Dead Med & Fed
“In every class,” she says, “ten people flunk and need to repeat the year. Five drop out, never to return. And, of course, in the last few years, there’s always one who…”
― Freida McFadden
Maybe it’s because this one hits closer to home.
Set against the brutal pressure cooker of medical school, Dead Med follows Heather, a med student just trying to survive, academically, emotionally and morally. But this isn’t just a campus thriller; threaded through the story is a dark, unsettling reflection of a very real crisis in the United States, prescription drug abuse and overdose culture, quietly devastating lives in plain sight.
McFadden writes this novel with a sharp scalpel. The tension is constant, but it’s the familiarity that makes it unsettling. The exhaustion. The ambition. The slippery line between coping and self-destruction. Heather’s world feels claustrophobic in the way only reality-based fear can feel and that’s what makes the crime element so effective. The twists don’t feel gimmicky, they feel inevitable.
As an audiobook, Dead Med is especially gripping. The pacing is relentless, the stakes are intimate, and the story sinks under your skin rather than exploding outward. It’s not flashy. It’s unsettling. And it lingers.
While The Housemaid might be the crowd favorite, Dead Med is the one that stays with me, the one that feels uncomfortably relevant, painfully human and frighteningly plausible.
If you’re looking for a Freida McFadden novel that cuts closer to the bone, this is the one I’d press into your hands… or your headphones.
Grab your copy here: https://a.co/d/7ldnLoT
Recipe for Getting Lost in Dead Med
Serves one long night, with extra sides because you’re not pressing pause
Main Course: The Listening
Start the audiobook and tell yourself you’ll just listen to one chapter.
Lie to yourself gently.
Let Heather’s world close in—white coats, sharp edges, the quiet hum of obsession and exhaustion. This isn’t background noise. This is full-body listening. The kind where you stop folding laundry and just stand there, holding a dish you forgot you were washing.
When the tension tightens, you’ll realize you need sustenance. Not because you’re hungry—but because you’re committed now.
Ingredients for Survival
One dark, late-hour audiobook binge
Low lighting (lamps only—overhead lights feel too honest)
A blanket or hoodie you didn’t plan to wear
A dinner you can eat without looking down
Side One: Roasted Carrots with Honey & Thyme
Because even dread needs sweetness.
Roast carrots until caramelized and blistered at the edges. Finish with honey, olive oil, salt, and fresh thyme. They’re tender, grounding—just enough comfort to balance the unease creeping in through your headphones.
Side Two: Buttered Orzo with Parmesan
Because tension needs something soft to land on.
Cook orzo until just tender, then fold in butter, grated Parmesan, and cracked black pepper. Quiet food. Reliable food. The kind that lets you keep listening without interruption.
To Serve
Eat slowly.
Ignore the clock.
Finish the audiobook faster than planned.