Laura Lippman has long been one of my all-time favorite contemporary thriller authors, and PROM MOM only serves to amplify that fact! This one had me on the edge of my seat the entire time.

Amber goes to prom with Joe and ends up alone on the floor of their hotel room. He's nowhere to be found... and she has found herself with a mess - literally. We quickly find out that she had given birth in the bathroom of the hotel room and by the time anyone finds her, she's passed out and the baby is dead. She ends up in jail for the murder of her baby (although, really, the baby was likely only about 26-28 weeks old and not likely to survive).

Then we move forward over 20 years and Amber decides to move back to where Joe lives with his wife. She opens an art gallery and reconnects with Joe... who seems to be a decent guy... but isn't. We get chapters from Amber, from Joe and from his wife Meredith. We get a lot of COVID stuff (which didn't add to the story... I understand the timeline matches with COVID dates but this could have been avoided by not providing a date for the prom and then just saying 20 years later.

I did like the story, it was a quick read and I wanted to keep reading. The ending was a bit out there and wasn't fully clear to me (and apparently, others, as I read through the questions and answers).

An engaging read that I thoroughly enjoyed! Laughed and loved all the way through it. Highly recommend and will purchase several physical and digital copies for library collections. Thank you!!

Although this book was not what I expected, it was nevertheless exciting--not the edge of your seat exciting (although at the end of the book there was a scene that was kind of a nail biter), but emotionally exciting. I found myself becoming invested in the characters--especially Amber, so when I thought she was doing something she shouldn't I was really saddened. And then, I'm sure every reader roots for Meredith, the wronged (?) wife, but then at the end--was she wronged or very devious. Ms. Lippman kind of leaves the reader hanging, but that's ok, each reader can decide for her/himself what they want to believe about the story--and honestly it is way worse than what I initially thought! As an aside, I think her clever working into the story the pandemic was very true to the time and this was one of the first time I could read about it and not have really negative flashbacks to that horrible time, but yet the story reflected my feelings going through the pandemic--the shopping, the waiting for the vaccine, the shutdowns, and the outside meetings.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advance copy of Prom Mom by Laura Lippman in exchange for my honest review and opinions. HOLY COW this is one wild ride that will leave you absolutely STUNNED by the ending. The twists and turns will make you crazy trying to figure out what on earth is going to happen next. I absolutely loved this book and can't wait to read more by Laura!

3.5 stars — this one won’t be for everyone but I enjoyed it!

Amber Glass became notorious at just sixteen when she gave birth to a premature baby in the bathroom of her hotel room at prom. No one knew she was pregnant - least of all her date, Joe Simpson. Joe was of course the father who took her virginity during their tutoring sessions several months earlier but insisted on keeping their “relationship” a secret. Yuck. Joe took a one year sabbatical from school but otherwise went on to live his life exactly as planned, while Amber was vilified and criminally prosecuted. Double yuck.

Twenty years later and a sudden inheritance brings Amber back into town and into Joe’s orbit. Now happily married to his college sweetheart, Meredith, Joe can’t seem to fight the allure of Amber’s unique brand of friendship. These three characters are playing a game of cat and mouse — but it’s hard to tell who is prey and who is predator. With a slow burn and tension so thick you could cut it with a knife, you can’t help but to be sucked into this suburban drama that unfolds in the backdrop of a global pandemic.

I don’t want to give too many spoilers with the rest of my review but I can’t comment on this book without talking about how much I HATED dumb, whiny, self-centered Joe Simpson. Literally thinks women exist only to do things for him and is so blindingly oblivious to his own privilege that it borders on comical. But despite all the character flaws amongst these three people, it works!

This didn't end up being all that I wanted it to be, but in the end I still enjoyed it. There were twists I truly didn't see coming, I"m just not sure how much they all added to the story. And I felt like there were some things still unresolved, or unexplored, by the end. But all in all, it's a good thriller. Laura Lippman knows how to write with just enough creepy.

I liked this book; however, the ending was a bit confusing. When Amber goes to prom with her tutee in 1997, she gets sick and has to go to their hotel room. She delivered a baby that she didn't even realize she was pregnant with. When the baby is found dead, she gets labeled Prom Mom, and goes to prison over it. Joe, her prom date, was labeled as Cad Dad because he failed to check on her.

Move forward 23 years, and Amber travels back home after her stepfather passes away. After putting her old house with her stepfather up for sale, she realizes that she doesn't want to leave. She opens a gallery, and begins a life she loves, until she runs into Joe. Joe brings with him drama, narcissism, and a history she doesn't want to remember. It took a while for Amber to find that out. When she does, the real action begins.

