Magpie
by Elizabeth Day
Pub Date: May 3, 2022
Fourth Estate
Thanks to the author, Fourth Estate, and, NetGalley for the ARC of this book. For some reason this one just didn't work for me. There is a twist that kept it readable. What the book does well is convey the misery of infertility for women who really, really want a child. There are also some mental health issues covered which I thought was done quite sensitively.

What I didn’t like was the evil mother-in-law trope being invoked again. I have read the trope recently and I am over it.
3 stars

Another eARC from NetGalley, and another fast-paced read!
It's hard to review this book without spoilers, but I will do my best.
Marisa and Jake are the perfect couple. They meet and move in with each other quickly, but when you know, you know, right? Then Marisa gets pregnant and the fairy tale just gets better.
Enter Kate, a renter they take on, who seems far too invested in Marisa's pregnancy... and Jake. Marisa can't stop thinking that there's something that she doesn't know, yet every time she tries to voice a concern to Jake he brushes it off.
What happens when you have everything you dreamed, but someone wants to take it all away? How do our perceptions of people affect the way that we act?
This book explores all the twists and turns of the mind of a mother to be.. and the mind of someone who wants that mother's life.

Ultimately, this one unfortunately just didn't work for me. I don't know if I'm reaching my limit with these sorts of domestic "thrillers" or what, but I found myself regarding the pages and story as more tedious than entertaining, which is never a good sign. The characters weren't especially flat, but I didn't particularly like any of them, either. Not to say I have to like every character in a book to want to read it, but sometimes the unlikable nature of a person you're reading about just annoys you & makes you not want to pick the story back up - and I found that happening quite a few times here.

I will definitely check out more from the author because the writing wasn't bad, it's just the plot & characters I wasn't vibing with.

La vida de Marissa y Jake cambia cuando deciden irse a vivir juntos tras solo unos meses de salir, y después alquilan una habitación a Kate. Pronto, Marissa comienza a sentirse amenazada por la presencia de Kate y por la familiaridad con la que ella trata a Jake. Así parece un típico triángulo amoroso, pero las cosas son mucho más complejas, y las relaciones entre estos personajes e incluso el papel que juegan los padres de Jake dentro de la misma hacen que trascienda y que se llene de giros que mantienen al lector pasando páginas.
Adicionalmente, el tema de la maternidad es abordado desde una perspectiva de la elección y las formas como una madre puede serlo, incluso hasta dónde podría llegar al intentar proteger ese rol dentro de la vida de los demás.
Si bien a veces se vuelve un poco lenta la trama, la escritora sabe cómo recuperar el ritmo y llevar al lector hasta el punto clave de la historia.


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Marissa and Jake's life changes when they decide to live together after a few months and afterward when they rent a room for Kate. Soon, Marissa begins to feel threatened by Kate's presence and the familiarity she treats Jake with. In plain sight, this looks like a regular love triangle story, but things are much more complex, and the relationship between these characters and even the role Jake's parents play in it made is transcend and be filled with plot twists that keep the reader turning page after page.
In addition, motherhood is a subject managed through the choice perspective and the many ways a mother can become one, it even shows how far a mother could go when trying to protect this role in the life of others.
Even though sometimes the plot is a bit slow, the writer knows how to get the rhythm back and lead the reader to the main part of the story.

Goodreads link: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4574799805

To be honest, I did not finish this book. I made it past the major twist before realizing this book just isn't for me. I love a good psychological thriller, but the plotline and setting of this felt too narrow. Same 3 characters, same house, same thing over ane over. When you read the story from Kate's point of view during the 2nd half, it gets even harder to read because you're going back over the same story, just from a different POV. Did not love and couldn't finish. Thank you Netgalley for the chance to read it.

Thank you to the publisher and Net Galley for the ARC of this book. The story is about a couple that desperately want a baby. They try many IVF treatments that don’t work. They decide to have a surrogate and think they found just the right one, They even let her move in with them and that’s when everything changes. The story is told by both women so you don’t know what is really the truth. I really enjoyed this book but I do think they could have shortened the parts and not had every detail of each woman’s story. I would recommend this book .

This story has several twists that you think you see coming, but you have no idea. I thought the ending at first was a little disappointing, but then I reminded myself that not every ending of a book should be a bloodbath. This was satisfying.

Well this was a tricky one, pretty clever and definitely twisty. This is a true psychological thriller, the very definition of one actually and it definitely messed with my head. I think because I was expecting it to be twisty I was able to guess the main twist, but I didn’t even care because there was something so compelling here. There were also several other smaller twists too that I didn’t totally see coming so it still kept me on my toes. You do need to be able to suspend some disbelief here, a couple of moments, especially towards the end left me scratching my head but overall this one was enjoyable and if you like messy and addictive reads then try this one!

