I was given the chance to read this novel before its release by Netgalley and that turned out to be a very welcome addition to my nightly reading. Marti is a social worker and married to an OB-GYN named Elliot. She throws herself into her cases where young single girls become pregnant and don’t have much in the way of family support.

In one of those cases the pregnant girl appreciates Marti’s help so much that she asks her to be her birth coach. During delivery an overtired doctor makes a gigantic mistake.

What happens next will surprise most any reader. I loved the book, but have one caveat concerning the beginning. The author goes back and forth from present time to past with no warning. It can be from one paragraph to the next and when you first pick up this novel, that can be confusing. But don’t give up on the book. It’s a winner in my book and should satisfy any regular thriller reader. Just don’t hold your breath too long.

Posting to my blog on June 8, 2017

Best Intentions
Erika Raskin
St. Martin's Press, expected release Aug 15, 2017
Kindle ed, 288 pages, also in hardcover
Genre(s) women's lit, murder, mystery, contemporary romance
Source NetGalley

Synopsis:
Marti Trailor—social worker on hold, mother of three, wife of a successful obstetrician, daughter of a Congressman—is ready to go back to work. She’s thrilled when the perfect opportunity falls in her lap. The catch? The job is at her husband's hospital and he seems not to share her enthusiasm. Undeterred, she takes the position counseling vulnerable young women as they prepare to give birth.
Marti quickly begins to feel like she is making a difference in the lives of her clients. Soon, though, she finds herself caught up in the dark side of the medical center—with its long hours, overworked doctors and entrenched practices. When she witnesses something she can't unsee, Marti, who has always done her best to keep a low-profile, finds herself thrust into a dangerous spotlight with all of Richmond, Virginia watching.

In her captivating domestic suspense novel Best Intentions, Erika Raskin weaves together high stakes hospital politics, the pressures of family life, and the consequences of trying to do the right thing.

About the Author:
Erika Raskin grew up to the sound of typewriter music. Her mother, the bestselling novelist Barbara Raskin, was a rollicking storyteller who could turn mundane trips to the grocery store into readable high drama. Marcus Raskin, Erika's dad, was an author of non-fiction but still delighted in getting his daughter to make up back-stories of unsuspecting passers-by. She learned at an early age to collect details, catalog interesting behaviors, and then put them on paper.

(In short, she joined the family business.)

Erika has written essays for print and radio, articles and short stories. Her fiction has been recognized by the Reynolds Price competition, Glimmertrain, and the Virginia Commission on the Arts. She was a fellow at the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts. Erika's first novel, CLOSE, was published by Harvard Square Editions in October of 2014. CLOSE was a finalist in the USA Best Book Awards.

Erika and her husband Keith have three (grown-up) offspring and a peculiar dog with a fondness for lingerie. They live in the mountains outside of Charlottesville, Virginia.

My Disclaimer: I was provided a free copy of this book by NetGalley and St. Martin's Press. I am providing an honest review for which I am receiving no compensation of any kind. All opinions are fully my own.
~ Judi E. Easley for Blue Cat Review

My Review:
What a fantastic story! Here's this woman who just wants to give and help others and she's stymied at almost every turn by her husband, then the hospital she works for, and eventually the legal system.

Marti has done everything that was expected of her. She's done the work of raising three great kids. Daddy is a Congressman. Hubby is a Doctor. Now she wants some of her own. She's a trained social worker. The perfect job pops up and she goes for it. Hubby isn't happy because she's going to be underfoot at the hospital. What's he got to hide? What isn't she supposed to see at the hospital?

She takes the job, but she keeps trying to help a gal who doesn't want her help and that gets her into trouble, too. Then there's another young woman who needs and wants her help, but she's getting other advice as well and things go horribly wrong. Two young lives are horribly damaged before they even have a chance and Marti knows the truth behind what happened, but is she going to get the opportunity to tell her story?

Once the story all comes out, who will pay the price? And who will go to jail? This fantastic book is due out August 15, 2017, from St. Martin's Press. Get yourself a copy of it and plan on spending a weekend with it. It's fabulous! For those who cheer for the underdogs! With a touch of sweet romance!

5 stars here and on Goodreads. Loved this book immediately... faster than I have any book since Gone Girl. The author's writing style is right up my alley and I fell in love with the main character, Marti. I did start to lose interest around 15/20% of the way in. I think it halted a little, didn't love how much time was spent on her clients (I really didn't find those stories interesting).. but in the end I see why the side-plots were necessary. I loved Marti's relationships, her thoughts on parenting, I really just loved her point of view and being in her head. Very enjoyable. I also loved the trial. Courtroom drama is one of my favorite genres, this book successfully combined legal and family(ish) drama. Great read!

I read this awhile ago and forgot to send my review for a free copy from netgalley. I skimmed book to try to refresh my memory. I do remember I liked the book. The story was interesting and it moved along well. Family and hospital drama was a good combination. I would recommend.

