This is a well-done multigenerational book that has a perfect layout. It shows you how the thread between the past, present, and future is both strong yet possibly easily broken. Yet, it certainly plays into the old trope that you can pick your friends but not your family. While I was sad I didn't have enough time to read this in one sitting, it was easy enough to return to the storyline quickly. The title was made clear by the end of the book.

A great story, though the interweaving of characters and their stories was sometimes too jumbled. I kept through with it because I liked the interactions between the mother and youngest daughter, the mother’s approach to motherhood (leaving it to her husband!), the president Webb, who had some parallels in US History, and so much more. Well worth the read!

I requested this book because I liked the description. What I didn't realize was that I would absolutely love the book from beginning to end! Susan Rieger's carefully and thoughtfully crafted novel takes the reader through all of the emotions: love, hate, friendship, ambition, sacrifice, loss (and being lost), abuse, neglect, nurturing, resentment, laughter, and tears. The characters and story lines are so well written that you feel as though you have grown up with them and have known them all your life. You feel as though your are in the Pereira home in Detroit as you read about the early lives of Polo, Clara, and Lila.

Lila's story hits you in the gut and you find yourself hoping that someday she realizes that she is a strong, caring woman who made a straight flush out of the hand she was dealt from birth while acknowledging her lack of parenting skills. . While so many stories revolve around "absentee fathers" Rieger goes out on a limb and tells the generational story of "absentee mothers" while tying in mental health. Even while you are reading this, you have to root for and cheer on Lila, Zelda, Grace, and all the other flawed moms of the world. Nature versus nurture? A character flaw? All or none of the above?

When Lila is 2 years old her mother Zelda goes missing. Her abusive father told her and her siblings that he had his wife committed to an insane asylum. As the story unfolds the mystery of what happened to Zelda affects Lila’s parenting skills, as well as her children’s relationship with her and ultimately her grandchildren’s. Searching for the truth comes at a price. I found this to be a very slow buildup and almost abandoned it several times. In the end I was glad that I stuck with it. This ARC was provided by the Random House Publishing Group via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Susan Rieger’s third novel is a multi-generational story with a backstory that is difficult to read. There are some triggers that readers should be aware of: primarily, child abuse and domestic violence, but also grief and loss. It is also the story of some very strong-willed women, and how they do—or don’t—balance family life and work. It is very well written, the dialogue is fresh and authentic. The story draws you in from the very first two sentences:
“Lila Pereira died on the front page of The Washington Globe. She also died on the front page of The New York Times, astonishing and gratifying The Globe’s publisher, Doug Marshall.”

The characters are all (or nearly all) well-developed, even though there are quite a few names to remember. The author has kindly given a list of the characters at the start of the book, and it includes how they connect with the main characters of the novel.

I loved this book. I couldn’t wait to get back to my Kindle throughout the day to read more, and I stayed up way too late two nights in a row because I just couldn’t put it down. If you enjoyed Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano, I think you will also enjoy this one. One reviewer on Goodreads said that she will be “thinking about Lila, Grace, and Zelda for a long time.” I feel exactly the same way, but most of all, I keep thinking about how I can capture that same exact feeling and transfer it to my own writing. Susan Rieger, do you offer any writing workshops? Please get in touch if you do!

Thank you to NetGalley and Will Lyman of Random House Publishing for the ARC of this new novel! I really, really loved reading it and I am so happy to have discovered Susan Rieger’s work! I can’t wait to read her other two novels.
Like Mother, Like Mother will be published and out for sale on October 29, 2024!

Like Mother, Like Mother is a very well written multigenerational story about children living with an abusive father and an absent mother. Its characters are well developed and interesting as we are included in how they have survived and developed. There are so many intricate parts to this story that will hold your interest from beginning to end. It is wise, compelling, compassionate and thought provoking. I highly recommend reading it!!

4.5 stars for this amazing family (women) drama filled with so many emotions. This book grew and grew on me with every chapter. It started off a bit slow and I was worried it had too many characters when at the very beginning there is a "Cast of Characters." But with every chapter I was more and more invested in each of these "characters."

