Fevered,nightmarish and claustrophobic. I mean that in all the best ways. I’ve been a fan of Zoje Stage since her brilliant debut Baby Teeth and this novel might be her most chilling yet. It’ll be awhile before I get this one out of my head.

Highly recommended.

Baby Teeth is one of those books that I still think about. I was excited to get a copy of Stage’s newest book. This one is so weird and creepy and totally confusing. Is this real? Is it a dream? It is set in the beginning of the pandemic, so if isolation is triggering, you might not like it; however, being quarantined with your mom is a great premise for a horror book. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC

Well, this being my first Zoje Stage novel, I wasn’t disappointed. I happened to see a tiktok of her showing off the physical arc and the cover drew me in (I like scissors for some reason. Idk.)

I started this one not knowing much, just that it was a thriller. I was quickly sucked in and my mind kept going back and forth about what’s going to happen. It was pretty slow to begin with but still had be wondering what was real and what was a dream and just when I thought I had it, nope. It was a dream. I loved that aspect of this book. I was a little underwhelmed by the ending and it seemed rushed and missing pieces. I wish it had more explanation of what was actually wrong with Jackie and Robert. I’d love to read a second book about Grace and how she does after the pandemic. That’s another thing! I try not to read pandemic related things. I lived it don’t need to read it. So I wish there was something in the synopsis about it being a pandemic novel.

Overall I was so pleased with this book and will more than likely buy a physical copy when it’s released. I can’t wait to read more from Zoje!

Interesting read. Not one I would normally choose to read. But I’m glad I did. It was very different. But exciting. Very well written

I really loved this book and its storyline. Stage does such a good job at blending nightmares and reality, to the point where I was constantly questioning what was memory, reality, or another nightmare. Yet another creepy story that highlights the relationship between mother and child!

This book had me hooked from the very beginning. The cover alone caught my eye right away! I absolutely loved Baby Teeth so when I saw Mothered was available for an early read I couldn’t resist. This author has a way of making almost anything creepy (in the best way possible) Although this book is heavy on the Covid pandemic it gives us an inside look on how very differently it can affect your mental state. Grace & Jackies relationship was destined for disaster from the very beginning but that ending had me speechless. Overall this book was wonderful, but I still have questions!

After Baby Teeth I had so much excitement for Mothered. This was a slow spiral into madness in an elderly mother/ daughter household during quarantine which has been super relevant these days so it made it that much more real. So much unresolved trauma and stress can only lead to trouble. The open ended ending is classic Zoje Stage and left me wanting to know more.

Thank you NetGalley for this arc

Mothered is the type of thriller that is difficult for me to summarize or review.

I have a mixed past with this author, and I wanted to give her a second try after devouring Baby Teeth in a all-night reading stupor. Mothered is about a mother and daughter stuck in a house together when isolation and nightmares combine to bring out the worst in their shared trauma. Based on that description alone, it would be a great domestic thriller for me; however, it left out that it is set in 2020. Everything in this book is driven by the Covid 19 pandemic. It has an abundance of pop culture references, and at times, the novel almost felt like a meme to me. I love reading pandemic and outbreak novels, but there is something so referential about Covid novels that I just don’t like. This is a personal preference, of course, but my main complaint is that this isn’t mentioned anywhere in the synopsis. It seems like a silly thing to leave out.

The actual plot of the novel was way too slow at the beginning and way too fast at the end. I didn’t feel like the story got to the real “thriller”moments until the 50% mark. Once I reached the main payoff of the story, the mysteries that kept me reading were never answered, and the ending action sequence felt so fast that I didn’t get to experience the book being a true thriller for very long. I think the perspective of the novel hurt it here, but it still had so much potential.

I also didn’t enjoy how the disabled (and dead) character in this novel was a villainous character. I would not recommend this to any of my disabled or chronically ill friends.

All that being said, I think this book is for someone who is newer to the thriller genre or likes a calmer more paced out ride.

I received an ARC of this book from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this book! I couldn’t put it down. Zoje is starting to become one of those authors that I will read anything they put out. I devoured this book in a couple days. Love it!!

This author's books give me endless nightmares. I always say "nope not reading another of those" and then the second I have the opportunity I do whatever I need to do to get my hands on that book. In this case I signed up for a Netgalley account.
The "this gives me nightmares" is fitting for this book.
I am grateful Hope was written as a fully actualized nightmare child, and not a perfect angel, as many write disabled children. She was ..real and clearly loved by Grace. That is a true twin relationship.
And the end! The end was too perfect.