WOW! This book was exceptional even though it might have started a little slow for me. It's the story of a woman named Marti Trailor. She's the daughter of a powerful Congressman, the wife of very successful obstetrician who is head of the Obstetrics department at their local but highly regarded hospital in Richmond Virginia. The hospital prides itself on hiring the brightest and best doctors and staff.

Marti is leading the life of busy mom of three children, Nina, Simon, and Poppy. One night at a social function, Marti is offered a job as a social worker for the hospital her husband works. Although she's excited to take on the position, her husband, Elliott is less than enthused about it.

As Marti becomes successful on the job, her marriage begins to unravel. Her husband who worked long hours become edgier and is home less an less. When tragedy strikes and a baby is left in a vegetative state, it's Marti not the doctor who delivered the child that is accused of the crime. Marti is brought to trial for it.

The is a book not only filled with intrigue but also deals with relationships and how life can change in an instant. It's a thoroughly enjoyable read and has so much to offer those who love literary fiction with a bit of suspense.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martins Press for the ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

I've been hearing about this book coming out for a while and it just didn't live up to the hype. The book is written in alternating "past" and "present" POVs except for the last few chapters which were all "present" POVs (it took me a few pages to figure that out too). You could tell the author was trying to build up to something but it was very, very obvious what each plot twist was going to be. Also, the book took a lot of effort to read. It wasn't being the writing was too complicated or anything the book just didn't call to me. I read half the book the first night but then it took 4 more days before I even felt like I wanted to pick it back up. Overall, decent book but there are others out there that I think would be a better choice if you're looking for something to read.

Well written and absorbing story, shows how fast things can change and deviate down a path you never expected. Great read.

I really enjoyed this one. The character of Marti was well developed and I felt her sadness, hopelessness and anger. Her thoughts and feelings just enlightened the pages. The plot caught me off guard and went in a totally different direction then what I was expecting. Really love when this happens! Great writing and a joy to read.

I loved this book! It was a stunning read, well written characters and in particular, Marti was so real. It had no predictability about it, and I didn't want to try and guess the path it took - it had a strong point of view, but expressed it gently.

Excellent book, would absolutely recommend!

I would like to thank Erika Raskin and Net Galley for allowing me to read this book.

This book is about a woman wrongfully accused of murder. The story has quite a few twists which will surprise you. The book starts with Marti talking to her lawyer and then takes you through how Marti got where she is now before you finally have the whole story. Marti is a stay at home mom while her husband Elliot works crazy hours as he has just started his career in OB/GYN. They have 3 children, Nina, Simon and Poppy. Marti hopes that the long hours will become less so that they can become a family again. Her best friend is Colby who is a print journalist. Things get a little weird after Marti decides to go back to work as a social worker in the same hospital as her husband, he isn't too thrilled about it and you can almost suspect why. There is a New Mom's program that she was hired for by Win who met her at a hospital function. It is an experimental program and he asks Marti to come and work with him. Nigel is the head of the department and his work ethics are not the best. His team is overworked which leads to mistakes and Marti is not very fond of him. She challenges his judgment anytime she can and in the end, she triumphs.

BRAVO!!!! Sucked in instantly! I loved this book and really connected with Marti. Perfect ending. All around GREAT BOOK!

As always, let’s start this review with the characters. It’s all the more relevant here because of how character-driven this book is. This book’s rating is fully because of all the strong characters that are in it. They beautifully carry the story forward. I was rooting for the protagonist Marti throughout. I was even able to identify with Marti a lot! I took to calling some of my favorite lines as Marti-isms.

Because I was already in love with Marti, I reacted like all her downfalls were mine while reading this book. Like all thriller/suspense novels involving doctors, Marti and her husband have marital issues. This maybe a trope but it never gets old for me. I swear, all the medical thrillers I’ve read have turned me away from doctors forever. But, I digress. Marti’s husband Elliot is an overworked doctor who’s never around. When he is, he constantly snaps at Marti. Needless to say, I HATED him.

The world building is amazing. The story jumps between the past and the present and it beautifully merges at the 70% mark. What I really liked about the plot was how simple it was. It’s not very cerebral but it has far-reaching consequences. And Ms. Raskin ties it all up neatly. There are no plot holes, this book ends perfectly. The writing is excellent and the story is extremely fast-paced. The fast-paced nature also made me blind to negatives, if any.

To summarize, this is the best in women’s literary fiction I’ve read in a long time. If you enjoy women’s fiction and suspense, please do read this book. I assure you you’ll love it. Oh, and watch out for the Marti-isms!

