Set in a pretty little village which may or may not be haunted where football is all the rage. We meet the parents of the boys on the team or trying to be. It is full of gossip, alliances and drama. A good representation of parents who live through their children without consideration for their welfare.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for this ARC!

I loved the message behind this story and found it very important: your kids are not an extension of yourself, but independent people with their own goals and dreams.
Also very interesting themes are treated and there's also a spooky twist if you like the genre. For me there were too many characters so I couldn't really get into it unfortunately, but I'm sure it may appeal to other readers.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for providing me with an arc in exchange for an honest review.

3 for neutral, thus one just did not grab me, so I finally put ti side after trying a few times. I’m a moody reader, so will update if able to finish at a later date,

🦄 Summary:
In this community, everybody has something to hide. The book circles around a group of soccer kids and their parents. Constantly competing, no one wants their secrets come to light. So when an anonymous vlogger reveals some parents' biggest mistakes, everyone's a suspect. The tension in the community rises - until, at a Halloween party, the situation escalates, and someone is found dead... 

🦄 My opinion:
I really loved the message behind this boon: that nobody's perfect, and that you can't force your dreams on your children. It was a great read covering subjects like racism, eating disorders, and  body positivity. Even though there were a little too many characters for my liking and I got confused at times, I felt myself being sucked into this toxic community, and was really enjoying the secrets being unveiled. I also love that Claire Seeber combined a domestic thriller with a witchy legend, which makes this book perfect for spooky season! Also, part of it all takes place at a Halloween party! 👀

🦄 This was my first book by Claire Seeber, and The Street Party is already on my TBR! 😍

🦄 Parts of this book reminded me of:
- Little Whispers by K. L. Slater
- Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty

Thank you to NetGalley for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review!

I really tried to love this as I am really into absorbing thriller media at the moment, but I struggled to be engaged by the plot throughout. I felt like I could have got into the novel more if there had been more focus on character development, however because of the amount of characters it did not lend to the opportunity to develop them fully. The characters may be easier to follower with a physical copy because it is hard to go back and forth on an E-Reader.

I loved the plot points around the vlogger revealing everyone's secrets, if the whole novel had been around their actions and the effects on the town, I think I would have been more hooked.

A gorgeous cover for a twisty, gripping read. Plenty of characters and a fast paced plot. Really enjoyed.

This story is set in a small Kent Village and surrounds the Tenderton Tigers football team and their parents.
There is no doubt that the writing is engaging and injects some dark humour into the narrative.
There are several scenes with long descriptions of football matches so might not suit those who do not enjoy football.
I enjoyed this book, however I felt there was a few too many storylines going on in the latter half of the book and also some were left unsatisfyingly resolved.

Had a really hard time getting into the story. There were so many character introduced up front, I had to keep flipping back to them each time a new one was introduced in the story.

This book was a page turner from beginning to end. Things are not what they seem and will have you guessing until the end. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I so badly wanted to love the book, The Parents, but had a hard time connecting to the characters & plot. What I did enjoy was the well written ending. Unfortunately, I won’t be recommending this book, but will definitely try another one by Claire Seeber.

Moving to the village was supposed to be a fresh start for me and my thirteen year old son Harry and daughter Iris. After the tragic death of my husband, it was a chance to leave everything bad behind and make better memories at Primrose Cottage, the postcard-perfect house with honeysuckle round the door. One of the local dads ask Harry to join the weekend sports club. All the other parents seem so kind in welcoming me into the fold. At least they are to begin with. Until someone begins anonymously exposing secrets about everyone in the group.

The story centres around a boys football team. Alex is still getting over the death of her husband, She makes a new friend in Patti, the local beauty salon owner. There's a lot going on in this book. There is a history of witchcraft and everyone seems to have secrets. It's also a bit far fetched in places. There's lots of characters to try and keep track of. The pace is slow throughout.

I would like to thank #NetGalley #Bookouture and the author #ClaireSeeber for my ARC of #TheParents in exchange for an honest review.

I’m not sure I am a good person to review this book. I have a limited interest in soccer and had a hard time relating to the characters. It’s sort of your typical family drama/thriller with people who seem nice and a murder which comes too late to keep my interest. Thanks for the opportunity to read it. It will probably do well with people who have younger children involved in sports.

