Although I am kind of over "my child is missing" themed books, and I believe that theme is overdone, I enjoyed this one. It was my second or third book by Hayes, and I will continue to look out for her books to read. The ending and some of the book was far fetched, but not enough to affect my rating. 3 stars

This was a great read, really in Isla story line and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Following a mysterious letter about an inheritance she’s didn’t know about, Mel and her daughter Kate move into a hotel they have inherited.
Cleverly written with twists right to the end.

Thanks to Netgalley, Bookoutre and Samantha Hates for this ARC. I’m a little late in my reading and review, sorry. This is a first time author for me, and I enjoyed the book..there were a few confusing parts in it like Angus’ acting all weird, but that came into lite at the end..Mel and Kate were close but then Kate won’t speak to her ? That also was explained later on but it still didn’t make sense to me..
Sarah knowing that Angus wasn’t her child and confronting him at the end of the book was a surprise ending for sure. In other reviews I’ve read of this book, and others opinions, it was stated the author has written better books. So I am looking for another book of hers to read and compare…just a 3 1/2 rating for this one but I will have to upgrade to 4 for all staring purposes.

Was definitely hoping I would love this one but it greatly exceeded my expectations! So happy to have received an arc copy!

Single Mother follows Mel, a single mother and her teenage daughter Kate struggling to get by. As money worries pile on top of stress about Kate's father Billy being released from prison, Mel is pretty desperate and when a letter about an inheritance arrives she believes that it is too good to be true. Despite her reservations and some odd conditions attached to acceptance of the inheritance, Mel is determined to get away with Kate and make a fresh start. Starting over isn't easy however with some unfriendly locals, an unwelcome houseguest and a gruesome discovery...

This was an odd one, the pacing was quite inconsistent; it felt really slow to begin with up until the end when it ramped up for the reveals. The final reveals and plot twists were really good so I enjoyed the story as a whole but not really the journey to get there. My main criticisms surround main character Mel and how many illogical and quite frankly stupid decisions she made particularly around her daughter Kate. She tiptoed around Kate and the other character to a ridiculous extent when it was clear something nefarious was going on. If you are scared of being followed by an abusive ex husband that your daughter adores (because you can't possibly upset her by telling her that her father is not very nice) and said daughter suddenly has a second phone that she wont tell you where she got it from....erm maybe take the phone off her for safety!! I wanted to shake Mel and scream at her to stop being an idiot far too many times for me to rate this book higher which is unfortunate as I did enjoy the plot.

Thanks to Netgalley for providing a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review

This was a bit of a slow burn at first however once I got in to it and the drama started I found that I couldn’t put it down

𝙎𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙡𝙚 𝙢𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙗𝙮 𝙎𝙖𝙢𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙝𝙖 𝙃𝙖𝙮𝙚𝙨

This book was definitely a slow burner, with a lot of scene setting and build up but entirely makes up for it in my opinion with the second half. An intriguing concept- inheriting a run down remote hotel, complete with a creepy long term resident- but the plot definitely dragged until at least half way through, with a lot of details of the hotel and its renovations.

The book had a slightly YA feel to it; it felt slightly cheesy at times and I did find Mel’s character a bit unbelievable. I couldn’t help thinking who talks out loud to themselves that much!?

From the half way point, however, I was entirely gripped and couldn’t put the book down as multiple mysteries and reveals were thrown in and I was absolutely shook by the ending. This was one of those books where you get thrown a curveball and then the next chapter reads “epilogue” and I was fully set to have a tantrum at a big cliffhanger before realising that the epilogue was about 9% of the book. I did guess a few of the twists but this did not make the book any less enjoyable. I’d definitely recommend this book and will be keeping an eye out for more of Samantha’s work!

𝗥𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴: ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆ (4/5)

𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐨𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐫 + 𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐦𝐲 𝐞𝐀𝐑𝐂!

DNF - Did not finish. I did not connect with the writing style or plot and will not be finishing this title. Thank you, NetGalley and Publisher for the early copy!

Let me start by saying that Samantha Hayes is one of my favorite authors! However, this particular book seemed to be a bit of a deviation from her norm. It’s not so much a psychological thriller full of twists and turns as a family tale of struggles. It just wasn’t quite what k was expecting based on the blurb.

Thank you netgalley and publisher for opportunity to read and review this ARC honestly.

Overall this was a good read. There were a few places that felt a bit slow and dragged on but overall the story was well done and the characters weren't one-dimensional. Be prepared to feel multiple emotions with this one.

Wow this was an absolutely amazing rollercoaster of a read. It has me hooked from the very first page and was full of twists and turns and intrigue and I read it in almost one sitting as was excited to find out more with each turn of the page.

This was a slow burning domestic psychological thriller but then picked up pace as the story evolved and reached its crescendo and was full of interesting characters and turns of events which all came together to produce a brilliant read.

I am definitely going to look out for more of this authors books.

I quite enjoyed this book. It went along at a good pace and the last few chapters were the best. I loved the character of Mel and I really wanted her to be happy. It only becomes a psychological thriller towards the end so keep going with it, I felt it was worth the wait

I have mixed feelings about this book - I liked it well enough and it was enjoyable, but I just found it a bit lacking - I didn't find it particularly believable.

Melanie was abandoned as a baby and went from foster home to foster home. She has a baby, Kate, with Billy, who is abusive. Billy goes to prison and she has a chance to escape him. One day she receives a letter from a lawyer telling her she has inherited an inn but she doesn’t know the benefactor. As she and Kate move into the inn and begin renovations, someone seems to want to sabotage her inheritance. A good thriller by Hayes!

I have mixed feelings about this book.

Whilst I enjoyed reading it and found it to be a good storyline, I really did feel like there was something missing in this book

I feel that the problem; like so many books out there, it is described as a psychological thriller; but it is not. I was expecting twists and turns and all the usual characteristics of that genre. There aren’t many in the book and I feel that is what it was lacking

The book was quite predictable in places

Compared to the authors previous work, it did not live up to those

Single mum struggling is bequeathed a hotel. Her ex is getting out of prison and so off mum and daughter go. I absolutely loved this and was gutted to finish it. It’s has everything: mystery, intrigue, great characters and a fabulous ending.

Nothing is as it seems in this thrilling read, and you can't wait to get to the end to see what the secret is all about! The book was full of twists and turns, and I can't wait to read another thrilling read by this talented author. Recommended.

Mel was abandoned as a baby and lived in foster home after foster home. She is now a single mom.
Imagine Mel’s surprise when a letter from a lawyer gives her a way to make a new life for the two of them. Will this move be a new beginning, or will Meg once again find herself in trouble? Loved the story line and twists in this book!

I was a little disappointed with Single Mother by Samantha Hayes. I felt it was very far fetched with very little psychological suspense and I lost interest in it really quickly. Sorry not for me.

As usual, Samantha Hayes did not disappoint. I love her style of writing and always her pulled into her books from the start.
Highly recommend