The following version of this book was used to create the guide: McFadden, Freida. The Teacher: A Psychological Thriller. Poisoned Pen Press, 2024. Kindle Version.

This psychological thriller opens up with a Prologue in which an unnamed person is out at night in the cold burying a body in a pumpkin patch. The main part of the novel then opens with two high school teachers, Eve and Nathaniel Bennett, as they prepare for the first day of the school year. Nathaniel is idolized by many. He is handsome, charming, and older than Eve. Eve, meanwhile, feels neglected by her husband. Their sex life is scheduled and boring, and her husband does not seem to have much interest in her. The only thing that seems to bring Eve happiness is expensive shoes. On the way to their first day of school, Eve hopes they get in an accident and die.

High school student, Addie, does not want to return to school because she knows she will be an outcast because of a situation that happened with her teacher, Mr. Tuttle, last year. While the reader does not know this at the beginning of the novel, Mr. Tuttle and Addie never had a sexual relationship. He was a mentor to the troubled girl. Still, when she was questioned by police after she was found lurking outside his house, she stalls when asked if he ever touched her because technically he did touch her once on her shoulder. Mr. Tuttle was never charged with any crime, but he had to leave his job. He warns Eve to be careful around Addie.

Addie is treated poorly by Mrs. Bennett as well as by class bullies, notably Kenzie. Her former best friend, Hudson, is no longer speaking to her. It seems at first that he is not speaking to her because of the situation with Mr. Tuttle, but eventually it is revealed that Addie accidentally pushed her father down the stairs while Hudson was having a fight with the drunken man. Addie insisted that they leave the scene of the crime, and no one ever found out that they were there. This haunts Hudson.

Mr. Bennett is the only person who acts kindly towards Addie, and this attracts her to him. He compliments her poetry. Eventually the two begin a sexual relationship. He gives her a poem he says he wrote for her. He tells her frequently how much better life would be if Eve were not around, and Addie starts to believe the same.

Eve eventually finds out that her husband is sleeping with Addie, and she places all the blame on the adult, her husband. In fact, she tries to protect Addie. Addie is upset, however, that her relationship with Nathaniel cannot continue. She goes to Eve to speak rationally about the situation, but Addie ends up hitting Eve over the head with a frying pan repeatedly. She believes the woman is dead and calls Nathaniel for help.

When Addie is out of the room, Eve wakes up, but Nathaniel chokes her to death. He and Addie take Eve’s body to a pumpkin patch, and while Addie buries the woman, Nathaniel says he has to get something from the car, but he leaves Addie there. Addie still believes that she is the one who killed Eve. Later with detectives, Nathaniel implicates Addie in the murder.

Addie believes, despite all that Nathaniel has done, that he has her best interests at heart. One day Addie’s nemesis, Kenzie, comes by, however, and tells Addie that Nathaniel started having sex with her when she was 14 years old and that he wrote her the same poem he gave to Addie. The two go to the police and tell them everything.

Meanwhile, some of Eve’s shoes have been appearing in Nathaniel’s house. He walks into a room and finds a jack-o-lantern. He knows it must be Eve trying to spook him, and he goes to her burial site and sees the empty grave. Hudson hits him over the head, and Eve buries him alive. In the Epilogue it is revealed that Hudson had been having an affair with Eve all along. While it is not entirely clear whether or not Eve knew Hudson was a high school student, it is likely that she did, making her a sex offender as well. She, in turn, was a victim herself because she began her relationship with Nathaniel when she was a teenage high school student in his class.