I typically don’t read fantasy type books but this one pulled me in from the beginning and it was nice to read something a little different. I personally didn’t like how the story wrapped up
In the end.

When I read the synopsis of this novel, I instantly knew it was the one for me. Little Darlings is the story of Lauren Tranter, and her struggle after giving birth to twin boys. A woman appears in the hospital, threatening to switch Lauren's babies for her own, but is this woman a figment of Lauren's imagination, or is she real? Are Lauren's babies actually changelings?

This is a great exploration of new motherhood, mental illness, and the pervasiveness of legend and folklore. Set in the Peak District, a place you can well imagine fairies and elves could live, Little Darlings is a lyrical yet contemporary story. Golding writes with an impressive flair - her ability to capture so many excellent characters, from Lauren to DS Harper, a police officer who seems to avoid the most commonly used tropes, to Amy the journalist. Little Darlings is truly such a brilliant book, I can't quite believe it's a debut.

I'm easily lured in by books that promise to unsettle me, but often I am disappointed. I was delighted to find that this was not the case with Little Darlings. Melanie Golding manages to weave together contemporary life and a distinct feeling of folktale that combine for one deeply, deeply creepy novel. It would be a shame to give away any of the plot, but it's definitely worth picking up - in fact, I was pretty devastated that it wasn't out in time to give as a Christmas gift!

This book could have been so much better -- they premise is great, but by the end I was bored. I didn't believe the mother's mania at all and I think the husband got of light for his discretions. The cop/reporter romance wasn't believable at all.

This review will have spoilers so please only read on if you don't mind them.

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The book opens with a pretty graphic birthing scene, which in all honesty almost made me stop reading the book completely. Now I read a lot of gory horror books, but there is something about the graphic detail of childbirth which really scares me. Maybe it is because I don't have children and I've never been through it I just assume it will be the worst moment of my life.

However I continued to read and I'm so glad I did as I really enjoyed this little book. I loved the tone it sets from the moment she has had the children and meets the strange woman trying to steal her babies. I felt on edge during my entire read through and even though I knew there must be a logical explanation as to what is going on, I couldn't help but wonder if her babies were the creatures after all...

You find yourself sympathising and believing everything Lauren had said, you resented her husband on her behalf for not being proactive and helping her with the two newborn babies. You found her friends annoying on her behalf because they were thriving and she wasn't, and you felt her exhaustion and hallucinating state through each turn of the page. It made me want to swoop in and look after the babies for a few hours whilst she had a nap, there is something about her character where you just feel so sad and sorry for her.

Now I believe this book was a look into post natal depression despite them never actually saying that is what she was suffering from, it simply states that she has mental health issues. For someone who doesn't have children yet this terrifies me and now knowing that you could believe the things that haven't happened and then going on to potentially harm your children, wow. It deals with this subject very well, although not throwing the subject in your face it very much brings the seriousness of post natal depression to the surface. It really made me feel sad for her and it moved me deeply that she felt so alone and that she didn't recognise her own babies because of the dark thoughts she was having.

However the one thing which set the book back slightly were the chats with another mother who went through a similar situation, thinking her babies had been snatched and replaced too. Their situations were identical, so was it post natal depression after all or real? You don't get the closure you expect, but I do not necessarily dislike that. I quite like that the ending it left to keep you thinking about it, and it did keep me pondering about the story for a few days.

Regardless of whatever was going on you know that Lauren just loved her babies and wanted what she thought was best and safe for them. You do not end the book disliking her at all, you feel so much for her and her babies.

I highly recommend picking this up if you want a short read that tackles this highly upsetting subject in such a thrilling way and eerie way.

First of all, I’d like to thank Netgalley, the publishers, and author of this book for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Unfortunately, this book started off with great potential and just fell flat for me. It wasn’t as creepy as I had hoped. Now, I’m a bit of a harsh critic at times so maybe this book is just not for me.

I was never interested in the characters and just eventually grew bored with the story. Sorry to say. I really loved the fairytale addition to the story, but just wasn’t on board with the direction it took.

I would still say those of you questioning whether you would like this book or not, give it a shot. It had potential and perhaps you may like the direction the story took, unlike me. It wasn’t terrible, but it’s just that I have read books that dug into this subject that impressed me more.