In the acknowledgements section, the author talks about the protracted effort that was put in to get this book out. I would really like to commend her. As a reader, it makes me very happy that none of her efforts went to waste. This story is beautiful and hopefully makes up for all the work she put in! 🙂

Rating: 5 out of 5

BEST INTENTIONS is was a good read with interesting characters and an exciting plot. Marti Trailor has been a stay-at-home mom for many years, keeping the home front going as her husband pursues his medical career. Marti gets the opportunity to go back to work as a social worker at the same hospital where her husband practices. Marti loves her work, is good at it and it helps keep her engaged as her husband works longer and longer hours. When something goes terribly wrong with one of Marti's clients, Marti is accused of murder and her interests are suddenly at odds with her husband's. What follows is an exciting ride through the trial and the subsequent fallout. I really enjoyed the book and Raskin is a masterful writer. I will look forward to her future books.

A really good read. There is a lot packed into this book. It deals with Marti's marriage, hospital politics and the malpractice. The story is well put together and obviously researched.

This book was excellent. The characters were well developed and the plot had me wanting to keep reading. I finished it very quickly.

I was absolutely enchanted with this book. As a lover of women's fiction and medical thrillers, this story gets a place on the top of my list,
The characters are wonderfully written and the mystery grows in intensity at the perfect moments.
Marti's story could be anyone's story, but what makes it special is the way the author works through it. It offers the reader the exact combination of intrigue an a sympathetic feeling towards the main character. It fuels the fighting spirit towards the truth every person holds inside although not always is put into practice.
Within the pages of this book I found love, deception, friendship, tragedy, desperation and hope.
I absolutely recommend it!

I fancied something a bit different and this nicely hit the mark. Thoroughly engaging. It's about events leading up to an incident and the repercussions afterwards. Where do loyalties lie when the chips fall.

4 Stars.

A Completely Compelling Character Driven Novel.

Best Intentions by Erica Raskin is the story of Marti Trailor. A woman. A stay at home mother of three. A wife. A best friend. And a woman accused of a horrific crime.

Best Intentions is a character driven novel. A novel about Relationships. Marriage. Family. And friendships. Friendships so deep that they take hold and don’t let go. It is about a legal drama that threatens to destroy Marti Trailor’s life and shakes her to her core. Yet in my opinion, the legal drama is secondary to the story about a woman whose relationships drive this novel.

Marti Trailor has three children. Nina, Simon and Poppy. They are her life. Marti’s husband Elliot is a doctor: a very successful one at that, running the OB/GYN practice at the nearby Richmond Hospital, as well as being the head of the risk management program - thus he is never around. While at a social function, Marty gets offered the job of her dreams: helping to get a social work program up and running. Though she has taken years off to raise kids, social work is her specialty. The job? It just happens to be at the same hospital at which her husband works, which he isn’t thrilled about. Marty excels however, and get the program off to a fantastic start and forms an incredible bond with one of the young women who obtains assistance through the program: Tonya Maines. Marti even becomes Tonya’s Lamaze coach.

While things are working out well for Marti professionally, her marriage suffers. Her husband Elliot is never home and works more and more. He is moody and snappish, leading to terse moments and little arguments. Even the kids notice. Unfortunately, an incident happens on the night Tonya gives birth, leaving Tonya’s baby in a vegetative state. While the OB-GYN doctor appears to have made a grave error, things go from bad to worse and Marti is blamed and is charged for a crime.

Though the novel is about a legal battle, it is, in my opinion, a character driven novel. The author, Erika Raskin, does an excellent job at creating well rounded, multi-faceted characters. Marti Trailor, the main character drew me in immediately. Almost like glue.. I couldn’t pull away. Marti’s thoughts, and feelings, the way she interacted with her children, Nina, Simon and Poppy. Each child, so different, each interaction, so varied. So real. Her interactions with each client as a social worker – all so unique. None even remotely easy. Marti is strong when she needs to be strong and then, when things get tough? Well, she falls apart. Only to be picked up by her best friend, Colby. Who, in my mind is the most amazing best friend you could ever ask for. Fierce, funny, protective and extremely supportive. In short, Colby rocks. And Elliot - Marti's over worked husband? Self-centered, spineless and gutless. And that is a nice way of putting it. Ms. Raskin didn't give him any redeeming qualities. I would have kicked his butt to the curb in a heartbeat.

For me, the legal battle, almost took second place to the story of Marti Trailor and all of her various relationships. This, may perhaps be, because I work in the legal field and didn’t find all aspects of the case to completely realistic. I rated this novel 4 stars instead of 5, due to the structure of the chapters, and how each began by describing the status of the legal case and then went on to discuss how the rest of the story progressed, without breaking things up, which I found to be a little confusing. Further, I found that the ending and legal battle itself wrapped up a little too neatly for my liking, though all in all, I enjoyed the book immensely. Kudos to Erika Raskin for a job well done.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press and Erica Raskin for an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Published on NetGalley and Goodreads on 3/9/17

Will be published on Amazon on 8/15/17.

My first book by this author.
I thought it started off a little slow but by the halfway point I was hooked wanting to know what happened. The characters were interesting and it all seemed so real. I also enjoyed the twist with the ending as it wasn't what I was expecting. I look forward to reading more by Erika Raskin.

Excellent story! Looking forward to reading more by this author!