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ebeubanks8's review against another edition
4.0
This was a random find and I was not disappointed at all. The twists were so good and I did not expect the ending at all. It was a very easy and quick read that was suspenseful the entire time. The ending was very sudden and rushed and I would have liked more aftermath instead of a cliffhanger and then discussing it in the epilogue. And I would have liked more from the perspective of the offender, because with just the little bits in there it was almost not important to the story.
beastreader's review against another edition
1.0
Seriously I will attempt to write a review for this book. First off I was looking for a good book to read when I stumbled upon this one. It sounded really good. That is as far as the good goes for this book. I had no remote interest in any of the characters. So much so that I got as far as chapter eight and I could not recall what took place in those eight chapters. All I know is that Lisa was in charge of watching her friend's daughter, Lucinda and she did not do a very good job as Lucinda has gone missing.
mom2emki's review against another edition
3.0
This was a decent book. I totally didn't expect the twist near the end.
judithdcollins's review against another edition
5.0
A top shelf, riveting and powerful debut novel, JUST WHAT KIND OF MOTHER ARE YOU? by British author Paula Daly is a compelling novel—a read for every woman, living a harried lifestyle, trying to balance work, home, and family.
Filled with humor and emotion, this book will keep you turning into the night, for a mix of suspense, mystery, thriller, family drama, crime, and women’s fiction. Set in the Lake District, with economic hardship, and busy families, centered on two mothers of teenage girls.
Lisa and taxi driver husband, Joe live a hectic life, struggling financially, where Lisa tries to balance her stressing job managing the local dog shelter, a non-profit, even checking out the homes of animals to be placed, running her home, and juggling the kids.
When her daughter's friend Lucinda turns up missing after she was supposed to spend the night at Lisa's home, Lisa is wrecked with guilt and blame. Lucianda, the daughter of her friend Kate Riverty, is abducted and everyone thinks she should have paid more attention, pointing the finger at her. Now, it looks like the kidnapper, who has already abducted one other girl, is back at work, so Lisa begins her own investigation. She feels to blame so she begins working overtime trying to figure out the pieces of puzzle.
In addition, Joanne Aspinall, the investigator with the local police seems suspicious of the events. There is drama and suspense coming from every direction, not knowing who can be trusted. The lengths one mother will go in order to keep her family. As tragedy strikes, what comes next is shocking as nothing is as it appears—when ugly truths are uncovered.
I enjoyed the inspiration for the novel regarding an Oprah show of the busy mother forgetting her daughter in a hot car, which killed her. Lisa was a flawed and likable character, as she never feels like she is good enough and feels inferior next to her other friends—as most mother’s always striving for perfection. An exploration of friendship, motherhood, and the mystery of human relationships turned wrong, when the perfect house is not so perfect behind the façade.
Thriller and mystery lovers alike will devour, as well as fans of highly charged subjects, mixed with humor: JoJo Moyes, Liane Moriarty, Carla Buckley, Diane Chamberlain, Sarah Pekkanen, Amy Hatvany, and Jennifer Weiner will appreciate the humor and complexity!
The audiobook was outstanding, as the narrator, Laura Brattan offered an excellent performance, and found myself laughing out loud, at some of the one-liners. I wish more authors would use her, as could listen to her all day.
Well-developed characters, excellent plot planning, and fast-paced action, making for a winning debut of motherhood, friendship, and complex relationships. One of my favorite authors!
JCMustReadBooks
Be sure and add this one to your 2015 Must Read List: THE MISTAKE I MADE Coming 9/8/2015 (US). Scandalous!
Filled with humor and emotion, this book will keep you turning into the night, for a mix of suspense, mystery, thriller, family drama, crime, and women’s fiction. Set in the Lake District, with economic hardship, and busy families, centered on two mothers of teenage girls.
Lisa and taxi driver husband, Joe live a hectic life, struggling financially, where Lisa tries to balance her stressing job managing the local dog shelter, a non-profit, even checking out the homes of animals to be placed, running her home, and juggling the kids.
When her daughter's friend Lucinda turns up missing after she was supposed to spend the night at Lisa's home, Lisa is wrecked with guilt and blame. Lucianda, the daughter of her friend Kate Riverty, is abducted and everyone thinks she should have paid more attention, pointing the finger at her. Now, it looks like the kidnapper, who has already abducted one other girl, is back at work, so Lisa begins her own investigation. She feels to blame so she begins working overtime trying to figure out the pieces of puzzle.
