What to Know
Chances are, if you’re someone with a large to be read pile of books sitting on your bookshelf, you’re bound to find a Freida McFadden thriller or two. Penning 35 books over the past 11 years, she’s become quite the household name. Along with that kind of fame, even in the literary world, can come some notoriety, which not every writer is looking for. After keeping her identity a secret for years, Freida has decided that after so much online speculation, it’s time to share with the world her real name and occupation. Would it surprise you to learn that the person writing such twisted domestic thrillers actually treats patients for a living?
Best-selling author, Freida McFadden, has finally revealed her true identity.
It’s really fun to be in a time when people are obsessed with books and authors again!
Freida McFadden is a New York Times best-selling author who has written books such as The Housemaid andThe Teacher under a pseudonym. Whenever she’s made public appearances, like when The Housemaid came out in December 2025, and ending up making over $300 million at the box office, she dresses up in a wig and glasses to help maintain her privacy, per Variety.
Freida has decided to share with the world that her real name is Sara Cohen and she’s actually a doctor who treats brain disorders, USA Today reported. Pretty impressive, right?
She shared with the publication that she felt it was the right time because she’s “at a point in [her] career when [she’s] tired of this being a secret. [She’s] tired of people debating if [she’s] a real person or if [she’s] three men.”
She went on to say, “I am a real person and I have a real identity and I don’t have anything to hide.”
Seriously, we wouldn’t want people thinking that it was actually some dude writing all those thrilling novels. So, we totally understand her big reveal.
She swears that her life is so much more boring than what happens in her books.
If you’re wondering what Freida’s real life could possibly be like, especially when you consider some of the insane plots in her books, you might be a little disappointed there.
She told USA Today that her life is “so much more boring than anything that happens in [her] books.”
The author only created the pseudonym because she didn’t want her writing career to possibly interfere with her hospital job. Which makes total sense.
She explained to the news outlet that her “whole goal was to keep it a secret until [she] was (ready to) step back from [her] doctor job, so it wouldn’t be like everyone [she works] with suddenly knew it and it compromised [her] ability to do [her] job.”
She decided to stop working full-time in late 2023. Currently, she only works once or twice a month.
So, what’s up with the awful wigs? Well, she has a very simple explanation.
If you’re someone who has kept up with Freida McFadden during press for her books and when The Housemaid film debuted, you’re likely well aware that she’s taken to wearing various wigs and disguises over the years to help conceal her identity.
She told USA Today that she really does wear glasses in real life, so that’s not a stretch, but she wears a wig because she has “no idea how to style [her] hair.” Wow. Freida McFadden, you really are just like us!
What was it like working as a doctor in a hospital while you’re also writing these page-turning thrillers? She told USA Today that her coworkers did find out, but they were “really nice about it,” and even kept her secret.
She explained that many of them were actually fans of her books and they had no idea they were working alongside a best-selling author.
We just have to say that this big reveal feels like something straight out of one of Freida’s books. It’s very entertaining and juicy, so we really can’t wait to see what the writer reveals next!
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