The Housemaid’s Secret (2023)

This book is about… Millie’s new job is cleaning Douglas Garrick’s penthouse, and she can’t shake her unease about his wife, who is supposedly ill and stays behind a door Millie is told never to open.

On Goodreads: about 2 million ratings and a 4.15 average. It won the 2023 Goodreads Choice Award for Best Mystery & Thriller.

Can you read it alone? It works, but it gives away the first book’s twists.

3. The Housemaid’s Wedding (2024, a Short Story)

This story is about… Millie’s wedding day, and someone who wants her dead before she can say her vows.

On Goodreads: about 437,000 ratings and a 3.28 average, the lowest in the series. McFadden calls it a bonus scene, so treat it as dessert, not dinner.

4. The Housemaid Is Watching (2024)

This book is about… Millie, now married with kids and done cleaning other people’s houses, moves to a quiet cul-de-sac. A strange neighbor, the neighbor’s maid, and a warning to be careful of the people next door put her new life at risk.

On Goodreads: about 1.2 million ratings and a 3.85 average.

Can you read it alone? The publisher says yes. It still spoils the first two books.

Do You Have to Read The Housemaid Books in Order?

No, but you should. McFadden’s own FAQ says the books don’t have to be read in order, and each one has its own mystery. The catch is that every book assumes you know how the earlier ones ended, so reading out of order means walking into twists already spoiled.

Is There a Fourth Housemaid Book?

Not yet. As of October 12, 2026, McFadden hasn’t announced a fourth Housemaid novel. Her newest book is a standalone, The Witch (October 6, 2026), and her next is The Sleepwalker (March 23, 2027). If a Housemaid 4 gets announced, it goes on this page.

The Housemaid Movies

The Housemaid (2025) stars Sydney Sweeney as Millie and Amanda Seyfried as Nina, with Brandon Sklenar as Andrew. Paul Feig directed it from Rebecca Sonnenshine’s script, and McFadden is an executive producer. It opened December 19, 2025, and grossed about $400 million worldwide, per Box Office Mojo.

The sequel, The Housemaid’s Secret, comes out December 17, 2027, according to TheWrap. Feig and Sonnenshine are back, Sweeney returns as Millie, and Kirsten Dunst joins the cast.

What to Read After The Housemaid

If you want more McFadden, her standalone thrillers are in Freida McFadden books in order, with the most-rated ones to start with. If you want the same pleasure from other authors, my books like The Housemaid list has ten domestic thrillers, rated where I’ve read them, and romantic thriller books adds a love story to the dread.

🌁 Let Me Be Your Ghost by Amy Suto (Yes, Me)

This book is about… Lola Whitman ghostwrites memoirs for powerful men and feeds their secrets to the FBI. One last book buys her freedom. Then her final target, billionaire Ezekiel Crane, finds her first. He’s hiding something. So is she.

Subgenre: romantic thriller (billionaire romance with murder-mystery bones).

What I hope you’ll love about it: The Housemaid’s engine is a woman stepping into a rich household that thinks it controls the story. Lola is my version: the hired writer nobody worries about, except she’s the one holding the pen. It comes out November 18, 2026, in ebook, paperback, and hardcover.

Preorder it anywhere and I’ll send you my unreleased book, How to Write a Memoir, free. Claim your preorder gift here.

I Update This Page

New Housemaid book, new movie date, new casting news: I add it here. Last checked October 12, 2026.

FAQ: The Housemaid Series

How many Housemaid books are there?

Three novels and one short story: The Housemaid, The Housemaid’s Secret, The Housemaid’s Wedding (the short story), and The Housemaid Is Watching.

What order do The Housemaid books go in?

The Housemaid, The Housemaid’s Secret, The Housemaid’s Wedding, then The Housemaid Is Watching.

Do you need to read The Housemaid’s Wedding?

No. It’s a short bonus scene, and the main story makes sense without it.

Is there going to be a Housemaid 4?

Nothing has been announced as of October 2026. McFadden’s next book, The Sleepwalker (March 23, 2027), is a standalone.

When does The Housemaid’s Secret movie come out?

December 17, 2027, with Sydney Sweeney back as Millie.

Now go meet the Winchesters. Maybe don’t accept the attic bedroom without asking a few questions first. I’m rooting for you.