This book I really wanted to like it but I wasn’t able to get into it. I feel like the writing is all over the place I could not get into and then I was starting to get confused.
Example: At the end of a chapter she was hugging gay friends and without any leading they were kissing.
I had to page back to make sure I didn’t miss a sentence or two because I was so confused. I didn’t miss a sentence….

I have enjoyed the authors previous novels, all of which straddle the line between the horror/thriller;/literary fiction genre. "Mothered" is both a domestic drama and a story of the pandemic and how the fears and isolation made all of us feel unsettled and untethered to our former lives. Grace is a 36 year old hairstylist who has just gone back to work part time and is afraid she will lose the house she just bought. Her best friend Miguel, a fellow hair stylist is the only one she sees in person and she has just received a request from her mother to move in with her. Grace and her mother have not seen each other recently and there is no love lost between them, mostly because Grace had felt neglected as a child when all her mother's attention was on Grace's twin sister Hope, who was born with Cerebral Palsy, As the story unfolds we find out Grace was made to feel like a nursemaid to her sister who wasn't very nice and often cruel.

Jackie (the mother) moves in and Grace begins immediately having disturbing and violent dreams, often involving her sister. For a great deal of the book we don't know what is real and what is a dream since Grace wakes up and doesn't know herself if various conversations, dinners or things happened. I found this to confusing after awhile and wanted some clarification as what was real and what was a dream. When Miguel becomes ill with Covid, and Jackie begins to turn mean and accusing to Grace, her mental health takes a turn for the worse with a terrible outcome. I liked the author's attempt to put the mental health of people isolated with Covid into a fictional novel, but there were too many scenes where something normal seemed to happen like the mother making lasagna, and we are then t0ld it was a dream. At times I felt the mother was gaslighting Grace and there is a general feeling of unease throughout the novel. I also felt like Grace wasn't a very nice person and her hobby of catfishing seemed strange as it appeared she did have actual friends even though she couldn't spend much time with them in real life. Interesting book and topic but too many dream sequences for me. Still, Stage's writing is always literary and well done and I will read whatever she puts out. Thanks to Thomas and Mercer and NetGalley for a free ARC of this book in exchange for a review.

I am a huge Zoje Stage fan. I will read anyyyyyything she writes! Stage knows how to write a suspenseful and thrilling story.
Mothered takes place during the start of the Covid-19 pandemic lockdowns. It was very well written, and has a very claustrophobic feel to it. This book blew my mind and I absolutely recommend it.

I want to thank Netgalley,and Thomas & Mercer for an arc of this book.

This novel perfectly captures how bizarre everything felt in dealing with the pandemic. The part that terrifies me most is that I’ve been having very vivid dreams lately, I’m just hoping it works out better for me than it did for Grace.

Zoje Stage does it again!!! Not many authors are able to capture "subtle dread" the way she does. The characters are well developed and the relationships are highly relatable. Although Zoje Stage claims she never intended to write a “pandemic novel” , but she truly does a wonderful job. I think we have all faced challenges in relationships in the first 12 months of COVID-19, and utilizing the dynamic between parents and children makes this even more terrifying. Zoje Stage reminds me a lot of Stephen King in the sense of sometimes we are the true monsters. The Epilogue left me with a sick smile that made the whole novel worth it!

Honestly, this is more like a 2.5 for me. I for sure didn’t love it and I’m still debating on whether I even liked it.

In Mothered, we have Grace who is suffering from nightmares, hallucinations, unemployment, mommy issues, and concern for a friend all during the height of Covid and lockdown. What a mess!

Unfortunately for the reader, the authors style of writing only contributed to the messy plot. There is a repeated reality vs subconscious theme throughout the book that is frankly overplayed. I found myself recognizing the chapters with wild events for what they were and being bored knowing it wasn’t real and wouldn’t contribute to the overall story in a meaningful way. We get it, Grace is losing it!

I kept reading to find resolution, an explanation, a diagnosis, a familial anomaly…..News alert: There isn’t one. I’m never happy with a book that leaves me without closure. It just ends and the only thing I’m left with is that Grace just lost it, maybe never had it (another plot hole not resolved) and somehow spreads it to others. Maybe this author is just not for me.

