Motherhood | Book Chatter

Three Perfect Liars
By Heidi Perks
Gallery Books, 9781982139940, March 2021, 336pp.

The Short of It:

Exactly what I wanted. A good story that was hard to put down.

The Rest of It:

When Laura left her high profile job at Morris and Wood for six months of maternity leave, she had no idea that when she returned, the temp that she personally hired would still be there, sitting at her desk, working with her most important client. Turns out that Mia has done such a great job while she was away, that her boss Harry Wood has decided to keep her on.

At first, Laura is confused. Surely this is a mistake. Once she’s up-to-speed, things will return to normal but that’s not the case. Everyone in the office seems to love Mia and although Laura makes her feelings known, Harry doesn’t agree. Mia will continue to work with Laura’s previous client and Laura will work on other accounts.

As the tension mounts and Laura tries her best to balance her workload and the challenges that a new baby brings, she is convinced that there must be more at play. Why is Mia even there? Yes, she hired her but she was a temp and clearly not looking for a long-term position, or was she?

The pacing of this story was excellent. Perks quickly pulls you in. There’s a lot more than just workplace rivalry going on and although it’s immediately hinted at, it’s not immediately apparent what is going on. Perks keeps you guessing. I found this to be a solid story and loved how quickly I needed to turn those pages. It did remind me a little of the movie Baby Boom and those of you who have seen that movie might see some similarities in how the office is run but the similarities stop there. If you need a solid read that also happens to be a page turner, pick this one up.

Source: Review copy provided by the publisher.
Disclosure: This post contains Indiebound affiliate links.

Mother May I
By Joshilyn Jackson
William Morrow, 9780062855343, April 2021, 336pp.

The Short of It:

Motherhood can be tough. You try to do all the right things for your children, and you certainly go out of your way to keep them from harm, but sometimes their well-being is out of your control.

The Rest of It:

Bree Cabbat lives a pretty decent life. She has a nice home, her husband Trey is successful and that success allows her to spend time with her three children. Although she grew up poor and had dreams of being in the theater some day, her life is pretty good the way it is and she can’t complain.

One day, while attending her daughter’s rehearsal, she sets her son down in his baby seat and when she turns around, he’s gone. The school’s auditorium was empty. Who could have taken him? But then she is reminded of a strange woman she saw. She wasn’t entirely sure at the time if she was really there, lurking outside her bedroom window or if she had been dreaming it but when she sees the note where her baby used to be, she immediately knows that woman’s appearance was no coincidence.

As the details emerge, it’s clear that this is more than just a kidnapping for ransom set-up. This is personal and Bree, although desperate to find her son, realizes that she is going to have to play the game in order to get him back. Can she do that? Can she go along with this crazy woman’s demands? Can she do what she is being asked to do for the sake of her child? Would you?

This is a race-against-time story so once you pick it up, you will continue to flip those pages until you know how the story ends. I have now read at least three of Jackson’s books and two things are certain, she knows how to pull a reader in and knows how to tell a story. Mother May I has the added benefit of relaying a message and making a statement. This was rather important to me so I am glad she chose to go there even though perhaps the book could have been edited down a bit.

At this writing, Mother May I is scheduled to hit the shelves in April but the review copy has been glaring at me for weeks so I couldn’t wait anymore and had to read it. If you’ve read Jackson before then you know her books are a sure thing but if you haven’t read her yet, give her try.

Source: Review copy provided by the publisher.
Disclosure: This post contains Indiebound affiliate links.

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