Forewarning: if you had a traumatic pregnancy, or are unable to read about any sort of violence toward children, then I would avoid this book. Now, I’m not saying anyone is going to enjoy reading about violence – or the idea of violence – toward children, but I know that’s a personal trigger for some more than others.

Little Disasters was an interesting look about mental health, especially post-partum mental health, and how it’s not always obvious to people. The book follows a few different perspectives throughout, but it’s mostly friends Jess and Liz. Jess had a third child, and she’s not coping well, but all her friends see her as the perfect mom. Liz hasn’t been around as much with this third kid, Betsey, so she assumes Jess is doing okay, until she shows up at the hospital with her baby – who has a battered skull and a non-believable story. This book definitely has some mystery to it as it’s not entirely obvious what actually happened to Betsey or who the real threat is in the situation. I gave this one 4 stars on Goodreads, but it was more of a 3.5 for me.

I adored Anatomy of a Scandal and just had to read this one. Was not disappointed. Sarah Vaughn is an artist!

Where do I start with this one? I was immediately invested in the characters. Liz, Jess, Charlotte, and Mel were real. This book was so real. It talked about the effects of postpartum depression, extreme postnatal anxiety, maternal OCD, and the changes that come with motherhood. As well as the fact that most women live quietly with these conditions undiagnosed.

What I took from this book: the importance of prioritizing your mental health. If you’re feeling overwhelmed for any reason, or in any situation, it is ok to ask for help. Surround yourself with a support system. You’re not going to be able to be there for others if you’re not okay.

All mothers experience some sort of doubt and fear with caring for a newborn. Jess is experiencing the extreme version of this. She can't stop imagining something happening to her little one, and is obsessed with stopping her worse case scenarios. On top of that, the intense crys of colic kneed into her nerves. Just walk away and come back when you're composed, they all say. Just walk away.
Betsey has an accident. She is rushed to the hospital, where doctors fine questionable injuries. Jess is accused of abuse and an inquest has begun. Now everyone doubts her, not just herself. Should she have just walked away when she was scared of her self?

So many emotions in this book! Every mother can relate to Jess's character. We all fear for our child's safety and wonder if we ever do enough to keep the alive and healthy. I will admit i didn't sleep for the first 3 years of my sons life, fearing that someone was going to steal him in the night. But I got help, and admitted my anxiety and went to a doctor. There are so many women who hide their Postpartum Depression/ Anxiety, and let it consume them. Jess chose to pretend nothing was wrong, and in the end her child suffered for it.

The friendships and support offered to Jess are the main meat of this book. I was caught up in the anguish that Liz felt when she knew wasnt there enough for her. Jess's own husband and older children could tell there was something wrong, showing the effects the Postpartum has on the family. All the signs were there, screaming that she needed help! I wanted to hug them all and cry with them.

Little Disasters is the perfect domestic thriller. It was immediately gripping and continued to shock me with every chapter. Just when you thought you figured it out, a surprise waits for you on the next page.

Liz, Jess, Mel, and Charlotte have been friends for 10 years after meeting at their prenatal birthing class. Seemingly a close-knit and supportive friendship, they’ve weathered husbands and childrearing together. Liz, a pediatrician, is floored when responding to an ER visit, finds the 10-month old baby of her best friend Liz with an unexplained severe head injury.
Throughout this tense family drama, as baby Betsey fights for her life in ICU, these four women learn more than they ever imagined about the private lives and personal hells each must face.
Delving into a topic many people avoid, author Sarah Vaughan pulls the curtain back on postpartum depression, colicky babies, intense public perceptions and expectations of parenting in today’s society, and the resulting slippery slope of a mental breakdown from these pressures.
As Liz tries to honor her oath as a doctor, she is torn by her role in removing Betsey from her home while the investigation slowly drags on. Jess is obviously struggling with a series of bad choices, but is she truly capable of what the authorities expect, taking her frustrations out on her children? As Ms. Vaughan pulls back layer upon layer of thoughts and actions of these four women, sometimes we have to face not all “friends” have our best interests at heart.
A bit slow at times but still captivating enough that I easily stuck with it to the final page; “Little Disasters” is a quick read that pulls at your heartstrings.
(I received an advance copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review. Thank you to Atria and NetGalley for making it available.)

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. I went into this book thinking it was a thriller, but it is more of a drama centered around being a mother, mental illness, postpartum illnesses and child abuse. Certainly if you are sensitive to any of those areas, then a trigger warning is warranted. The author does a nice job of pulling you into the story and wanting to know what happened to Baby Betsey, but I felt like I had been reading for quite some time and wasn’t even halfway done yet and wasn’t sure what else the author could put into the story to wrap it up. There is a twist at the end which is somewhat unbelievable. I think having children would help the reader to relate more to this story or feel more invested as it relates a lot to being a parent and the parent / child relationship.

Friends for sometime, with a common thread of young children amongst them, they meet up for play dates, at the school gates, for a coffee on a casual basis but the relationship builds slowly and you think you know them.

Mothers and their relationships with their children are a secret group here. No one can fathom how the other will react in a certain scenario, though you think you know each one. The calm, collected stay at home mother, meticulous about schedules, hygiene, method. The career mother who is trying to balance double and triple lives and hoping it will all work out well. The careless, couldnt care less mother who actually abuses her children but for the solidarity of her children who do not rat on her, carries her secret with her after causing untold anguish to her offspring.

This was a telling, an emotional read for all women. For whatever reason who cannot express their feelings, their inadequacies and when an incident as what happened here does occur, goes on a trip of one lie covering another and another till it becomes a web of deceit leading to untold misery for all.

