this book has everything, mainly fear, i was on tenterhooks but couldn't put it down -the world is full of crazy heartless people like those in the book, and i was totally absorbed in it - lies, deceit and tragedy, this book is amazing

This was unlike any other story I've ever read. It was fast paced and suspenseful, but really interesting along the way. There's a great twist I didn't see coming and the ending was not what I was expected but was all around good.

I'm not a huge fan of translated books but I gave this one a chance bc of the blurb. I liked the suspense of what is the secret and what is this remote island hiding? I just didn't like the pacing. I felt like it took forever for the build up of suspense.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this eARC. This story follows Juno, a young teenager who lives with her brother named Boy and their parents. The family lives alone on an island and they live in fear of the strangers that reside on the other side of the lake. The kids have been fed what they once thought as truth but quickly realize are lies and they might be in danger. This book starts out a little slow and the pacing felt off to me but it’s a shorter book so the ending came quick and intense. The story reads a little YA to me but it held my attention and I had to find out what was really going on. The twist was good. Keep your eye out for this one coming out January 2024!

A fast-paced suspenseful story that kept me on the edge of my seat through the end. The idea of the monsters being not deep in the woods or lurking in a cave, but being the people you know and living inside the house with you is truly spine-chilling.
Our main character tended to be very impulsive, both for good and for bad. In one way, it was an amusing character trait and helped plunge the story into the nail-biter it is. On the other hand, it also got frustrating, which could be positive or negative depending on the reader.
My main complaints are that the translation made a few scenes spotty when it came to the flow of the story and I felt the end was a bit rushed; I would have loved to read a little more regarding the aftermath.
Overall, it was a story I had trouble putting down and kept me worried what was going to happen next. It has it's negatives with the pacing and leaving more to be desired, but it was still an enjoyable experience.

The book sucked me right in and kept me interested throughout. That being said, the characters were never fully formed and I think quite a bit was lost in translation. Some of the aspects of the main character were very clearly written by a male thinking that's what a young woman's perspective would be and it was not believable. The plot and storyline were great.

Juno and her brother Boy live on a private island with their parents. The parents have kept their children isolated from the outside world. The children learn their parents aren't who they think they are and the story propels into a survival story.
I'm not sure if this story is meant to be young adult but it could definitely be a young adult novel. There are a few scenes of child abuse but nothing too terribly graphic.
Overall I enjoyed this quick read and it kept me entertained.

I liked the idea of this book but I could never really fully sink my teeth into it. I have a hunch it's because the translation felt very...stiff? It felt like I was reading a short story from the 40s, and because of that I always felt this distance between me and the characters and the plot. I could tell that this story was supposed to be pretty suspenseful, and I did finish it pretty quickly, but I never really felt compelled by the plot or characters. Overall, this was good technically, but I never really felt much emotion-wise while reading this.

What Mother Won't Tell Me is a gripping thrilling centered around a teenage girl named Juno. Hidden away on an island with her brother Boy, Mother, and Father, Juno has fed stories of the horrible strangers that are out to find and murder them all. However, things begin to unravel as Juno begins to push against the stories she has always been told.

This story really resonated with me. Menger beautifully captured the awkwardness of a teenager girl coming into her own. Juno is a well-rounded character that pulls at your heart strings during her various trials. Her relationship with Boy is a wonderful depiction of sibling relationships in the face of trauma. The remote island setting really helped balance the scenes between peaceful and creepy as needed. The fast pacing ratchets up the tension as the story rushes towards its breathtaking finale. Ultimately, I loved this book, even when it made my heart skip a beat or two.

Thank you to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for this ARC. I am leaving this review voluntarily and all views expressed are my own.

It was a good suspenseful story, enough to make me hooked until the end. It was interesting the way the story was leading, and was a fast-paced suspense.

Thank you NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.
Coming out on 01/09/2024.

A truly gripping, suspenseful story. The themes were interesting and I felt connected with the characters. I'd recommend this to readers of all kinds of genres.

I really wish I liked this more but I could just never manage to get fully into it and I think part of that is the translation just always feeling sort of....stilted? IT made it hard to care what was going on.

I dove into "What Mother Won't Tell Me" and finished it in one sitting. The suspense was good enough to keep me hooked, and I rooted for the main character and her younger brother. I would recommend this to anyone who loves suspense novels, and/or books about survivors. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

I thought that this was a solid story. You can definitely tell that it is a translation because the flow is just not there. I also wish that some of the storylines were fleshed out a bit.