The anti traditional family drama. An unlikely trio of women find each other through the deadbeat and shared father of their children. While they come together through unusual means, their deep desire to make life as comfortable for their collective children and love for one another is a thing of pure beauty. An unusual cast of characters that you’ll root for! Thanks to NetGalley for the early access.

All the Mothers by Domenica Ruta is a wonderful, if improbable, story about three women who become each other’s family after discovering that their children share the same father. This book started slowly for me as the author focused on Sandy’s past and present, and her story is pretty depressing. Once the other main characters are introduced, the plot jumps forward and the relationships between these women and their children draw the reader in. The book moves quickly from this point to the end, as we see these mothers transition from isolation to being surrounded by friends in a loving, supportive community.

In this book, three mothers find each other on social media after discovering that their children’s father had other children. He dated each of the women at one point in time, fathered a child, and then moved on. These mothers become friends quickly, and support each other and their children. They build a home where all three live together, sharing expenses, childcare, and close relationships. Their personalities and banter are really funny, and I loved seeing how the relationships they share bring these women so much joy.

These women have faced and face many challenges throughout the book. Their situation is unconventional, and not very realistic, but functions well for all. As a single Mom, I can relate to their loneliness and stress of being the sole earner and reliable parent for their children. The author accurately portrays the judgment and negative views of society towards single Moms. I loved seeing how the women’s relationships made each of them able to pursue their goals and provided them with a much-needed safety net.

I really liked this modern, unconventional take on what it means to be a family. I was rooting for these mothers throughout the book. The author described this modern family with sensitivity, particularly a queer relationship, and a nonbinary child. Their life together was very entertaining, and reminded me of the many women in my life who support and care for me.

Thank you to Domenica Ruta, Random House Publishing and NetGalley for an advance reader’s copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

Another reviewer called this book ”too woke” which made me excited to read it.

I really liked this book— the plot, the characters (mothers and kids), the excellent portrayal of supportive moms helping each other along with a nonbinary child character, a budding relationship, deadbeat dad— and the faults I found in it were few— the beginning was a little dry, some plotlines seemed a little far fetched, and I really felt like the relationship between Steph and Sandy didn’t need to happen, although it was portrayed well.

Will definitely read more from this author! Thanks NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

3.5 ⭐️. I honestly loved these characters way more than I thought I was going to. they provided such warmth, comfort and love. this was such a beautiful representation of motherhood, single-parenting & finding the "village" to raise a child.

only slight grievance is that the book blurb was 100% written from AI -- it had nothing to do with what the book's central messaging was about and flattened this beautiful story into a rom-com sitcom of sorts.

ty to Random House and NetGalley for the advance reading copy in exchange for an honest review.

I thought Margot's Got Money Problems was ghetto but All The Mothers said hold my beer. The book started off slow but once it took its foot off the gas it did not let up. I enjoyed this book exploration of single motherhood, chosen family and community and of course the chaos.

Maybe I'm not desperate or stupid enough because I truly don't understand the appeal of a man that lives in his mama's basement that would interest me enough to date him let alone procreate with him.

Really enjoyed this unconventional look at motherhood. The premise is one that could get catty or be filled with completely unnecessary drama, but in Ruta's hands, its a beautiful story of friendship, love, resilience, perseverance, and womanhood.

Three mothers brought together by their children and shared baby daddy, learn to navigate life. Each woman has her own strength, each lends that strength to the others. They build a community almost out of necessity, but their bonds grow to such an extent that they come to rely on one another beyond their children.

I think this story gets off to a rough start, with much of the first part reading like exposition dump rather than plot points, and most of the exposition really doesnt serve the rest of the narrative once it hits its stride, especially since such time is only taken on one character, while the others have pertinent information doled out in a much more narrative-friendly manner. But once the story gets going, it sings.

Based on the synopsis, I wanted to love this book but it is so poorly written, that it was a struggle to finish.

Justin has a difficult time with commitment. When Sandy becomes pregnant, Justin runs. It’s not the first time. When Sandy finds out that there’s another single mother out there with a child, she’s determined to find her. The two quickly become fast friends and join together to help each other out. Justin is on again off again with the dad business and pays no child support. Living together Sandy and Steph soon find out that there’s yet another mom to be out there, all moving in together they create a momune creating their own unique family. This book handled many subjects sensitively. The flow was somewhat off as the first half of the book seemed a bit wordy, but that corrected itself as the story progressed. It was a good story, but unrealistic in parts. Thank you to Random House and NetGalley for an ARC of this book.

Thank you to Random House and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion. I was intrigued by this book, but I had a really hard time connecting with it and ultimately gave up when I couldn’t get into the story

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group and Domenica Ruta for the chance to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

Here's the text I shot to my book bestie to pitch her this book: All the baby mamas of one f*** boi slowly meet each other then become absolute besties and raise the half sibling babies together in New York City.

Did you choose the bear? Read this book.

When women women (second use of word a verb)- does that please you? Read this book.

I believe this book will foster so much empathy, camaraderie and love.

I loved this book. It’s sharp, funny, and surprisingly touching in all the best ways. Sandy’s life is kind of a mess, and watching her try to hold it all together while deep-diving into her ex’s Instagram and accidentally building a new kind of family was both hilarious and really heartfelt.

The found family angle totally worked for me, and the character dynamics, especially between Sandy and Stephanie, were such a highlight. It definitely dipped into cheesy territory every now and then, but honestly, I didn’t mind. The humor and emotional depth more than made up for it. A messy, warm, and oddly hopeful read.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing this ARC to me in exchange for an honest review.

