A fast paced novel by Nicole Trope exploring family conflict and drama with life's instabilities thrown in.
Beverley is a single mum to Riley, she's recently split from her partner Ethan and when Riley starts receiving gifts in the mailbox she suspects it's Ethan sending them to try and win her back. But someone else is watching them from close by and soon secrets from the past will be revealed with dramatic consequences. The chapters are told from 3 perspectives, Beverleys's, Riley's and an anonymous person. With this book nothing is as it seems
Many thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review

A big thank you to Bookouture for this ARC to review.

The Mother’s Fault is genuinely unpredictable. It is a story of a son who is affected by their mother's past and a story of what lengths a mother will take to save their child. We follow an unreliable narrator (sub-genre) that takes us through many twists and turns while learning the truth about Beverley's past. Overall, a fast-paced novel that will keep you wondering right up to until the end. The author leaves us with a refreshing epilogue which is a rarity in this genre. 3.5 out of 5

‘Beverley watches Riley spoon cereal into his mouth ...’

Beverley is a single mother who is deeply protective of her eight-year-old son Riley. Her boyfriend Ethan is very fond of Riley as well, but when he asks Beverley to marry him, she ends the relationship. As much as she loves Ethan, Beverley has secrets she cannot share with him.

But life for Beverley and Riley becomes complicated when a series of expensive anonymous gifts start turning up for Riley. Beverley has told Riley that his father is dead, but he wonders if he is sending the gifts. Beverley assumes that Ethan is responsible for the gifts but her attempts to contact him are unsuccessful.
We (the readers) know that someone is watching Riley and Beverley, but we don’t initially know who.
Then, late one afternoon while Beverley is preparing Riley’s favourite spaghetti dinner, she looks out the window. She cannot see Riley: he has disappeared from the yard. Where could he be? A check with his friends and around the neighbourhood reveals nothing. Beveley calls the police.

‘What kind of mother loses her child?’

The story unfolds through the eyes of Beverley and Riley’s abductor. There are a couple of twists as we learn the truth about Riley’s parentage and the background of both Beverley and the abductor.

While the story held my attention from beginning to end, aspects of the abductor’s story left me uncomfortable. Perhaps that was Ms Trope’s objective: to remind us that parenting is complex and not all parents are good at it.

‘I thought I had a plan, but all I had was an idea and a wish. That’s not the same as a plan, not at all.’

Note: My thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for providing me with a free electronic copy of this book for review purposes.

Jennifer Cameron-Smith

Beverly has a lot of secrets= which she's kept from Ethan and from her small son Riley. Expensive gifts have been arriving in the mail and she's feeling quite stressed and then.....Riley goes missing from the back yard. Told alternately but Riley, Beverly, and then a, well, I'm not going to tell, narrator, it's a well done tale that has a few surprises. It also has a dog who plays a key role. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. it's a good read that will keep you guessing.

Even though Beverly is rather young for a mother, she has done the best in raising her son Riley the past eight years. Partners have been in the picture but whenever they got too close, she withdrew in her cocoon. But now, Ethan does not seem to accept her decision and by sending expensive toys tries to win Riley’s favour. However, Beverly is mistaken, the anonymous presents are from somebody else, somebody who has been searching her and who is watching her now, waiting for the best moment to strike. Somebody who knows her past and above all, the secret she has successfully hidden for years. Finally, her luck seems to come to an end and she is not only threatened to be exposed but also to lose the most precious thing of her life: her son.

Nicole Trope has wonderfully plotted the action in her thriller so that the reader is immediately gripped. By alternating the chapters’ focus, we are presented with different points of view that fuel speculation about who is this unnamed observer, what is this person up to and, first and foremost, what is Beverly hiding? I totally adored hypothesising about these questions, running in the wrong directions while the conflict slowly unfolds and heads towards a climax.

Beverly is a character you are fond of instantly. She is a lot younger than the other mothers and feels inferior not only due to her age but also senses that she needs to do better than the fellow moms to avoid being looked down on. Being a single parent is hard enough, for her, the pressure put on her from the outside makes it even harder. She only wants the best for Riley and is willing to put her personal luck second which is quite a compassionate attitude. That she becomes the focus of a villain seems unfair even though you are aware from the beginning that she, too, has some secrets which might be rather nasty.

A brilliantly crafted psychological thriller with some unexpected turns that kept me riveted from the beginning to the end.

Wow! A book packed with so many twists and turns it’s impossible to put down! Very well written and executed. Great character development, some as easy to love and some are easy to love to hate. This book tugs on so many emotions. Highly recommend
Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book

Beverly is a single mom of eight year old Riley. He hasn't always been an easy child but she has the deep love of a mother for him. Beverly is in a relationship with Ethan. But when things begin to get serious she breaks it off. What secrets is Beverly keeping?
There is a new teacher at school asking a lot of questions that make Beverly nervous.
Then anonymous gifts for Riley start arriving. She assumes they are from Ethan but he isn't answering her calls.
Who are the gifts from? And what do they mean? What does the gift giver hope to accomplish?
These questions will all be answered eventually.
I enjoyed the characters in the book. Beverly has secrets and worries constantly, Riley is a typical eight year old with lots of questions.
This wasn't the best book I've read by this author but a good one all the same.

Thanks to netgalley and Bookouture for the arc.