A very good read, characterization of different women portraying modern day mothers very well done. Holds your interest throughout.

A quick fast-paced mystery/thriller that made me want to keep reading to find out what was going to happen next.

I found Little Disasters to be an average read. It starts off strong in that it kept my curiosity, but quickly turned into a run of the mill Fictional story of women and children. I did not find the suspense to be too intriguing. The two relevant plot twists toward the end of the book were done well, but not surprising.

Liz is a paediatric doctor and one night her friend bring in her 10 month old child with a head injury and a dodgy story. How did little Betsey injure her head, why does Jess’s story not match up, why did it take her so long to come into the ER with a poorly baby?

I really liked up the premise of this book but I was not a fan of the execution. The book could of been done in about half the time, but it was drawn on for a terribly long time for no reason. There was so much back and forth between years to give us a teeny tiny look on something that was once said in passing that may or may not have something to do with what happened to Baby Betsey. Lots of narratives, lots of time changes, and an incomplete back story of Liz’s childhood which was totally unnecessary. His book did not do it for me at all.

Little Disasters by Sarah Vaughan is an amazing family drama and women’s fiction book, that is thought provoking, about the nuances and complexities of motherhood. The novel explores the sacrifices and lengths a mother will go, to protect our children at all cost.

The writing was well researched. From the roles of physicians, the pediatric residents, social workers and the intricate details of the process of when a suspected abuse is reported, Vaughan wrote it well.

The story was told in the multiple point of views with flashbacks from the past, when the main characters first met when they were both just starting out with their families. This was a heavy read and at times found myself needing a break from reading this subject matter.

I find that the writing was incredibly realistic and so well done. I enjoyed reading this and recommend it.

Little Disasters is a thought provoking book that kept me intrigued all the way through. It's a novel that questions motherhood, friendship, marriage and the nuances of what is right or wrong. Solidly paced to hold the interest the novel raises a lot of questions that I really needed answers to...hence reading over a few hours.

Tackling the seriousness of post-partum depression and the impact on being a mother with a newborn. If anyone has birthed children you can very much relate to the difficulties and realism of just how stressful it can be. It's not always like it is in the movies right? The novel keeps you asking just how far a mother has gone in one of those times of not coping and total frustration.

It's hard to do a review that doesn't spoil the plot for you so I won't go into that at all. The characters are brilliantly done, I related to them all and felt the author had really done her research on the issues well. The pace is good and solid and the journey and final ending were really good. I really enjoyed this book a lot and really recommend it. I would highly recommend especially for book groups as this will no doubt raise a lot of mixed opinions and good discussion. A great novel from Sarah Vaughan.

Most enjoyable for the writing style breezy pace and the reveal in the last chapter. Since not a mom it’s hard to relate to the story yet the day to day life seems real or at least easy to imagine and universal in its economic class which I could appreciate.. Interesting at least that the subject of post baby depression is having a moment. more than three stars less than four given that publishing seems on hold.

Little Disasters was a lot heavier than I expected it to be. Vaughan focused on motherhood, post part issues, mental health and life balance. While it was hard to understand what Liz or Jess were going through as mothers, but it was easier to connect to the work/life balance, maintaining friendships (both within work and outside of work) as well as keeping a focus on your marriage. You were able to see very quickly that Jess was struggling with post part issues and some obsessive compulsive behaviors so as her chapters went on, while important to the story line, they began to feel redundant. What actually happened on the day everything spiraled out of control, was not something I could have ever predicted. It certainly made you think about how far you'd go to protect your loved ones, what asking someone to keep a secret, or lie for you, can do to them and how you might not really know someone. This book certainly has trigger warnings and it might be good to know it's a heavier book when you pick it up.

Liz's friend Jess brings her baby to the ER. A thought provoking book of how well do you know someone, Did Jess hurt her baby? Should Liz be more concerned?

While billed as a thriller, this is more of a slow burn suspense book.

4.75 out of 5 stars

Thank you to Netgalley and Atria/Emily Bestler Books for allowing me to read this novel in exchange for an honest review.

You are working in the ER one night, you are tired and then a baby shows up in the ER and you begin to suspect that something bad happened to this baby. What if your friend is the baby's Mother? What do you do? What do you think? This happens to Liz one night and it will change the way she thinks about her friend Jess but it also makes her begin to question herself.

This is a well written, thought provoking novel that really makes you look at the story from different angles. I definitely couldn't put this down after I started it. I would suggest picking this up.

This book had me on the edge of my seat. I kept saying only one more page and finding myself still reading hours later! Definitely encompassed the page-turner, thriller vibe while maintaining a great storyline.

I liked this book more than I expected to. It was twisty and interesting and the story of how the baby got hurt was intriguing. There were so many different possibilities and so many people were involved in the story because they were such a tight group of moms who were close, but not necessarily friends.

I really liked Liz, but I didn't necessarily like the other moms.

I had a hard time having to stop reading this one whenever i needed to get something done. This book was very well written and handled some real life struggles of motherhood. It wasn't always the easiest to read in some parts but it felt real and raw.

UNPOPULAR OPINION

Little Disasters tells the story of Jess and her baby, Betsy. Betsy is brought to the hospital with a head fracture and Jess is being sketchy. What really happened to Betsy?

I am going to be honest. This book was too many pages. The pacing was so off and it went entirely too slow to be classified as a thriller. There was a very specific story line that was introduced at the end that felt rushed and unnecessary. The twist was slightly predictable and fell flat. Really, my expectations were just too high. This was a solid 3 star because the writing was good and the story is good if you go in thinking its a domestic drama/ mystery. Definitely read and decide for yourself but, for me, it fell short of my expectations.