I loved that the matriarch, Lila, was unapologetically a strong feminist who knew what she wanted and created her own story of her life the way she wanted it (in a time when men ruled almost everything) and despite a very hard upbringing. I loved that she became a mom in name but in her generation she was more the dad than the mom - her husband was more mom to their kids in the traditional sense.

The book is divided into three strong female women and goes into depth about what each woman went thru to become who they are today. It was shocking to read about how Lila's father treated not only his wife, but his children as well.

This is such an in-depth read about three generations of women who each are strong in their own ways; it's a story about how each marriage can be so different from another's but what is important is whether it works for the husband and wife; it's a story about how parents can harm their children not just physically but emotionally; it's a story about love and the bonds of family and deep friendships.

This is a story to be read in a cozy chair because you'll get lost in the story of these women and time will pass and you are still sitting there reading, wanting to know these women so badly.

Thank you to NetGalley, The Dial Press and Susan Rieger for this emotional journey of women.

Well when I first started this book I thought it was a little slow but boy did it pick up. This novel is about three generations of mothers. The first generation is exposed to unspeakable abuse by her husband and how her actions effect later generations that follow. Zelda has married Aldo who has abused her physically until she breaks totally down. He places her in an asylum and he tells his kids she has died, But did she? Aldo in turn abuses his children and they cannot imagine a world where their mother would choose to leave them with Aldo. Lila tries to deflect the abuse from her siblings. But she runs also as soon as opportunity happens. Years pass and her daughter Grace decides to write a book about her family. She then decides to find out exactly what happened to Zelda. As the story builds the book becomes impossible to put down. I loved it.

Lila is a successful executive editor of The Washington Globe who is solely focused on her career, leaving parenting duties to her husband, Joe. Her youngest daughter, Grace, balks at this and feels rejected by her mother's lack of attention. We learn that much of Lila's parenting style may have been a result of her own mother's disappearance and her father's abuse. Did Lila's mother die in an asylum, as her father asserted? Or did she run away from him as well as Lila and her sister? Does history always repeat itself in parenting styles? This family drama story unfolds in a raw and honest way, making no apologies for motherly behavior that is quite different from the norm. Over the course of the book, I came to better understand each character and root for them. This is a highly engaging story. Thank you, NetGalley, for the advanced reader copy.

I really enjoyed this multigenerational story, mainly because the women were such strong smart and interesting characters. My only quibble is there are so many people in the book that I frequently had to consult the extremely helpful “Cast of Characters” in the front of the novel. But what does it say when there are so many characters that the author feels it necessary to include a list of them? Beyond that, the writing is superb; the story — basically split into three parts told from the points of view of Lila; her youngest daughter, Grace, and Lila’s mother, Zelda — kept my interest. This would make an excellent book club read.

Like mother like mother Is a challenging read because of all the generations of families that encompass the book... It's the story Of lives that are affected by cruelty and abuse and much disappointment but yet love and care and caring. As I got into the book It became more interesting and I enjoyed it to the fullest.

Susan Rieger has a unique and captivating writing style. It's bold and smart and I was hooked from the first page. I loved the story, with its rich characters and unique dynamics and relationships. I thought the the characters were unrealistically smart and quippy, but I could overlook that. The ending - finding out what really happened to Zelda - was both anticlimactic and fitting. I think the ending was too abrupt, but I wouldn't have changed how it happened.

This book is about 3 women, Lila Pereira, her daughter Grace and her Lila’s mother Zelda. Each woman has a portion of the book dedicated to their story. This story intertwines each of the woman’s story, allowing their story to unfold into the others, perceptions, hurt, anger and love, all show up in each woman’s story.

What an enthralling story, the characters are complicated and you can see the conflict between them from the beginning. The author did a wonderful job of expressing the frustration, the angst, the hurt of all the women. Each has preconceived notions and perceptions and, in the end, each realizes there is more than one side of a story. I didn’t particularly like Lila as a mother but I understood her by the end of the book. Well done.

