The twists and turns in The Other Mothers will keep you guessing right until the very last moment! Journalist Tash begins to investigate Nanny Sophie's death, and Tash finds herself wondering about the women she's recently befriended as well as their husbands. A highly engaging, deeply intriguing, extremely suspenseful novel that is strongly recommended!

I was so excited to read this one and it did NOT disappoint. I was completely hooked and could not put this book down. There were so many secrets and lies and twists and yet everything flowed perfectly! I absolutely loved this book!!! I thoroughly enjoyed this authors first book (Greenwich Park) and now I can’t wait to see what she puts out next! RUN, don’t walk, and grab this book when it comes out on Dec 5th!

Thank you to the author, Netgalley & Gallery Books for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I sometimes struggle with the beginning of books, but not this time. THE OTHER MOTHERS was gripping from start to finish. I loved the alternating timelines and points of view as we hear from both Tash and Sophie. I don't know which one I enjoyed more, but the countdown of the days until Sophie's death kept me turning the pages. You won't know what to believe or who to trust as the author keeps you in suspense the entire time. This is definitely in the top 10 of the books that I've read this year and I've read over 150 this year.

Thank you Gallery Books and NetGalley for my gifted copy.

This review will be shared to my Instagram (@coffee.break.book.reviews) closer to pub date.

4.5* A domestic thriller that may not grab your attention until halfway, but after the story is set..be prepared for an unbelievable investigation. I loved Faulkner's "Greenwich Park", so I knew with her skills it would pick up. I was not vested when I started it in the summer so I put it down for awhile. I picked it up again when I realized the Netgalley deadline is quickly approaching in December. Do not let my experience turn your opinion because it is an amazing mystery to solve.

Told in two POVs. Sophie is an upper-class nanny in a gorgeous neighborhood with very wealthy inhabitants. When she is found dead, an investigative reporter, Tash, is currently unemployed after the birth of her son Finn, infiltrates the "lavish play-dates" and becomes a frenemy with the mothers. She is desperate to fit in, but pushes her limits investigating Claire and Jez's nanny's death. Her bank account says otherwise when these play dates become expensive and a showdown of the wallet. It doesn't take long when you realize, they are investigating her also.

Tash receives warning messages, such as "stop digging" "you'll be sorry". When a photo surfaced of her husband, Tom, with the deceased victim, Sophie, the story had me desperate to finish and all I could think about. When one of Tash's friends is found dead, you will not be able to put it down. An unbelievable recovery mid-way in the book that moved it to one of my top books this year!

Thank you Netgalley and Gallery Books for this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

4.5⭐️This was an excellent psychological thriller that had me glued from start to finish!!

Synopsis: Tash is a journalist investigating the death of a young nanny named Sophie, who worked in the neighborhood she recently moved to. At the same time, she is exploring new motherhood and eager to connect with the wealthy women in her son’s playgroup. As Tash gets closer to these mothers, she begins to realize that there may be a connection between them and Sophie… but at what cost.

Thoughts: This story was well-plotted and full of twists. Faulkner’s background in investigative journalism shined across the pages, and I liked how this thriller had a side of realism to it where I did not find my self suspending disbelief. I loved how the story was set around a children’s playgroup with cliquey moms and friendship drama. Also the two POVs, Tash in the present and Sophie in the past, weaved together perfectly with chapters ending in cliffhangers to keep you going!

Read if you like:
-Psych thrillers
-London setting
-Children-centered stories
-Journalism
-Family and friendship drama

The Other Mothers is about a journalist who is also a new mom who gets caught up in the mysterious death of an Au pair, while befriending other mothers in the neighborhood. These mothers have something to hide, especially the one for whom the au pair used to work. Throw in a couple of suspicious husbands and you have a big mess of a mystery that is a bit too convoluted to follow. That said, the writing is very engaging and kept my eyes glued to the page. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

Katherine Faulkner is fast becoming one of my favorite thriller writers. Her writing is very sophisticated, and you can tell she pays attention to not only the carefully-constructed plot but also the craft of her prose, which really sparkles. THE OTHER MOTHERS is atmospheric and suspenseful in the best of ways. I was so eager to see what would happen next, but I also savored the writing itself. That's a rare combination. I highly recommend this novel for fans of literary fiction and suspense. I eagerly await Faulkner's next book.

