Wow. I really enjoyed this book. Like, a lot. But I have to say first – this is being marketed as a mystery/thriller, but I wouldn’t describe it that way at all. To me, it’s more of a domestic drama with a mystery/suspense aspect. It is a page turner, though, and will definitely have you hooked from the beginning.

There are some trigger warnings that I’d like to mention straight away. Child abuse, self harm, substance abuse, postpartum depression and other mental illnesses are major themes throughout the book. I would strongly suggest skipping this one if any of this content is difficult for you to read.

This book takes postpartum depression/postpartum anxiety and completely nails it. After my first baby, I had PPD. It is such a difficult topic and those feelings are hard for many new mothers to admit too. I was so afraid to verbalize my feelings about my baby because I felt like it was wrong, that I was somehow broken. The character of Jess and the way she was with her youngest captured those same feelings perfectly. This story was a bit tough to read because of all of the emotions involved, but it gives such a realness to that raw emotion and shines a light on something that many women/mothers don’t like to talk about.

I think it’s also important to add that those closest to Jess knew that there was something off after she had her daughter, but no one ever said anything. Not to one another, and not to Jess. It was a lot to unpack and sometimes I hated the other characters for not stepping in, but at the same time I felt that they probably assumed they’d be overstepping or that Jess would reach out if she truly needed help. I can’t say for sure before reading this book whether or not I’d have stepped in if I felt someone I was close to was suffering from PPD/PPA. After reading this, though, I always will.

This book was full of secrets, betrayal, friendship, and love. I liked the alternating points of view between Jess and Liz (Jess’s best friend and the doctor who treats her daughter). The realness and rawness of the topic brought a lot of feelings to the surface and I found myself feeling a lot of anger, sadness, and pity throughout the story. I really felt that Jess’s husband could have done more for her. He seemed to ignore a lot of the issues in favor of keeping his life as normal as possible for himself.

Overall, I was very impressed with this book and Vaughan’s ability to bring to light some major mental health issues that are not much talked about. This was a heavy read but I highly recommend it if you can get through the triggers.

I would like to thank the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a free electronic copy of Little Disasters. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

(I will be reviewing on my blog, instagram, Amazon, and Goodreads. Will post those links when they are live.)

This book was fast paced and one that peaked my interest from the beginning. It is a story about finding the truth while hitting on major topics such as the love of a mother and post-partum. The story is told through mainly four different characters with present day and flash back stories. The book was extremely well written and the characters were very developed.

While I enjoyed the story and the real ness of the issues presented, I found myself skimming pages and feeling as though the story lines were dragging. The book had a few little twists I wasn’t expecting that just goes to show- everything is not always as it seems

This was a difficult book to get through, mostly because I just couldn't relate to any of the characters. I don't have kids, so I didn't really get the difficulty they were having with their kids. I was surprised by the twist, but still didn't see everything at the end being perfectly fine - everyone seemed happy and 'back to normal' in a weirdly unrealistic way. This didn't feel like much of a mystery; it was more of family drama and how mother's deal with difficult children and whether it's right or wrong.

A tough situation for a friend to be in is what I thought when first reading this book.
Liz is a doctor at a hospital working in ER when a good friend comes in with her child
Suspicion arises when the injuries don't match the story that is given. Social services are called to investigate to find out what happened.
Motherhood is stressful as it is and this mom tries harder than most to be a good mother.
This wasn't so much a thriller as a mystery.

I give this 3 stars
Good book

Little Disasters is a very compelling and thought provoking family drama that hooks you from the very start.

We begin with Liz, a lead pediatrician at the hospital, working the night shift when her friend Jess's daughter Betsey is admitted for a head injury with an explanation that doesn't add up. Liz is forced to get child services involved, despite her judgment that Jess would never do anything to harm her child.

Following the lives of Liz, Jess, and their respective families and friends, we begin to draw parallels to events from Liz's childhood and issues with her own mother that shaped her future.

The gut wrenching portrayal of postpartum depression seems well researched, and is a topic that needs to be discussed and no longer pushed into the shadows as a taboo.

This book will have you asking how well you really know your friends, while encouraging you to be a lifeline for someone in your life who may be too afraid to reach out and ask for help.