The book was great, interesting characters, fast changing and twisting plot- exactly what I love! I would recommend this book to my friends and family!

I really enjoyed the book and loved the twists of the story. I love the two characters we follow and how the book is set up. Can't wait to read another book by the author.

As a sports mom, I was intrigued by the football team with misbehaving parents. Add in a town full of secrets with someone sharing them via a local vlog. The Parents seemed right up my alley.

However, I struggled to get into this story. There were so many characters, some of which superficial and of little significance to the overall plot. By the time I could keep everyone straight, I had lost interest. Sadly, I just never fully connected with The Parents.

Claire Seeber's writing had elements that I enjoyed; I would read another book by her. Some interesting characters and twists were the highlights of The Parents.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the digital ARC. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Do you love football? Or soccer? In the United States we call it soccer in England it is football. Well, if you love soccer and Psychological Suspense, you'll love Claire Seeber's new book The Parents.

I found her characters interesting. I always think of the English as stiff people and yet these folks weren't that way. Although, I think all of them had problems going on in the background. Alex is the newcomer and she is widowed with two children. She has a 13 year old boy who decides to play football whose name is Harry and a girl named Iris who is the oldest and hates her mom. There were a lot of characters and I didn't find myself particularly involved with any of them.

Someone is digging into the background of the parents of the local team and spilling all the dirt on a vlog. That was interesting because everyone in town was waiting for the next shoe to drop. Most of that was pretty shocking.

I don't think I've ever watched a game of soccer so, I was pretty clueless when they were talking about the game, it's different levels and whatnot. Most of the book took place around the team schedule and the clubhouse. Interestingly, they had a bar in the club. That's something we don't see here in the states.

I'll have my eye out for more from Claire Seeber. She has three other books that I'm going to check out. Maybe they won't be about football or soccer! This girl is not a sports fan.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from #Bookouture and #Netgalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. Thank you!

The end was spine chilling! Overall this story was a good read. I struggled to get into the story as so so many characters were introduced so quickly and I struggled to keep straight who was who and the amount of thinking to keep that straight affected my ability to delve deep into this book. About halfway through I felt more solid about knowing the characters and started to enjoy the book. I enjoyed the numerous secrets and quirks that make up the characters.

Really really had a hard time getting into this one. Just no ump to the story line. Found myself bored and just wanted to finish it.

Thanks to the author, the publisher and NetGalley for an earlybrekesse if this book.

The Parents flips between the stories of Patti and Alex – both residents of the small Kent village of Tenderton. Patti is fed-up, feeling undervalued by her husband and two kids – and Alex is new to the village after the death of her husband, being helped out with a place to stay by her brother whilst she gets back on her feet.

When Alex’s son Harry gets spotted by local football hero Dez, and invited to join the Tenderton Tigers club, Alex finds herself involuntarily drawn in to a ‘coven’ of mums whose sons play for the club – when really she wants to keep a low profile and her cards close to her chest.

All of a sudden, a vlog appears and one by one, the villagers’ darkest secrets are revealed – and we are fore-warned that one of the residents is going to end up dead by the end of the book.

I was very excited starting the book, with the promise of a ‘jaw-dropping twist’ at the end. I’m afraid I’m still trying to work out what was supposed to make my jaw drop. There were a couple of twists but one of them I had worked out and one was just more random than jaw-dropping. It just didn’t quite do it for me.

There are also a few occasions where – for me – we heard a little too much commentary on the football matches. Particularly towards the end, when I was actually interested for the story to wind up, we had pages of football game reporting that I was skim-reading to get to the actual story. All I was interested in personally was to know if the Tigers won or not! (and even then, I’m not sure I was that bothered!)

The supernatural elements were a little confusing too – I’m not sure whether we were supposed to believe in that side of things or not but I wasn’t too keen on it.

Saying that, the story did have me gripped at times and I raced through the last third wanting to know what was going on.

I really struggled with this book and couldn't get into it at all. Sadly I DNF. Such a shame as I really liked the premise of the book but the execution don't work for me.