4.25 stars

A bingey thriller where everyone is a suspect and you're pulled in a million directions. Faulkner lead me down so many windy paths, and I enjoyed the ride. You will be left guessing until the bitter end and repeatedly ask yourself "what is going on?"

Dang. I'm sad. I was really looking forward to this one and then I got it on audio and I was so excited and it fell short for me. Sorry that was the longest sentence ever, but I just had to get my thoughts out.

Katherine Faulkner had me in her grasp with Greenwich Park, so I was excited for the opportunity to read her latest release The Other Mothers. In Faulkner’s attest book, we meet Tash—a new mother and freelance journalist. Tash isn’t one of the posh moms, though she’s spent plenty of time observing them from a distance. When Sophie, a young nanny, dies it seems like this might be just the story to launch Tash’s career. Soon Tash finds herself in the midst of the upscale group of moms she’s previously only known from afar. But becoming intertwined with the London elite has risks—and an increasing body count.
Katherine Faulkner is no doubt a skilled storyteller in the thriller genre. This story follows a nonlinear timeline and moves between Tash’s storyline and Sophie's. There are layers upon layers of deceit, darkness, and backstory in The Other Mothers—sometimes so much that my mind screamed, “it’s just too much!” No matter how overwhelming it seemed though, I couldn’t stop reading. Faulkner has a way of instilling palpable danger and suspense even in the calmest moments of a story. I am truly a fan and The Other Mothers was a fantastic day spent reading!
Thank you, Gallery Books, and Netgalley for the ARC.
The Other Mothers is scheduled for a December 5, 2023 release.

@katherinefaulknerwrites is a master of the domestic thriller! Her second novel, The Other Mothers, is a fantastic look into the already scary world of motherhood in the toddler years but ups the lies, twists, & turns of her main character, Tash’s life! Tash is a freelance journalist who is juggling a two year old, her job, her marriage, & a new friend group she has found from her son’s day care. She is also consumed with finding out the truth around the death of a local nanny.

I truly loved this book and could not put it down once I started it!

Thank you @simonandschuster for allowing me to read this book ahead of publication in exchange for my honest review.

(This review was also shared on the Barnes & Noble website)

I liked how determined freelance journalist Tash is to find out if and who murdered a young nanny found floating in a natural pond. Her investigation involves meeting and socializing with several wealthy mothers of children in playschool, and she is glad her son Finn will find new playmates among them.

The suspense is built well as the novel progresses and the reader can't decide who to suspect, which woman or which husband. Tash is drawn into their drama, but I was glad to see her discover the truth, even at her own peril. The ending came as a surprise as it seemed very ambiguous at first, until I thought about it and figured out what would happen.

A psychological thriller well worth reading.

The Other Mothers, by Katherine Faulkner, is a slow burn to start, but once I was up to speed on the different characters, I found myself moving from chapter to chapter to see what happened. Who can you trust if not your friends, your mate, even yourself...
Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher, for the ARC ebook I read to complete this review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This is a book that I found hard to rate. I didn't like most of the characters, but I felt compelled to find out what happened. Tash is intrigued to uncover whether a nanny's death was truly an accident or a murder. The police have closed the case and the coroner has ruled it an accident, but some evidence contradicts their findings. Tash is struggling as a freelance journalist and is hoping that this investigation will restart her career. She is also struggling to find the solution to care for her toddler son while she works. He resists going to the playgroup , but another mother invites her son into playdates to help her adapt. Tash is also invited to join a group of wealthy women as well. One of them might know what happened to the nanny. I received a free copy of this ebook from the publisher. This is my honest and voluntarily given review. I didn't like to see how increasingly captivated Tash was by the world of the wealthy and how that affected her. Other than the toddlers, there was only one adult character that I like.

This one started out slow but picked up about 30% of the way in. Tash is an investigative journalist who is determined to solve the murder of a nanny in a ritzy suburb of London. This thriller is set in a posh suburb with an upper-class cast of characters who have lots of secrets. Kept me guessing! I just reviewed The Other Mothers by Katherine Faulkner. #NetGalley

Another stellar novel by Ms. Faulkner. I swore I had it all figured out instantly but nope. Wanting to be accepted is especially hard for mothers and Tash gets caught up in that. Unfortunately, it’s a pretty toxic group.

After a bit of a slow start this book will have you suspecting EVERYONE. I found the pacing of the story to be uneven as there was a lot of care and detail given to the descriptions of parenting and caregiving but then other parts that have to do with the overarching murder mystery were glossed over. In the end, it was a pretty good thriller with a twisty resolution.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an advanced copy of The Other Mothers by Katherine Faulkner.

