Roz is pregnant and desperate to keep the fathers identity a secret from her best friend Dymphna. She cannot keep the baby and joins a website which will help her find her baby a new family. She cannot believe her luck when a celebrity couple show interest although she has no idea who they are. She travels to New York to find out more and signs a non disclosure agreement after which she goes to their home. Things suddenly change and she feels trapped and threatened. Nobody knows where she is and she has no communication with the outside world. How can she escape and protect her baby?
An entertaining thriller, a little extreme at times making it somewhat unbearable. Worth the read though.

Wow. This book was definitely more of a slow burn but once you get to the climax - WOW.

Roz is an Irish girl with little money to her name, living with her best friend. She decides to give up her baby so she can give it a life she had only dreamed of. In doing so she finds her in America, living with a famous couple and caught in an unspeakable situation.

The twists and the characters in this book had me shocked. Just when I thought I had things figured out there was another shock!

Definitely a slow burn but I really enjoyed this book.

Publisher's Description: She thought they wanted her baby. But they won’t stop there.

Roz is young, penniless and pregnant. All she wants is to be the perfect mother to her child, but the more she thinks about her own chaotic upbringing, the more certain she is that the best life for her baby is as far away as possible from her hometown in Ireland.

Determined to do the right thing, Roz joins an elite adoption service and can’t believe her luck. Within days she is jetting to New York to meet a celebrity power couple desperate for a child of their own. Sheridan and Daniel are wealthy and glamorous—everything Roz isn’t. Her baby will never go hungry, and will have every opportunity for the perfect life. But soon after Roz moves into their plush basement suite, she starts to suspect that something darker lurks beneath the glossy surface of their home.

When Roz discovers she isn’t the first person to move in with the couple, and that the previous woman has never been seen since, alarm bells start ringing. As the clock ticks down to her due date, Roz realises her unborn baby may be the only thing keeping her alive, and that despite her best intentions, she has walked them both into the perfect nightmare…

************
Caroline Mitchell will definitely be a new add to my favorite authors list! "The Perfect Mother" is perfectly dark and twisted, just the way I like it!! As a huge fan of police procedurals (think "Law & Order SVU," "Criminal Minds"), I find it easy to get engrossed in a book like this one. I can also totally see it as a movie similar to "The Hand That Rocks the Cradle" or "Fatal Attraction."

Roz is the perfect victim -- naive, easily impressed, and desperately looking for an easy way out. The old adage "if it seems too good to be true, it probably is" should have been pounded into her head because she falls for Sheridan's offer hook, line, and sinker...and pays the price. What she doesn't know is will she pay the ultimate price?

I will not give anything away here because I don't want to spoil the ending for anyone. A couple spoilers below to explain why 4 stars instead of 5. All in all, this was a great thriller that kept me reading and wanting to see if Roz would be able to get out of her mess!

***SPOILERS***

There are two reasons I knocked this down to 4 stars from 5. The first I'm hoping was cleaned up in the final version since this was an advance edition that I received. In the Prologue, Roz hears people coming down the lift to her basement suite and she's preparing herself to fight them off. When the book catches up to that point in the story, Roz is waiting to hear the lift but then realizes the man and woman came down some stairs instead. I was so confused that I actually went back to the Prologue to reread it to see if I missed something.

The second thing I don't like is that Sheridan's friend Monica, who is actually a journalist chasing a story, doesn't go to the police with her suspicions when she realizes that Roz is in Sheridan's house. She has long suspected that Sheridan had something to do with another girl's disappearance but she lets months go by and then crashes onto the scene to save the day? I just found it hard to believe that she would take the chance of waiting that long if she suspects that Roz will end up missing or dead.

Thanks to NetGalley and Amazon Publishing UK for a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

I would firstly like to thank Netgalley and the publishers for allowing me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

I completely DEVOURED this book in one seating! I just found the whole read just impossible to put down!
With brilliantly-written characters, a heartpoundingly spine-chilling plot, and a story that instantly draws you in and never lets go; this is a read that I definitely HIGHLY recommend!

