I sadly did not enjoy this book! I thought the premise was super interesting but the story was very slow for me and I never wanted to pick it up after finishing a chapter. It wasn’t awful but I am excited to be done with it.

I love a good multigenerational family drama and this book did not disappoint. I loved the exploration of motherhood and how Lila's decisions affected her marriage, her relationship with her children, and her career. This is the perfect book to just sit back and go along for the ride as we learn about each of the characters and their lives. Powerful, well-written, and thought-provoking.

Like Mother, Like Mother covers three generations of women and how their lives were intertwined as mothers and daughters. Lila had risen to the top of the journalism world in Washington D.C. as an ambitious journalist at the cost of her family life. She had three daughters with Grace, the youngest, wishing her mother was like other mothers by joining the PTA and watching after school activities. Grace is curious about her mother's life growing up. There was always a question about what happened to Lila's mother, which Lila had not explored. Grace is curious and wants to learn more about the mysteries and secrets about her family. Like Mother, Like Mother is fast-moving with a lot of complicated relationships and not so perfect people, but reinforces the importance of our families.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the opportunity to read and review the ARC of Like Mother, Like Mother.

Full review to come on Goodreads and Amazon. Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for a review copy.

I was very surprised at how much I enjoyed this book. I think I really like family dramas. I right away was engaged and loved following the main character. I lost a little focus in the middle and didn't love some of the supporting characters-it didn't feel as exciting, but the ending made up for that. This book left me thinking and reflecting which I always love! I would definitely read more from this author.

One of the best I’ve read this year. I liked the writing… the conversations were deep, philosophical, and down to earth. The characters were interesting and the story of a lost mother and how it affected the children was intense.

I feel like I’m doing something wrong here. Only 32% in on my kindle and I have zero desire to read and/or finish. This one has gotten rave reviews from people I respect as readers so tabling this for another time.

I really enjoy multi-generational stories and Like Mother, Like Mother was a very interesting look at how trauma shapes a family.

Lila Pereira is very young when her mother is sent to an insane asylum and eventually dies. Or so she is led to believe. Zelda's absence from her life shapes Lila into a high-powered and successful newspaper editor. But her success comes with a loss and that is her relationship with her husband and three daughters. Lila's daughter, Grace, resents her mother's absence which moves her to do her own research about the family. In the end, she discovers things about her family and herself that helps her resolve her issues with her mother.

This was an interesting read - there is a lot of dialogue and a lot of "she said" and "he said." The quick banter back and forth between characters reminded me a lot of an Aaron Sorkin show. At times the story felt unnecessarily long, but it was a good read that made me think.

TL;DR: When Ann Napolitano’s editor tells you to drop what you’re doing and read a book, you listen. And I’m glad I did, because Susan Rieger’s LIKE MOTHER, LIKE MOTHER is one of the loveliest surprises of the fall. Without spoiling or sharing my full review (yet), I fell head-over-heels in love with this multigenerational story about a family of strong, complex women, in particular matriarch Lila Pareira, a switchblade carrying badass mom and journalist who actually dies in opening of the book (not a spoiler!), but whose force of nature personality hangs heavy over the other characters in the book and leaves an indelible mark on readers (I’d like to think she would have approved of today’s outfit choice!!). This is emotional and funny and sharply-written and perfect for fans of Napolitano, Claire Lombardo, and Meg Wolitzer. It feels especially timely given the recent headlines about prominent newspapers avoiding endorsements. As if I wasn’t already struggling to narrow down my TOP TEN books of the year, this one just made it a little bit tougher.

Like Mother, Like Mother is a fierce, intergenerational saga that explores the complexity of family, ambition, and hidden secrets. At the heart of the story is Lila Pereira, the youngest of three siblings, who grew up with the trauma of an abusive father and the mystery surrounding her mother’s disappearance. As Lila claws her way to the top of The Washington Globe, leaving her role as a mother in the “optional” column, the story weaves through the lives of three generations of women. There’s a quiet tension between what Lila’s daughters, especially Grace, feel about her absence and how it fuels Grace’s eventual bestseller about her mother. The novel delves into the powerful, sometimes painful, ways family traits and regrets are passed down, and the generational impact of secrets that can rewrite lives.

What really captured me was the rich character development and compelling dialogue that kept me hooked throughout. I was always eager to pick up the book again to keep following their stories. At the center of this tangled web is Zelda, the grandmother whose life was erased but whose presence lingers, unforgotten. This novel is a gripping look at family dynamics, personal ambition, and the truths that shape us, even when we try to bury them

This was a very special book about family and how the apple does not fall to far from the tree. Three generations of women tied together by the goings and comings of life, all interconnected in an unpredictable way. Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Random House | The Dial Press for a copy of this book for an honest review.

