The Nelson family. Rich prominent pillows of society or were they? This story is set in Martha's Vineyard, a beautiful backdrop for a story.

The story focuses on Brynn a new mom suffering with post postpartum depression. A writer, Brynn always balanced her life to perfection. Being married to the son of a prominent family she wanted for nothing. Until a young woman is found murdered and her Brynn's husband Ross is arrested for her murder.

This book had many twists and turns, it was a good story of ‘who done it". The story also focuses on the issue of postpartum depression and the effects associated with it; especially for a new mom who is trying to do everything herself while her husband is behind bars.

Thank you St. Martin’s Press, Julia Spiro and NetGalley for allowing me to read this advanced copy.

‘Bestselling author Julia Spiro's Such a Good Mom is a brilliant standalone mystery that's the perfect beach read. In the heat of summer, a murder on Martha's Vineyard rocks one new mom to the core, leaving her to search for answers.’

Loaded with gobbs of family drama and unlikeable characters, Such a Good Mom had a respectable plot, but somehow didn’t manage to blow my hair back. This is my first read by Spiro, but I will absolutely read more of her work in the future.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press | Minotaur Books for this arc in exchange for review.

Pub Date Apr 29 2025

I really enjoyed this domestic thriller. I would say that it falls into the category of books such as "The Last Thing He Told Me". There was a lot of character development of the main character who has just become a mother and is struggling with it and feels guilty all the time. This is definitely a cultural movement for the current millennial generation of mothers who are struggling to have it all with no village to speak of so a lot of readers who fall into that mother category will relate and enjoy that. On the flip side I can imagine non mothers, younger audience finding the details of being a mother in the book to be unrelatable as that was a big topic in almost all of the chapters. I enjoyed the 'mob family' vibes and drama that was underlying and the way the story was developed and how it ended. It's a perfect book club book and a quick read.

Such a Good Mom by Julia Spiro is a sharp and insightful exploration of motherhood, societal expectations, and the pressures that come with being a parent. The story follows a protagonist who navigates the challenges of balancing her personal aspirations with the demands of raising a family. Spiro's writing is both relatable and humorous, capturing the messy realities of parenting while also delving into deeper themes of identity and self-worth. I loved how the book blends wit with emotional depth, making it a compelling read for anyone who has ever felt the weight of expectations. This novel is a refreshing and honest take on modern motherhood that resonates long after the last page!

Trigger Warning: this book deals with the realities of postpartum depression & may be hard to read for some. The FMC has a newborn and at times feels like she does not even want to be a mother & basically wishes she never had him.

A murder happens and someone close to her (won’t spoil who) is accused, but she doesn’t believe they did it. She starts investigating while dealing with postpartum depression.

I felt the parts about her postpartum became very repetitive and I felt like the book should have been condensed a lot. The plot itself was good, but wasn’t super shocking. I would say overall this is good, but nothing mind blowing. I think women who have been through postpartum depression will really enjoy this as it is a major theme.

Thank you to netgalley for this free advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Brynn is suffering from postpartum depression. a woman is found murdered and she wonder if her husband had anything to do with the murder. good story.

WOW! An amazing story about family drama and the pressures that society puts on people to do everything right. The writing is refreshing as Julia Spiro doesn't sugar coat the struggles that new moms put on themselves. I loved this story.
As the main character, Brynn, is sinking into the darkness of post-partum depression and the pressure to turn in the manuscript her publisher is demanding her husband is arrested for the murder of a local woman. Does she believe her husband is innocent and will she help him prove he did not do it?
Thank you to St. Martin's Press for the gifted ARC provided by NetGalley. I am honored to have read such a great story. All opinions are my own and given voluntarily.

I'm unsure what this book wants to be, a diatribe about early motherhood or a thriller? I wanted more of the latter and it felt like every bit was overlaced with a story that would've benefited by being marketed differently. The thrill of this was highly predictable and the resolution left me pretty unsatisfied. Just feeling "meh" about this one.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was given this book by NetGalley for an honest review-
Bryn has a new baby and is suffering fr9m postpartum depression. She struggles with no sleep, diapers, night feedings, husband working long hours, and she’s an author and the words won’t come. And then a woman is murdered and they arrest her husband. She is convinced he didn’t do it. Can she find the truth? Who can she trust?

