My Mother's Secret

A story of a family with secrets and the fall out when the secrets are revealed. The book deals with unwed motherhood, mental illness and a teen trying to come to terms with a secret she has unearthed which will change her life.

It was an interesting enough story, but it did give away that the girl's mother was really her grandmother a bit early into the book.

I liked the characters and how honest Imogene was with Erin and her reasons for leaving her with her mother to raise. There wasn't much mystery and the secret didn't stay secret for long.
I like that the book handled the problem of the dementia with the great grandmother as that is a rather common happening in life.

I listened to the audio book and the narrator did a good job.
It was an okay book but not one I would rave about.

Thanks to Emma Robinson for writing the story, to Sofia Zervudachi for the narration, to Bookouture for publishing it and to NetGalley for providing me with a copy of the audio book to listen to and review.

good book - it did give a very 'book id steal off of my mum' vibe but i enjoyed it!
engaging storyline and well developed characters

I was new to Emma Robinson when I picked up this beautiful book, the first chapter pulled me in and I needed to know the outcome. The story is heartwrenching and heartwarming in equal measure. I think the multi generational connections and the deep love between them made this a wonderful emotional read that I think dealt with extremely sensitive subjects in an empathetic way. I don't want too say about this fantastic book but if you like a powerful family drama then you won't forget this in a hurry.

This was a great wrenching family drama. Filled with secrets and lies that come out at the end.

Many thanks to Bookouture Audio and Net Galley for an audio copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

While possessing a very promising premise, this book fell short for me. The plot was well thought out, the storyline was believable and very real, and the characters were well developed. Yet there was not much memorable about this book. When I finished it, I thought that it was good, but nothing extraordinary happened. I went into this one blind, and while it was good, I don't think this was the book for me.

I did really enjoy the narrator Sofia Zervudachi. She did a great job keeping my interest while listening.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for an ALC in exchange for my honest and voluntary review.

Thank you to the publishers, author and NetGalley for the free copy of this audio book.

Overall a good read with characters that really draw you in. I enjoyed seeing all of the family relationships. The narrator did a great job.

I loved the premise it was interesting and captured my attention the timeline in which the story is set because we see the repercussions the decisions the characters took and also the relationships.
It was new but also kind of took me out of the story that we kind of know everything like at the very beginning so it's not like kind of a mystery or we don't have a big surprise that would elevate the book a little bit more, it is good that a got the audiobook because while I was studying or doing homework I could be invested in the story and made me like it a bit more, because I feel that reading it could be a little bit repetitive
Thank you NetGalley and the author for giving me the opportunity of listening to this book

Please Take My Baby
By Emma Robinson

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the ARC of this title.

Erin is a single mum who is struggling to raise her teenage daughter. Erin’s ex-husband is showering their daughter with the glamorous notions of moving across the pond to Las Angelas, USA. As it would any mum, this terrifies Erin but as she is struggling with her own issues, she must do what is best for her daughter.
Life turns as Erin finds a picture of her mom and a baby in which sparks Erin to seek answers that her mother who is suffering from dementia may not be able to help with.
Great story about life, sacrifices, mental illness and healing.

This book was a very slow burner. The big reveal, as it were, takes place in the very first chapter. So, we spend the rest of the book learning how each of the events unfolded to bring us to the current situations.

I found the difficult topics that were discussed - dementia, port partum depression, etc - to be handled with care and these were well-written.

The characters were ok, and I just didn't find myself loving any of them.

The narration was very good. The narrator had a lovely, warm voice which was very easy to listen to. I enjoyed the different nuances for the characters, even adding in an Aussie accent.

Overall, an ok book.

Please Take My Baby by Emma Robinson and Narrated by Sofia Zervudachi was excellent and utterly heart-wrenching and powerfully emotional family drama which was filled with great twists and turns but you will need tissues and lots of them.

Emma has away of bringing her audience into the story and every book I have read or listened to, they have never disappointed, this book was no different. I just love the way Emma writes and its always from her heart.

