This was my first J A Baker novel, but I am aware that they have authored many well received novels. I was drawn to the book by the blurb, which sounded like it had all the ingredients of an excellent thriller. I really liked the way the book was written over two timelines - it helped to build Melissa's backstory and provide context for the present. Melissa was suitably flawed and unlikable, and I enjoyed analysing her character and trying to unpick her emotions and actions. There was a sense of vulnerability underneath the determined exterior, and she was clearly very troubled. I sometimes felt it would have been good to hear a bit about the other side of the story - what were the baby's parents thinking and feeling, how was the investigation progressing, etc. The final few chapters were a surprise and brought an interesting twist to the whole book. Hush Little Baby is tense and gripping with an interesting premise and a good twist.

I'm reviewing this via NetGalley, as part of a tour with Rachel's Random Resources.

The narrative switched between the present day, and 1970. I was drawn in from the beginning, and I sensed something that felt ominous, and made me feel uneasy. My feeling of unease motivated me to keep reading. I found Melissa an intriguing character, and initially, I questioned her motivations and intentions.

I've read books by this author before, and I found they had a clever way of creating a tense and chilling atmosphere. I felt very aware of Melissa's emotions and everything that went on around her, and found myself on tenterhooks.

This was an addictive nail-biter that thriller fans will enjoy.

Thank you to NetGalley, Rachel's Random Resources, Boldwood Books, and to the author, for the opportunity to read and review this.

Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the ARC (Advance Reader Copy) of Hush Little Baby by J. A. Baker. I quite enjoyed this book. The ending was a twist that I did not see coming! It was a little slow at times but an easy read. There was some repetitiveness but not as much as a book I recently read! A lot of emotions while reading this book, heartbreak, sadness, shock, grief. This book is worth picking up and giving it a go. I gave it a 4 star rating.

The thriller had a gripping plot, but the writing style detracted from my enjoyment. It was pretty distracting from any tension I should have felt. The overly descriptive language and use of outdated synonyms made the narrative feel cumbersome, disrupting the story's flow and pacing.

W.O.W
This book was very hard to put down, it's written in chapters with Melissa the daughter and Nancy her mom who was abused by her husband Roger.....it explains how Nancy planned to leave Roger with her children Melissa and George.
Written as Melissa an adult, she takes away her grandson or is it? from what she thinks are his abusive parents. As they go on the run, things happen and Melissa realises looking after a baby isn't going to be easy......
I certainly didn't see the end coming !!
I was hooked.......
5🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 read in my opinion

I was into this book from 1st page but then had to stop and gather the info I had read! A little bit confusing but couldn't read this fast enough!! A great deal of the storyline is a bit far fetched but doesn't take anything away from the enjoyment. Was even more confused with the ending but so glad I read it all. A really good storyline, just a bit confusing at times.
Many thanx to NetGalley, the author and publishers for allowing me to read and review this book

Hush Little Baby by J.A. Baker

I received an advance review copy for free thanks to Rachel's Random Resources and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Blurb

When she hears the baby crying, she knows she has to do something to keep it safe. To protect it from its terrible parents. Even though the father of the child is Melissa's own son...

When Melissa Crawford snatches a crying baby from outside a house, she knows she's done the right thing. She can't bear to see the baby suffer one more day in that house, with those people. With her, baby Gabriel will be safe and loved. She is his grandmother after all...

But as Melissa is making her escape, she is involved in a terrible accident which forces her into hiding. She can't believe she's been so careless - now she has to lay low and let the dust settle.

Gabriel's parents won't care where he is, they'll be glad he's gone but if she goes to prison who will care for the little baby? Who will keep him safe?

But caring for Gabriel is harder than Melissa imagined. Why does he keep crying? Why won't he settle? Why does he remind her of another child she once loved...and lost?

My Opinion

Melissa kidnaps a baby and ends up having to go into hiding. This is the second book I have read by J.A. Baker and both have been entertaining. For a thriller I thought that Hush Little Baby had a relatively slow plot but the twists made up for it. If you are looking for something a bit different, then look no further.

Rating 4/5

I’m a massive fan of the author and this did not disappoint, the start instantly grabbed me, I need to know who this woman was robbing her grandson?!

The dual timelines worked really well together, Roger was awful, but through his actions, we saw how this affected Vanessa physically and mentally (even him speaking threateningly to her filled me with unease).

I also really enjoyed that we truly got to understand Melissa and my heart broke for her.

Well let me tell you this was such a great read! A story of abuse and how it affects someone long after they are out of the suituation. I was caught off guard by how things turned out. Not what I was expecting at all. Heartbreaking, thrilling, just a great story! I actually rated this 4 1/2 stars!

