The first 70% of this book feels like walking along with our main character into the descent of madness. While there are some 'supernatural' elements to this story, it fits with the story in the end and fit in nicely with the feeling of what is real and what isn't. When things start to be revealed, I could not stop reading! The characters were well defined, the story was propulsive and the horror elements were subtle but still terrifying. With themes of motherhood, perfectionism, neurodivergence, and relationship challenges, there is a lot to digest here and I really liked this novel!
Thank you to Viking/Penguin Group and NetGalley for the ARC.

Clever Little Thing by Helena Echlin is a creepy, hard-to-categorize book.. The premise centers on Stella (who likely has Autism Spectrum Disorder, but mum refuses to have her tested) begins to adopt the personality of her deceased babysitter. Suddenly, Stella is acting like a well-adjusted, neurotypical child. What follows is a bizarre and creepy book prompting readers to wonder: has Stella been possessed?

What I liked about the book:
-The author did a great job of giving authentic voices to the Eastern European characters.
-I appreciated how Stella’s mum embraced her daughter’s her quirks and remained relentless in finding answers when Stella’s entire persona changed.
-The suspense was compelling throughout the book - leaving reader’s guessing if this a psychological drama or a supernatural horror story.

What I didn’t like:
-Mum’s character was a bit frustrating and cringy at times.
-Dad was a total arse.
-Not all questions were answered

In the end, Clever Little Thing is an entertaining read, but I don’t anticipate that it will win any “best of” accolades this year.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Viking for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Recommended: sure
For motherhood psychological thriller, for a slightly unreliable narrator, for a story that could be paranormal or could be hormonal, for a focus on slowly building clues and context

Thoughts:
This is a pretty solid addition to the "motherhood thriller" style of books that exist. There's enough clues to be able to figure out the "twists" at the end as well which I always appreciate (and you'd better bet I guessed one that was admirably subtle and felt very smug when I was correct!).

Plenty of background is given through the book. Maybe too much, to be honest. By halfway through I was getting a bit impatient waiting for one of the many clues we'd seen to start to matter in some more sinister or urgent way, but honestly that didn't really come. Maybe the last few chapters had that, but overall it was a lot of establishing vaguely creepy or weird scenarios without them adding up to much that mattered.

If you've got a pet peeve of stories where a woman is gaslighted because she's "hormonal" or because she's pregnant, recovering, etc. then this is definitely not for you as that's basically the crux of it. Is Charlotte right, or is she just unstable and imagining these weird things that are way out of context? I didn't mind it but it can definitely be tough to read. There's really no other driving conflict so be aware of that before coming into this.

One thing that did annoy me though is that Charlotte goes back and forth three or four times with Irina (Blanka's mother) on whether she's great or terrible. She loves her, she tells her to fuck off. Then she apologizes, then changes her mind and tells her to fuck off again. Then she just goes totally off the rails, but it got tiring to see the same things happen over and over. I understand it was being used to show that Charlotte didn't know what to believe or who to trust (even herself), but boy it got a bit tedious.

While this might so far sound like I'm just complaining, this book was fine overall. It didn't blow me away or anything, but I mostly enjoyed reading it (when I wasn't impatient for something to happen). The ending was also okay, so if this doesn't sound like something you're interested for the clues and build in the lead up, don't expect the ending to make up for it. The strength here is definitely establishing atmosphere, because it had that uncanny creepiness nailed, and I genuinely didn't know what to make of Irina either.

Overall pretty decent, the ending was when I enjoyed, but the middle section felt a little slow. By halfway through I was wondering when something would actually happen because it felt like a long time to establish the main crux of the issue.

Thanks to NetGalley and Pamela Dorman Books / Penguin for a free advanced copy. This is my honest review.

A chillingly haunting domestic horror story about a mother who believes her gifted child has been possessed by the spirit of her dead babysitter. This book gave me tons of Ashley Audrain's Push vibes with a mother not trusting her child or herself. It's full of guilt, gaslighting and a mother fighting for her children't best interests when the father tries to make her out as crazy and suffering from post-partum psychosis. Is anyone else tired of how often men get away with institutionalizing women against their will and branding them as crazy?? Sadly it happens WAY too often. Good on audio and recommended for fans of Ashley Audrain. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy and @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review!