I really tried to get into this one but I found the FMC to be highly problematic and I found the story to be very slow. I was not able to get into it and found myself never wanting to pick it back up. I had to DNF this one.

I wasn’t a huge fan of this one. It felt pretty hard to get into for me and I didn’t find the main character enjoyable. Maybe it’s because I’m a new mom myself, but this wasn’t the right book for me at this time.

Although I couldn’t relate to this new mom’s struggle with a cranky baby, I felt her pain and exhaustion. This writer did a fantastic job describing Brynn’s life. Really good mystery with an ending that I didn’t see coming!

This book was so healing!! This author skillfully conveys what it’s like to suffer through a traumatic birth and be so angry with your partner for not having to bear the same identity upheaval that comes from becoming a parent. Spiro really digs in to the dark depths of a new mom’s mental health, and as a mom myself, I felt seen and justified. There were times I felt there might be too much complaining or that the FMC was repeating the sentiment that she felt like a bad mom or that she wasn’t a good mom unless she was struggling — but that is the genius of this book. That is the true experience of post-partum depression. Even if a mother wants to rise above those thought loops and self doubt, the cycle keeps repeating. Brynn is a strong, smart, complex character and the characters surrounding her are interesting and diverse. The mystery keeps the book from getting too bogged down by new motherhood, and all loose ends are tied up nicely by the end.

I will absolutely recommend this to people who have already had children, especially anyone who has dealt with PPD or a birth story that didn’t go the way they hoped. I will read other books by this author and recommend Julia Spiro. Such a Good Mom was a quality read. Readers might enjoy it if they enjoyed Catherine Newman’s Sandwich. Thankful to St. Martin’s Press/Minotaur for the egalley!

I was invited by the publisher to review this book. Brynn appears to have to have it all: new baby, husband, career, and a house on Martha's Vineyard. But behind closed doors, it is a different story: exhaustion from motherhood, motherhood and career swallowing up Brynn, and a husband that is becoming more distant as the days go by. One day, a family friend is found dead and her husband is arrested for the crime. Brynn is determined to find out who the real killer is, even if it means it is her husband, and even if it means adding to her already exhausted life.

There were moments of connection and disconnection for me. While I could not relate to the setting, I could relate to the exhaustion of motherhood. I will say that the overall suspense was good, and I wanted to turn the pages more to find out who was the murderer - plenty of twists there to lead the reader in different directions.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press/Minotaur Books for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Such a Good Mom* by Julia Spiro is an engaging mix of family drama and suspense that keeps you hooked from start to finish. Brynn Nelson’s journey as a new mom struggling with postpartum life and postpartum depression and anxiety is portrayed with real depth, making her an incredibly relatable character. Set against the beautiful backdrop of Martha’s Vineyard, the story takes a gripping turn when Brynn’s husband is arrested for murder, pulling her into a tense mystery.

Spiro does a great job balancing the emotional challenges of motherhood with the suspense of a murder investigation. The twists keep you guessing, and the steady pace makes it an easy page-turner.

I requested “Such a Good Mom” hoping for an absorbing mystery. That’s what the blurb—with its interesting premise and Martha’s Vineyard location—seemed to promise.

Unfortunately, while the novel addresses the important issue of post-partum depression, it offers a story that is not well-told. The main character is problematic. The plot is overburdened with backstory and internal rumination. The writing is repetitive in the extreme. Halfway through, having completely lost interest in the mystery, I gave up.

Brynn is a new mother living with her husband, Ross, on Martha’s Vineyard, where she grew up a middle-class kid. Before having baby Lucas, she was a successful romance novelist. Currently, she’s deeply depressed. Motherhood is nothing like what she thought it would be. Not only does she find the work unrelenting and exhausting, she has not bonded with her son and doubts she loves him. She deeply resents Ross, his lack of help and understanding, and the distance that has grown between them. And she is bitter and mournful about losing the life she had before the baby. She hasn’t been able to write a word in months, even though the deadline for her third novel looms.

Cecilia, a young waitress at the country club Ross’s wealthy parents belong to, is found dead on the beach. Suddenly, Ross is arrested for her murder. Was he having an affair with her? Did he kill her? And if he didn’t, who did? Is Brynn’s life about to be blown apart or will she be able to rescue Ross and her family and somehow find her way back to a “perfect life?”