Hush Little Baby
by J A Baker
Pub Date: Aug 23 2024

Hush Little Baby is a psychological thriller involving domestic abuse. The story is told over two separate timelines, now and back in 1970. It has a really good storyline, at times a bit repetitive. There is some disturbing graphic descriptions that could trigger anyone that has been involved in a domestic abuse relationship. With this in mind, the author did do a good job of telling the story as respectfully as possible.

Synopsis: When Melissa Crawford snatches a crying baby from outside a house, she knows she's done the right thing. She can't bear to see the baby suffer one more day in that house, with those people. With her, baby Gabriel will be safe and loved. She is his grandmother after all...

Many thanks to #HushLittleBaby #NetGalley & Boldwood Books for providing me with an E-ARC of Hush Little Baby.

Hush Little Baby by J A Baker is another chilling story that took me on a wild ride.
A slow burn suspense filled with twists that kept me hooked from the very beginning.
An intriguing story with characters who draw you in and keeps you flipping the pages.

Huge thanks to Boldwood Books, as well as to NetGalley, for the opportunity to read and review an early copy of Hush Little Baby!!

This book just went from 0 to 100. Melissa had a troubled past and sadly things have followed into her present. Family can cause problems, yes, but for some it’s more than that.
I felt lots of feelings about this book but it kept me reading up to the last.

*Hush Little Baby* by J.A. Baker is a gripping psychological thriller that takes readers on a chilling journey into the mind of a woman driven by desperation and a twisted sense of love. The novel opens with a shocking act—Melissa Crawford, convinced she is rescuing an innocent child from a life of neglect, kidnaps baby Gabriel from outside a house. Her belief that she is doing the right thing sets the stage for a tense, emotionally charged narrative that delves into themes of loss, obsession, and the fine line between right and wrong.

As Melissa attempts to flee with Gabriel, fate intervenes in the form of a devastating accident, forcing her into hiding. Baker masterfully portrays Melissa's mounting paranoia and fear as she realizes the enormity of what she has done. The tension is palpable as Melissa grapples with the consequences of her actions, all while trying to care for a baby who is far more challenging than she anticipated. Gabriel's constant crying and refusal to settle only deepen Melissa's sense of unease, stirring painful memories of another child she once loved and lost.

Baker’s skillful character development brings Melissa to life in a way that is both unsettling and sympathetic. Readers are invited into her fractured psyche, where her good intentions are tainted by delusion and unresolved trauma. Melissa's growing realization that she may not be equipped to care for Gabriel is heartbreaking, adding layers of complexity to her character. Her internal struggle between protecting Gabriel and confronting her own past is the emotional core of the novel, driving the plot forward with relentless intensity.

The pacing of *Hush Little Baby* is expertly managed, with each chapter adding to the suspense and uncertainty of Melissa's situation. Baker's writing is taut and atmospheric, creating a sense of claustrophobia as Melissa’s world closes in around her. The novel’s exploration of grief and guilt is handled with sensitivity, making Melissa's tragic backstory a key element in understanding her motivations, even as they lead her down a dark and dangerous path.

*Hush Little Baby* is not just a story about a kidnapping; it is a haunting exploration of how unresolved grief can warp a person’s sense of reality. Melissa's belief that she is saving Gabriel is both her justification and her undoing, as she struggles to reconcile her past with the present. The psychological tension is heightened by the mystery surrounding Gabriel's real parents—why does Melissa believe they wouldn't care about their missing child? This question lingers throughout the novel, adding an extra layer of intrigue to the unfolding drama.

For fans of psychological thrillers that delve deep into the complexities of the human mind, *Hush Little Baby* is a compelling and unsettling read. J.A. Baker has crafted a story that is as thought-provoking as it is suspenseful, keeping readers on the edge of their seats until the very last page.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and author for an advance copy to review.

Struggled a little on places to read this.
Would recommend

Thank you for providing me with a copy to read.

Hush Little Baby by J A Baker is about Melissa Crawford in the book we get to POV‘s one is current day and the other is her as a child with her narcissistic abusive dad and loving mom and little brother little Georgie. When the book starts Melissa is watching a house with the baby on the porch sitting in a stroller while the parents are in the house doing other things and it is just a little more than Melissa can take. She plans to kidnap the child and she tells us all about her grandson Gabriel and her son, whose neglect is baffling to Melissa. She soon takes the baby and head to Scotland but before she can get out of town a horrible incident happens that if she wasn’t a criminal before she definitely is one now. In the other POV her mom Nancy is abused by her husband in their home they cannot make noise if they walk to loud their opening their self up for sencher, even opening and closing drawers must be done with stealth and quiet things that are acceptable one day will be punishable the next he is moody and has Nancy and little Melissa walking on eggshells daily. As the book continues current day Melissa and little Gabriel or in a dingy cottage in Scotland he has come down with a fever and if that would be all the problems she had that would be enough having kidnapped a baby who is deathly sick but oh no, there’s something that’s going to happen that changes the whole projection of the book. When everything comes to ahead it makes for one pretty shocking ending. I can honestly say this book is thrilling, heartbreaking, shocking with a sad but satisfying ending. I often mention most books I read by New authors when reviewing but not the case with this Author., I love J a Baker’s books and after reading this book despite a few eye rolling moments, such as bringing a baby with fever out on a cold day I definitely recommend this one. because I really and truly enjoyed it.#NetGalley, #BoldwoodBooks, #JABakker, #HushLittleBaby,

