Member Reviews

When a daughter comes in to find her mother missing, she's left putting all of the pieces together. We learn from both of their POV's the events that transpired, and that they also did not have the closest relationships. Everyone has their secrets though, and Cleo is discovering her mother's as she tries to figure out what happened to her. This book takes you on a rollercoaster and the writing, while bouncing back and forth from different POVs is easy to follow. Thank you to Kimberly McCreight, Knopf Publishing and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this advanced reader copy.

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I read this book in a day! Fast paced, which is my jam. But it fell flat. It did have all the plot twists and kept you guessing but it was just a 3 star for me.

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This was a very twisty, edge of your seat thriller. I loved Reconstructing Amelia, so I was very excited to read this, and McCreight did not disappoint! I absolutely did not see the twist coming! Thank you for the chance to read this!

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Thank you NetGalley and Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor, for my ARC in exchange for my honest review.

While I wasn’t sitting at the edge of my seat, I thoroughly enjoyed this read! I enjoyed the past and present POV, it made me curious about what was going to happen. The mother and daughter each had their own distinct voice so I did not feel lost. Some things I felt were lacking were the character development: I felt like they didn’t have much depth. I would’ve loved to see more journal entries and transcripts, because I feel like that drove the storyline for us readers.

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A fantastic read!! So many suspects and hidden agendas. All the twists and turns that a thriller and mystery reader could ask for. One of the best books I will read this year for sure.

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Cleo enters her parent’s house to have dinner with her mother, Kat, and instead of finding her mother, she finds a bloody scene and her mother missing. Kimberly McCreight tells this story in different chapters from Cleo’s perspective in the present and Kat’s perspective in the days leading up to her disappearance. Through the search for her mom, Cleo learns that her mothers life is way different than she had ever known- her mom’s upbringing, her mom’s job, and the relationship between her mom and dad.

I couldn’t put this book down. McCreight’s storytelling had me hooked from the beginning and I enjoyed the excerpts of therapy recordings, text messages, and news articles that all come together in solving the mystery. Although I do think there was maybe a little too much going on and didn’t fully understand the ending. I would recommend this book!

Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

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I remember enjoying Reconstructing Amelia when it first came out, and I was excited to read this. I enjoyed it! But there was something that didn't quite work for me, that I'm having trouble putting my finger on. Nothing was Bad, per se, but I didn't feel the pull to stay on the couch and readreadread as much as I'd hoped. I guessed a lot of the twists, so by the time they were revealed, they weren't so exciting. I'd still read another book by the author, I think, but I wouldn't push it to the top of my list.

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Kat and her daughter Cleo are not on the best terms. Cleo thinks Kat is overbearing and too hard on her. Kat loves her daughter and is trying to help steer her in the right direction. When something happens to Kat, Cleo is on the search to help. She learns some of Kat’s secrets and sees her mom in a new light. Like mother, like daughter- Cleo’s strong will and perseverance are key to solving the mystery.

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Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. This is my second Kimberly McCreight book and I really enjoy her writing style. I loved how the puzzle pieces came together in this book. While I guessed some of the “twists” in the story, I still thought it was a fun read!

“When Cleo, a student at NYU, arrives late for dinner at her childhood home in Brooklyn, she finds food burning in the oven and no sign of her mother, Kat. Then Cleo discovers her mom’s bloody shoe under the sofa. Something terrible has happened.
But what? The polar opposite of Cleo, whose “out of control” emotions and “unsafe” behavior have created a seemingly unbridgeable rift between mother and daughter, Kat is the essence of Park Slope perfection: a happily married, successful corporate lawyer. Or so Cleo thinks.”

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I'd like to thank netgalley and penguin random house for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I really thought that the premise of your book was good. However, the book was a bit all over the place. At times, I'd get a bit confused with the alternating povs. There was so much going on and I felt some stuff was just unnecessary.

Cleo comes back home to find her mother missing and a puddle of blood. Her dad tells the police about her not the greatest relationship with her mom, Katrina. Katrina had insisted that Cleo needed to stop seeing her boyfriend because he was a drug dealer. Cleo wonders if this could have anything to do with her mom going missing. She sets out to find the truth.

Overall, the book was good but I felt that it could've been better and a bit more simplified.

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I feel like I enjoyed her books before this one didn’t do it for me. I felt like all of the characters talked and acted in the same way. I guess with the title I should’ve expected that but really I had a hard time keeping people straight because they all felt so similar. Was such a stereotype with the nose ring and the clothes maybe the target audience is baby boomers who are scared of that sort of thing? It just made the book feel dated I did like that it was that it was the mom who disappeared in the beginning during preparation.