I literally just finished this books a few minutes ago and there is a lot to unpack in my head. I think the spirit of the book is beautiful and will warm the hearts of those who believe in magic and unicorns and all things wonderful. Like, I WISH this book were realistic to me. I would love to think that three women who are so different could have this beautiful relationship with each other and all of their children in crazy harmony.

The cynical part of me spent most of the book thinking “yeah right” and “that would never happen” and most of all, “too good to be true.” Maybe there are people out there who are completely selfless and understanding and much nicer than me.

Like I said, the book is really well written. I just found the whole storyline completely unrealistic. I also felt like there was more room for redemption in Tara’s story specifically. I wanted her to step up in the interests of her grandchildren but she did one nice thing and then we never really heard about her again.

So yes, I would recommend this book and I may come back to this review later and think I sound like a horrible miserable person but I do want to say that if there are women out there that are this wonderful and selfless, please be my friend!

I want to say thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for an advance reader copy.

So let me start by saying that this cover is simply beautiful. I love all the bold bright colors.

Now, if I was Sandy I would go crazy! I think it was huge for all three of them!

Justin you are a butthole and I hope you stubb your toe multiple times a day!

This book is definitely about Mothers, but it is about the bond between family. (Even when you are not blood)

This is my first Domenica Ruta read and it will not be my last.

This was my first time reading Domenica Ruta, and it definitely won’t be my last. All the Mothers is easily one of my top reads of 2025 so far. I wasn’t sure what to expect going in—especially since I’m not a mother and don’t plan on becoming one—but this book completely won me over. It turns out, this story is about so much more than motherhood.

At its heart, this is a novel about women: women supporting each other, forming deep and unexpected friendships, surviving life’s curveballs, and carving out space for themselves in a world that often fails to show up for them. It’s raw, real, and hilarious. Like, actual laugh-out-loud funny.

The story follows Sandy, Steph, and eventually Kayla—three women who all share the same deadbeat (and hilariously pathetic) baby daddy. Instead of turning on each other, they choose to turn toward each other. What follows is a story of unconventional sisterhood and found family, as they band together to build a life that works for them.

Ruta writes with so much heart, honesty, and wit that I couldn’t put this book down. The dynamic between the women is electric, and I was rooting for them every step of the way. Whether or not you're a mom, if you're a woman—or just love a great story about resilience, friendship, and figuring life out—All the Mothers deserves a spot on your shelf.

This was sweet and tender and I loved the focus on unconventional relationships and dynamics between women. Sandy, raising her child solo, discovers that her daughter has a half-sibling and grows close to said half-sibling’s own mom, Stephanie. The two moms then create a “mommune” of sorts upon learning that their baby daddy is a bit of a hoe and has more children beyond their two daughters. The baby daddy is the least important part of this story, though, as this is a story about women and mothering and all of the different ways to be present for the people you love. It’s a really lovely, positive take on what community can mean to people who feel lonely and on building family outside of the family you’re born with. This was a quick, thoughtful read and I loved the focus on different kinds of motherhood.

Picked up All the Mothers based solely on its blurb. It's a lovely novel about found family and empathy. A lovely, refreshing novel with feel good vibes.

“…Sandy is about to discover that when nothing goes as planned, the best things become possible.” 100% agree with this blurb. It took a while in the beginning for me to get into Sandy’s story. I was waiting for the drama that would come from meeting her ex’s ex. Sandy’s story is the typical girl moves to NYC and upholds the facade of how great everything is when it really isn’t. It was hard to empathize with Sandy. She’s 30+ years old with the mindset of a 20 year old. Her mentality starts to shift after meeting Steph. I could have done without them both having names that begin with the letter S - me and my reading idiosyncrasies. Things start to fall into place as their friendship grows and it all seems a bit too perfect. Then something won’t go as planned and you see them struggling with that reality. I realized I had grown attached to these characters when the book ended and I thought “That’s it? No, I need to know how this all works out.”

Woman that are thrown together because of an unworthy man. It’s a tale of love, devotion and the power of a mother’s love.

An unexpectedly complex, emotional, at times hilarious story of 3 unique mothers who share one baby daddy and form their own found family. The pacing was somewhat uneven for me and there were a few superfluous plot points, but overall I enjoyed this entertaining take on a modern family.
Sandy, Steph and Kaya each fell for deadbeat Justin, became single mothers and eventually found each other through social media stalking. They have realistic messy lives, are discriminated against, but are trying to do their best for their children. I loved how they figured out how to care for each other and all of their kids by teaming up and mothering together. I was touched, knowing how much I lean on my own mother support system. The author also handled a nonbinary child and queer relationship with sensitivity. I would recommend this book to literary fiction readers who enjoy complex family dramas. 3.5/5⭐️

Special thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for an advanced copy. All opinions are my own.

Single mom Sandy finds out her child's father has a daughter with another woman, Steph. The two of them connect and lean on each other to raise their daughters. Soon enough, a third mom comes into the picture and they create their own little family.

This was a super quick read really focused on found family. The author wrote this in a very interesting way where the beginning was mostly internal monologue, so it felt really lonely. As the relationships between the women and children began to grow, it started to feel so much more rich and light. There wasn't a ton of driving plot, but the author did a great job developing these characters and their relationships with each other, so it still felt like a really full story.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the ARC!