The experience of new motherhood is so well portrayed - but could have been cut back. Excellent description but really the plot needed to be moved forward.
It just could have been done better.

I enjoyed reading this book. Natalie is a new mother who has just moved into a new house with her husband. She struggles with the new baby, trying to work, and getting to know her neighbors. Paul a next door neighbor seems to be the only one who understands her struggles but he has his own agenda. This book is not a mystery. It is a novel about one woman realizing she is not alright and working on reclaiming her life. The book is well written and kept me turning the pages.

Navigating new motherhood is undoubtedly one of life's greatest challenges, filled with sleepless nights, overwhelming responsibilities, and a rollercoaster of emotions. It's a time that demands empathy and understanding, which makes it all the more disappointing to say that "The New Mother" failed to resonate with me on that level.

Natalie, the protagonist, struggles with the demands of caring for her colicky newborn while grappling with her own postpartum challenges. However, her constant negativity and resentment towards her husband, Tyler, and her inexplicable admiration for their neighbor, Paul, left me feeling frustrated and disconnected from her character.

Paul, portrayed as the perfect caregiver and neighbor, comes across as too good to be true, and his manipulative behavior towards Natalie only adds to the sense of disbelief. The murder subplot introduced later in the story feels forced and detracts from the already strained narrative.

While I appreciate the author's attempt to shed light on postpartum depression and psychosis, the execution fell short for me. Natalie's character lacked depth and failed to evoke the sympathy and understanding that such a portrayal demands.

Despite my disappointment with this book, I acknowledge Nora Murphy's talent as an author and remain hopeful for her future works. However, "The New Mother" ultimately missed the mark for me.

Rating: ★★½

I extend my thanks to St. Martin's Press, Minotaur Books, NetGalley, and Nora Murphy for providing an ARC of this book for review purposes. It is scheduled for publication on May 30, 2023.

Super intriguing! Kind of gave me vibes of The Push, but with less literary writing (that's not necessarily a bad thing). The book kept me turning the pages and I enjoyed it as a quick hit thriller to get me out of a reading slump.

From Nora Murphy, author of "The Favor," comes "The New Mother," a gripping tale that blends the relatable struggles of motherhood with chilling suspense set in the suburbs.

Natalie Fanning finds herself isolated and exhausted as she navigates the challenges of being a new mother in a new home, compounded by her colicky baby's relentless crying. Despite her love for her son, Natalie longs for more than the role of a tired and overwhelmed mother.

Enter Paul, the seemingly supportive neighbor who offers Natalie a lifeline during her darkest moments. With Paul's help, Natalie begins to find solace and stability, allowing her to finally rest and regain her footing.

However, Paul's motives are far from altruistic. As Natalie becomes increasingly dependent on him, she begins to sense that there may be ulterior motives behind his seemingly helpful gestures. Caught in Paul's web of manipulation, Natalie must confront the unsettling truth about her newfound friendship and uncover Paul's sinister plan before it's too late.

"The New Mother" is a riveting exploration of the complexities of motherhood, loneliness, and the darkness that can lurk beneath the surface of suburban tranquility. With its blend of relatable characters and spine-tingling suspense, this novel offers a fresh twist on the familiar themes of maternal love and suburban life.

The New Mother by Nora Murphy is read by Dylan Moore and Lee Osorio. This duo did an awesome job narrating together. I'm not one for pregnancy laden novels but I've got to hand it to Murphy for her writing abilities. I was hooked. I found the MCs both unlikable but so hard to turn away from. The way this plays out was engrossing. I was taken aback by the abrupt end but I think that's because I was listening. I also liked the representation of postpartum depression and psychosis.

Just couldn’t really get into this one. The main character was so annoying and whining all the time. This one just wasn’t for me. A special thank you to St. Martin’s Press/Minotaur Books via NetGalley for the advanced readers copy in exchange for my honest review.

This was a story experience that I have never had before. The majority of this story was told from the perspective of a mother suffering from postpartum psychosis/depression. The irrational thoughts and outwardly crazy behavior of Natalie during the story threw me for a loop. I knew it was an illness that could occur, and I knew that it could cause unusually depressive thoughts, but I really had no idea. To think that the author herself, and so many other women have survived this throughout time, and still maintained for their families amazes me. I will never stop saying how amazing women are!

This story follows Natalie, a first time mother, and her husband and newborn baby. They have just moved into a plush new home, in an incredibly safe neighborhood. They are both successful attorneys, with an incredibly colicky newborn. Natalie ends up losing herself to postpartum psychosis/depression due to her fussy baby, and lack of work, due to her having to take additional leave from her job.

In steps in Paul, their incredibly friendly neighbor, who swoops in and saves Natalie's day by soothing her baby and making muffins, and generally doing anything he can to make Natalie's life easier. That is until his wife shows up dead in the woods behind Natalie's house. Give the book a read to find out what happens!

