In The Mother, there are twists and turns, red herrings, and unreliable narrators aplenty. Valerie Keogh knows how to manipulate every single one of these so that her readers are left anxiously anticipating what unexpected surprises each page will bring next.
Blurb:
A terrible wife…
Sarah Westfield is unhappily married to perfect husband Nick. Handsome, devoted and kind, he should be the ideal man for her, but Sarah knows their marriage is the biggest mistake she’s ever made … and she wants out.
But then Nick offers her one last chance to make their marriage work – a baby.
Sarah is horrified – a baby would tie herself to this man forever … wouldn’t it? Or could it be exactly what she needs?
So Sarah agrees.
A terrible mother?
When the baby arrives, Sarah struggles with motherhood and her resentment towards Nick only grows. Sarah feels more trapped than ever, but she loves her precious daughter … doesn’t she?
And then baby Kaya goes missing …
And everything Sarah has ever believed in comes crashing down around her …
My Review:
Sarah Westfield marries Nick on the rebound. While she did initially think he was the right man for her, she quickly realises that she’s made a big mistake. He’s lovely and attentive and he clearly adores her (maybe a bit too much?), but surely he knows that this is never going to work?
But he shocks her when he suggests that they should have a baby! And she shocks herself when she agrees – because after all, she’s not getting any younger. And maybe if they have a baby she’ll feel a bit more settled and things will all turn out to be ok. Well, let’s be serious … does that ever happen?
When baby Kaya arrives, Sarah struggles to bond with her, but Nick is immediately besotted. Sarah doesn’t understand what’s wrong with her. Yes, ok, she knows she wasn’t overly keen on becoming a mother, but she did think that once the baby was here, her motherly instincts would kick in! She suggests a family holiday to a place where she spent many holidays with her own family as a child, hoping that by recreating her own childhood memories with her new family, she can repair something that seems to be broken. But disaster strikes when baby Kaya is stolen from them … and it seems to be her fault!
Sarah has undeniably made numerous mistakes in her life. She often didn’t seem to function as a mature adult, and I needed to keep reminding myself that she was actually a GP – someone who others placed their trust in, who managed to work as a well-respected professional. As the story unfolded, I really warmed to her though – admittedly, earlier on, I wasn’t very fond of her. Nick on the other hand, I found utterly cringeworthy! I think that’s because I’m just not one of those people who likes being pawed all the time, as he does to Sarah. I felt claustrophobic and short of breath just reading about him! He’s just always in her space, and I completely understood her constant, desperate need to silently scream!! I would have wanted to scream out loud … often!
I think my favourite character was Zoe-Lee {never just ‘Zoe’), the policewoman who was assigned to the case in Devon where Sarah and Nick are on holiday, and who is then sent to London when they return home, so that she can hand the case over to her counterpart in the London office. She finds herself torn in her feelings towards Sarah, who she immediately takes a dislike to, judging her actions and comparing them to her own when it comes to her own baby. But she’s then led to question her behaviour and attitude when she weighs up how she feels about her work life compared to her home life. Keogh crafts a character going through a very real, topical issue that so many working mothers have to deal with: the struggles and the judgement, especially from other working mothers!
The pace increases with each chapter, and every few chapters there’s an anonymous voice that adds a really sinister element into the plot as things get darker and more disturbing. It all makes for an edgy, page-turning read, which I highly recommend!
Thank You to RaRa Resources for a great Blog Tour!
Purchase Link: https://mybook.to/themothersocial
Author Bio:
Valerie Keogh is the internationally bestselling author of several psychological thrillers and crime series, most recently published by Bloodhound.
She originally comes from Dublin but now lives in Wiltshire and worked as a nurse for many years. Her first thriller for Boldwood was published in August 2022.
Social Media Links:
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Bookbub profile: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/valerie-keogh
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