What a thrilling, harrowing tale! It's a tough topic to write about domestic abuse but I think the author has done it with the perfect balance of empathy and respect. It's easy enough for people who aren't experiencing it to say just leave but it often is not that easy and is more complicated and emotionally and physically harder than you will ever know. The plot of Hush Little Baby is about Melissa who takes baby Gabriel and back to her life in 1970 when she is a young girl. I have never been so shocked by a ending it was totally unexpected but it does explain why Melissa seems so unstable and it made me feel so much sadness for she must be in pain. The baby in the story does cry a lot but I didn't mind at all because it made the story feel more real as that is what babies do. I really enjoyed this complex tale of a thrilling mind!

This was such a chilling and twisty read overall! I was hooked right away and the twists shocked and gripped me until the very end,

Read and reviewed in exchange for a free copy from NetGalley. Baker switches between past and present skillfully in this book. Although I struggled to find adult Melissa a sympathetic narrator, her story was written well. The pacing was good, the story tense, and I did not expect the twists at the end. The chapters set in 1970 were particularly emotive, and Baker developed sympathy for Nancy and her children well.

This book grabs hold of a theme and runs with it to exhaustion. It explores the themes of domestic abuse across time periods. It would be a difficult theme to base a story on, and I can imagine JA Baker feeling as if she were walking on eggshells at times to get the balance right.

But it is also a difficult book to review because although the theme is important, I did struggle with the execution. Split into two timelines, we have a 1970 setting of awful mental and physical abuse. And in the present day, we have a grandmother who kidnaps her grandson because she believes the parents are neglectful. Both narratives are very much stream of consciousness writing. Out of the two narratives, I thought the past timeline was more powerful because the present timeline felt too convoluted and repetitive. I also found the voice in the present timeline very stilted. Emotional yes, but very stilted. And the repetitiveness of that voice worked against what I think the author intended for the reader to feel.

While I found the past narrative more compelling, it has a trope that is a pet peeve for me, and that's the child that acts way beyond their years. I get the reason why, but just make the child older in the story. Despite that, it's compelling. It's not an easy narrative to read, but it is compelling.

Above all this, the story does highlight one of the tragedies of the past period, that domestic abuse was often ignored or hidden from view, even by those who's job is to protect those who are vulnerable. If nothing else, the book shines a light on that period in time and hopefully will make people consider that awareness is sometimes the lifeline that somebody needs.

This book was just a whirlwind from start to finish, but not always in a good way. There were times where things would happen and I would want to not stop reading, then there were other times where things would happen and I would just roll my eyes and put my kindle down for a minute before I kept reading.

This book does explore domestic abuse (physical and mental) as well as death of loved ones, and how it can affect people and cause them to do things people would normally not do.

There are two timelines in this book, one sent in the present day, where Melissa, our main character, kidnaps a baby. But it's not just any baby, it is her son's baby that she believes is being treated terribly by her son and his wife. Once she kidnaps the baby, things just go off the rails from there. However, I do wish there was a little bit more excitement since this is a thriller book, rather than just the couple of scenes that were in here. Other times, during the care and illness of the baby, it was a bit repetitive. Baby is crying -> I tried my best to get him to stop -> He keeps crying -> I don't know what else to do and I am overwhelmed even though I just kidnapped this baby and did this to myself. The pace fluctuated between boring repetition and things being thrown at you within the span of a few pages so it was very hard to want to keep reading during the boring parts when I know that the writer is able to write scenes that are interesting and grab your attention.

In the second timeline, we go back to 1970, and we read about a family with a mother, Nancy, two kids, and a very abusive husband, who physically and psychologically abuses his wife, and also psychologically abuses his kids (except for one incident :(). I feel like this time line was very helpful with allowing the reader a glimpse into what may have affected Melissa's mental state, and what may have caused her to want to step in to save a baby that she thought was being abused.

Thank you to J.A. Baker and Boldwood Books for the eARC of this book. This is my honest review.