Narrators: Louise Brealey, Dakota Blue Richards
Simon & Schuster Audio
ISBN: 9781668024782
Publisher: Gallery Books
Publication Date: 12/05/2023
Format: Hardcover
My Rating: 4 Stars (ARC)
The author of the “twisty, fast-paced” (The Sunday Times, London) Greenwich Park returns with a fresh and deftly paced thriller about murder, class, and motherhood in one of London’s toniest communities.
When a young nanny dies under mysterious circumstances near new mom Tash’s home, she is certain that this could be the story to relaunch her journalism career.
Meanwhile, she also needs to find a local playgroup for her son. Nearby is the gorgeous neighborhood filled with wealthy and friendly families, stunning houses, and lavish playdates. But when another young woman is found dead, it’s clear there’s much more to the community than meets the eye and the more Tash investigates, the more she’s led uncomfortably close to the mothers in her son’s playgroup.
Are these women really her friends? Or is there another, more dangerous reason why she has been accepted into their exclusive world? Who, exactly, is investigating who?
My Review
Katherine Faulkner returns following Greenwich Park with THE OTHER MOTHERS, a deliciously wicked mom noir domestic thriller —full of mean grown-up girls with menace, murder, class, and lots of TWISTS!
Set in an upscale London neighborhood with breathtaking homes, designer clothes, put-together moms and nannies— and way too-expensive playdates! Faulkner cleverly explores the dark side of motherhood and the fissures inside female friendships.
Tash James, mother of Finn and wife of Tom, a doctor. They are broke, and she is trying to launch her career as a freelance journalist. When she learns about the death of a nanny, Sophie Blake, which sounds suspicious, she thinks this will be her chance.
She needs to meet the other mothers to develop friendships and investigate. The mothers invite her into their group of friends, and she is delighted and gets swept into their socially wealthy world of expensive playdates, glamour, coffee, and cocktails. Has she found friendship in Laura, Nichole, and Claire?
Told from the POVs of Tash (present) and Sophie (past), it is a slow burn until all the secrets unravel. But then another young woman is found dead. The more she dives in, the more she wonders if these other mothers are her friends or if they have an alternative agenda.
Who's Zoomin' Who?
It is explosive when the group and their husbands go together on holiday. Dark SECRETS and lies of the past rise to the surface, and desperation and the plot thickens. There is so much to unfold in this group!
THE OTHER MOTHERS is a well-written domestic thriller with twists, and the author's investigative journalism skills shined through. If you enjoy evil mommy dramas and suburban thrillers infused with secrets, manipulation, deception, lies, and MURDER —this is for you!
Thanks to Gallery Books and NetGalley for an advanced reading review copy for an honest opinion.
@JudithDCollins | #JDCMustReadBooks
My Rating: 4 Stars
Pub Date: Dec 5, 2023
Praise
“[A] menace-infused thriller . . . Faulkner is a pro at ever-so-gradually ratcheting up the tension bit by tiny, spine-tingling bit. And, as the narrative deftly swings between timeframes . . . we get a vertiginous view of just how tightly a group of people’s lives can be inexorably twisted together. Faulkner pulls out all the psychological-thriller stops—and then some.” —Kirkus Reviews (Starred Review)
“Fans of Ashley Audrain and Chandler Baker will enjoy the similar themes of motherhood, the unspoken parts of women’s relationships, desire, envy, and heart-pounding suspense. The alternating timelines build anticipation but the twists will keep readers guessing to the last page.”—Library Journal
"Next-level mum noir, The Other Mothers is a brilliant portrayal of the complexities of parenthood, work and - oh yes - murder. Smart, tense and gripping. Loved it!"
—Ellery Lloyd, author of New York Times bestseller and Reese's Bookclub pick The Club
"Katherine Faulkner unpeels Fornasetti wallpaper and opens glass box extensions, revealing delectably dislikeable characters, secrets - and murder. The Other Mothers is The Undoing meets Big Little Lies. A fast-paced, decadent skewering of upper middle-class motherhood."
—Abigail Dean, author of New York Times bestseller Girl A
“A super-smart thriller… I was utterly captivated by the way this novel reeled me in, slowly revealing the layers of the wonderfully intricate plot. Smart, slick, and highly recommended.”
—Sarah Bonner, author of the number one New York Times bestselling Her Perfect Twin
“Once again, Katherine Faulkner so masterfully delivers a delicious combination of treacherous secrets and enviable lives, this time among a group of upper class moms whose perfection unravels after Tash, a new mom to the playgroup and struggling journalist, realizes things aren’t quite what they seem. I couldn’t part with this book until I’d finished—THE OTHER MOTHERS is the elevated, devourable thriller you’ve been looking for.”
—Ashley Audrain, New York Times bestselling author of The Push
“A wry and tightly plotted look at parent cliques, playgroup angst and when mum-lift turns sour… The Other Mothers is Big Little Lies meets Silent Witness. I loved it!”
—Harriet Walker, author of The New Girl
"Katherine Faulkner has done it again! Anyone who enjoyed GREENWICH PARK will love this - maybe even more. Full of terrible people behaving terribly, it's such a compelling story. I read it in one sitting... extremely gripping."
—Harriet Tyce, author of Blood Orange and It Ends At Midnight
"The Other Mothers is a first-class thriller, with taut prose, gasp-worthy twists and characters you’ll love to hate. Faulkner has done it again - fans of Greenwich Park won’t be disappointed."
—Robin Morgan-Bentley, author of The Wreckage and The Guest House
"Such a fast-paced, twisty story that takes you in completely unexpected directions. I read this in one sitting and adored every page. Greenwich Park was fantastic, but this is another step up. "
—Holly Watt, author of To The Lions (2019 CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger thriller of the year) and The Dead Line
"I devoured this novel - heart-stopping from first to last, both a brilliantly twisty thriller in the Domestic Noir genre, and a vivid recreation of the difficult early years of being a working mother with a small child. Katherine Faulkner's eye for detail includes everything from the dandelion beauty of a small child's hair to the way some mothers manipulate, ostracize, and deceive each other. I especially enjoyed the details of North London life, and the way it can move in just a few blocks from the luxe to the dismal."
—Amanda Craig, author of The Golden Rule
"A highly addictive and whip-smart tale, The Other Mothers strips the surface from Insta-perfect lives to reveal a deeply unsettling reality. I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough! "
—Teresa Driscoll, author of the international bestseller I am Watching You
About the Author
Katherine Faulkner, an award-winning journalist, studied history at Cambridge. She has worked as an investigative reporter and an editor and was formerly the joint Head of News at The Times (London). She lives in London, where she grew up, with her husband and two daughters. She is the author of Other Mothers and Greenwich Park. READ MORE