“Motherhood is a choice you make every day, to put someone else’s happiness and well-being ahead of your own. To teach the hard lessons, to do the right thing, even when you’re not sure what the right thing is…And to forgive yourself over and over again for doing everything wrong.”

This is my first novel from Sarah Vaughn and I was truly impressed.

I loved the writing style of this book. Incorporated are both multiple points of view and multiple timelines. What I appreciated most about the style was that I was never lost navigating those changes. Each chapter in present time perfectly introduced the flashback at the end, making it easy to follow.

I'm not exactly sure how to classify the book, but I think a psychological family drama might be best for me. There is a mystery involved, but the thrill level is slow burn.

Despite not having children, I found most of the characters immensely relatable. I may not understand postpartum depression, postnatal anxiety, or maternal OCD personally, but I can relate to mental health issues in general. The depth of themes was incredible. Readers are introduced to complex levels of guilt and forgiveness across multiple generations. Relationships between parents/children, spouses and mother friends are all tested when a tragic event happens to a child.

I think the severity of the mental health issues makes this a tough read at times. I was emotional reading this novel at multiple points due to the intense triggers - child harm, self harm, substance abuse, etc. - so be warned that this is heavy.

Overall, I enjoyed the intense emotional journey I experienced with this book. Little Disasters will be released on Aug 18th!

Thank you to Atria/Emily Bestler Books via NetGalley for providing a digital ARC of Little Disasters by Sarah Vaughan for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

Little Disasters by Sarah Vaughan is a slow paced mystery/thriller about two friends Liz and Jess who are mothers. This novel revolves mostly around motherhood and the plot is predictable. The point of view and timeline switches around quite often which I felt wasn’t necessary. I really enjoy reading mysteries and thrillers but this one didn’t work for me. I’ve heard her other book Anatomy of a Scandal is better.

Little Disasters by Sarah Vaughan follows a stay-at-home mother-of-three after the birth of her latest child. When her daughter is inexplicably injured, questions arise about the cause of it. Was it negligence? Abuse? Some other reason?

This was a really eye opening book. Distinguishing itself from some other thrillers I've read lately, I felt really content at the end of it because I truly felt like I had learned something. It explores some important issues in motherhood while keeping a traditional thriller tone...This was such a fantastic book and it only gets better the deeper into the book you get!

Little Disasters by Sarah Vaughan | review.

Genre: Mystery Thriller.

Rating: Four stars.

This book is heavy and thought-provoking and complex.

Jess is the perfect stay-at-home mom. She has three kids and endless reserves of patience, energy and love… And then one night she arrives at the ER with her badly injured baby. When her story and the injuries don’t line up, social services and the police are soon called in.

I wouldn’t really call this book a thriller. There is a tad bit of mystery surrounding how young Betsy is injured, but most of this book focuses on the struggles of motherhood. The author did an amazing job describing how tough it is to parent tiny children. Seriously, I had a few flashbacks to late nights with my own inconsolable newborn.

This book is perfect for mothers and those wanting to understand postnatal depression and anxiety. It takes a very real look at motherhood and the heartbreaking situations facing many families.

All in all, I enjoyed this one and will read more books by Sarah Vaughan in the future.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books/Emily Bestler Books for sharing this fantastic ARC in exchange my honest review.

This book just wasn't my cup of tea. I found myself skimming through parts and skimmed and read the ending. I received an advanced readers copy and all opinions are my own.

Told through multiple points of view this story unfolds to reveal a look at motherhood that is uncomfortable but relatable and thought provoking. The author is able to weave important themes of parenting, perfectionism, postnatal depression and friendship throughout her tightly crafted plot. The characters and dynamics of their friendships were compelling and interesting and felt very accurate in the way they were written. It leaned more on the contemporary side of the psychological thriller genre for me and really highlighted the strains of motherhood and the rewards found in forgiveness. Through Jess and her depression we feel the silent struggle so many women face after having children. Her unrealistic demands of herself and feelings of incompetence paired with the lacking marital support and isolation painted such a real scenario it was hard to ignore the impact this story had. Liz’s perspective really rounded out the story with her own experiences as a child and tackled a different look at all of the themes that I appreciated. The way it addressed the common misconception that all women are born for motherhood naturally and the judgement that comes when it is met with difficulty was something I was grateful for the difficulties of parenting shouldn't be something met with shame. It’s not a fast paced action packed story but rather one of the complicated psychology of motherhood slowly unfolded in a way that reminds us to be more generous in our ideas of what mothering looks like.