Page turner!!! That's the best way to describe The Other Mothers! I could not finish this fast enough!! It has everything; over privileged rich people doing bad things, affairs, multiple murders, no one you can trust, secrets, lies, and everyone had motive!!! In the middle of all this is a new mom, Tash, a journalist, who infiltrates the tight knit group of moms in order to uncover the real story. But she soon finds herself seduced by the beautiful life these women seem to be living. Who's prey and who's predator?? Twisty and suspenseful, this is a must read!!

I read this author's previous book and knew that I was probably in for another slow burn. I was right, but wow... I think I may have gotten whiplash in the last 15-20% of the story! So many twists and turns. Some I saw coming, some I didn't. Overall I really enjoyed it.

If you enjoyed Big Little Lies, then you'll definitely want to pick up THE OTHER MOTHERS by Faulkner!

This was a fast-paced, don't know who you can trust, thrilling suspense. Each chapter gave you a little bit more insight into what actually happened and who (if anyone) was to blame. I really loved that it was both Multiple POV and multiple timelines - and one timeline counted down to the MCs untimely demise (can you call the victim an MC? I think I'm going to in this case).

I think that if you're a mother and you have children that are involved in some kind of play group that you will likely see a little bit of your own life reflected in this book. And it will probably make you wonder what's happening behind the glittering glass houses of the mom cliques that you know.

THE OTHER MOTHERS really brings to light that you can't trust the front that people put up for the rest of the world and that you never know what others might have done...or might be capable of.

Read If You Like:
Mommy Drama
Adorable little kids
Unreliable narrators
Unsympathetic MC

This book blew my mind. It has all the best tropes: rich people behaving badly, undercover reporter, multiple murders, everybody did it, and a TWIST ending. I wasn't a huge fan of her first book (Greenwich Park) but this made up for it. Personal note: I got home from work for two days straight, didn't turn on the tv, and went DIRECTLY to reading this because I could not put it down. Faulker did an AMAZING job of making you assume everyone was guilty.

Tash is a news reporter that gave up her career once she became a mother. Once it was time for her son Finn to go to school, he had a HARD adjustment. That is until, Claire, Laura, and Nicole took her under their wing and began scheduling playdates. The playdates then turned into coffees, spa days, and expensive brunches. Tash was sucked into this life of luxury she couldn't afford. As she begins to freelance report again, she begins to investigate the death of Sophie (Claire's nanny). As she uncovers more and more details about Sophie's "death", she also begins to receive anonymous threats telling her to STOP digging, but in true reporter fashion, she does not give up, until the case comes to a head at Claire's beachside home with no cell service.

This is told in DUAL POV and Timelines. You are getting the POV of Tash (the detective) and Sophie (the dead babysitter).

An absolute must for your thriller TBR!

Thank you to Simon and Schuster for the ARC!

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.

I loved Faulkner’s debut GREENWICH PARK and was thrilled to get my hands on her next book! THE OTHER MOTHERS is another neighborhood drama that centers around the lives (+ lies) of mothers 🤫

It starts as a slow burn and took me a little bit to get invested, but I couldn’t put it down once I reached about the halfway point.

I enjoyed the short chapters and multiple POVs and Faulkner truly kept me guessing until the final pages.

thank you @gallerybooks for the #gifted advance copy and allowing my book club to read it early!

How to make you feel awkward and worried about possibly joining a mother’s group. This is quite a fun book, where no one is who they seem, and a simple murder ties together so many lies that the reader will never guess them all. This book is fast paced and just a fun read. There are enough twists and turns that you will want to keep reading right up to the end. Trust no one.
Thank you so much to Penguin Random House Canada and Netgalley for allowing me to read an advance copy of this title.

Are you looking for a thriller that's ACTUALLY un-put-downable?? Well, I've got a recommendation for you!

What I liked:
- The alternating POVs and timelines were done beautifully in The Other Mothers. It was never confusing, always intriguing.
- ALL the second guessing - is Tash reliable? Is she not? Can she trust the other mothers? All of them? One of them? Any of them? I really wasn't sure from page 1 all the way through the end!
- I consider myself something of a thriller aficionado. I see the endings of most books coming a mile away. This doesn't ever impede my enjoyment while reading, but if an ending surprises me, I am delighted. And while I had a couple of details right in my theories of The Other Mothers, most of the ending surprised me a lot!

I had a BLAST reading The Other Mothers and quite literally postponed plans to finish the last 30%, I just could not stop! I can't wait to go back and read Greenwich Park, I really think I've found a new auto-buy author in Katherine Faulkner!

