The first 50-60% is all about a new mom during those first months with a newborn which felt like it dragged on. I was wondering when the "thriller" part of this book was going to start and that took forever. I did like how we knew what was going on and were just waiting for the pieces to fall into place. I wish we got more once the twist was about to happen. It jumped right into the epilogue and I kind of wanted the aftermath a little bit.

Thank you MacMillan for the audiobook and Minotaur/St Martins Press for the ebook copy of The New Mother. This is a well executed domestic thriller that really resonated with me when Nora Murphy leaned into the tenuous, nebulous time that is new motherhood and the range of complex emotions that fill that time (and the weird feeling of being at home away from work and having to manage that transition). The mystery works because it is more of a how did this happen story and will the murderer get away with this; it is a story of unraveling the how did this happen within a story of a possible unraveling of a woman as she navigates post partum life. The multi POV from the protagonist Natalie, the neighbor Paul and later the detective (she was my favorite) works well as it gives the story depth and insight that really made the development of the background leading into the murder and investigation feel grounded and complete.
This is great for fans of Murphy's first book The Favor and books such as Stacey Willingham's All the Dangerous Things and a win for fans of nuanced domestic thrillers.

This is such a hard book for me to review. I thoroughly enjoyed the author's, previous book The Favour and jumped into this one expecting another addictive suspense read. But I didn’t get those vibes until the last 60%. To be honest, I almost gave up at 40% but since other reviews mentioned the action started later, I persevered. Also I was gifted both the audio and digital arcs and did listen to the last 40% in one go.

So what did I struggle with? The pacing was very slow and also very repetitive, but given the subject matter and reading the author notes at the end, kind of softened my view of how I felt. Does that make sense?

The New Mother is the story of Natalie, a professional attorney, highly educated, but this new, living creature named Oliver is now totally dependent on her. He doesn’t sleep so mom doesn't either, he cries all the time and she is at her wits end. Also, Nat believes she is the only one who can take care of Oliver properly, because she read that in a book or two, which then alienates her from family

Then there is Paul the neighbour, who is totally unreliable as a character but as Natalie’s new friend, he is someone she has come to lean on and trust. What follows is a twisty story that would have worked better for me if the last 40% was spread out a bit more and some of the repetitive detail was toned down.

The New Mother is a twisty story with a mystery as well as some serious subject matter for new moms. There should be trigger warnings for some which I won't mention but given the subject matter it should be obvious.

My thanks to St. Martin's Press and Macmillian Audio for an early copy in exchange for a honest review.

Thank you NetGalley for the free audiobook version of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

The biggest “plus” to this novel that I found was the very realistic portrait of a struggling new mother. Post partum depression and psychosis receives more attention now than it did 20 years ago and I applaud the author’s attention and focus on Natalie’s struggles.

The biggest “negative” to this novel-I really didn’t like any of the characters. I get that Natalie was struggling but I also didn’t feel that she liked anything. Her friendship with Paul felt false and he was supposed to be her shining best friend at the moment. Other than being able to hold her baby without him crying there weren’t any good qualities to him. Her husband, Tyler, was decent but Natalie treated him horribly.

The murder in the book was my main reason to pick up the book. But it just didn’t work for me. The storyline and characters just not the right fit. I do think that the author has good writing skills and this might be a great book for someone else.

Natalie and Tyler are both attorneys and have just welcomed their baby boy into their career oriented lives. Natalie is not prepared to care for her colicky son who never sleeps. Tyler offers to help, but Natalie keeps shutting him out, trying to do it all, but being resentful at the same time. Eight weeks pass in a blur and maternity leave is soon over for Natalie. The pressures of returning to work along with no sleep and having to pump every couple of hours has Natalie making mistakes that cause problems at work and has her questioning her own sanity at times at home. Stepping away for a sabbatical, Natalie meets her neighbor, Paul, a stay at home dad, and quickly gravitates to him as he is quite the baby whisperer. Paul has ulterior motives though, plans that could be detrimental to Natalie. Will she catch on before it’s too late? While I empathized with Natalie (I had a colicky baby once upon a time myself), her whining got old after a bit, but my main concern was that no one noticed that she really needed help, even when she refused their offers. The crime seemed like more of an afterthought and I think it would have been better to put more emphasis on that and less of the sleep deprivation that we heard so much about. Thank you to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for an ALC of this book

I had a very difficult time with this book. I myself experienced post-partum depression so reading this was too close to home for me and honestly made me uncomfortable. I did not care for the main character Natalie. It was hard for me to like her. She didn't want to help herself which frustrated me. I felt as if the story took a long time to develop which lead me to lose interest. The narration was good, compelling and convincing. Overall I did not enjoy this book.

the first 59% of this book was a little too depressing for my liking. I understand the need to show how terrible of a time the main character was having, but I felt like it was overdone a little too much. I did like the ending overall, although it could've used a twist. Solid 3.5 star book. Good as an audiobook.