I'm still thinking about this book and it's been about two weeks since I finished it. As a mother I think my heart was a solid boulder in my stomach for most of this book. As a parent we all know that we would go to the ends of the earth for our children and Little Darlings is a prime example of that, just in a creepy, haunting way.

Is Lauren crazy? Is her husband? What's real and what's not? All questions I had the entire time reading this book and even after ending I am still asking those questions. This to me means the author put her work in and gave us exactly what she set out to. These kinds of books are quickly becoming a favorite of mine and I assure you that this one will not be easily forgotten.

This story is about a delusional woman. Lauren has just given birth to twin boys when she believes that they have been switched with another demonic set of twins belonging to a woman who lives in the river. Lauren believes that she must take the twins to the river and put them under water in order to get her babies back. Her husband tries to make Lauren believe otherwise. What a read!

This was a chillingly creeptastic book! This contemporary version of a dark fairy tale kept me turning pages as the story twisted along. I loved the horror and thriller dimensions of this book. This was a great read for me because it was psychologically thrilling and supernatural horrifying without being gory. I especially loved how this combined elements of so many genres in such a spectacular way. This was unique and I highly recommend it!

Sounded an interesting read and had a creepy feel to it but not quite what I expected. It was a good read but didn’t have the suspense of what I’d normally read.

Little Darlings is a thriller that balances the line between what we know and the supernatural. It tells the story of Lauren Tranter, a new mom of newborn twins and her fight to make sure her kids are the ones she gave birth to. Honestly, the thing that drew me into this book was the pitch about maybe it being changelings, since it is one of my favorite European folklore stories.

Don’t expect the plot just to start the minute you pick up this book. At first, it’s kind of slow, and the real action only starts about halfway in. The writing is masterful in making you doubt what happened. I thought everything was explained and, 10 minutes later, I would have a whole new theory. I didn’t know what to expect, if the abduction of the twins was something supernatural or if it had a rational, mundane explanation like post-partum depression or some freak abductor.

The ending was satisfying, although I think it was a little bit rushed. The action climax wraps up really quickly, we don’t know exactly what went down with Lauren, and then, after all is done, we are told what happened with the kidnapping, instead of shown in a meaningful way, which isn’t my favorite approach. Also, I’m still not sure the explanation made 100% sense, but I’m cool with it.

Because this book is so plot-driven, I felt like I never truly got to know the characters, especially who they were before the babies came along. What I know is that Patrick is a manipulative douchebag I just can’t cope with.
In this book, we follow two main POVs: the mother’s, Lauren Tranter, and Detective Jo Harper, so these are the two characters we get to know better and the ones that lead the story. In my opinion, Lauren’s POV is more interesting than Jo’s, but I understand why we’re following the detective.

Since the beginning of the book, we’re told Lauren is a super smart and active woman, but we don’t see that until 2/3rds in. She’s entirely focused on her kids, and I really liked how she was written as a new mom. We get this idea that the moment we see our kids, we just feel this overwhelming love for them. However, Lauren shows us that maybe it isn’t exactly like that, but you can still love your kids and do everything for them, which she does.

Jo, on the other hand, felt like a stereotypical male detective in the body of a woman. She’s super impulsive — she even does something super dumb nearly the end and gets called out for it —, lives for the job, is super strong physically, likes to defy authority and follow her gut. I think that’s why I couldn’t really connect with her. She has this whole backstory that makes her more open to Lauren's problem and that can explain why she is like she is, but I just couldn’t disconnect from this stereotypical idea I had of her. She felt like another typical detective I see on television every day.

Also, there’s some F/F representation but, to me, it was completely unnecessary. It doesn’t bring anything to the story, I didn’t connect to it at all, and it’s just there.

Overall, this is a pretty intriguing book to read. It keeps you on your toes, the writing is really well done and, although the characters aren’t my favorite, the plot makes up for it. This is a good thriller, especially if you’re feeling like reading something with a dash of supernatural.

Thank you Netgalley for the free copy of this book.

1.5 stars

This book is a mix of mystery and folklore. It’s quite different from anything I’ve read before. I’d expected more of a “creep factor” than I found. It fell flat for me overall. Perhaps I'm just not the target audience.