The Perfect Mother is the latest book by Caroline Mitchell. I enjoyed the story, which is a psychological thriller that has some edge of the seat moments. But truth be told, I would have enjoyed it more without the first chapter. I do not care for books that give away some of the plot in the first chapter and actually is part of the later story. I want to thank Net Galley and Thomas & Mercer for a copy to review.

Loved the book. Easy read. Mystery, suspense and good characters. Kept me interested and couldn’t wait to finish.

Roz has found herself pregnant after a one night stand with someone she could never tell her best friend. Wanting the best for the unborn baby, she decides adoption is the best way to go to give the baby the life she never had.
Roz lucks out when a celebrity power-couple has made contact and wish to adopt the baby and offer Roz to live in their apartment until the baby is born.
However the celebrity couple have skeletons in their closet and they don't plan on letting Roz go.

Let me just say that this was a wild book from start to finish. The husband - I could not tell if I was on his side or if he was just creepy, The Wife - just plain psycho. The Ending - it was definitely a shock I did not see coming, it's an ending where I think most people either love it or hate it and I loved it because it was so bizarre it honestly makes me laugh.

I enjoyed the book although I thought it was slow to get going. I liked Roz and I liked her background, but I thought how she ended up in NYC was a bit contrived. I thought there was a lot of suspense but I wasn't sure how exactly the ending worked out for me. Still, I would read something else by the same author.

Roz, 24, shares a flat with her long time friend Dympra in Ireland. Roz was raised by an alcoholic single mother with whom she has little contact. She has little money and life is difficult for her. After a night of drinking, Roz finds herself pregnant and she cannot tell Dympra who the father is.

Roz knows she cannot keep her baby and wants the best future for it. She has found a site where wealthy people who want to adopt babies, share their backgrounds and photos. She will live with them and they will cover her expenses along with paying her a good sum when the baby is born.

Sheridan and Daniel are a wealthy and successful show business couple. Sheridan grew up as a child star so it is ingrained in her. They are the parents of Leo, age 4. They want another baby, preferable a little girl, but as Sheridan is 44-years-old they want to adopt.

Sheridan and Daniel put their profiles on the baby site and immediately they and Roz click. Roz agrees to go to New York and live with them. It’s the perfect scenario. What could go wrong?

What a tense book that keeps the reader's attention and compels them to keep turning those pages. I was taken by the incredible plot that the author crafted and the numerous characters that made up the story. This is a really good book and thriller readers especially will want to read it soon.

Copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

A one night stand has Rosalind Foley (Roz) to the Miracle-Moms site. An adoption site that connects pregnant women with couples wanting a baby.

Roz believes due to her situation that giving her baby up for adoption is the best outcome for all. The father is unknown to readers, but there are hints that Roz's best friend must never know.

Roz shares an apartment with her best friend, Dympna. Roz had a rough childhood raised by a single alcoholic mother. When Roz realizes that she is pregnant, she wants her child to not live the way she grew up.

When Roz gets a response from a diamond couple, she is thrilled. Diamond couples are vetted to be in a stable long term relationship and wealthy. When Roz is offered the chance to go to America to meet the couple, she doesn't hesitate. Dympna is not happy with Roz's jumping on board and going alone, so quickly, and gives her a phone telling Roz to call her any time.

Roz lands in New York, and taken to a luxurious hotel. There she meets George, the PA, who does a quick makeover and gives her a few heads up. It is through George that Roz learns the identity of the diamond couple, Sheridan Sinclair and Daniel Watson, famous celebrities.

Following Roz signing a contract to allow Sheridan and Daniel to adopt her baby, she is shown to her quarters in the basement. She finds all the comforts, but there are no windows, no utensils, and no glass mirrors. Roz is given a strict schedule to adhere to, and she is chaperoned when she goes out.

Roz soon sees a dark side of Sheridan, whose personality can change on a moments notice. She starts to realize that things aren't quite what she envisioned them to be, and when she makes the choice to use the phone hidden in her luggage to call her friend and tell her where she is and with whom; the phone cuts off. Roz leads Sheridan and Daniel to believe that she has no one to turn to in her life; knowing her message was not delivered, Roz does feel all alone.