Thank you to NetGalley and Gallery Books for this eArc of The Other Mothers. I had so much fun discussing this with Thrillers by the Book MKE book club!

A nanny dies under suspicious circumstances in Tash’s new neighborhood. As a journalist, she can’t stop until she finds out what happened.

It took me a little to get into this one but I did get hooked into the mystery and needed to know what happened to Sofia. Some of the women characters didn’t feel very well developed to me and all mixed together, but I still enjoyed the mystery. I liked how the main character was a journalist so there was a serious investigative tone to the story.

“Stop digging? No chance. I’m going to find out who you are, and what you did. I’m going to expose you.”

The Other Mothers comes out 12/5.

The Other Mothers was a suspenseful book that centers on a group of wealthy mothers and their bad decisions.
When Tash is approached by Laura at their kids playgroup offering to set up a play date to help easy Tash's son's anxiety about going to play group she is intrigued and takes her up on this. This sets in motion "friendships" that push Tash to her limits as she starts to investigate the death of Sophie, a young "teacher" ,at the kids playgroup. As Tash gets closer to the truth she is getting threats and making questionable decisions. Tash starts questioning if her new friends could be involved in the death of the young woman.

The book flowed well but had A LOT of characters. The beginning was a bit slow mostly because you are learning who all the characters are. Midway the book picks up and I did have some gasp moments. The ending I felt was a little rushed and some characters you never learned their outcome which was a little disappointing.

Overall, a good suspenseful whodunit book!

Thank you Gallery Books for gifting my book club eARC's of this book, we are discussing it this month and I cannot wait to talk about it with others!

Meet Tash a mother to a young son, a struggling freelance journalist, and a woman trying to make friends. She starts taking her son to a playgroup where she meets these beautiful and wealthy moms and desperately wants to fit in with them. Tash is also trying to write a story about a young woman who mysteriously died drowning. As Tash gets more wrapped up with the moms and the story the two worlds starts to blend together.

This is my first Katherine Faulkner book and now I need to go read her other one. It took me a few chapters to get into it, but then I didn't want to put it down. I had to know what was going to happen next. Highly recommend this book!

The Other Mothers by Katherine Faulkner — Pub Date of Dec 5, 2023

I had the extreme pleasure of gaining an early copy of this novel because of our book club — because of that, it is our November pick, prior to pub, which almost never happens. This British domestic suspense story lends itself to a large bowl of popcorn and hot cocoa or coffee (it rains a lot there!) This was Juicy! Propulsive! Especially towards the last 35% or so — I could not put it down and rendered myself useless the next day because of how late I stayed up to finish! Haha!

A young nanny is found dead, suspected to be free-diving over a cliff. Her mother asks a local journalist for help as she firmly believes that her daughter was murdered. Tash is that journalist who just lost her big job and is now freelancing — hoping a story like this would re-launch her career. She’s also a new mum and desperately needs to find a playgroup for her young son. With the nudging help from another mother, Tash is welcomed into this group of tight (aka, they don’t let just anyone into their circle) mums-who-lunch (and drink). Tash believes they know something and is determined to plug along with her “police work” (oh yeah, the local police have not investigated and closed the case!).

Will Tash make new friends for life? Will her marriage survive the unending expenditures that go along with “keeping up with the Jones’” (money that they don’t have)? Will her son finally release his grips of fear of playgroup? Will anyone else die???

I had so much fun with this one!! 5 stars based on how it made me NEED to find out the unhinged ending!
Thanks to #NetGalley and #GalleryBooks for this advanced copy for an honest review

"The Other Mothers" by Katherine Faulkner is a compelling novel that captivated my attention from the very beginning. While it didn't quite reach the level of a perfect 5 stars, it's a solid 4-star read, and here's why.

One of the standout aspects of this book is the intricate and well-crafted plot. Faulkner weaves a web of secrets, lies, and betrayals that kept me guessing throughout the story. The mystery element is well-executed, and the pacing is spot-on, ensuring that I was consistently engaged.

The characters in "The Other Mothers" are incredibly well-drawn and complex. I appreciated how the author explored the various dimensions of motherhood, friendship, and the challenges that women face in contemporary society. These characters felt like real people with relatable struggles and triumphs.

Faulkner's writing style is both vivid and emotive, allowing readers to delve deep into the minds and hearts of the characters. Her prose is evocative and rich, which added depth to the story. The narrative alternates between multiple perspectives, which gives a multifaceted view of the events and enhances the overall storytelling.