Prom Mom
by Laura Lippman
Pub Date: July 25, 2023
William Morrow
Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion. I have read many of Lippman's books and she is the master of thriller and slow-burn mysteries.
The effects of Covid- the adjustment to normal, and the political climate are skillfully woven into this mystery.
This book is unique. Get ready for an outcome you won't expect.
I loved everything about this! A quick-read, lyrical prose, unforeseen twists and characters you'll love to hate. A classic Laura Lippman perfect for old fans and new.
4 stars

This was a thrilling read unlike anything I've read. Beginning with Prom Night 1997 when Amber gives birth in a hotel room, through the last page this narrative moves like a high-speed train. It is literally a "can't put it down" book, which is perfect for Summer vacation reading with a release date of July 25, 2023..

Amber leaves Baltimore for twenty-two years, but quickly finds herself back in Prom Date/Baby Daddy Joe's life when she returns. Prior to returning to Baltimore, Amber lived in New Orleans, which happens to be the place where Joe's wife Meredith grew up. There are tracks that connect throughout this book including the cities.

Told in alternating chapters between Amber, Joe, and Joe's wife, Meredith, each character holds onto secrets that lead to a stunning conclusion. This is a book I look forward to discussing with my Book Club to see where clues became apparent to them that all was not as it seemed.

Without giving anything away, reading this book is like waiting for the impact of three on-coming trains that are bound to crash into one another. What a thrilling ride and conclusion!

Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for allowing me to read the galley.

Amber Glass has a past. She was a good sweet high school girl who fell pregnant by the popular Joe Simpson. No-one knew she was pregnant and on the night of her prom she gave birth to a premie infant who died. Joe was not there as he was still enjoying the party.

She was dubbed the "Prom Mom" and served time in prison. Now she is all grown up and has decided to return other hometown. She is fixated with Joe and he seems to have a fixation back, despite being happily married.

This book is fast paced and will keep you engrossed the whole way through to her end plan.

I really liked this book. You might expect with a title like Prom Mom that you’ll be reading a gossipy, salacious tale, but this book uses the premise of a teenager giving birth in a hotel room on prom night to make observations and commentary on privilege, society and men in general.

Most of the story takes place in the present, beginning in 2019 when Amber, this titular prom mom, returns to Baltimore. Her prom date Joe is married to Meredith and the narration gets us into each of their heads. Lippman doesn’t judge her characters, but that didn’t stop me from doing it. Well, judging them and being very curious about their motivations. Joe sure sees himself as a blameless victim in many in events of his own making. But he thinks he’s the hero and Amber is still e amorous with him 20-plus years later.

We get several flashbacks filling in the story of how Amber and Joe became prom dates. In the present tense, Amber and Joe get reacquainted and soon we’re into 2020 and dealing with the pandemic. I hadn’t expected that but I’m finding more and more authors are tackling it in their fiction.

I’d say that Covid is actually used really well in the story and again highlights issues of class and privilege. It’s focuses more on the circumstances the characters find themselves in due to the pandemic more than the tragedy and becomes an effective tool to move the plot forward.

I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop the whole book and think it definitely built to a satisfying conclusion. There were was one revelation at near the end involving Meredith that felt a bit out of left field and unearned, but overall I thoroughly enjoyed the book and would recommend.

Laura Lippman's writing style is not one to miss! I loved the plot of this book and how everything tied together nicely at the end.

While I enjoyed the hell out of this book, the characters and pacing especially, and was relieved to find that the prom thing was more of an influence on future events than a feature, that final twist left me a little cold.

I loved everything about this! A quick-read, lyrical prose, unforeseen twists and characters you'll love to hate. A classic Laura Lippman perfect for old fans and new.

I was so sad that I didn’t absolutely love this. This was my first book by this author who I had heard SO many good things about.

This book was just okay for me. I found it to be very very slow until the ending. Meredith’s character was really annoying to me.

I was hoping for a page turner & a far more exciting plot twist with this book.

What an interesting story - a noir tale but with a contemporary suburban setting. An unpopular high school girl becomes notorious when she falls ill at the prom and goes back to her hotel room where she gives birth alone after her date goes out partying. The baby didn't survive, and after a spate of headlines the two teens go on with their lives. Years later, their paths intersect again, with complicated consequences.

While none of the characters is terribly likeable, they are weirdly compelling even as the ... prom dad? ... in middle age digs himself deeper and deeper into a hole, yet remains certain everything will turn out fine because he's the kind of privileged male who never has to pay for any of his mistakes. In a sense, that's the main driver of the tension in the book. How far can he go out on a limb before it comes crashing down?