Loved this book. Intriguing and suspenseful. A must read! Perfect for a day at the beach! Sarah Vaughan is a talented writer.

3 stars for me.

What a hard situation it must have been to work in a hospital and have your friend come in with her baby and finding head trauma. How do you carefully navigate that situation without upsetting your friend, but also without letting the child down?

This was good and a very interesting story. Sometimes I find it hard to engage with the different writing styles between authors. I really enjoyed this, but it did take me a while to get through. It wasn't one of those books that I can read in one sitting, but I finished it and I'm glad I did. I would recommend this book to my friends.

Note before starting: when I first saw this, it was being billed as a psychological thriller. It doesn't fall into that category at all. This is more of a non-genre drama with a hint of mystery thrown in.

Liz is a pediatrician working in the ED (that's the ER, for US readers) when her friend Jess arrives with her 10-month old, who she says has been vomiting. After tests are run, it's clear the child has a skull injury. Liz has some reservations about the story Jess is telling, and Jess is acting suspiciously. Something doesn't add up, but Liz rightfully recuses herself from further examination and treatment.

What follows is a story told both in the present and the past, revolving around four women who took a childbirth class at the same time. Liz and Jess are the primary focus, and what we mostly see are glimpses into the lives of the career working woman Liz, and the stay at home, but clearly suffering from postpartum depression, Jess.

As the story winds on, and the authorities and Liz try to puzzle out what really happened, and whether Jess (or Ed, her husband) beat the child or whether it could be just a serious accident, Liz maintains Jess would never hurt her child, but others are not quite so sure.

The ending is one I found completely unexpected but also completely unrealistic, and quite frankly, I felt cheated by it. I'm just not a fan of a bad guy who shows up completely out of nowhere, either because they've not been introduced or because they have been introduced, but their actions in the narrative never hint at their actions in the end.

More forgiving readers than I will not mind this. As for me, it takes my rating to 2.5 stars, rounded down to 2.

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria for the reading copy.

Mothers have a biological imperative to nurture their offspring. In humans, this generally amounts to providing food, clothing, shelter, and a safe and loving home. On occasion, however, things go wrong, and mothers think of harming their children. In this book we meet an array of mothers, some more capable than others.

Liz, Jess, Charlotte, and Mel met in prenatal group ten years ago, when each woman was expecting her first child. The mothers remained friends ever since, though life's responsibilities - and growing families - limited their social interactions.

Liz is now a senior registrar (doctor) in pediatrics at St. Joseph's Hospital in West London. One Friday night Liz is called down to the ER when a ten-month-old baby is brought in. According to the intake notes the infant is nonmobile, irritable, drowsy, tearful, and has vomited. A glance at the child's name, Betsey Curtis, shocks Liz. This is her friend Jess's baby!

Jess, in turn, is relieved to see Liz. She exclaims, "Oh, thank god it's you. I didn't think we should come, but Ed was adamant. It's so unlike him to worry, it panicked me into bringing her in."

It turns out baby Betsey has a fractured skull, and Jess's only explanation is that Betsey was trying to pull herself up on the refrigerator and fell. Jess suggests this must have caused the injury, which she hadn't noticed before bringing the baby to the ER. Moreover Jess is acting squirrely, and seems to be holding something back.

Liz can't allow herself to think her friend Jess purposely harmed Betsey, but knows she has to report the incident to her superior, Dr. Neil Cockerill. Cockerill INSISTS Liz call social services and then removes Liz from the case, as hospital protocol dictates.

A brouhaha ensues. Little Betsey is admitted to the hospital; the police question Liz and her husband Ed; forensic experts examine the couple's home; a social worker speaks to the couple's two older sons; neighbors and local shop owners are interviewed; and so on.

The upshot is that Jess is suspected of harming her child, and a social worker, Lucy Stone, is assigned to oversee Jess's interactions with Betsey. Moreover, Jess's sister Martha is asked to stay at the Curtis home, to watch over Jess and Ed's boys, until the case is resolved one way or another.