I think it would’ve been better without the drug and pharmaceutical company storyline that just felt very weak. I mean these things happen, but it felt like a bad mix with the rest of the book. I don’t know why you’d make that choice as a storyline. I think a more domestic storyline would’ve worked better. The flashbacks are kind of boring even when they tied into the present. It was very uneven.

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This book was just *okay* for me. There were too many characters so it made it difficult to grow attached to any of them. I really liked the book in the beginning but the end kind of fell apart for me and I lost interest. I still thought it was worth the read.

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3.75 - rounded up to 4
“Every daughter is a monster in her own special way”

Cleo is a young woman studying a NYU. She has her whole life ahead of her. A loving father, a semi-emotionally unavailable mother, friends, and a loving boyfriend. Cleo loves her life, but Cleo hates her mother. At least, she thinks she does until her mother suddenly goes missing and she is thrown into investigating just what happened to her. The search for her mother will lead her down roads she didn’t think possible and will also show her, she didn’t really know her mother at all.

This book was a slow burn from the start, at least for me. It took me about 100 pages in to feel like I was hooked. I think where I struggled with was with Cleo. The absolutely awful way Cleo treated her mother was really had for me to move past. I understand, that often times we feel our parents don’t “get us” or they try to make our lives difficult for “no reason”, but I feel like Cleo was a completely emotionally immature character. I personally did not feel connected to her and I did not feel like there was much character development with her. She was the sore spot of this book for me. Kat on the other hand I totally loved her. I felt like her character developed from what seems like a corporate mom with no time for “feelings” to a mother who is so deeply misunderstood and is constantly trying to protect the ones she loves. The ending felt rushed, and sadly, I did not find it satisfying. Overall, I am glad to have read this but maybe it just was not for me.


Thank you netgalley for allowing me early access.

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Once again, Kimberly knocks it out of the park with her latest book. Cleo is the daughter of Aidan and Katrina, who comes home to visit her mother due to not seeing her after awhile. She goes into the house, sees blood and can't find her mother. If you want to know the rest, you will need to read this 5 star book!

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I really wanted to like this but it was very confusing for the first half to two thirds. Names and acronyms were dropped with no introduction. I was surprised by the twist but lost in the complete absurdity of the story

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Like Mother, Like Daughter
Kimberly McCreight

So many twists and turns, I did NOT see coming. Haunting secrets past and present, missing mother, corporate corruption, and parental love with all the attending doubts and challenges, “fun parent” vs. serious and conscientious.
There were so many possible villains, so many threads and clues well and fairly presented, and yet the ending surprised me completely, with an “oh, of course!” and a satisfying, echoing click.
This is well-written and most compelling, a pleasure to read, putting aside other activities to keep reading. I confess that I did get a bit lost in the non-linear time line, but it all came together with perfect clarity (skills!)

Tech musings: I sometimes wish for settings on e-readers to switch to chronological order or arrange by characters. It would be an interesting variation for re-reading also. Different colors of Post-Its or highlighting do help keep on track, as does making a chart of characters from the start;— the ebook’s search function provided good reminders. ;-)

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Title and Author Like Mother, Like Daughter by Kimberly McCreight
Overall Grade: B
Plot: B+
Characters: B
Writing: B+
Ending: B
Pacing: B-
Setting: B
Best Aspect: The storyline was interesting although parts seem to drag on and certain aspects seemed unnecessary.
Worst Aspect: I got bord from time to time.
Recommend: Yes.

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I loved everything about this book, from the front cover, all the way to the back cover. McCreight leads you on and lets you think you know exactly what's happening. She had me going all the way to the end. At the end, she pulls a fast one on us and throws some wicked curve balls. You think you've got it, but trust me, it's a fun read. This story is believable, all the way down to the comment threads within the story. If you enjoy those "gotcha" moments with your suspense, I strongly recommend this book. Kimberly McCreight has an easy-to-read writing style, with relatable, likeable characters (...and, some not so likeable characters. Who doesn't know that "over-the-top," judgmental mother with the "perfect" family?). The story line is well developed and the twists and turns at the end are such an amazing reward for your time investment. Great story! I give this read 5 bright, shiny stars. I will be reading more books from this author.

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Like Mother Like Daughter by Kimberly McCreight tells the story of Kat who disappears and her daughter Cleo who tries to find her. A fast paced thriller that kept me reading. A good build up with events before and after the disappearance. A good mother daughter relationship story. Thank you to NetGallery and Knopf for letting me read this book in exchange for an honest review.

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While reading, I felt less immersed in the plot, than I hoped I would. A missing mother; only a broken glass and bloody shoe remain. There’s a lot going on in the lives of close family. Do any of these things have to do with her disappearance? I found some of the characters to be cliche. The book just didn't work for me; I didn’t find the twists very shocking, and the ending was slightly anti-climactic.

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