Convincing characters and good storylines. Interactions between all the characters was very realistic. Lots of twists and turns, a good read.

A great book. A brilliant thriller which kept me hooked throughout. A real page turner. I loved it. Highly recommended.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Amanda Brooke for the copy of this book. I agreed to give my unbiased opinion voluntarily.

[This review contains spoilers]

Chilling

Fans of B A Paris' The Breakdown will enjoy this chilling read.

Lucy is expecting a child with her husband Adam. The couple however, are more scared than excited: Lucy has become seriously forgetful. There are moments when she can't recall whole conversations, when she can't remember if she took the gas off, if she locked the front door... All signs are pointing to her becoming 'the bad mother.'

This book was astonishing- the story so very fascinating. It's absolutely devastating there are victims just like Lucy- confused, anxious, but always innocent. I wanted to reach out and tell her what she wasn't seeing. It hurt to see her fall, to doubt herself and to lose her confidence. She was very much imprisoned by her memory loss, and her 'inadequacies.' I was frustrated for her, memory is invaluable and to always be forgetting things... It would be horrifying.

I liked this book, I was an instant fan of Brooke's ability to have us underestimate Lucy, just as Lucy does herself, but then have us thinking 'wow, she's smarter than I thought'. I did however find the ending quite rushed, there seemed to be no investigations or police involvement at any point which didn't seem realistic and I couldn't look past Lucy's decision to not involve said authorities especially since she was always at the right side of the law.

The characters were very much natural, and the plot was mostly feasible. I was confused at some points about the attacks and such but other than that, 'The Bad Mother' displayed Brooke's incredibly sharp storytelling. And I would definitely keep an eye out for more of her work.

I received this book through NetGalley.

Another excellent book by Amanda Brooke. This had me gripped right from the start to the very end. I loved it

Fascinating book. Kept my attention throughout. The only drawback was that it made me angry so angry at times that I stayed awake reading and then arguing with the character so that I couldn’t sleep. This novel will keep you on the cliff edge just don’t jump off!

I enjoyed this book but wasn't gripped by it - this is probably due to the volume of very similar books that I have read recently. That said, it is a well written book with believable characters and I would definitely recommend to friends.

I would like to thank HarperCollins and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read ‘The Bad Mother’ by Amanda Brooke in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.
Lucy is a talented artist and meets Adam at a barbeque. Soon after they marry Lucy starts having lapses of memory which are becoming more and more frequent, and as her father committed suicide after suffering from depression, Lucy fears she may have inherited a mental illness gene from him. After giving birth to their daughter Ava, Lucy’s symptoms escalate with Adam making her believe she’s paranoid and unable to take care of a baby. But Lucy is convinced she’s not a bad wife or mother although Adam is making her doubt herself.
I thought Adam’s character was scary and at the beginning I couldn’t understand how such a strong person as Lucy with such a feisty attitude to life could become so subservient to her husband.
Amanda Brooke has written a wonderfully disturbing psychological thriller which gripped me from the start. I had to keep reading till I came to the conclusion which I found unsettling but fitting.

Wow, The bad mother was breathtaking! It had my full attention from the first page and kept me hooked.

The type of book was very brilliant . Adam and Lucy was very happy married .but it was a strange married couple.
Adam started on Lucy and Lucy started Adam . Until they had a little girl and have to make up .

I don't often read thrillers about forgetfulness or fuddled baby brains as they often seem a bit contrived or it could just be that I have the kind of brain that is like theirs, but I soon got caught up in this. It's that husband I thought from early on. And the things that happen to the woman? I think anyone would feel a bit lost at sea.
The book in the end however just felt samey as if I've read this before and there were no new shocks or twists in my eyes but since I've not read many books of this kind, I could be mistaken. It was clear from the start what was going on, but there was still an evil deliciousness in getting there.

This is a psychological thriller, the suspense continually builds until the satisfying conclusion. I really enjoyed it, although it's so saddening that people suffer from this kind of abuse.