I really enjoyed the mystery and the initial intrigue. The author did a great job really setting the story, the right amount of info to keep me guessing and the right amount of thrills to keep me on my toes.
I did, however, find the ending a bit disappointing. It was very rushed and I didn’t quite understand the meaning behind the mystery.

Still, an enjoyable and thrilling read, with a heart-warming ending to a pretty dark and emotional story.

Many thanks to netgalley, the author and Joffee books for approving my request to read this book.

I enjoyed this book and quickly found myself immersed in the story line. The character development throughout was great and the plot pacey and twisty. It also kept up the suspense until the end and I particularly enjoyed how creepy it was in parts.

I'd recommend this book if you enjoy this particular genre-I'm looking forward to reading more from this author.

I throughly enjoyed resding this book. So much taking place but easy to keep up with the story. Love a happy ending. Great characters all so different was wonderful to read.

Thank to the author, the publisher and Netgalley for an early release of this book.

This was goooood, I really liked the foster siblings and their relationships. The suspense kept building with maybe one too many suspects being considered. The ending was wacky but fun.

This was a wild ride of a compelling story! It's a guessing game the whole way through about what happened and who the little girl is. The big surprise at the end ended up being something that I saw coming which was kind of disappointing considering the build up. Overall a pretty decent read.

Thank you to NetGalley, author Sonya Bateman and Joffe books for the ARC and opportunity to review this book.

I’m not one who gives 5 stars often because the book has to totally wow me but I absolutely loved this one! It was different in terms of the foster care and foster children with quite a few characters.

The character development was well done and the plot was easy to follow even with a larger amount of characters. It was fast paced, finished in one sitting and I was wrong about who the villain was.

The author tied it up very well and literally kept me guessing until the end. I was hooked from the first page as it starts off with a gripping beginning.

I would recommend this book and will be looking for authors by this author.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I really enjoyed this book I didn’t know what to expect as I hadn’t read anything from this author before and so glad I gave it a chance I loved it. Kat’s trying to come to terms with the fact her husband murdered her daughter when are father suddenly dies live on tv. So Kat returns to her old family home where secrets are hidden and danger awaits. I loved the twists and turns throughout. I really liked the writing style which helped build up the suspense with the characters. I will definitely be recommending this great thriller. Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to review. I can’t wait to read more from this very talented author.

Kat's parents cared for many children as foster parents but when one girl disappeared, things changed.

When her husband killed her daughtershe was devastated. Then her father dies ans while attending his funeral a child is found and no one seems to know anything about it.

This is a good psychological tale and i really enjoyed the twists. There were a few unanswered questions but I chose to just enjoy my reading time, which I did

At first, I thought I was going to struggle with this as I just couldn’t “bond” with the protagonist, but the story is absolutely compelling and really well executed. There are so many players and there is so much going on that it is impossible to work out where the situation will land. But when everything becomes clear, it is flat out enthralling! Red herrings are a big part of this reading experience but all loose ends are well tied up and it is a really amazing book.

Kat's parents used to foster children. She has many brothers and sisters. A girl in their care disappeared, and as a result, they were not allowed to foster children any more.
Kat's husband killed her biological daughter, and her life fell apart. She lost her teenage foster daughter as a result of this.
Her father dies, and she returns home to attend his funeral, and on her first night home, a child is crying in her garden, stuck in a holly bush. The child is deaf, and the Social Services and the police cannot find her parents.
Strange things start happening, and Kat is being bombarded by cruel messages.

This book has a lot going on in it. I couldn't turn the pages fast enough so I could find out who this mysterious child was that turned up in Kat's life.
I did, however, find a flaw. Surely the child would have recognised her mother? Kat came into contact twice with the mother of the child, while the child was with her. Or did I miss something.

Anyway, I do recommend this book, full of twists, secrets and lies. Very engrossing to say the least.

Thanks to Netgalley and Joffe Books for the opportunity to read this book.

⭐⭐⭐⭐
The Foster Daughter by Sonya Bateman is a really busy Psychological Thriller twisted into the dark secrets of the past.
There are a lot of characters to follow (and I am naturally bad at remembering names so by some point I lose track of who was who).

I loved the storyline and loved the mystery moments, it was such a twisted guessing game!

A lot of emotional sadness. Foster kids will always be a heavy topic as not always they will be treated well. It's like a lottery, you could be lucky or not. We had a chance to see what was happening behind closed doors in the foster family home.

What would you do if you found a screaming child in the middle of the night?
How would you handle the return to your childhood home when someone is ready to prove that things are not how you remember?

This is a busy thriller packed with constant suspense and neverending actions!

Thank you Netgalley and Joffe Books for this copy!

Initially, “The Foster Daughter” caught my attention with its intriguing premise and potential for depth. However, as I progressed through the chapters, I found the reading experience increasingly challenging. While the plot was well-structured, it leaned heavily on predictability, which diminished the suspense.

At times, the writing felt awkward, making transitions between chapters jarring. The “big reveal” lacked the surprise I had hoped for; I found myself thinking, “I saw that coming.” Despite this, the conclusion was satisfying and tied up the narrative threads effectively.

In summary, while the book has its flaws, it’s still an enjoyable read for those looking for a light story. Just don’t expect too many surprises along the way.

My daughter was murdered by my husband. Now I have a new little girl to look after. I have no idea who she is. It’s been five years since my daughter was killed. It still hurts every day. I’ll never be over it but I am finally moving on with my life. It’s pitch black when I wake up. I hear a child screaming outside. There’s a little girl in my back yard. She can’t be older than five. She has terrified blue eyes. Somebody has left her here! Great read!! This book had great suspense, intrigue, action, murder, mystery, kidnapping, a great who done it and a few twists and turns. The storyline was very interesting! I definitely recommend reading this book! Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for sharing this book with me!

Good book

This caught and kept my attention right from the start. A woman is called back from out of town when her young daughter was found murdered. Her husband is quickly convicted of the crime. She becomes somewhat of a recluse, with outside contact mainly reduced to electronic means. When her father dies suddenly five years later, she returns to her childhood home to handle his affairs. She hears crying at night and discovers a young girl, who looks startling like her deceased daughter, stuck in the bushes. The family had been a long-time foster home and she had herself been a foster mother and still is licensed, so she takes the girl in while they try to find her family.

There is lots of drama with letters she is getting from someone saying that her father was not the good guy she thinks he was. And lots of suspects with former foster kids and other assorted people.

There are holes, like why did nobody recognize the found little girl and some other issues with recognition. But all in all this was an excellent book.

Read and reviewed in exchange for a free copy from Netgalley. This was a gripping read which has helped to pull me out of a recent reading slump. Katrina was an engaging narrator and Bateman created real sympathy for her. The story was well paced and skillfully balances tension and intrigue against heartwarming family drama. The cast of characters was well-written, the story kept me guessing, and I did not forsee the twists which came (my guesses turned out to be wildly inaccurate). I would love to read more by this author.