Daughter

I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest review.
Wow - this was another excellent novel from Kate McLaughlin. She has a way of writing that even though it has a YA main character that I don't feel like I'm reading a teen novel.

This book has a unique (to me anyway) storyline - I can't recall reading a book with this synopsis before. The main character - Scarlet is your typical high school teenager - raised by a single mother who is a majorly overprotective. Mom has a good reason though - its just Scarlet doesn't learn about it until the FBI shows up at her door one day. It seems that Scarlet's father is a notorious serial killer and he happens to be dying from cancer. He has agreed to tell the names of some of his victims but will only give those names to his daughter who he hasn't seen since she was a baby.

This turns Scarlet's life upside down as she learns her real identity and has to decide if she's willing to meet the man who she's only known through his horrendous reputation.

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel and found it quite intriguing. The author has a knack for writing about young characters in intense, serious situations. Last year I read What Unbreakable looks like by this same author and loved it so I have found a new favorite author!

Mind blowingly good! Amazingly written, with such superb character development and a chilling, unique storyline! Kept me in completely suspense and shock throughout! Fast paced, unputdownable, and captivating! Cannot recommend this one enough, will absolutely blow your mind! Don’t delay, grab today!

5 stars

Holy serial killer Ted Bundy! This book was so good. This is the 2nd book I’ve read by this author and the 2nd home run for her. She definitely knows how to write some messed up stories. I loved all the characters in this book, even Jeff Lake(as a villain of course, not a morbid groupie!). I would even be interested in a follow up story to see how it plays out with the films, the mom, the guy, and the crazies. Can’t wait to see what she comes up with next!

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for my free copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book is amazing!! Scarlet is going through high school and normal seventeen year old angst when her world is flipped upside down and inside out. Finding out her father is serial killer Jeffrey Lake and that he has negotiated with the FBI to reveal names of his unknown victims if she comes to see him puts her in a spot she is not comfortable with. She is not who she thought she was, and is confused about that as well. From there this book just takes off at full speed. The characters and story come alive on the pages and you find yourself unable to put this book down.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. Thank you NetGalley, Kate McLaughlin and Wednesday Books for this edition and hearing my honest review. Looking forward to reading more with you
#partner

This book was TOO good! I loved how it shifted the focus away from the serial killer and more towards the victims of the serial killer. Scarlet was a wonderful character; anxious, flawed, and angry until her life changed irrevocably. She turned the narrative around to improve herself and focus on the victims. She was not damaged by her psychopathic father. She refused to be. That tenacity resonated deeply with me. This was a great story and I loved it! Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for my free arc in exchange for my honest opinion! It was so interesting!

Wow! Just wow! This was absolutely amazing! I wasn’t sure what to think at first but I could NOT put this book down. Imagine living your whole life as a lie and finding out your father is an infamous serial killer. I absolutely loved this book and hope to see more from this author. Everyone read this book that loves suspense and edge of your seat. Amazing job!

What a read this was!

Super suspenseful, chilling, and just non-stop feels. I was so engaged in our main character and her very creepy father!

This is the kind of psychological thriller that just keeps you reading. While much of what happens isn’t action-oriented, the book is still fast paced and as you read, you realize you don’t really know what might happen next.

I enjoyed every page of this one and will happily read the author again!

*ARC via Publisher

I have never read a book like this before!! For fans of serial killer documentaries this is great! I loved watching the story unfold and how there was still some twist and turns right until the very end. The character development was so well written and made me feel so connected with Scarlett. I also loved how the author included the main character having anxiety. A lot of people will be able to relate to that! Overall, this was a really good book and I’m already telling all my friends and family about it!!

WOW!! What a story!! Suspenseful, haunting, thrilling story that will leave a lasting impression. If you like any or all of the words used to describe this story then you will love this book. You will not soon forget this story!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for advance readers copy in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely LOVED this book. The characters were on point and it was so easy to fall into their world and feel like I was actually in the story. I loved the bit of a love story added in. The story line was so creative and well done. This book was horrifying and funny and sweet all mixed up. So much suspense. I was sad when I got to the last page. These characters were so perfect I actually miss them. This was a must read. Absolutely amazing

Great read!!! Great concept and great telling of the story and I mean, damn! It felt like a true story!!! Truly. I am a huge fan of true crimes shows and documentaries, so this book had me at “a girl finds out she is the daughter of a convicted serial killer.” And it delivered in spades. Loved the MCs, the secondaries and all the rest, as each was fleshed out and real in their own right. I am especially a big fan of Agent Logan. I wish I knew him. And Maxi. Love them. Can’t wait to get this book for my library and recommend the crap out of it. 💜💜💜💜📚

Daughter by Kate McLaughlin is such a fantastic YA book. I really did not know what I was in for and I was pleasantly surprised. The story centers around a teen that finds out she is the daughter of a famous serial killer. He is dying and agrees to tell her where more bodies are located if she meets with him.. The characters are very well-written. The main character comes across as real and likable. The plot is pretty unique, I found it fascinating. Really, can you imagine not knowing your father and that have it come to light he is a monster? It is really a great story and one of the better YA books this year. I look forward to reading more by this author.