I would like to thank NetGalley for an ARC of this book for my honest review.

Holy moly this was a wild ride. I’m still trying to get my breath back after finishing this one.
Giant thanks to Netgalley, Thomas &Mercer, and Zoje for this ARC
As the pandemic begins Jackie suggests to her daughter Grace that she move in to help with the finances after Grace loses her job Taking her up on the offer mother and daughter have to learn to cohabitate in this new world all the while dealing with the ghost of Graces twin sister Hope. This story begins as a slow burn but you begin to lose your mind around 50%. Suddenly you as the reader no longer know up from down, lies from the truth, dreams from reality. You feel the walls closing in.
And the final paragraph….Bravo. 5/5⭐️

I absolutely loved her previous book Baby Teeth, and I enjoyed this premise of Mothered as well.
The writing itself remains flawless and engaged. All characters memorable and interesting. Grace and Jackie interactions give us those calm water before storms vibes perfectly well. Author also succeeded bring Covid carantine worldwide infused to her setting very well. Halfway plot is interesting but the peak combination between flashback, daydream illusion and reality blended will make readers sitting in edge with anticipation.

The concept of the plot was so interesting, unique and relatable. It is confusing and also exciting me at same times. Unfortunately the end of this book feel little bit rushed and not fleshed out enough. It is open more questions about the real happened with Grace and her twin, the mysterious disease Jackie mentioned and who is the crazy one ? This one good but not give me those creepy twists as Baby Teeth.

Thanks Netgalley and Thomas & Mercer for let me read my copy. I am grateful but my thoughts are my own.
Mothered will publish at 14 Feb 2023.

Grace has moved on from a tough childhood. Her mother Jackie was always working, leaving Grace to care for her twin sister Hope who was born with cerebral palsy. Grace is ignored by her mother unless it is to scold or reprimand her for not caring for Hope and Hope has a cruel streak she uses against Grace. After Hopes’ death, Jackie distances herself from her remaining daughter and Grace has made a life on her own.
When Jackie calls and needs a place to stay, Grace is reluctant to allow the mother who has never shown her any kindness into her life but she has just bought her first home when the pandemic hit and she isn’t sure when she can return to work. When Jackie moves in, she seems to have changed from the unpleasant, woman who always looking for fault. Grace wants to believe that her mother wants to make amends but why has she been experiencing nightmares since she arrived? As the two are forced into isolation, tension between the two women grows and we know from the prologue that only one of them survives.
As with every book I have read by this author, you are drawn into the story from the first few pages and reading until the end. I have seen many authors notes recently say they didn’t intend their most recent release to be a “ pandemic story” but this one tackles the subject head on. The isolation, the job losses, the money worry, a momentary lapse in judgement at a family gathering leading to the ICU. Trigger warning - there is an instance of animal cruelty involving a hamster that sensitive readers may want to avoid. Graces’ “ catfishing” would be a great topic for discussion. I really enjoyed this one. Thank you to # netgalley and #thomasmercer for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion. “ Mothered is available on February 14,2023.

She’s a 10, but she reads ARCs for books that won’t be released until 2023 rather than the billion that have already been published and remain unread on her Kindle . . . .

Yeah, that’s pretty much what happened. Shelby sent me a text that Mothered was a Read Now on NetGalley and I snatched it up lickity split before the offer expired. I didn’t intend to read it right away due to that FEBRUARY pub date, but since I looooooved Baby Teeth this sucker just kept screaming to me "oh, so you wanna talk about MOTHERS????" After reading Zoje Stage’s take on a “bad seed” devil child, I couldn’t wait to see what she had to offer when it came to mommas.

A note to anyone who found the pandemic extremely traumatizing: this is NOT a book for you. It takes place in the height of panic where lockdown restrictions are just easing up a titch, but well before the vaccine was invented. You literally get locked in with Grace and her mother Jackie. Claustrophobic is a very apt description of how this book reads. It won’t be for everyone, but man oh man this was a slow burn of psychological fuck-up-edry that I read cover to cover one night after work.

Once again I broke my own rule of not reading the author note and took a gander at this one. I am so sorry for the author’s loss, but holy moly do I appreciate a brain that can turn the grieving process into something so delicious. I also couldn’t imagine quarantining in total isolation. While I tout my hermitlike lifestyle on the regular, at least I have other people who live in my house with me and who I like to talk to every once in awhile ; )