Liz KNOWS she did the right thing calling social services, but still feels guilty about ensnaring Jess in this predicament. Jess always seemed to be the perfect mother. She took excellent care of her children; kept an immaculate home; prepared delicious meals; and kept up her appearance. On top of that, Jess did all this with minimal help from her hard-working husband Ed, who was strictly a 'take kids to sports' dad.

Though Liz has faith in Jess, she knows from experience that some women aren't good mothers. Liz has memories of her own troubled, hard-drinking mother, whose neglect caused a terrible injury to her brother. Liz also has vague memories of seeing something happen to a baby when she was a toddler.

The story, which is told from the alternating points of view of Liz and Jess (and occasionally other people), jumps around all over the place: from Liz having memories of her childhood; to the prenatal class where Liz, Jess, Charlotte, and Mel met; to a recent barbecue for the women and their families; to the police questioning Jess and Ed; to Jess giving birth to Betsey; to Liz dealing with her mother's ongoing drunken bouts; to things that happened in Jess and Ed's house; to Ed being concerned about his wife; to Jess worrying about her baby; and more. This type of disjointed narrative seems to be very popular these days, and it's a bit hard to follow in this book.

The novel is too long, with sections that don't move the story forward. That said, it's a compelling narrative about motherhood - a hard job made easier with support from the father, family, and friends. Even so, some women aren't up to the task - temporarily or permanently - because of stress, anxiety, fatigue, frustration, post-partum depression, mental illness, or other nebulous factors.

The novel is billed as a psychological thriller, but it's more of a domestic drama with a suspenseful thread. Several characters are keeping secrets, and I was curious to find out what these were. The astute reader will probably guess some, while others will be more elusive. One part of the book stretches suspension of disbelief to the breaking point, and should have been left out (in my opinion).

Overall I thought this was an average suspense novel with a good message about giving mothers the assistance they require.

Thanks to Netgalley, the author (Sarah Vaughn), and the publisher (Atria/Emily Bestler Books) for a copy of the book.

This book wasn’t what I thought it was going to be at all. I started the book thinking I was going to be reading a thriller and was instead caught up in the life of an overworked, highly stressed mother who is just trying to do her best and get through her day. I rooted for and sympathized with Jess as the enormity of motherhood weighed on her, pushing her closer and closer to disaster. This novel takes a very real look at motherhood and addresses some very real and very serious issues. The book was well-paced and the ending was great. Would definitely recommend.

Little Disasters was more of a drama/thriller than mystery. While reading I was waiting for a shoe to drop and for the mystery to arrive but once I figured the shoes were staying on I stopped trying to see it coming.

Now this is a story that dealing with almost everything around motherhood. Especially the beginning stages so Postpartum, stress of motherhood and trying to protect your babies. Also touches on mom shaming and how fast a friend can turn when help and support is needed. The other side of this story is how far will one to protect a child...... leaving that right there to let it marinate.

I really did enjoy this book and would recommend it!

I would like to thank the author, publisher and Net Galley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I think this book has been mislabeled for genre. It's not really a mystery or a thriller. It is a domestic book, a drama, but not a mystery or suspense. There is a little feeling of 'what will happen next' and it has a very serious story to tell. But it's not a mystery. I think that confused me a bit when I was reading it - I expected a mystery. That the baby was switched at birth or it would be kidnapped - but that's not the case.

This is the story of motherhood. Lots like to declare how easy it must be to be a stay at home mom and so on. But the story behind the title is a lot more stressful. This is the story of motherhood underneath the popular suspicion.

I would recommend this book to people who like drama, who enjoy serious topics and family drama stories. But don't start this book expecting a mystery or a thriller.

Thank you #netgalley and #atriabooks for approving me to read and review this book.

The book is about a doctor, who gets suspicious when her friend brings her baby into the hospital with a head injury, as she thinks there is more to it, and then the story goes on to reveal what has happened.

I gave this book 🌟🌟💫 as it was not really what I was expecting. The story line was quite good but it wasn’t really twisty and it just kind of plodded along, I felt I was constantly waiting for more to happen and when I got to the end I wasn’t really blown away by the ending. A good story but feel like a lot more could have been done with it.

Little Disasters was a wonderful read. Although it was incredibly heart-wrenching, the storyline flowed so gently, making it easy for this reader to come along for the ride.

Thank you so much for the opportunity to read this book! A more comprehensive review will be posted on social media closer to the date of release.