In addition, Joanne Aspinall, the investigator with the local police seems suspicious of the events. There is drama and suspense coming from every direction, not knowing who can be trusted. The lengths one mother will go in order to keep her family. As tragedy strikes, what comes next is shocking as nothing is as it appears—when ugly truths are uncovered.
I enjoyed the inspiration for the novel regarding an Oprah show of the busy mother forgetting her daughter in a hot car, which killed her. Lisa was a flawed and likable character, as she never feels like she is good enough and feels inferior next to her other friends—as most mother’s always striving for perfection. An exploration of friendship, motherhood, and the mystery of human relationships turned wrong, when the perfect house is not so perfect behind the façade.
Thriller and mystery lovers alike will devour, as well as fans of highly charged subjects, mixed with humor: JoJo Moyes, Liane Moriarty, Carla Buckley, Diane Chamberlain, Sarah Pekkanen, Amy Hatvany, and Jennifer Weiner will appreciate the humor and complexity!
The audiobook was outstanding, as the narrator, Laura Brattan offered an excellent performance, and found myself laughing out loud, at some of the one-liners. I wish more authors would use her, as could listen to her all day.
Well-developed characters, excellent plot planning, and fast-paced action, making for a winning debut of motherhood, friendship, and complex relationships. One of my favorite authors!
JCMustReadBooks
Be sure and add this one to your 2015 Must Read List: THE MISTAKE I MADE Coming 9/8/2015 (US). Scandalous!
rashmi_taylorsversion's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Title gives away the secrets, doesn't it?
sjones08's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
joweston's review against another edition
4.0
3.5-4 stars, I really enjoyed this. Thought the main character, Lisa, was very well portrayed. And although one gets a sense early on that something untoward is at play, it ducks and dives around to keep you guessing. Audiobook Narrator can take much credit for really breathing life into this and adding colour and characterisation which I don't know would have come across in a regular reading - perhaps it would, but I don't know.
carolpk's review against another edition
3.0
Your daughter's best friend disappears - she was supposed to be staying overnight at your house - everyone is blaming you including yourself. Lisa, the mother in question, harbors enough guilt for us all and you can certainly understand why.
It’s easy to identify with Lisa, a down to earth, just getting it done, no frills kind of gal. Her husband Joe is a hardworking taxicab driver and as a couple they’re making ends meet. Lisa, more than Joe feels the effects of their less than glamour life when up against friends, Kate and Guy. Kate particularly makes Lisa feel less than worthy, as Lisa sees Kate as an efficient, polished, organized, never a hair out of place kind of woman.
Imagine it again. Lisa’s daughter, Sally’s best friend Lucinda goes missing. Kate’s daughter. Lucinda is supposed to be staying at Lisa’s house. Guilty. Just what kind of mother are you? Read Paula Daly’s secret laden debut to find out.
It’s easy to identify with Lisa, a down to earth, just getting it done, no frills kind of gal. Her husband Joe is a hardworking taxicab driver and as a couple they’re making ends meet. Lisa, more than Joe feels the effects of their less than glamour life when up against friends, Kate and Guy. Kate particularly makes Lisa feel less than worthy, as Lisa sees Kate as an efficient, polished, organized, never a hair out of place kind of woman.
Imagine it again. Lisa’s daughter, Sally’s best friend Lucinda goes missing. Kate’s daughter. Lucinda is supposed to be staying at Lisa’s house. Guilty. Just what kind of mother are you? Read Paula Daly’s secret laden debut to find out.
christajls's review against another edition
3.0
This review originally posted at More Than Just Magic
I am of two minds about this book. I wanted to review it because it claimed to be for fans of Gone Girl – which I really enjoyed last year. And I think that claim rings true. But I also had a number of problems with some of the characters and I didn’t enjoy it quite as much as I had hoped.
Let’s start with the mystery as it is the real strength of this novel. Lisa is a busy working mother. There’s always a million things on her mind and it feels like life never stops. I’m sure we can all relate – even if we don’t have children. But as a result of how busy she is, she ends up losing track of her friend’s child at a time when a serial rapist is on the loose. Can you imagine the guilt? I don’t know if I could cope with that.
This story is filled with lots of great surprises and twists and the mystery itself is really interesting and keeps you guessing. I especially loved the short, interspersed chapters from the perspective of the kidnapper/rapist. They were so creepy and very well done. I think that Paula Daly did an excellent job alternating the points of view between Lisa and the Detective on the case, Joanne. I never got bored of one, or found myself wishing it would get back to the other. And I was definitely surprised at the end. Not at all what I was expecting!
