Some women would do anything for their children. This thrilling novel cuts straight to the dark heart of modern motherhood, privilege, and the lengths we’ll go to get ahead, from the author of the "addictive" (People) thriller Precious You.
Rose O'Connell is barely surviving. Her relationship with her husband is on the rocks and their son has isn’t fitting in at his new school, the prestigious Woolf Academy. Their tiny flat in a rapidly gentrifying neighborhood--the very place Rose grew up as the daughter of an infamous local con artist--can barely contain her family. Rose can’t catch a professional break either, trapped in the same junior bank teller role for years. Life as the only mom in a nametag and uniform at The Woolf’s shiny school gates isn’t easy.
Not so for those in the elite and secretive Circle, a tight-knit group of mothers who rule the school, led by the charismatic and glamorous Amala Kaur. In exchange for supporting The Woolf’s relentless fundraising and public image drives, the women enjoy lucrative business opportunities, special privileges for their children, and the admiration of the entire community.
After the mysterious death of one of The Circle’s members, Rose dares to hope that filling the vacancy could set her family up for success. And when Amala makes the shocking decision to invite Rose into their clique, her fortunes, self-esteem, and status soar. But the deeper Rose gets inside The Circle, the darker the secrets lurking within every perfectly Instagrammable life. Far from being a dream come true, being inside The Circle could prove Rose’s worst nightmare…
Taut, complex, and compulsively readable, Such a Good Mother is a razor-sharp take on modern motherhood and the myth of having it all.
The Sexy Nerd's Review. . .
Any good and/or decent parent wants the best for his/her own child. After all, this little human is someone you created—a better version (or so you hope) of yourself. No matter what status you are in life, most parents want their children to have the best education and live in the best neighborhoods and have the best options that life has to offer. And Rose O’Connell was that such parent. She wanted her little Charlie to have the best of the best. He deserved to go to the best school and schmooze with the rich, entitled children that lived in their neighborhood. Rose was a bank teller and her husband, Pete, worked in construction. There wasn’t any way their measly salaries could afford the tuition to The Woolfe Academy. But Rose didn’t let a little thing like money stand in her way of getting her son in that prestigious school.
In fact, mothers from far and abroad would kill to get their child into that school. So, imagine Rose’s surprise when she learned of the open house taking place and she was asked to attend. This was the news and moment Rose had been waiting on. Immediately she noticed that there appeared to be two types of mothers at this school. Several women who wore designer clothes and had their noses so far up in the air, they couldn’t see anything below them. And then there was the room Rose was in with mothers that looked more of her caliber that didn’t have much flare or personality. Rose wasn’t anybody’s fool. Knowing that she was going to be out of her element, she brought her sister-in-law, Jacqueline, in tow to help ease her nerves. Even though Jacq knew straight away that something wasn’t quite right with The Woolfe Academy. Hmmm. . .one could argue there’s something in a name, right?
Even though Rose’s spidy senses were tingling strong, she wasn’t going to let that stop her from getting Charlie admitted in. One such mother in a rush grabbed Rose’s arm and tried to warn her that she should leave while the getting was good, but Rose figured this woman must not have had what it took to be a Woolfe Academy mom.
Amala Kaur was the “it” woman! If she selected you to be in the “circle,” you have literally died and gone to heaven. She was the crème de ’la crème and life just didn’t get any better than Amala Kaur. She could make or break your life within The Woolfe Academy. Was it any wonder when the ever beautiful Amala stepped to Rose and moved her to the room where the fancy mothers were chatting it up and rubbing elbows? Rose was stunned and couldn’t believe she had made it to the next level much like the electronic games her son played. This is it! Rose had finally made it. But, you may be wondering to yourself—well, who exactly made it? Where did Charlie, her son and Pete, her husband, fit into the grand scheme of things? Well, you’ll have to read this story to find out.
OMG! I must admit this story was too long for my tastes and a bit slow in the very beginning. At that time, I was leaning toward giving this story three stars, which in fact, when I first listed it on Goodreads, I did. That is, until I continued to read and finish the story, I had a change of heart. Rose O’Connell was such a narcissist it wasn’t even funny. I found the character to behave in ways that just didn’t appear believable to me. She angered me on so many levels, I wanted to Will Smith her face, and that’s when it hit me that this author was pretty brilliant, actually. Whether she intended for the reader to feel as I had or not, the fact that I was able to see this character through and come to some much-needed understanding, was a feat in and of itself.
What I most enjoyed about this story are the many levels you get to see from Rose’s perspective. Not only do you see the levels, but you get to see how those levels play out among the other characters in the book leaving in the reader’s wake a sense of awakening like no other. I found that even though I totally disagreed with many of Rose’s decisions, I realized for this character she had to do what she had to do and when you learn of her background, the pieces of the puzzle will meld together to form quite the picture.
The Sexy Nerd gives Such A Good Mother four additional children to add to her arsenal. This is one of those quirky stories that you might find at first something you will not be able to relate to, but I urge the reader to stick with it because what you find out and learn later is well worth the time. I’ve never read this author before, but I have to say, she’s got great writing chops. Well done! Such A Good Mother goes on sale Tues., August 2, 2022 at your favorite book retailers or wherever books are sold. Make sure you pick up/download your copy and get to reading! Until next time, you know what to do. . .
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