I loved all of the information about being a new mother mixed into the delightful thriller package. I kind of want to give this book to all of my friends before they give birth now.... We don't talk enough about everything that can happen while giving birth and after. Combine that with clueless (or is it?) societal pressure that everything will be perfect, normal, and even easy...and you have a dangerous problem. It's wonderful to see someone using my favorite genre to have that conversation.

Hard DNF at 30%.
This is very disappointing for me to write because I really enjoyed "The Favor", but this was not a Thriller and there was barely even a hint of Suspense. This was literally about the title: "A New Mother" and a smarmy/creepy neighbor.
I strongly suggest that the publisher/author considers their audience for this one, because I cannot see anyone who is childless (whether by choice or not), would be able to endure reading nothing but descriptions of engorged breasts, leaky breasts, not sleeping, loving her baby too much, hating her baby, hating her husband, etc.
I get motherhood is hard and I have compassion for that, but at no point am I picking up a THRILLER novel and wanting to only read about the struggles of being a new mother. Maybe it will eventually hint at some sort of suspense, but if it's barely happening within the first 30% I'm out.

“I needed to work, I needed to bill…”

“Bring food and don’t stay long.”

These quotes totally describe how I felt when I returned to work after having my oldest. So many descriptions in this book really resonated with me and felt so authentic. It was so relatable. Being a new mom is HARD but it’s even more difficult if there are other components to it. This book does a good job of capturing the less talked about feelings of new motherhood.

I felt bad for Tyler, those helpless feelings he had were so heavy. He was legit clueless about when to do to help Nat. He was trying to be supportive but Nat wasn’t having any of it. Pushing away his support. I felt bad for Nat too feeling isolated, less than, unfulfilled and like a total failure. It was a perfect storm.

This is a like a modern day cautionary tale which just felt so incredibly realistic at its core.

Craziness. Trust no one.

TW: I don’t want to give too much away so check trigger warnings before reading.

4 stars

This was an intriguing and compelling story. It felt realistic, although it wasn’t quite what I had anticipated; I was expecting a lighter thriller, and it sort of was that, but it was definitely more of a dramatic yet believable story of maternal mental health, the social expectations placed on women/mothers, and how easy it could be for a certain type of person to manipulate and exploit the vulnerability of a new mother who’s not getting the support she needs. All in all, it was an interesting read.

2.5 stars rounded down….I need to leave the “new mom who hates her baby” trope alone for awhile, obviously. Nothing much happened until I got 75% into the book, and by then I was so annoyed I wasn’t really interested. The MCs poor husband is the only sympathetic character in the story. Just an overall miss for me.

This book failed to deliver what it promised. The New Mother is marketed as a thriller and at best, it's more of a literary fiction novel...maybe. There was a murder but it happens towards the end of the book and is extremely overshadowed by the rest of this story. And honestly, I wasn't engaged in the rest of the story. While I thought a thriller that involved a new mother could have been interesting, this one didn't cut it. There was little to keep me interested and I almost stopped listening. I gave this story three stars, but it's a generous three stars. It would be a better 2.5 star rating from me.

I really enjoyed this domestic thriller!
I felt our FMC was extremely relatable as a mother going through struggles as she welcomes a new baby into the world. It was raw and honest and so very true for a lot of people.

Paul’s character was intriguing from the very beginning. I got the sense that something was wrong with him or the situation and because of him couldn’t stop reading.

The prologue immediately drew me in, it was well framed that made you move to the edge of your seat almost immediately because you knew something was coming.

I did feel that the ending was predictable, however i didn’t feel like it took away from the overall grab of this book!

I bounced between the audio and the digital during reading and truly enjoyed both! The narrators did a wonderful job of being the story to life!

3.5⭐
Publication date ~ May 30, 2023
Page Count ~ 304
Audio length ~ 11 hours 51 minutes
Narrators ~ Dylan Moore & Lee Osorio
POV ~ single 1st & single 3rd
Featuring ~ 4 part story, lawyers, unreliable narrator, murder, postpartum depression

Natalie is a brand new mom having a tough time. Oliver won't stop crying and she's feeling the stress of lack of sleep. There is no doubt she is struggling and although her husband, Tyler, tries he just can't seems to help in the way Natalie needs and she begins to resent him.
Paul is a stay at home dad in the neighborhood and weaves his way into Natalie's life with his understanding demeanor and stellar skills of calming Oliver down.