Wow! Nicole Trope certainly brings complicated families to life with ease, empathy and mental instability!
Beverley ends things with a good man to protect her secrets. Ethan pushes Beverley to rethink things -but as a single mother, Beverley must put her son first.
And then the gifts start arriving. Expensive gifts with a card, no name. The final gift too expensive to accept - and Beverley rages. How could Ethan embarrass her?
But Ethan isn't answering her phone calls. Or her texts.
This story is told in three voices - Beverley, giving background as well as the guilty weight of her secrets, family tragedies; Riley - lending another perspective to the story, escalating the events.
And an unreliable narrator - the personality shifting while the plot progresses.
Creepy and shocking - quick read.

Beverly is a single mother to her eight-year-old son, Riley. Riley believes his father was killed in an accident. The truth about his death is only one of the secrets Beverly holds close to her. Beverly has had plenty of tragedy in her young life. Her parents were killed in a car accident while Beverly was young. Her brother raised her in the family home. But now, he is mysteriously gone from her life. When Riley goes missing, Beverly has to confront her past and confess the truth. Nicole Trope, the author is good at leading you down blind alleys in the search for the truth. I did find that the early chapters dragged but I am so glad that I continued on this the book.

I love all of Nicole Trope’s recent books and this one was no exception.

Beverly is a single mom to her kindergarten-aged son Riley. The circumstances of their lives are a bit mysterious; Beverly won’t get too close to any man and will not reveal who Riley’s dad is.

After breaking up with a boyfriend, Beverly realizes that anonymous gifts keep showing up for Riley. The gifts get more and more expensive and Beverly begins to worry who is sending the gifts and what their intentions are.

I felt the book was nicely paced and the twists were unexpected and intriguing. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who enjoys thrillers.

Thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for the ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

3.5 stars

I've enjoyed other books by this author, so I was excited to read this one. While some parts were a bit slower than expected for this genre, things did pick up and balance out. There are some unexpected twists and enough intrigue and secrets to keep the reader engaged. The reader shows how circumstances can change a person.

Cleverly twisted till the very end, this is a great thriller. I was curious every step of the way and every time I thought I had the whole picture… I was surprised again.

The character development is good, dialogues well written and the plot holds together. An overall 10/10 for me.

I'd like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with and ARC of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

This book was right up my street from the get go! I love a thriller style novel with a big twist and this one did not disappoint. The novel focuses on the life of Beverly and her son Riley whilst also flashing back to Beverley’s childhood in earlier life. It shows the complicated nature of life and how hard times can impact a persons path in life.

Definitely one of those books where you just want to read one more chapter and before you know it you we at the end!

This fast-paced, thriller is full of secrets, coupled with twists and turns, it was a remarkable read.

The story is about a single mum, Beverly who raises her young son Riley. Riley frequently wonders about his dad. The real kicker is when Riley suddenly goes missing from his own backyard. Twist after twist keeps the reader hooked till the end.

The author's writing style and the main characters are is easy to relate to.

Enjoyed this quick easy read !!

Thank you Netgalley, Bookouture, and Nicole Trope for the opportunity to review this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

This ARC was provided to me via Kindle by Bookouture and #NetGalley for my honest opinion.

This thrilling thrill is an unputdownable page turner!

I quite enjoyed this.
While the story isn't one that has you on the edge of your seat needing to know how it ends, Nicole Trope does have the ability to make you WANT to keep reading because the story flows so easily reading it is effortless

Great story. Loved the build up and drama to the twist. Basic thriller but I enjoyed it and would recommend. Thank you NetGalley for this ARC copy!

Just when you think you have it figured out, the author throws in a big twist! Trim your fingernails before starting this because you will be chewing on them as the story progresses. I kept wondering if Riley was going to be a Damien/Omen child. Really keeps you guessing. Kind of creepy but not too much for sensitive me.

A new author to me but was intrigued by the synopsis.

Beverly is a single mother struggling to satisfy the wants and needs of her eight-year-old son Riley as well as keeping her secret. Life is not easy for Beverly, she fears getting too close to anyone in case her secret is discovered and avoids fellow parents at the school gate, scared she will give too much away.

Riley was told that his father died in a car crash eight years ago and now Beverly lives in fear that her secret will be discovered. So when Riley disappears from the garden one afternoon, she knows that he hasn’t just run away.

This was an interesting read but not great, it did hold my attention throughout but would rate it at 3.5 stars.

I would like to thank both Net Galley and Bookouture for supplying a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Crikey this book was intense but brilliant!

Beverly and her son, Riley, live a happy life. Beverly sometimes finds life as a single mother difficult, but she wouldn’t change it for the world. Sadly, she has just spit up with her boyfriend Ethan as she can’t let him get too close as he may discover her big secret. Unfortunately, Beverly doesn’t realise that someone else has their sights on Riley and wants to steal him away from her. Can she keep him safe when she doesn’t know who the enemy is?

This book was so good. Things started heating up in chapter 3 when there was a mysterious narrator. This person reminded me of creepy Joe in “You”, continuously planning and plotting. At around halfway I was sure I knew who the mysterious narrator was, but of course I was wrong as I found out who it really was in the last bit of the book. The changing POV did drive me crazy but in a good way as there was much more suspense that way. The last quarter of the book was extremely intense but also brilliant and I couldn’t put it down. I definitely did not expect the twist!

All in all, I really enjoyed this book. I didn’t think that the psychopath in the last book I read could be worse, but this book showed me they could! The character was very accurately described as “chilling” by the author, and I whole heartedly agree.

If you love psychological thrillers, you should definitely read this one.

Thank you to NetGalley, Bookouture and Nicole Trope for my advanced reading copy. Due out 15th October 2021.