CW: rape, infidelity, suicide

Clever Little Thing was certainly a strange, twisty ride split between a slow decent into insanity, and lies and betrayal.

Charlotte and Pete have a daughter, Stella, who shows early signs of high intelligence. Teaching herself to read at just three, Stella’s interests aren’t like other kids her age making it difficult to make friends and get along with others. While Charlotte loves this about Stella, her husband Pete feels her bond with Stella is a little too intense and he fears she makes problems where there aren’t any.

Afraid of suffering another miscarriage, Charlotte currently isn’t working and is trying to rest as much as she can while also being a wonderful and engaging mom to Stella. To help, a babysitter was hired but that babysitter sadly died. When Charlotte tried explaining this to Stella, Stella showed little emotion.

In an attempt to learn more, Charlotte reaches out to the babysitters mom, a woman named Irina. Before long Irina becomes a daily presence in their family and Stella immediately loves Irina - something very outside of Stella’s usual behavior.

As more time is spent with Irina, Charlotte sees Stella exhibit strange and unsettling behaviors. Trying to get to the bottom of it, she’s frustrated when no one listens to her concerns; not even her husband.

When Charlotte goes into labor at 30 weeks, everything comes to a head drastically altering the lives of those involved.

As I said, this was definitely a strange and twisty tale that I rated three and a half stars, rounding up to four stars. If you enjoy books about possible unreliable characters and the potential of a character slowly losing their mind, I would definitely recommend checking this one out!

“Clever Little Thing” by Helena Echlin was a thrilling and imaginative mystery that I could not put down! The story revolves around an eight-year-old girl who is somewhere on the spectrum in an unusual way. Her babysitter dies suddenly, and the child suddenly takes on all the characteristics of the babysitter’s personality to the extreme degree. The Mom knows something is not right, but because the child was so difficult before taking on the babysitter’s characteristics no one else sees it! The twists and turns are propulsive, and I truly had no idea where this story was going. It’s a mystery, a thriller and ventures into the paranormal. Clear your calendar because it’s unputdownable! Loved it!!

Thank you NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP Viking for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Rounded up from 3.5 stars. I was in the mood for a twisty thriller and this definitely delivered. I felt like I couldn’t get enough at first. But I didn’t love the ending. The more ghostly vibes just felt off to me and it felt too easy of a wrap up at the end. That being said, it is still a very original storyline and one that kept me on my toes throughout the book. I liked Irina but at the same time, it felt odd at times to have her be apart of the main characters. I also feel like I wanted to see more of Stella at the end.

Finally! A psychological thriller that actually thrilled me! Clever Little Thing is clever and creepy and left me guessing what was real. Such a wonderful debut - I can't wait to see what Echlin writes next.

Thanks to Pamela Dorman books for the copy to review.

Thank you NetGalley and the Viking books for providing the arc in exchange for an honest review.

This psychological thriller is a solid debut with a compelling story. I went in blind and had a great time. It left a lasting emotional impact on me. The plot is engaging and keeps you guessing what actually happened. It's medium-paced and takes you through their everyday life while making it exciting. The book explores different stages of motherhood, the physiological changes, and the willingness to go to any extent to protect one's child. I'm rarely attached to thriller books, but this one was unexpectedly beautiful. If you enjoy mother-daughter relationship thrillers, don't miss this.

I really wanted to like this book, but for the most part, I thought it was kind of creepy...and it only got creepier as the story went on. With that being said, I would be open to trying more books by Helena Echlin in the future.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

I really loved this book! I loved the way it was told with dual timelines and how unreliable the characters were. This book was a journey. It was all about motherhood and the difficulties that arise from pregnancy, postpartum, and beyond.

It gave me The Push vibes, which I really loved, but it also veered off into something very different. I didn’t know where it was headed, although one part was a bit too predictable, and I was just along for the ride. The pacing was very good, and the mystery was well done. I highly recommend this, but beware of certain triggers dealing with motherhood and loss.

