Two women, one man, two different reality: who is the couple, who is the third party here? Is Kate the partner taking over whole house? Or is Marisa the partner carrying Jake’s baby? Which woman’s story makes more sense? Who should we take seriously? Also why is mother-in-law this horrible?

Marisa finally found the guy she always dreamt of and Jake was ready to start a family immediately. More kids the merrier. Interestingly Jake was keeping his distance though; there were no emojis in his messages, no public display of affection. But Marisa was fine with this: he was older than her after all, more mature. She would have her perfect house and perfect little family. Then Kate came along. This lodger knew little bit too much about them, she was always in her way. More Marisa thought about her, things started to make less sense. Kate was going to take Jake away from her and she had to stop Kate.

It’s a good take on how mental illness that goes untreated would affect not only the I’ll but everyone around that person. Unchecked childhood traumas along with unexpected life events could trigger people at unexpected times to make them give unexpected reactions. Things work out relatively well in this story, but it makes you wonder what if it didn’t

An interesting book. An interesting concept of a thriller. Still processing full thoughts, but ultimately I enjoyed it

Mapgie was an experience. The story starts out with someone who you think may be an unreliable narrator, then a twist happens, which is somewhat shocking. Then as the story progresses, you wonder who to trust and what is really going on. The very end is where it started to fall apart for me unfortunately, but it was not the worst ending I’ve read. There are some trigger warnings for infertility and mental illness. I was definitely hooked throughout and the writing itself was done very well. I would recommend this to people looking for a quick thriller to read!

Thank you to Simon and Schuster and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this in exchange for my honest opinion.

This was an interesting psychological suspense read with a great plot twist. The character you think you’re going to hate grows on you and I didn’t see everything that was coming, which is always a good thing. I would recommend to my friends that enjoy this kind of read for sure!

A twisted domestic thriller about mental health, surrogacy and family. Who is right, who is wrong and who is gaslighting who???
Thank you Netgalley and the publishers for thE ARC. #NetGalley #Magpie

This story was one twisty ride! With an unreliable narrator and a naive narrator, I was constantly wondering what was going on. Unreliable narrators are actually not my favorite thing, and then when the narrator was naive, I found myself so annoyed! A lot of the twists were so easy to guess with so many clues laid out and yet the narrator would still walk right into the danger. The story itself was good and I felt like the book wrapped up nicely.

This book starts out with a twist. When I first was reading this I was super excited that the victim stood up for themselves. Usually in books their is the one person everything is happening to and they just don't really do anything about it. It can get frustrating when characters don't stand up for themselves. Like I said I was super excited that the victim stood up for themselves and then...BAM...another twist. This book had me all over rooting for different characters at different times. I really enjoyed it and highly recommend.

I didn't know what to expect from this book, and was first drawn in by its cover and comparisons to Gone Girl and The Perfect Nanny. This is a psychological suspense novel that will absolutely have your jaw dropped by part 2. I thought I knew the twist, but I was wrong! I found the first half of this book fast paced, but the last half was slower for me and not as exciting. That being said, I really enjoyed reading it and look forward to seeing what Elizabeth Day comes up with next!

Trigger warnings: sexual assault, infertility, miscarriage

This review will be posted on April 29, 2022 to: https://instagram.com/amandas.bookshelf

When you like the book for what it is (a psychological thriller) but you dont love the way the subject matter was handled. (See below, but spoilers within!) I thought there were a few twists, but they felt more outlandish and less believable as the novel progressed. Also, I thought the novel meandered unnecessarily near the end and I found myself just skimming. #Magpie Rating: ☹️ / didn't like it
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This book is scheduled for publication on May 3, 2022. Thank you @simonandschuster for providing me this digital ARC via @NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
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Marisa had a psychotic break and was bundled away to the country without proper mental health care. She was packed away to the country and forced to live in Jake's parent's guest house to preserve the surrogacy contract (basically so Kate and Jake could get their baby). This felt like forced confinement to me. It was very very problematic and irresponsible to see mental health issues and surrogacy treated this way. Yes, this is fiction, but some issues require sensitive and authentic treatment, not drama for drama's sake.

Unfortunately, this was a miss for me. This was a very well-written novel, but ultimately the plot just didn't satisfy.

Marisa and Jake have a great life together. While they haven't been together very long, they're eager to move in together and start a family of their own. To save on rent, they find a roommate, Kate. Kate seems perfect at first, but the longer she lives with them, the stranger things become. Kate seems overly interested in the couple's life and future child, and Marisa begins to think that Kate might be trying to upend her seemingly perfect life.

The twist in this book simply wasn't satisfying. It was easy to predict and didn't capture my attention in any significant way. The pacing was also a bit off, especially in the second half. Ultimately, there have been several great thrillers about motherhood recently, and this one just wasn't up to snuff.

The writing was engaging and the plot twists were great. It was a quick and enjoyable experience reading this book.
The chapters written in Marisa’s POV were so believable and her perspective made Jake and Kate seem despicable!
The ending wrapped everything up nicely. I would recommend this book to readers who have enjoyed soap operas and dramatic media. The message about doing anything for your child was clear and helped me sympathize with the women in the story.

Ok- so hard to review without spoilers! Marisa is finally happy. She's been through multiple relationships with men that didn't last and now, at long last, she's moved in with Jake. When her business slows, finances dictate that they take in a lodger- Kate- who becomes a source of friction between them. And then, after infertility problems, Marisa is pregnant and even happier. Until Jake's mother Annabelle shows up. And even worse, when she spies Kate and Jake in an embrace. What happens next surprised me (although the title of the book should have been a clue). Not everything is what it seems and there's a big twist (and there are clues along the way that I for one missed). It's an interesting and intriguing portrait of two women and one hapless man (seriously Jake), obsession, meddling parents, and mental health. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. A page turner!