This was an amazing read! There is a back story of Sheridan, where you feel sorry for the little girl growing up under such a demanding mother, but her dark side is terrifying! Sheridan is used to getting her own way. Daniel comes across as kind, often sneaking goodies to Roz. When Daniel is around, Roz feels safer. She wants to believe that Daniel is unable to see Sheridan's dark side, and Roz starts to appeal to him to be an ally. Readers are left wondering who the father of Roz's baby is, then going with an assumption by Dympna to an unexpected twist in the end.

I received an ARC from NetGalley via Amazon Publishing UK and I have voluntarily reviewed this book.

This book was a rollercoaster ride and had me on the edge of my seat from the first page all the way to the end. I literally didn't have it figured out until the last few chapters. I kept changing my mind as to who was the good guy and the bad guy. It was very well written and I loved the different character point of view. I enjoy being able to see what the different people are thinking in the same situation. I got this from Netgalley for an honest review and I think it was the best book I've read so far this year. I can't wait to see if she has other books for me to dive into. Definitely worth more than just 5 stars

5☆ A Taut, Unsettling, Gripping Psychological Thriller that was simply Unputdownable!

Wow what a thoroughly gripping and unsettling psychological thriller. One I'll be remembering for a very long time!

Just the opening prologue alone had me completely absorbed!

Roz has just found out she's pregnant. With no job and no money to pay her best friend rent money and revealing the father's identity would create chaos.
She takes desperate measures and seeks out a way to give her baby up for adoption and the best possible life.

Roz comes across Miracle-Moms website offering discreet and all expense paid adoptions.

Sheridan and Daniel are Hollywood stars. After some bad press Sheridan is determined to up their social popularity again and what better way than with another child.
So she signs them up with Miracle-Moms and finds Roz.

Things move extremely quickly and Roz flies to New York to meet them.
Everything is extremely Cloak and Dagger even down to their identity till she signs disclosure forms.
Moving Roz into the basement for the foreseeable pregnancy it's here she stays, no contact with the outside world unless Sheridan Says so!
But things are not quiet what they seem.
Sheridan is heartless, manipulative, calculating, has a very dark side, she's cold and only cares about fame and fortune.

Has Roz just made the worst decision of her life? Is Roz and her baby truly safe?

I felt compassion for Roz, her naivety and vulnerability shone through, she was only trying to do right for her baby.
Sheridan made me skin crawl, she was manipulative and power mad. But you can't help loving to hate these types of characters they make for a fantastically intense and believable read!

I absolutely loved, loved, loved, The Perfect Mother, it was unsettling, chilling, dark, secretive, so many juicy twists, It had me turning the pages till the early hours.
The story is told by several points of view which really worked especially as the tension ramps up.
The Characters are Perfectly Written and evoked the right emotions you expect from this genre.

So if you adore Taut Psychological Thrillers that will keep you up all night and a little unsettled then you have to read The Perfect Mother!
I would Love to see this book turned into a film, it would be brilliant! 

Thank you to Book On The Bright Side Tours and Amazon Publishing UK for this copy which I reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

Oh the trials of celebrity life. In The Perfect Mother, a seemingly perfect couple is looking to extend their perfect life with the addition of another baby. Enter Roz a newly pregnant Irish lass who finds herself in the family way and determines adoption is the best future for her unborn child. Roz finds a website where young women are matched with couples looking for babies and willing to underwrite all expenses up to and including birth. Having picked a “diamond” couple she’s sees only good things for her unborn child. The money carrot and a trip to New York finds Roz face to face with the All American number one celebrity couple. Fortunate for the reader all is not as rosy as it seems. Roz finds herself a virtual prisoner complete with a detailed regimen, all with the babies welfare in mind. Sheridan and Daniel Watson have maintained a slick veneer to the public,with Sheridan going to extremes to keep their image pristine. It takes the dogged loyalty of a lifelong friend and a secret code word to deliver our young mother from the bowels of the Watson fortress. Happy reading

Although at tones far fetched and not always believable , this book will have you hooked with interesting characters and a celebrity world storyline , keeps you guessing until the end .

Really enjoyed it loved the story line it was so exciting and the characters were brilliant I felt so sorry for Roz what a mess she was in, which made her desperate to make it right with deadly consequences. It was so well written just couldn’t put it down couldn’t wait until the next chapter. It had a very unexpected turn at the end which I would never have guessed highly recommend it.