This is one book True Crime Fans don't want to miss.

I read 70% of this book in one day, it was that good.
Any True Crime fan will enjoy this book.
You can tell this Author was inspired by the Netflix docuseries about Bundy and his crimes.
This book was done very well and i loved ho it was more about the victims including Scarlet and her mom instead of Jeff.

This was excellent!
What a fantastic idea for a book and extremely well written. The darkness of the killer, the daughter who finds out her legacy, and the mother who may not be all she seemed. It tapped into all the obsession of modern society for serial killers.
The interactions between daughter and father were superbly written. The whole thing was twisty, morbid, horrific, and yet I couldn't put it down and had to keep reading. The final twist was the best.
If you like your storylines dark and twisty, this story is a must!
Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

This novel is freakishly chilling and absorbing at once! Scarlett is in high school and discovers the man she thought to be her father is in prison as an infamous serial killer. He now wants to see her and suggests he will give her names of victims he killed. Obviously this is a difficult choice as of course she is curious, but at what price? These scenes are hard to read as our hearts go out to this young girl whose childhood was anything but normal. But read you will, as you cannot in good conscience, tear your eyes away even as you may be weeping inside for young Scarlett. If you are a mother, go hug your daughters (or sons) and be ready to embrace Scarlett's bravery and tenacity. This one will tear at your heartstrings (and any other strings you have) but it's totally worth reading!
Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for this ARC

Amazing book! Loved this story and highly recommend it! I look forward to more books by this author!

While I love mysteries and thrillers I am not a person who is overly interested in the psychology of serial killers. However this book was so engrossing and so thoughtful in the depiction of both the killer, their families, and their victims it was hard to put down but also there were times when all you wanted to do was look away. Scarlet finds out that she isn’t who she thought she was, and that her background has a much darker secret, and she’s thrust into a new family, a new world and an attempt to save more families from hurt she has to reckon with this new information and how the world sees her and her family. I definitely see some more Netflix specials and books in my life about serial killers after reading this book.

To say Scarlet’s mother is overprotective is an understatement. Even though she is almost 18, her mom wants to know who, what and where she is going every minute of the day. That doesn’t stop Scarlet from doing a bit of drinking and weed with her friends. She kind of gets it. They have no relatives and her mom doesn’t want to talk about her past. Even though she chafes at the boundaries her mom imposes, she really does love her. It has always been the two of them against the world.

That world crumbled the day the FBI came knocking on their door. Scarlet is not who she always thought she was and her mother certainly isn’t either. Suddenly, her mother’s smothering caution makes sense. With her world crashing down, she is asked to do something a grown person would balk at doing, but realizes it is the only way for her and her mother to be free of the shackles that they have been dealing with for her entire life.

Daughter grabbed me in the first chapter and did not let me go until the final pages. The characters are believable and some of them made me shudder as they are pure evil. McLaughlin skillfully brings the reader along as Scarlet learns the ugly truth that has been hidden from her for years. We see her working through her new reality, struggling to find herself amidst the turmoil. I also really agree with the message sent by the author via Scarlet, that the victims of crime should be the ones we hear about, not the perpetrators.

This is the first book I have read by Kate McLaughlin and highly recommend it. While it is written for young adults, I really enjoyed it as a much older adult. Ms. McLaughlin has a previous book, What Unbreakable Looks Like, which I am adding to my TBR stack.

DISCLOSURE OF MATERIAL CONNECTION: I have a material connection because I received a review copy for free from Netgalley in exchange for a fair and honest review. Copyright © 2021 Laura Hartman

This book was such a clever read. I loved the premise as well as the interactions between father and daughter in this book.

I absolutely loved this book it captured me from the start and I finished it in 2 days! I could not put it down. I did not read much of the synopsis as I try to go into a book blind and this one did not disappoint. Serial killers are a subject I like and this book put the humanity in a subject that is wildly popular in this time. I love how it was geared to Scarlett making this into the victims and not about her father. I will definitely pick up another book by this author. Run don’t walk get this book!

📚Kate McLaughlin has done it again and written an intense novel that I couldn’t put down. I read this in one weekend and as a mom of two under the age of three that is not an easy thing to do!

This was so good, with such a perfect amount of detail and things that made me feel disturbed. I love a book that requires trigger warnings. Love that she included talk of Bundy, BTK, and Aileen Wurrous. The Author did she a great job depicting Lake as a heartless serial killer. And his tag line name The Gentleman, was perfect!

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for my review copy.