While it has the logic of noir, it's very much a novel of the present moment, pandemic and all.

Reviewed for NetGalley:

Amber Glass gave birth to her baby on prom night in a hotel bathroom. Her prom date, and expected father, Joe, had no inkling of the pregnancy.

Years later, Amber and Joe rekindle a relationship; however, Joe is now married to a prominent doctor.

The story jumps from past to present, slowly sharing what happened on prom night and what’s going on presently.

I didn’t really connect with any of the characters as they all came across as unlikeable, except for maybe Amber.

Prom Mom by Laura Lippman. Pub Date: July 25, 2023. Rating: 3 stars. This novel started out strong with a backstory that is crazy, wild and over the top. Two high schoolers, one tutor to another student, start a romantic relationship under the radar. Amber gets pregnant, Joe takes her to prom and ditches her in the room as she gives birth. Joe did not know she was pregnant, Amber is charged and her life is never the same. Years later, Amber shows back up in their hometown to open a gallery and Joe and her re-connect. The story is bizarre, Joe is an unlikeable character and Amber is dull but in the background using her brains to manipulate Joe. He is married, but has affairs. What happens next is anyone's guess, but someone else is going down and pay back for what Amber had to go through is next. I thought this novel started out strong, was slower in the middle, but finished strong. Thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for this e-arc in exchange for my honest review. #netgalley #prommom

Love any book that Laura writes and this on didn’t disappoint at all! I will once again wait on the edge of my seat for the next one! Highly suggest anyone pick her books up!

WOW. I requested this title based off of the description, and a new-found desire to read things that reflect our current pandemic-scarred reality, and it did not disappoint in the slightest! This is the story of Amber, the unwitting "Prom Mom" who, in 1997, gives birth to a premature baby at her prom, and Joe, the "Cad Dad"/Prom Date/Not quite boyfriend, and the consequences that follow. The action primarily takes place in the modern day, 2019-2021, and the knowledge that the pandemic is coming, and then of what it will actually be like, is a fun little aside for the aware reader. The other main characters are Meredith, Joe's surgeon wife, and Jordan, his colleague/mistress, and neither are exactly what you think the are. This book was a thrill ride from start to finish, and definitely kept me guessing all the way through. Secondary characters such as Amber's parents, Joe's mom, and Miss Margaret only show up sparingly, but help to give us a searing portrait of who these people really are. I will highly recommend this to all who like a twisty mystery/thriller, particularly one that so accurately mirrors our pandemic realities. For fans of Megan Miranda, Mary Kubica, Andrea Bartz.

Laura Lippman never ceases to amaze. What a maze I’d deceit to enjoy. I never saw the resolution coming, and as always, she has the knack and talent to make it all so human. Throw in the pandemic, and it’s a perfect, modern thriller. I loved it. Bravo

Placeholder. Will update when the Harper Collins union new contract is finalized. Thank you again to the publisher for the copy.

Prom Mom was a solid, very enjoyable thriller! I was pulled in from the start, I really liked the premise, and was curious to see where it was going to go. The character development was strong, and I found Amber to be a very interesting character. The aspects of prom, and the flashbacks to the teenage years gave this an almost campy feel. The last third of the book did start to drag a little bit and I was wondering how everything is going to get resolved. The ending was not super strong, but overall fit with the plot. It was a fast read and very engaging and I had a good time reading it.

A slow burn done so well, I loved the characters and found myself so invested in their story. I'm not a huge fan of books that take place during covid but that didn't stop me from rating this one a solid 5 stars!

"Prom Mom," like so many of Laura Lippman's stories, is both an interesting crime novel set in Baltimore and a piece of social commentary. Here, she challenges the reader to identify with a young woman who gives birth on prom night and leaves behind a dead baby when she checks out of the hotel afterward. Lippman also dares to ask: Why does the boy -- the "Cad Dad" -- seemingly get to just walk away from the whole situation unscathed? "Prom Mom" unfolds in two timelines, following the main characters as 1990s high school students and then catching up with them when they reconnect in 2019. The plot builds toward a *very* late climax, and you will likely be surprised by who "wins" and who "loses." It's a quick, satisfying read.

How does Laura Lippman continue to make watching terrible people do terrible things so darn enjoyable? I don't know but I'm happy to be along for the ride. This one hooked me from the premise and while it wasn't quite what I expected, did not disappoint.

I like Laura Lippman but I just really feel
Like I would have liked the book more without the Covid parts in it. I guess I’m just not ready to read books that take place during covid.