Roz is pregnant and decides that the best thing for her baby would be adoption. She joins an online site which offers only wealthy potential adoptive parents and Roz is delighted when she gets a response. She is to travel to New York from Ireland and everything will be paid for. Her baby will never want for anything. Roz is sworn to secrecy as the couple are celebrities. She arrives in New York and cannot believe her luck, but then something tells Roz that all is not right and what at first seems like a dream turns into a nightmare.
I enjoyed this book - it flowed and the characters came alive for me. A great psychological thriller.

This book addresses a topic that a lot of people just gloss over; unplanned pregnancy. A young woman can find herself in a heap load of trouble with an unplanned pregnancy, no matter what your age or financial status is. What do you do....adoption....abortion....keep the baby no matter what your circumstances are. It's a hard decision for anyone, especially when the father is someone you shouldn't have been with in the first place.
This story follows Roz, who is a young woman in her early 20's, who gets pregnant and decides to give her baby up for adoption. It's a hard decision, but she knows she wants her baby to have a good future, with two loving parents, and any financial support they need. She goes onto an adoption website, and is accosted by a celebrity couple her promise to fly her to NYC and pay all her expenses, on top of basically "buying" her baby to pass off as her own. To Roz this is a dream come true, although her sceptical best friend, Dymphna, is not so sure.
Roz goes along with it and agrees togive the baby up, and is flown to NYC. She doesn't realize it at the time, but she has n idea what she's in for. All she wants for her babyis the perfect family, with the perfect mother.

Thanks Netgalley and the Publisher. I read this in one sitting whilst I was off unwell and so glad I did it stopped me from feeling sorry for myself. I really enjoyed this book and would recommend to others

First, I want to thank Caroline Mitchell, BOTBSpublicity and NetGalley for providing me with this book so I may bring you this review.

I absolutely fell head over heals in love with Caroline Mitchell’s The Perfect Mother. This movie read literally like a Lifetime Channel movie that I would be glued to the set for!! I was just blown away by the storylines in the book that just fascinating! This was a book that I was meant to read.

Right off the bat Caroline totally sucked me in to the story. I have always said if you can hook me right away and keep me there-you are a talented writer!! Let me tell you Caroline is a goddess in this genere!! She needs to write more books like this and I need to read more like her!

Anyone who knows me knows I am obsessed with pop culture and all things celebrity. That being said I loved the celebrity spin on the adoption story. I would have acted the same way Roz did when meeting the couple.
There was a name used for a character that I have never heard or read before. I thought it was totally different and unique. I also wanted to know the correct pronunciation as I don’t know if I was saying it correctly in my head.

There were some moments in this book when I laughed out loud. I thought many parts were funny. I also thought parts were creepy.

The book also touches on mother and daughter relationships. That part of the story I felt was sad and felt bad for each daughter.

I was not a fan of animal cruelty that was mentioned in the book.

Every woman who has children wants to be the perfect mother and wants their child to have the perfect mother. In this book, Roz feels that as an unwed female who finds herself pregnant, without a job, not wanting to involve the father., and no parental support of her own...she is certain she will not be that person and wants to find her baby the perfect mother. On-line adoption is her go-to option and she finds herself traveling from Ireland to New York to a high-profile couple who want to have her baby, offering her an expense paid pregnancy living with them until the birth. But soon all the warning bells go off in her brain as she becomes more acquainted with Daniel and Sheridan...the would-be parents. And she is correct to be concerned as things go from bad to worse for her. Her only hope is her friend back in Ireland.. only if she can get a message to her. There is suspense as her fear grows and the activities in the house become more threatening. Is there anyone she can trust? Who is telling the truth? Who is leaving her magazines with stories about Daniel and Sheridan? Following the story through the end with the characters involved keeps the reader guessing...and hoping for a good ending for Roz and her baby. The author has a good book here with a topic that touches the heartstrings . Thanks to NetGalley and Amazon PublishingUK for the opportunity to read the ARC of this book in return for an honest review, which this has been. #NetGalley. #ThePerectMother