This was an addictive read. I love a good “motherhood thriller” with a twist. Marisa and Kate are memorable characters and I really like how they are strong and opinionated. Another character I loved to hate was Annabelle, the MIL from hell! Ooh, she made me angry with some of the things she would say!
I liked reading about surrogacy and mental health as a huge part of the storyline. It was refreshing to read a book based on this trope because I never have. Very interesting. I highly recommend this one!

A thrilling page turner, edge of your seat suspense from beginning to end. Well written and engaging. This novel was a fun time.

Magpie was a really fun domestic thriller that kept me guessing throughout. Elizabeth Day's novel served as a reminder that you never really know somebody, and that there are unlikely allies found everywhere. I will definitely pursue more novels by Ms. Day. I loved the building tension and "where is this going" moments found throughout this twisty novel!

The first section of the book was a fast paced read with a twist I didn't see coming. Part two was presented from another characters POV. When the story was written in the now timeline, it was enjoyable and made me want to keep reading. However, when the past was revisited by this character, the story began to become too repetitive and boring. Because this book was marketed as a thriller, sadly, the ending lacked the elements of a thriller.
The writing was excellent, the marketing was wrong. (IMO)
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the digital copy.

Magpie by Elizabeth Day tells the story of Marisa who is excited to move in with Jake. But then Jake wants to bring in a lodger Kate. But it is not as it seems. The author did a really smooth switch for Marisa to Kate. I like the characters ( except Jake’s mom) and the story is believable. It was quite the story. I think I was expecting a twist at the end, but glad it turned out the way it did. I will recommend this book. Thank you for allowing me to review.

This book started out great and had a good twist. Unfortunately, it rapidly lost momentum and the ending was too convenient for me. Well written, interesting premise, but didn’t really capture my attention through to the end as it became a bit predictable. Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read and review an advance copy of this book.

I thought this book was FANTASTIC. The twist in the middle and switch of perspectives is done well, I thought the ending was good but a little predictable. Definitely a page turner & good quick easy beach read!

A young couple is desperately anticipating their first baby, but an addition to their households presents some real difficulties.
I enjoyed not knowing what to expect with this story. It veered in a couple different directions without jumping the shark like a lot of these types of books tend to do.
Thanks to #netgalley and #simonandschuster for this #arc of #magpie in exchange for an honest review.

Marissa and Jake tried having a baby a few months after Marissa moved in. Their relationship is on rocky waters when they invite a lodger who has less regards for personal boundaries. This book was definitely thriller and kept with so many twist. Some of it was like is that really happening? Come along for one hell of a ride if you wish.
Thanks to Simon & Schutser, Netgalley, and the author in exchange for a review.
Publishing Date May 3rd, 2022.

I really enjoyed this read. I will say that there were multiple parts of this book that made my jaw drop and caught me off guard, but I don't think I would necessarily call it a thriller. For me, it was more of a domestic suspense novel.

I love how in the beginning it focused from one characters POV and switched to show exact situations from the first character, in a 2nd characters POV. That was a cool view to see and I haven't experienced that in a read yet. A few things I appreciated in this book was the different POVs, the character development, and the way the author told the story through all of craziness that was happening.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good domestic suspense novel with light drama. Overall a good read and I am glad I got the chance to read it!

Thank you to Net Galley for letting me read an advance copy of this well-written novel. It's billed as a psychological thriller, but I didn't consider it a thriller.
The biggest twist happens a third of the way into the book, when the P.O.V. character switches from Marisa to Kate, and we realize things are not at all as they seemed.
Marisa came across as whiny and a bit unbalanced in her section, even before the big twist. Kate was more believable and stronger as a protagonist. She struggles with infertility, which leads to an unhealthy obsession with having a baby.
Jake is a momma's boy, and his mother, Annabelle, is the stereotypical, hypercritical mother-in-law. The ending was a bit of a letdown; the main thing that happened was that both women stood up to Annabelle. Even though she deserved to be told off, cutting her out of their lives, and that of her grandchild, seemed extreme.
I didn't get the significance of the title, Magpie. There is a scene near the beginning (told a bit differently by each of the viewpoint characters) when a magpie flies into the house and is shooed out. Perhaps it was meant to show some symbolism of the relationship the two women would have, but it was never referred to again.
This was an enjoyable read but not as satisfying as I would have liked.

Part one of this book was fire. Leading up to the plot twist was amazing. Then halfway through the book, the plot twist was revealed and then the rest of the book was left to “make it through.” This was a decent book. I just felt like after the reveal nothing else happened for the remainder of the book (1/2). It is an easy read so you can finish it quickly. Not terrible but definitely lacking some excitement throughout the ending half.