Like Mother, Like Mother is a novel about three generations of strong women who must deal with having been raised by an abusive father and absent mother. Lila Pereira is incredibly hard-working and successful. Her upbringing by her abusive father (he was truly reprehensible) and a mother she has been told died after her husband committed her to an asylum has affected the way she raises her own three daughters. She makes sure they're well-cared for by their father but Lila has chosen to work long hours and immerse herself fully in her work as an executive editor at The Washington Globe newspaper (think Katharine Graham). Lila makes no apologies for her actions and lack of maternal caring. Her husband, Joe, is the true parent, but the lack of motherly love affects her youngest daughter, Grace. As an adult, Grace finds her own success but remains curious about what really happened to Lila's mother Zelda. Did she really die or did she escape? Grace sets out on a quest for Zelda that Lila herself never sought.

Susan Rieger has taken a look at the consequences of maternal involvement (or lack thereof) through three generations of women and the effects on those who love them. This challenges the traditional gender roles that are most often assigned to women. Through her characters, Rieger asks "How are we affected by the women in our lives who might dare to reject those roles and what has this cost those women themselves?" I'm not sure I ever understood generational trauma before, but this book certainly provides a good fictional explanation. There are many characters in the three generations with a guide at the front of the book in case you lose track like I did.

Thank you to The Dial Press and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book. It will be published on October 29, 2024.

Throughout reading this book, I thought what an appropriate title Like Mother, Like Mother is. In some novels, it’s not clear what the title means, this title literally described the book. Lila had an abusive father and an absent mother. Supposedly her mother was sent to an asylum by her Dad and died there. This had a huge impact on Lila’s life. She dedicated her life to her job as an editor of a Washington DC newspaper. When she married Joe, she made it clear that even if they have children, she does not want that to interfere with her career and left all child rearing to her husband. They had three children, the first two Stella and Ava very close together, were almost like twins. Grace, the youngest was the result of an unwanted pregnancy.
Lila’s absence as a mother mostly affected Grace. Grace felt as abandoned by her mother as Lila did . Throughout the novel it is not clear what really happened to Lila’s mother Zelda. Did she really die in the asylum as Lila’s father Aldo claimed? You will have to read the book to find out. I liked the book very much, I thought the second half dragged a little, that’s why I am taking one star off.
I received an advance copy from NetGalley, opinions are my own.

To my surprise I enjoyed this book. It was definitely not what I expected but it kept me interested to finish it. I would recommend this book.

Thank you to the author and NetGalley for gifting me this book in exchange for my honest review

Thank you Net Galley for this advanced e-copy. This family story will keep you turning pages well past your bedtime. When Lila is 2 years old her mother is sent to an institution and she will never see her again. Her father, Aldo, has been abusing his wife and now he sends her away. He abusive attention is now on Lila because she will stand up to him even at such a young age. Lila becomes a very powerful business woman and marries. Her husband Joe is patient and takes on the "mother" role to their 3 girls. Grace the youngest may look like her father but has her mother's spirit. She longs for a traditional mother. So beautifully and honestly written!

This is a story about three generations of women, searching their roots. They want to know more about the women, who are their mothers and grandmothers. Lila, the first one searching to know more about her mother finds she died in an insane asylum, where in those many experimental treatments were conducted that caused more harm than good. Lila was only two when her mother was taken away, and she lived with an abusive father.
As a result of her hard work, Lila holds the powerful position of the executive editor of The Washington Globe. Her children are being raised by their father, with little connection to their mother. Lila’s daughter Grace, although she never had the kind of relationship with her mother she desired, later as an adult she too was successful, even writing a book about her mother.
This dysfunction continues through generations, each daughter whose mother pretty much neglected her, later as an adult rises in their chosen field that they choose to be more important over their own children. The pattern continues to repeat itself.
Although this story has some interesting twists and turns, as the story of each generation progresses, what I did not care for was reading about the abuse that also occurred.
I received a complimentary copy of this book. All comments and opinions are my own.

Truly one of the best books I’ve read this year! Susan Rieger pulls you into this story from the very first page, and never lets you go. The women are all interesting, complicated, intelligent, and most of all human.
This book would make an exceptional Netflix series, and I sincerely hope for that to happen!
Wish I could give it more than 5 stars!

This was a great book. Three generations of women that hold three generations of secrets. Set back in time in Detroit, it is such a twisty story. Buckle up, i enjoyed this read!