Bestselling Author Freida McFadden Unmasks as Sara Cohen

Freida McFadden , the best-selling thriller writer behind titles including "The Housemaid" , has disclosed that her real name is Sara Cohen . She made the announcement to USA Today , ending years of uncertainty in publishing circles about the author’s identity and personal background.

Cohen is also a doctor who specializes in brain disorders and works in Boston, Massachusetts . She said she originally kept her medical career separate from her writing life, explaining that she worried patients might find it strange to be treated by someone known publicly for writing thrillers.

According to her account, Cohen began using the pen name Freida McFadden in 2013 when she self-published her first novel, "The Devil Wears Scrubs" . She said the first name “Freida” was selected as a medical acronym . Over time, the pseudonym became the public-facing identity attached to a growing catalogue of commercial fiction.

Under the McFadden name, Cohen’s sales reached major scale across key English-language markets. In the UK , she was the second best-selling author in 2025 , with 2.6 million books sold. In the United States , she sold six million print copies, underscoring the breadth of her readership and the strength of her position in the mass-market thriller category.

Her breakout novel "The Housemaid" , published in 2022 , was adapted into a film . Cohen has published 29 novels in total and, according to the information provided, has topped best-seller charts this year with multiple titles, reinforcing the durability of her brand even as her personal identity remained undisclosed.

Cohen linked the timing of her decision to a change in her medical workload. She reduced her medical practice to part-time in 2023 , which she said made it more manageable to handle public attention tied to her writing career. She also said she was “tired of this being a secret” and wanted to settle questions that had intensified amid public speculation.