The Stepdaughter by Georgina Cross is the first novel from this author, and what a debut it is! I was hooked immediately, and the story flowed seamlessly as I was led down a dark and twisty path of secrets and deceptions. I cannot wait to see what Ms Cross has in store for us next.

Vanessa has married widower Tripp, knowing that his young daughter Mia is part of the package. Vanessa tries to be a good stepmother to Mia, but always seems to fall short of the idealized version of the girl's mother, whom Mia has placed on a pedestal, never failing to remind Vanessa that she will never measure up. But when Mia goes missing from the backyard swimming pool, it is Vanessa who is left to give some explanation as to her whereabouts, and to justify herself for not being present when the thirteen year old vanishes without a trace.

Ms Cross is a promising new voice to the mystery/thriller genre, and her first offering ticks all of the boxes for me as a highly enjoyable and compulsive read that kept me guessing until the very end. This is an author to watch.
4.5 stars

Many thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for this ARC.

Oh my word what a brilliant book this is, it got me interested from the very first page (which is a must for me) and soon became a fast paced psychological thriller which I couldn't put down.

It was extremely well written, excellent characters, brilliantly addictive, I was holding my breath until the very last page, all this with an ending I didn't guess. A very worthy five stars from me and I look forward to reading more from this author in the future.

Thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture for giving me the opportunity to read this fantastic book which I can thoroughly recommend.

The Stepdaughter kept me guessing all the way to the end.

Vanessa and Tripp are married, and she stays home full time to care for her stepdaughter, thirteen-year-old Mia. While life looks pretty good on the outside, Mia is furious with Vanessa for a reason you’ll come to know. She’s becoming independent and doesn’t want her stepmother up in her business, but Tripp doesn’t feel like Vanessa should go back to the job that she loves just yet. He wants Vanessa to stay home with Mia until... probably forever.

One day, Mia goes out to their personal pool to swim. The neighbor, Julia, brings her disabled elderly mother, Charlotte, over so Vanessa can watch her while Julia runs errands. In just ten minutes, a fire is started next door and Mia is missing from the pool. What happened that afternoon?

Predictably, everyone has a damn secret that nobody else knows. Or do they? However, the secrets aren’t terribly predictable, and it’s a very fun read.

Thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for my free e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

This was very good. It was very well-written and easy to understand. It went by so quickly but I loved it anyway.

I would really recommend this book to my friends who love to read fast paced stories!

When Vanessa meets Tripp she believes she has found the love of her life and even the news that he is a widow with a young child does not put her off. When he proposes she thinks it’s the start of a perfect life and who cares that he expects her of live in the same house as his first wife and give up a job she loves to run around after his daughter. When Mia goes missing from the swimming pool in the back garden her life is turned up side down as she starts to question everyone around her. Who has taken Mia and why was she left alone in the garden. Is the truth closer to home or is there someone out there lying to everyone. I spent the whole book changing my mind about what happened and who was responsible and did not ever draw the right conclusions on this one. It’s a great read and I can see this becoming a TV series at some point.

This was very good. It was very well-written and easy to understand. It went by so quickly but I loved it anyway. I can't wait for this to be published!

I found this book to be a bit predictable at times, with a couple of characters that I didn't particularly like. Despite that, it's a fast paced, enjoyable read for thriller fans, with twists that will keep you interested until the end.

This book is amazing. A moment of hesitation and negligence and she loses the step daughter of her husband. However he begins acting strange and she begins to wonder what really happened that day. This is an incredibly exciting psychological thriller that I highly recommend.

#TheStepDaughter #NetGalley
Complex, Captivating. I loved those twists. A brilliant read.
Welcome to a World where everything is twisty.
The story revolves around a thirteen years old girl named Mia who's gone missing when her stepmother, Vanessa walked out of patio doors towards the backyard pool. It was an afternoon.
Clearly this story is not simple as it seems.
She goes to her husband, Tripp as she was sure that he would definitely know where his daughter was but he ensured her that he didn't know anything and starred asking questions to her.
She goes to neighbours in the hope that someone will tell her something but all she gets is a dead end.
Then she discovered that the wedding ring of Tripp was at the bottom of the pool and he didn't complain once that his ring was missing. She was assured that he was hiding something.
Although Vanessa had a dark secret of her own. She's not telling it to anyone.
Detective Angela Blakely is called to help. How Angela will find Mia if everything is so twisted?
I loved the characters of Vanessa, Tripp, Mia, Angela and Julia. Charlotte was ok ok. Julia and Charlotte are special mention in the story.
This story is told from five POV's. One of Mia, two of Vanessa, three of Julia, four of Charlotte and five of Angela Blakely.
This tale was so twisted that I adored it's every word.
I'll go out of the way to promote it among my fellow Authors, Bloggers, Followers, Family and Friends. I loved it very much.
Thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for giving me an advance copy of this brilliant psychological thriller.