Marisa has it all; the perfect partner, the perfect house, and now she is pregnant. At least she seems to have it all until Kate enters the picture and slowly ruins everything.

This fast-paced thriller had me gripped from the beginning. I was disappointed when I had to put it down. Taking readers on a roller coaster of a read, Elizabeth Day does not disappoint. Telling the story from both Kate and Marisa’s perspectives, the reader understands the motives of each woman. My only qualm with this book is that the ending seemed a little too neat and tidy, almost more unbelievable than the events leading up to in.

How do we know what is real and what is imagined?

I want to thank Netgalley, and Simon & Schuster for an ARC of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

**Many thanks to NetGalley, Simon & Schuster, and Elizabeth Day for an ARC of this book!**

You and me and baby makes three...

...but what happens when a fourth player just won't let go?

Marisa and Jake are the picture of bliss. They have a place of their own and now are looking to fill that last empty place in their hearts...with none other than a beautiful baby, of course. Infertility troubles strike, however, and the path is laden with landmines. As the struggles continue, Jake and Marisa decide to allow a roommate, Kate, to move in to help them financially. At first, there's nothing but harmony, but the situation shifts quickly and Marisa realizes that Kate knows a bit more than she should...about EVERYTHING....and a little too invested in the baby-to-be. Is there cause for alarm here, and is one member of this trio much more dangerous than they appear to be? Certainly, three's a crowd. But will a mother's unconditional love and sense of possessiveness be TOO powerful, TOO far-reaching...or even deadly?

Magpie is an interesting bird. (No pun intended...mostly.) First off, the blurb I read from the publisher in the printed copy of the ARC gives A LOT away about the plot, to the extent that I pretty much knew what was going on from about 20% on once I dove in and started reading. Even without this forecasting, any seasoned thriller lover will pick up on the twist almost immediately. So then the question becomes...is the book still enjoyable if you know what's going on and are waiting for the big reveal?

In the case of this book...ALMOST. It nearly was.

Day's writing is solid and enjoyable for the first 50-60% (until the big reveal), although reading so much about IVF and fertility struggles was a bit hard to get through, even without personal experience in that department. I can only imagine how hard that would be if I DID have those experiences, so trigger warning alert to those who don't want to hear about it, because the author does not hold back. By the end, I honestly don't think I could have handled hearing any more about the subject matter...things got fairly intense.

What took this from an enjoyable read and turned it into something head-scratching was this book's "second act," as it were. The book veered from thriller territory into something else entirely...and I'm not sure I understand why. One of my pet peeves when reading a thriller is a too-happy-and-clean cut ending....and after a brief sojourn with the TRUE villain (again, nothing original here, in terms of this reveal...another easily predictable plot point)...we ended up there. Not only was the ending sappy, I just found it wholly unrealistic and almost off-putting in terms of how it handled the subject matter, and at the very least, the author missed an opportunity to handle some of the serious subjects broached here with a bit more grace.

The first half of this book I would solidly give 4 stars, and the second a definite 3, so I'd give this book a 3.5, but I'm rounding down here for the reasons above...and also perhaps because the only kind of pie I think I'm going to stick to in the near future is pumpkin.

3.5 stars

This is a thrilling novel with unexpected twists and a satisfying ending. The characters and their relationships seem a bit cartoonish at times and very clichéd but the seriousness of some of the topics and the authenticity with which the author portrays them balance out the stereotypes so prominently displayed.

Twisted and exciting. Do you truly know what is real and what is imagined? Plan on reading this in one sitting as it's difficult to stop.

Magpie by Elizabeth Day 🪶

First, thank you @netgalley & @simonandschuster for the eARC. Magpie releases May 3! ⭐️

Marisa and Jake are a perfect couple who are planning for a baby on the way. For financial reasons, they decide to have a lodger rent their spare room to a woman named Kate. Kate is quickly overly comfortable in their home and has no personal boundaries, especially with Jake. But Marisa chooses to ignore it because she knows Kate will be out of the house shortly and they will be back to being a perfect family with their new baby. However, Kate’s behavior turns almost obsessive, and as Marisa decides to figure out who Kate really is, it might end up destroying everything, including her family.

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆ ; this psychological thriller was super fast paced in the beginning and immediately had me hooked. I just had to know what was happening! 4 ★s for me because the ending was a bit slower and anticlimactic.

I am realizing that my absolute favorite books are usually fast paced thrillers! Drop recommendations below 👀

Magpie is a twisted story following a couple as they try to have a baby. It is a crazy but interesting story. The reader has to suspend belief a bit to believe that people would make these decisions. It really puts a magnifying glass on the fertility industry and what people will do to have a baby.

I did not jive well with this book at all. The characters were not very likeable at all and the storyline seemed convoluted and forced in some parts. The beginning storyline of needing a boarder was a little weird and it was predictable that the mother in law was the issue-as MIL’s often are. It felt as though Jake’s actions were too wishy washy to care about him at all. Overall, this book was just meh.

A fast and thrilling read. I enjoyed the multiple point of views of the main characters. Magpie is a solid thriller that left me guessing on how everything would play out.. well written, interesting plot, some great characters even if not all of them are likable.. I'm looking at you mother-in- law.