WoW, I need to turn my phone off, put the kettle on, make a cup of coffee and hide so no one can find me and listen to this audiobook!!!..........Oh don't forget the tissues, guaranteed I will need them! This audiobook was excellent, but heartbreaking and ultimately uplifting tale about the sacrifices mothers make for their children, this story will make you hold your loved ones tight.

I highly recommend this book and the Narrator's Sofia Zervudachi was excellent.

Another 5 Star audiobook/book.

Big thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture for supplying a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Listening to this whilst doing housework for myself and neighbours, the time flew by. I was so caught up in the tale and love of mixed generations, the need for cover up and secrecy which hopefully we will never need to experience in our time.

I really enjoyed this audio book, it’s a heartfelt story about the relationships between mothers and daughters and grandmothers. It looks at sacrifices and the the difficulties in raising children

I don’t know what I expected when I picked up this one, but it was definitely different than what I thought it would be. I enjoyed it though. I flew through it on audio.

I like that this book was primarily about relationships between women, related or not. Multiple generations of women living together and learning about each other’s pasts. And all different types of mother/daughter relationships, Ava & Erin, Ava & Imogen, Imogen & Erin and Erin & Harriet.

Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for my ALC of this book.

Oh what a bittersweet & heart wrenching novel #EmmaRobinson has created.
Erin discovers much about herself & her family as she unravels the truth about her parentage learning valuable lessons along the way in being the best mother she can to her own daughter.

Sofia Zervudachi is excellent as narrator.

Thank you, Emma Robinson, Bookouture, bookoutureaudio & netgalley for my ecopy & #audiobook! All opinions are my own.

Narrated by Sofia Zervudachi ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
by Emma Robinson ⭐⭐⭐

A thought-provoking exploration of family dynamics and the complexities of mental health, unfolding at a gradual pace.

This book had all the ingredients lined up to hook me in for a good read. However was disappointed. First few chapters were good then the story just got long and convoluted for me personally. It took me longer than usual to find my reading rhythm and I felt dragged in parts. Themes raised were sensitively addressed. A good book to read if you can dedicate time to get into it. Not one for a morning commute. You need to tiiiiime.

This book was a page turner. It grabbed you as soon as it starts and keeps you entertained till the very end. It is so well written I found myself lingering and trying to draw it out but at the same time wanting to see the progression. A great heartfelt story of family lies and secrets and ultimately finding the strength to forgive.

Heart strings definitely pulled with this audiobook and a great narrator too! It wasn’t difficult wanting to press play on this audiobook, the story flowed well, I liked the characters and their interactions. I am grateful to Bookoutre and NetGalley for the opportunity to review it.

This is a story about mothers and daughters, and the pain that holding on and letting go brings to each.

Erin's been raised clothed and fed by a distant mother all her life. So, when she became a mother herself, she promised to give her daughter all the love, affection and comfort she could. And now that her daughter is of an age where she'll soon "fly the nest," she's faced with the realization that she doesn't really know how to let go.

Continually comparing her mothering style to that of her mother's, she's shocked when she realizes that there may have been a reason for her mother's distance all these years... Erin isn't actually her daughter!

As she struggles to unravel the whole story before her mother completely loses her battle with dementia, it's hard to know what's real and what's not, and what happened in which order. But as she starts to fit the pieces together, she learns of the generational pain and struggles that the women in her family have contended with.

The question is, is her newfound understanding enough to mend the fences with her mother before it's too late?

This is a sensitive look at the validation and affirmation many of us look to our mothers for, and the impact and disappointment that follows if we don't get it. I highly recommend it if you enjoy stories that bond mothers and daughters together, despite years of misunderstandings and mistakes.

Thank you to Emma Robinson, Bookoutoure Audio, and NetGalley for an advance review copy.

Erin is trying to hold it together. Her mother has been diagnosed with dementia, her ex-husband is a pompous jerk who is intent on moving with their daughter halfway around the world and she discovers that her entire world and everything she’s been told about her family and life is a lie. Its a heartbreaking, emotional story of resilience, love, moving forward and at its heart a mothers love and what she will do for her child. The narration added to the experience of the book.