Once I figured out the ending, it is one that you will not want to miss. I only gave it four stars because of the issue with the ending, otherwise, it was a great read.

I’m not sure how I feel about this one still. I liked it while I was reading it but I found it very forgettable. I did really like the characters and the story line.

What makes this slow burn story different than other mystery/thrillers is the author’s razor-sharp writing, characterizations, and plotting. The tension is palpable and I could not stop listening, finishing it in one day.

I love character-driven suspense, and this book seals the deal for me: Laura Lippmann is one of, if not the most, brilliant suspense authors of our times. A favorite of 2023

This one wasn’t my favorite. I just did not connect with the characters because they were all unlikeable. Amber was the victim of terrible parenting which resulted in her being naive enough to not acknowledge her teenage pregnancy. The murder of her baby on Prom Night and Joe “Cad Dad” being able to move on without a second thought just shows the vileness of these characters. Not an enjoyable read.

Why did this book focus so much on covid, the pandemic, people wearing masks or not, and the 2020 election. None of that was relevant to the story that was being told. I felt like I was being fed political propeganda instead of a thrilling mystery. The ending was far to rushed and it was guessed early. I had just dnf'd another book and was determined not to do that for a second one in a row, otherwise I would have stopped the political torture.

This was my first foray into Laura Lippman's work and now I'm hungry to read her back catalogue. Prom Mom is extremely engaging and if you think you know what to expect... well, hang on for the ride. Looking forward to recommending this to folks in the coming months!

This book was nothing that I was expecting. I thought it would be based on just prom and prom night but this was so much more. I really enjoyed this one and love her writing! I can’t wait for her next book.

Thank you #williammorrow and #NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review

This book is difficult to review. The first few chapters hooked me in but then the story just stalls. Not much happens for most of the book. The last few chapters ties everything up.

While the primary time period of this book is set in the early times of the covid pandemic, that just adds another unsettling element to a story that would be dark and intriguing at any point. Readers will be taken by surprise by the places Lippman takes us with this story, frequently unexpected and surprising.

PROM MOM is dark, so I've hesitated in recommending it because I think for some readers the subject matter is a little too tough. But not for me! This was brilliant, as I expect Laura Lippman to be. She is so smart and twisted and this book of misogyny, scandal, and the type of incident that shapes one's life forever was absolutely impossible for me to put down.

This was a slow burn thriller ripped from the headlines. Amber and Joe are high school sweethearts and prom night is meant to be an epic night for the couple, and it is but not in the way they expected. The aftermath results in Amber returning to Baltimore to open a gallery, she swears she'll stay away from Joe, but that's just one promise she's not able to keep. I enjoyed this read, just like Law and Order, I love stories that have their root in some truth. Overall, a pick for me.

This was my first book from Laura Lippman, and have to say I enjoyed it overall. The synopsis made me insta-request it, and sounded so intriguing, if not tragic. It brought to mind the several true life "prom moms" and the effects those pregnancies/decisions had on their young lives. I don't think I was supposed to like Cad Dad, but I hated him. I also have to mirror a few reviews that didn't enjoy the mentioning of covid-19/lockdown. I actually actively avoid books that use it in the storyline as I lived it. It *just* happened. And only feels like it's going to date the book for future readers. Ending was 'meh', but I enjoyed the writing and would definitely pick up another book from this author.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the e-ARC I received in exchange for an honest review.

The premise of Prom Mom is the main character, Amber Glass, returns to her hometown where she is infamous for allegedly killing her premature infant on the night of prom. This is not a spoiler and is in the synopsis. The way the death of an infant is handled in this book as a plot point may be a deterrent to readers who have experienced the tragic loss of an infant.

Amber returns to the Baltimore area in 2019, having stayed far away after her life changed in 1997. Amber is a gallery owner specializing in art by the incarcerated. She has kept track of her prom date, Joe Simpson, a once-popular boy in high school whom she tutored, as a less popular and more awkward teen. Amber and Joe connect again when she returns to her hometown to handle the estate of her stepfather.

Prom Mom is hard to compare to other books I have read. It was a slow burn of suspense with interesting characters, some making foolish choices. About three quarters through the book one main character makes a shocking suggestion that made my eyes widen. The plot covers 2020 and the pandemic, including toilet paper shopping, elections, and testing.

The points of views move between Amber, Joe, and Joe’s wife, Meredith. It was an uncomfortable read at times but held my interest.

This review is posted on Instagram @beginandendwithbooks and on Goodreads Michelle Beginandendwithbooks