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy from NetGalley, but I wasn't required to leave a positive review.

I loved this book! A magically twisted story of a woman who fears her newborn twins have been abducted. It is not scary, but has some creepy elements, like a dark fairy tale. The author beautifully describes the exhausting and difficult days following childbirth, I found myself relating to the main character. This story makes you question what is real and what is fantasy. A page turner I didn’t want to end!

I loved the creativity in this book and how it all came together in the end. Very well paced and plotted.

A bit of mixed feelings about this book. Loved the story. The panic feelings of the mother where accurately portrayed and if you are a mother it is easy to place yourself in her shoes. The feeling of been exhausted all the time and a husband that isn't completely honest and rather two faced. This book was for me a page turner and the the reason I gave it a four instead of a five is because the end left me fustrated. Didn't feel it was completed unless you like reading books and create your own variations of endings but this one keeps you guessing on the final outcome. You like to see the husband gets what he deserves but he seems to keep on following his own agenda or maybe the wife is completely delusional.

I wanted to love this book, but it just wasn’t a love for me. While, chilling and thrilling, I felt it was lacking something to engage me, I did give up eventually, but wiki review differently if I am able to get into it.
Will also be using in a challenge to let chapter chatter pub know about its release!

Little Darlings sucked me in and never let me go. A creepy and disturbing fairy tale told in modern time? Yes please!
Only thing I didn’t like was a small subplot that I just ignored. Thank you netgalley for the chance to read this book early.

I loved the premise of Little Darlings. It’s just so creepy. As a mom myself, I can’t imagine the horror of waking in the middle of the night in the hospital to someone in the next bed who shouldn’t be there. And a swamp woman at that with two babies that are anything but human.

And I love the idea of a re-telling of a fable and translating it to modern day. For these reasons, I’m sad to say that although I loved everything I read about the book, I didn’t love the book quite as much.

Lauren is believable as a new mom in the book, although her relationship with her husband takes a bit of a 180 during the book and I wasn’t sure exactly how much of that played a role in the plot. Except maybe to show that she is completely along and close to nobody believes her when she thinks something is wrong with her new babies.

For me, the book started out slowly. I had to return to the book several times to really get into it. And even then I found my mind wandering a bit. I wanted to know more about the town underneath the river in town. I wanted to know more about the fable, and I wanted more of that in the story.

Anyways, this one has been getting amazing reviews, and got amazing blurbs from other authors. I appear to be in the minority of readers who didn’t love it. If it sounds up your alley, check it out!

Special thanks to Crooked Lane Books and Netgalley for an e-galley in exchange for my honest review. This one is out April 30, pre-order your copy! This review will be published on my blog, Women In Trouble Book Blog on March 30, 2019.

Lauren Tranter gives birth to twin boys. Everything seems to be going ok until she gets a creepy visit from a sinister woman trying to switch her twins for Laura's twins. Laura fights her off and calls 911. The whole incident is deemed to be a psychotic break. After Laura returns home, she can't forget this visit and refuses to go in public and fights sleep to make sure she can keep watch over her babies. After a month and finally deciding that she needs to get out more, she goes out for a walk. Her new attitude is cut short when she awakens to find her babies missing. Luckily they are returned almost immediately, but Laura knows these babies are not her. After being admitted to a psychiatric hospital, she fights to try to find a way to change her babies back.

* I received an advanced reader's copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

The synopsis for <i>Little Darlings</i> immediately struck something in me. I had to have it and I had to read it...immediately. Lauren Tranter has just had a traumatic, long, one hell of a birthing story fo her twin boys, Morgan and Riley. Immediately following their birth, she’s left alone for the night by her (in my opinion) good-for-nothing husband, Patrick and hears/meets a woman who she believes tries to abduct the boys. The police are phoned and the story begins to take a shape of its own.

We follow Lauren’s journey, which is similar to a Grimm’s Fairy Tale. Dark and twisty, the plot takes several turns and ends in a method that I didn’t quite expect. This pageturner will leave you guessing and a little frustrated at the end, as I found myself annoyed that some plot points were less explained than others.