A relatable and nerve-wracking, sympathetic and bone-chilling story — a fresh new twist on motherhood and murder in suburbia.
Isolated. Lonely. Tired. It's hard being The New Mother. Sometimes it's murder.
Nothing is simple about being a new mom alone in a new house, especially when your baby is colicky. Natalie Fanning loves her son unconditionally, but being a mother was not all she wanted to be.
Enter Paul, the neighbor.
Paul provides the lifeline she needs in what feels like the most desperate of times. When Paul is helping with Oliver, calmed by his reassuring, steady presence, Nat feels like she can finally rest.
But Paul wants something in return. It’s no coincidence that he has befriended Nat—she is the perfect pawn for his own plan. Will Nat wake up in time to see it?
The Sexy Nerd's Review. . .
Well, I have a few thoughts swirling around my head. First, what I love about Murphy is she knows how to make you work for the story. OMG! I was beginning to worry that I was never going to find out what was really going on, and then BAM! She slaps you right upside the head. My, my, my!
Natalie and Tyler just became the proud parents of baby Oliver. He’s cute, sweet and all that goodness rolled up into one, except there’s one problem. Oliver refuses to sleep. If Natalie got an hour of sleep, if at all, she was to the good. She and her husband are lawyers and trying to juggle practicing law and being parents was proving to be too much for Natalie. Tyler’s life went on as usual, but Natalie was forced to make sacrifices and made to feel guilty for having made those choices. Unfortunately, the plight of many women.
So, it was decided (not Nat’s wishes), that she’d stay at home and nurse their baby while Tyler continued to work at the law firm. Not only was Nat brain dead and downright tired, but now she’s lost herself and her life that she once had because she became a mother. Life wasn’t fair, and especially not in Natalie’s case. The only thing Natalie did was nurse baby Oliver. She fed him, coddled him, watched him, breathed him, bathed him, and repeat the cycle day in and day out. It soon became apparent that Natalie had no life at all besides being Oliver’s daily source of food.
One day while she’s out walking Oliver in his stroller, one of her neighbors who resided in the cul-de-sac, took notice of her, and thought she was in distress. Of course, Natalie was in distress. Oliver cried nonstop. His screams were blood curdling, and she was embarrassed walking by her neighbors’ homes for fear they’d hate her and the baby. No worries because Paul Riley was here to save the day.
Oh, who is Paul, you ask? Paul is Natalie’s neighbor. He took one look at poor Natalie struggling with Oliver and he asked politely if he could hold the baby and voila, just like that, Oliver cooed and enjoyed being held by Paul. Well, will wonders ever cease? How in the hell did he manage to get Oliver to stop crying when she, as his mother, couldn’t seem to do so successfully. Paul was her hero in disguise. The heavens opened up and Natalie had drunk Paul’s Kool-Aid and became emotionally attached to the man who could comfort her son and help her when her own husband had seemed to abandon her for his career. The nerve of him. When Tyler offered to pay for a nanny or even get bottles so that Oliver could suckle them instead of her, she flat out refused. So, Tyler was doing the best he could to help his wife, but she turned him away at every turn. After a rather uncomfortable run in with Paul’s wife, Erin, things began to go left. And that, readers, is where things get very interesting.
Oook! This was a good book, but I must say going through the nursing phase with Natalie throughout the entire book was a bit excessive and nerve grating. OMG! I was screaming at my Kindle because Nat was supposed to be the victim here, but was she really? There were so many bad choices she made, and I couldn’t help but to wonder what made her go there. Murphy truly made the reader wait almost to the end to find out what was really happening and for a minute I didn’t think I was ever going to figure out what was going on. But, when the picture started to come into view, oh my did I enjoy it!
Murphy is the “queen of slow-burn!” She really knows how to keep you guessing and waiting until the moment finally arrives and the reader is left in awe. I have to say I would have much rather not go through every single moment Natalie did, but this is the way the book was written. Having said that, though, I found the story interesting.
The Sexy Nerd gives The New Mother four extra hours of sleep that baby Oliver wouldn’t allow. 🤣 Murphy is an incredible author, and she tells a story like no other. The New Mother goes on sale Tues., May 30, 2023, at your favorite book retailers or wherever books are sold. Until next time, Nerds, you know what to do!
 |
| Open a Book and Get Mind Blown! |
No comments:
Post a Comment