While Brynn may be the story’s main character, she’s not a likable one. She’s extremely self-absorbed and often seems emotionally unstable, even violent. She’s repeatedly described as furious. More than once, she imagines harming herself or others. She displays no charm, or sense of humor, or wisdom, or grace, much less any real concern for her child or its future. It’s difficult to root for, or even care about, such an unappealing character.

The story’s plotting and structure are frustrating. Plot points—the things that happen in the story—are often followed by long digressions into back-story or Brynn’s reactions, ruminations, and feelings (most, if not all of which are about … Brynn).

And speaking of “feelings,” a Kindle search for the words “felt” and “feel” revealed that they are used 456 times throughout the novel.

Unfortunately, that’s not the only instance of repetition. Throughout the first half of the novel, the same points regarding Brynn’s difficulties with new motherhood are made again and again and again. Some points are important, designed to give readers a very good understanding of what post-partum depression entails, how difficult and exhausting new motherhood can be, how new mothers may feel pressured to “suffer in silence,” how insensitive others can be to the challenges new mother face, and even ways friends and family can help new mothers meet those challenges.

But the repetition of those points, and others, was incessant enough to cause me many times to think: “Okay, enough! I get it already! Could we please move on?” Indeed, it was one of the major reasons I stopped reading halfway through.

The Martha’s Vineyard setting seemed a wasted opportunity. While I got a sense of the division and tensions between the rich and the not-so-rich, and year-round residents versus tourists and “summer people,” I learned nothing about the island’s history, flora, fauna, beaches, ocean, or anything else that has helped it earn its storied reputation. In other words, I never was made to feel like I was on the island, much less in the midst of the story.

All in all, for me “Such a Good Mom” was a 2-star disappointment.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher and author for providing me with a complimentary ARC. The foregoing is my independent opinion.

With a healthy newborn baby, a devoted husband, a successful career, and a busy life on Martha’s Vineyard, Brynn Nelson should be the happiest she’s ever been. But Brynn is struggling. Her husband, Ross, grows more distant by the day, and the challenges and exhaustion of postpartum make Brynn feel like she’s slowly losing pieces of herself to motherhood. Pieces that she might never get back! Good book! I feel like this book focuses on postpartum blues! It’s definitely a real thing! It also had light suspense, murder, mystery, a great who done it and a few crazy twists and turns! The story was very interesting! I would recommend reading this book as it was worth reading! Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for sharing this story with me!

Brynn Nelson is a new mom struggling with postpartum depression. She is exhausted and filled with shame and guilt because she has not bonded with her baby. There is tension between Brynn and her husband because she needs and wants his help and support but is unable to express how she feels.. The author really delves into Brynn’s feelings and frustrations as a new mother and the difficulties of nursing, pumping milk and her sore breasts. With all of this as a background a girl’s body has been found. Did she drown or was it murder. The news spreads quickly thru the small beach community. Then Brynn’s husband is arrested and charged with the murder. Even with the support of her 3 close friends and supportive in-laws, her world seems to be spiraling out of control. New mothers might relate to her struggles with motherhood. An interesting read. Unexpected surprises along the way to solving the mystery.

Brynn has just given birth and is exhausted. Motherhood has not been easy, her book is unfinished, her husband is absolutely no help, and he’s acting strange as well. When a local girl is murdered and her husband is implicated, Brynn’s life is even more upside down. Did her husband do it or is he innocent?

A decent suspense book but mediocre like so many others these days. Nothing original

Brynn Nelson married Ross, son of the founder of the major development and construction firm on Martha’s Vineyard and heir to the business. They were happy until the birth of their son Lucas, three months earlier. Now Brynn is mired in feedings, sleep deprivation and postpartum depression and Ross seems to be spending more and more time on business.When the body of a young server at their club is found, Brynn wonders briefly if he was having an affair. Then Ross is arrested for her murder, whispers a cryptic clue to Brynn and tells her to believe no one. Brynn is determined to prove her husband’s innocence. Her investigation will put her in danger and will threaten the entire family.

Such a Good Mom is a captivating mystery but it is also a sadly accurate picture of the early days of new motherhood, the long nights, the loneliness and the self-doubts. The one sure thing she knows is that her husband is not a killer and that she loves him and wants her family back together. 5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press and Julia Spiro for this ARC.