So then what was the problem? To put it simply, the female characters. Particularly Lisa and Joanne.
Let’s start with Lisa. Aren’t we tired of this character? This middle class woman who “has it all” and says that she’s happy but at every turn bemoans her unlucky state regarding her house, husband, kids, job etc. She’s a woman who makes her own problems. Who seems to thrive off her own unhappiness. A well off woman who I just don’t feel any pity for. And maybe I’m not supposed to. But this character has been done to death. She’s the same character that’s popped up in a number of books I’ve read recently – Gone Girl, Shine Shine Shine, The Dinner etc. I’m tired of this character. I want to read about women who are confident (note that confidence is not the same as stuck up or boastful). Who don’t feel a sense of resentment toward Every. Single. Person. they come across. I want to read about people who are a) more complex than that and b) better than that. Because I think most women are.
Joanne was a bit of a stereotype as well. Perpetually single, always working. I don’t think she was nearly as fleshed out as she could have been and as a result her character felt a bit flat. The only defining characteristic I could tell you about her is that she has a 36GG cup size. No that wasn’t a typo. There are two ‘Gs’ there. And throughout the kidnapping of this thirteen year old girl we get snippets of her wanting to have a breast reduction surgery. It felt very strange and out of place. All the other women in this book were more secondary characters – but every single one of them was described as “sad-looking”, or attention seekers, or at times a little insane. Not a single positive, or semi-positive female character in a book full of women, written by a woman.
Recommendation: I think this is a fun read for mystery lovers, and the pages fly by as you get wrapped up in the story. But for me the female characters felt tired and stereotypical and I just wanted something different.
I am of two minds about this book. I wanted to review it because it claimed to be for fans of Gone Girl – which I really enjoyed last year. And I think that claim rings true. But I also had a number of problems with some of the characters and I didn’t enjoy it quite as much as I had hoped.
Let’s start with the mystery as it is the real strength of this novel. Lisa is a busy working mother. There’s always a million things on her mind and it feels like life never stops. I’m sure we can all relate – even if we don’t have children. But as a result of how busy she is, she ends up losing track of her friend’s child at a time when a serial rapist is on the loose. Can you imagine the guilt? I don’t know if I could cope with that.
This story is filled with lots of great surprises and twists and the mystery itself is really interesting and keeps you guessing. I especially loved the short, interspersed chapters from the perspective of the kidnapper/rapist. They were so creepy and very well done. I think that Paula Daly did an excellent job alternating the points of view between Lisa and the Detective on the case, Joanne. I never got bored of one, or found myself wishing it would get back to the other. And I was definitely surprised at the end. Not at all what I was expecting!
So then what was the problem? To put it simply, the female characters. Particularly Lisa and Joanne.
Let’s start with Lisa. Aren’t we tired of this character? This middle class woman who “has it all” and says that she’s happy but at every turn bemoans her unlucky state regarding her house, husband, kids, job etc. She’s a woman who makes her own problems. Who seems to thrive off her own unhappiness. A well off woman who I just don’t feel any pity for. And maybe I’m not supposed to. But this character has been done to death. She’s the same character that’s popped up in a number of books I’ve read recently – Gone Girl, Shine Shine Shine, The Dinner etc. I’m tired of this character. I want to read about women who are confident (note that confidence is not the same as stuck up or boastful). Who don’t feel a sense of resentment toward Every. Single. Person. they come across. I want to read about people who are a) more complex than that and b) better than that. Because I think most women are.
Joanne was a bit of a stereotype as well. Perpetually single, always working. I don’t think she was nearly as fleshed out as she could have been and as a result her character felt a bit flat. The only defining characteristic I could tell you about her is that she has a 36GG cup size. No that wasn’t a typo. There are two ‘Gs’ there. And throughout the kidnapping of this thirteen year old girl we get snippets of her wanting to have a breast reduction surgery. It felt very strange and out of place. All the other women in this book were more secondary characters – but every single one of them was described as “sad-looking”, or attention seekers, or at times a little insane. Not a single positive, or semi-positive female character in a book full of women, written by a woman.
Recommendation: I think this is a fun read for mystery lovers, and the pages fly by as you get wrapped up in the story. But for me the female characters felt tired and stereotypical and I just wanted something different.