Natalie and Tyler are both accomplished attorneys. They have moved into a new house before the birth of their first child, Oliver. Natalie struggles with the changes in her life – the baby’s needs, her career, the new house. After not being able to adapt to being a working mother, Natalie decides to take an extended sabbatical. Natalie is befriended by a stay-at-home father in her neighborhood. Paul seems to be a “baby whisperer” and can calm Oliver when he is fussy. However, Paul has sinister motives for befriending Natalie. I wanted to give this five stars but I had a couple of issues with the storyline. Originally it seemed Paul wanted to have an affair with Natalie. He had an affair with the stay-at-home mom that previously lived in her house. He actually thought about using Natalie to replace her. The storyline never went farther than Paul’s thoughts. Second, Natalie obviously suffered from postpartum depression. She is married to an attorney. Her best friend is a pediatrician. Yet neither one of them ever considered Natalie should speak with her doctor??? Third, the ending seemed a bit rushed but actually was satisfying. All in all, it’s an engrossing book. I hated to put it down.

3.5 stars

While I don’t consider this book a true “thriller,” I still enjoyed it. The audio was well done and I finished it fairly quickly. It is told in two POVs, one being the “new mother” Natalie, and the other being her neighbor Paul.

Struggling with her role as a mom, Natalie’s chapters are full of complaints—about breastfeeding, how tired she is, how worried she is, etc. I’m not a mom, and I would not have minded some of these elements during her chapters, but I personally felt like this is all Natalie talked about. It became super repetitive and I started to zone out while listening to these parts of her chapters.

I did enjoy the murder investigation aspect of this story, but it was pretty unbelievable to me.

Overall, this book entertained me, but I wasn’t a huge fan. I do respect Nora’s effort to bring awareness to the struggles women can face postpartum. However, I do think she missed the mark with Natalie, who was hard to feel empathy towards sometimes.

A domestic suspense, that unfortunately wasn't able to hold my attention. I may revisit it in the future, but I found the characters a bit frustrating. Thank you NetGalley and Minotaur for my copy.

The beginning started really strong and kept my engrossed but the rest definitely dragged where I caught myself just kind of skimming. I honestly hoped the end gave me good twist but ended pretty much how you'd expect.

I have feelings about this book!
Both good and bad.
Motherhood is HARD. Let's start with that. We want to help new moms and guide them. I know we're all guilty of spewing the occasional "you know what you should do". Sleepless nights, hormones are ranging (and have nowhere to go), family driving you insane (but you don't want them to leave). The works. So, I found it quite odd when I thought the mother in this book was way TOO much. And as a mother that is hard to say.

While there was a murder-plot I felt it was a bit outlandish, and beyond all realistic thought. However, with that being said, I didn't hate the book. I absolutely adored Murphy's debut novel and know her talent is sizeable! The writing is still well-done, and the story while a bit predictable, was well rounded.

I would definitely continue to read this author.

An emotional and unputdownable book with characters that I fell so in love with. It wasn't an intense thriller but more of a domestic drama/suspense. I enjoyed it so much, as I always do with Nora Murphy books!

A huge thank you to St. Martin's Press for granting me access to this title. I found this book riveting. I was hooked from the beginning and couldn't wait to see what would happen next! I highly recommend this read! I found it surprising, while relatable despite being so different from my lived experience.

Thank you to netgalley.com for this ARC.

This was a good page turner. At first, I had a hard time connecting with the main character and her way of dealing with things. As the story progressed, I found myself understanding her more and and rooting for her. The story deals with post partum depression and the stresses of new motherhood. Add in a too good to be true neighbor and it makes for a great thriller.

This is the second book I've read from this author and looking forward to more.

I appreciate the author's attempt to tell a much bigger story than what you might find in a typical domestic thriller. Unfortunately, it bogged down the story to the point in which I was reading more to finish rather than enjoying the reading experience.

Chilling read. As a new mother trying to adapt to sleepless nights, a new home and feeling cut off from life as she knows it, Natalie is struggling to figure out what is real and what isn’t. When the husband down the street befriends her she sees a small light at the end of the tunnel until his wife is murdered and she is the number one suspect. This story shows how things can hurl out of control and how post-partum depression can be missed so easily. Wonderfully written, this book will have you thinking about many things as well as enjoying a terrifying psychological thriller.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. Thank you NetGalley, Nora Murphy and Minotaur Books for hearing my honest review. Looking forward to reading more with you
#partne

"Isolated. Lonely. Tired. It's hard being The New Mother. Sometimes it's murder."

I was disappointed with this one as I was expecting it to be more of a thriller so don't go in with that expectation. It's definitely more of a slow-burn domestic suspense. I'm a mother so the description sounded right up my alley but the beginning was definitely hard to get through and honestly made me feel a little claustrophobic. Maybe that was the point but I already had all those feelings when I had each of my babies and I didn't really enjoy revisiting those times through Natalie's eyes. I did enjoy the second half more but by then I wasn't quite invested in the story enough to care how it was going to end.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press, Minotaur Books for providing me a digital reviewer copy in exchange for my honest thoughts.

this book was interesting to say the least. it definitely gives the perspective how new mothers minds can be when they first have a baby. postpartum depression is so real and I love how much the author really digs deep into it.