Tash is looking for the next big story to jump start her foray into freelance journalism. She has been working from home and taking care of her two year old son, Finn. When a nanny turns up dead in a neighboring community, she begins to investigate the suspicious circumstances. Was Sophie really murdered?
She enrolls Finn in a playgroup in the same nearby neighborhood and is invited to join a mom’s group. They welcome her into their clique, making her son’s transition to school easier. She is happy that he is making friends and adjusting to school, while she makes friends of her own.
But are her new friends connected to the murder she is investigating?

*Special thanks to NetGalley and Gallery Books for this e-arc.*

I thought the plot details were well written even though the nanny murder/murderer troupe is over for me at least. I read it for the complexities of friendship and social aspirations in various random groupings of women. I think the subject has endless possibilities to be
of interest and reflective of the culture. Good and bad comes of mommy groups but tend to be divided as fiction equals the dark side. nonfiction brings more reality than sensationalism usually.. That being said I found the Laura villain to be especially unbelievable and
that made my reading experience less enjoyable.three and a half stars for want8ng to finish the book

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC! After enjoying Katherine Faulkner’s debut, Greenwich Park, I was interested to read her follow up. Being a new mum myself I was immediately drawn by the fact that the plot centered around a group of new mums. There are storylines: the present, where our protagonist Tash is desperate to be included in the wealthy mums’ friendship group, the past, which follows the nanny of one of the mums. The nanny is found to be dead at the beginning of the novel and journalist Tash feels the mums group has something to do with it. Cue investigations! For the most part, I enjoyed the story, it was well paced and the observations about motherhood felt relatable. However, there were some questionable actions taken by certain characters and the ending was abit anti climatic. Still, a good thriller overall,

I loved this book! What a page turner. I love a cast of unreliable characters and this certainly delivered! I could not figure out who to trust or how the story would unfold. I highly recommend!

This had so many twists and turns towards the end, it kept me on the edge of my seat. I was anxious for the final revelation. I admit, I never once guessed correctly with any real substance to the reasoning for my guess. I enjoyed the occasional dark feel that this author created as well. It helped to add to the tension.

While I was intrigued throughout the majority of this story, I found myself struggling at times to connect with the main character. With a cast that was designed to raise suspicions, I found myself needing to feel a strong attachment to Tash that never really happened.

The changing points of view added to a bit of the build up as one of the points of view was on a count down. I enjoyed that format even if it did start to feel a little long towards the end

Yeeeeesssss…this novel broke a bit of a slump for me in the domestic thriller category. The plot unfolds from dual perspectives, Tash and Sophie. Sophie’s timeline is in the past going back a few months to the moments of her death. Tash’s timeline is in the present intertwining her reality and Sophie’s revelations together. The weaving of the two plots was masterfully done. I found myself far more drawn to Tash, age and motherhood likeness, than to Sophie. However, I was totally enmeshed in the story and what happened the day Sophie died and who the real culprit was.

Tash is a struggling freelance journalist looking for “the page one story” to relaunch her career. Her husband Tom is a doctor in the beginnings of his career and after the birth of their son Finn and her leaving for freelance they are officially broke. Still getting Finn into the right playgroups is immensely important to the young couple and when an opening into a posh group happens, they enroll Finn.

Prior to Finn’s attending the playgroup, a possible story is brought to Tash’s attention. Sophie Blake, beautiful young nanny that had previously worked at the playgroup center, was found dead from a supposed swimming accident. Her mother brings the details to Tash at her home and states it was murder. Tash begins to investigate and at the same time make friendships with the posh moms at the center. These moms live lives beyond Tash’s current means with afternoons spent going to brunch, shopping, or getting treatments at upscale spas. As Tash maxes out a secret credit card to keep up with the other moms, she also finds out they may be closer to the story and Sophie’s death than she anticipated.

As the plot unfolds the tension and anxiety are very real. There were times I found myself anxious and jumping to conclusions right along with Tash. Instead of being extremely irritated I found myself enjoying the intentional misleads to get to the twist. I will admit the beginning unfolded a bit slowly; however, at a third of the way in I was fully hooked. The ending was also a bit devious and intentionally titillating. Well done Kathrine Faulkner, this book is a must read!

Thank you NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨
This had everything I love in a thriller: domestic drama, suspense, and alternating POVs. The pace was excellent and the characters were (mostly) well developed. What set this one apart was the authors ability to hit on the feelings and conflicts of early motherhood.

I previously read Greenwich Park by this author and enjoyed it so was definitely excited to read another by her. Overall, I enjoyed this book. It kept my attention with the mystery to be solved about Sophie. Having been part of playgroups/mom cliques in the past, this was definitely up my alley. I'd recommend it to others. The ending what not what I expected it to be as far as how everything came together. Thanks for the chance to read this ARC!

A psychological thriller centering around a group of moms in London. I never fully got into the motivation of the main character and her relationships with the other moms and the ending dragged out a bit trying to tie up all the threads. But overall it kept me guessing and reading.