I totally think men and women can just be friends, but I think it's different if you'd already had that friendship before you were married then if it was developed during your marriage. Everyone will always make assumptions that something sinister is going on.

It's not a secret that Paul has something up his sleeve when he starts showing up when Natalie is taking strolls. I knew a crazy plan was up his sleeve, but I was surprised about the murder. Overall, this had definite slow points where I thought it was just all going to be about new motherhood, which is not super fascinating if you did it yourself, and probably if you haven't either. It takes a while for the pace to pick up, but it does so after the murder.

I was fortune enough to have both an audio and a kindle copy. I'd recommend reading over listening. Natalie's narrator was very stiff/robotic sounding, but I was able to listen to her at a faster speed. Paul's narrator had a nice voice, but I had to slow down his speed.

3.75 stars rounded up

The New Mother centers around Natalie, an established attorney well on her way to partnership in her firm, whose world is about to be turned upside down by the birth of her first child. After Oliver is born, Natalie struggles to adjust to the many challenges of new motherhood. She is sleep deprived and overwhelmed and struggles to return to the workforce. Her husband, Tyler, who is also an attorney, continues his ascent up the corporate ladder while Natalie stays home to care for Oliver full time. At what seems to be just the right time, Natalie makes the acquaintance of a kind neighbor, Paul, who happens to be a stay-at-home-dad and is incredibly good with babies. Natalie and Paul strike up a friendship and she begins to rely on his help with Olive more and more. The reader is aware that Paul’s intentions are not quite as pure as Natalie thinks and this gives the plot an underlying creepy and propulsive feeling that kept me listening.

With that being said, it was definitely a slow burn and I did at times find myself wondering when something would happen. The mystery/crime component was a bit lackluster for me. This was less a thriller and much more a portrait of new motherhood and the many challenges and vulnerability that comes along with it.

Thank you to the author, Net Galley and Macmillan Audio for the opportunity to advance listen to this book in exchange for an honest review.

⚠️: homicide (not descriptive), mental health: post-partum depression
Read this if: you have kids

Natalie is struggling to balance life as a new mother to her first born child, Oliver, and her demanding dual lawyer marriage. Her current state of disarray mentally and physically makes her the perfect target for something sinister brewing in their seemingly quiet new neighborhood.

First, I want to preface this review by saying I don’t have any children (yet) so I can’t identify or empathize that much with the newborn and post-partum depression themes that the author obviously intended to honor in this story. I wouldn’t pick a book up if I knew this theme was all or most of the story because it’s just not something I know or care to know. In fact, it made me a little anxious about having kids in the future since it highlights all of the negative parts of parenthood. That’s probably why this book missed the mark for me personally but could do very well with other audiences who can relate.

So the first 52ish % of the book, I thought I read the description wrong or somehow got the wrong book. Or maybe I was led astray. I thought this was marketed a thriller or at least domestic suspense, I said to myself. That being said, it was SUCH a long build-up to the actual interesting part of the story which is what I came here for — MURDER, DRAMA, CONFLICT. Then the ending was so undescriptive and quick. It all felt rushed and over in the blink of an eye but yet I’m left with multiple hours of such long vivid descriptions about how terrible new motherhood is.

I did enjoy the dual male and female narrators and the narrators themselves. The dual perspectives of Natalie and neighbor Paul were essential for telling the story in the way the author intended.

Thank you to SMP Minotaur, Macmillan Audio, Nora, and NetGalley for e-ARC and ALC copies of this title in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the audio ARC! Here’s what I loved about this slow burn thriller, instead of playing into tropes about new mothers or making the new mother character the villain, it highlighted post-partum depression/psychosis and the struggle of new motherhood while experiencing those struggles.

The feeling of anxiousness and stress I experienced while reading the main character’s perspective was masterful writing, the emotions were captured well and had me invested fairly quickly. The “thrill” here isn’t necessarily in the actions but more so a lurking sense of dread and anxiety and then a need to see how everything plays out. Definitely don’t miss this one! 4 stars!

💭Thoughts:
I devoured this book. I was sucked into this story right from the start. I found Natalie’s character to be so relatable. I could see myself as a first time mom in so many of the things she worried about.

The story flowed well and kept me reading late into the night to know how it would end. The story is so plausible. It’s scary to think about.

I switched between the e-ARC and the ALC, just so I could keep listening on my commute to work. The audiobook is great. I really enjoyed the narrator. I definitely recommend this book.

As a literary fiction novel, I think this would have been excellent. Unfortunately, it was labeled a thriller and I don’t think the content matches the label. The focus here is much more on the postpartum experience than on the murder and mayhem usually included in a good thriller.