I loved reading this complicated story that is multi-generational. There is so much meat to this character driven story. The characters were all so well developed that when I closed the book for the last time, i knew I would be thinking about them for a long time to come.

Interesting take on a mother daughter relationship
I enjoyed reading this and liked how it touched on points most mother and daughters may experience

This book is a little bit of Tom Lake plus The Most Fun We Ever Had with a lot of political agenda mixed in. I enjoyed the generational drama and the theme of "the sins of our fathers are visited on upon the children" was done well, but the political agenda that was weaved all through the book, but especially during Grace's chapters, could have been eliminated or reduced without changing the outcome.

This is a story of three women - Zelda, Lila and Grace, each of whom struggle with what it means to be good mother. Zelda, Lila’s mother, never had a chance to be a mother because her abusive husband commits her to an asylum and tells Lila and her siblings that she died. Lila becomes a successful newspaper editor whose job is her life. She has three daughters - Grace being the youngest. Lila doesn’t know how to be a mother nor does she want to learn. She leaves the mothering to her husband Joe.
Grace wants to be a journalist but her anger at her mother for never being her mother. This book makes you wonder if being a mother is in your DNA or a learned skill. And what does it mean to be a mother?

While I loved the storyline of Like Mother, Like Mother, I did not like the political references throughout the book. In my opinion, that portion of the book added nothing to the actual story. I did, however, really like the complicated story of a Mother, Grandmother and Daughter.

I write this review as I sit on my couch, taking a glorious Sunday afternoon break from being around my children. This was a nice surprise, I liked everything happening here. I can relate to the depiction of motherhood found here, particularly Lila's version. The writing is done in such a way that I forgot this was fiction. The cast of characters at the beginning made me nervous (will there be a quiz? Can I follow this?) but it makes sense now. The matter of fact-ness and how quotes were used was clever and reporter like. That was a nice touch with our strong female characters in the industry. They were funny and cool but in their way also terrible if you are looking through the patriarchal lens. This is not The Way, but I liked this way.

It was a good story and didn't get melodramatic or sappy and kept it's head to the very end.

I received an e-arc from Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Do the stories we tell ourselves about who we are have a generational impact? Like Mother, Like Mother examines this question through the stories of three women.

Lila is the executive editor of The Washington Globe, having achieved this success despite a difficult childhood and an abusive father who had her mother, Zelda, committed to an asylum when she was only two. Having had no relationship with her own mother, Lila is unable to fill the idyllic motherhood role for her own children, and instead chooses to pursue success in her career while her husband assumes a more nurturing role with their three daughters. Grace, Lila’s youngest daughter, feeling abandoned and disappointed in the way her mother has shown up for her, Grace’s resentment toward her mother shapes all aspects of her life, from her career to her relationships. She publishes a book based on her mother’s life and she realizes that instead of seeking answers for the questions she may have had around her mother’s disappearance, Lila accepted things as they were told to her. Could knowing the truth have changed the person she would become?

The characters were well-developed and their struggles were realistic and believable. The pacing was pretty fast and it honestly read like a movie, which made it an even more entertaining read. Though the story focuses on three main women, it’s a gripping story of an entire family, the effects of abuse, trauma, motherhood, marriage, success, and the stories we tell ourselves about who we are.

An enthralling novel about three generations of strong-willed women, unknowingly shaped by the secrets buried in their family’s past.

Like Mother, Like Mother
A Novel
by Susan Rieger
(This review is based on an ARC sent to me by NetGalley)
This is a novel of three generations of strong-willed women and the story line is shaped by the secrets buried in their family’s past.
The main protagonists are Lila Pereira. Lila's violently abusive father, Aldo, told his children that their mother, Zelda, died in the mental institution he sent her off to when Lila was 2,
Grace, Lila’s youngest daughter feels resentment towards her mother. Lila seems to cast a shadow over Grace and shapes Grace’s life. Lila prioritizes her career, leaving the rearing of her daughters to her generous husband, Joe. Lila rises to the pinnacle of American media as the powerful, brilliant executive editor of The Washington Globe. The other character in the Novel is Ruth, Grace ‘s college roommate who has some influence on Grace.
Grace wishes she had a “normal” mother who would attend PTA meetings not White House correspondents' dinners. The story goes from past to present. The Lost Mother, a fictionalized account of Grace’s life with Lila, was published by Grace 3 months before Lila retired. This is a family drama, a multi-generational family saga, with twists and turns in many of the chapters.