You can't help but feel bad for Stella and Luna in this book. For two children to have such terrible parents and also be involved in this story seems particularly unfair. Despite the possible possession and pregnancy full of vomiting, this book didn't quite reach the emotional depth I expected. Charlotte's decisions were incomprehensible to me, she didn't seem to make a single logical choice and I feel Pete was right in one thing-she really needs therapy. I was really disappointed that a criminal got away with his crimes in the end.

Helena Echlin’s Clever Little Thing is a psychological thriller that dives deep into the fears and instincts of motherhood. Told from Charlotte's perspective with alternating timelines of "then" and "now," the story immediately pulls you in with its eerie and unsettling premise.

Charlotte’s journey as she tries to understand the sudden, strange changes in her daughter, Stella, is both emotional and suspenseful. Her determination to protect her child was extremely relatable, and I truly felt for her as a mother.

I'm not usually a fan of supernatural elements... but, it was well done and added an extra layer of mystery. As with every good psychological thriller, nothing is as it seems... and the final revelations will make you rethink everything.

Clever Little Thing was a mix of a few genres to me, it had dark literary elements to it, a tad of supernatural horror, psychological thriller, there was a lot going on and I absolutely loved it. Creepy children are always fun to read about for me so I was pretty excited about this from the beginning. At times it really felt like our main character was possibly losing her mind, at other times I thought she was completely sane, I just couldn’t quite decide what I thought was going on, which made for a fun ride. The end twist had my blood boiling I was so mad, but thankfully my blood cooled down to its normal temperature once the story wrapped up 😅 If you enjoyed Push, you’ll like this one too. I cannot wait to read more from the author! Thanks to @pameladormanbooks for my eARC.

I love reading about creepy children and begged for this one! I absolutely devoured this. It was so interesting and unlike anything I’ve read and I needed to know what was happening! I could not guess the ending at all and when it all wrapped up, I was so happy with how everything played out! This book sucked me in and had me feeling everything alongside this mother as she navigates the changes in her daughter and how to handle her. It seems she is all alone, but she knows her kid! I was thoroughly creeped out in parts, and I love that! While it wasn’t your typical scary kid book, it was so much more than that for me! I loved this different take and think a lot of readers will appreciate this one, especially mothers, as I was constantly putting myself in her shoes wondering how I would react and what I would do!

This was quite a slow burn, but hard to put down around the halfway mark. There was such a dark and disturbing feel to it. Do we have a very unreliable narrator, is this little girl completely disturbed, is there something else going on that we haven't even thought about yet? Very dark and twisty read! I enjoyed it very much.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Viking for the eARC.

This book made me feel really uncomfy. And unfortunately it was not the kind that I could rebound from and enjoy the book. Was okay, but not for me.

WOW. I’m pretty sure this book made my blood pressure high. It was so tense, I couldn’t put it down. It’s been awhile since I’ve been so frightened for a character, while reading about the psychological torture Charlotte was under. I couldn’t decide for the longest time if she just needed to chill out, or if there was something supernatural afoot. So good. When the answers begin to unravel, they reallllllly unravel. You’ll think you have some of it figured out, but you won’t be disappointed in how all the pieces actually

What did I just read?! It started off feeling reminiscent of The Push by Ashely Audrain, but by 2/3 of the way through it became increasingly unbelievable, and not in a good way. This was weird, disturbing, and kind of ridiculous. Plus, LOTS of content warnings. (A good portion of the last 1/2 made me very uncomfortable, and that doesn't often happen to me with books.)

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of Clever Little Thing by Helena Echlin in return for my honest review. To be honest, I finished this one a while ago and wasn't sure what to think about it. It's one I had to sit with for a while to come to conclusions about. The main issue I had came at the end when an epilogue potentially upended every conclusion that the characters eventually reached. Without spoiling anything, it was something along the lines of, "but what if the end of this story was completely wrong and the reason for Stella's behavior were caused by this other thing." It seemed very tacked on and spoiled what was a satisfying end of the story.

This was my first exposure to Echlin's writings, and I was engrossed enough to seek out future works despite my issue with the ending.