Fiction/Contemporary Women
St. Martin's Press
23 Apr 2019
Kindle Edition
352
A twisty, compelling novel about one woman's complicated relationship with her mother-in-law that ends in murder...
From the moment Lucy met her husband's mother, Diana, she was kept at arm's length. Diana was exquisitely polite, and properly friendly, but Lucy knew that she was not what Diana envisioned. But who could fault Diana? She was a pillar of the community, an advocate for social justice who helped female refugees assimilate to their new country. Diana was happily married to Tom, and lived in wedded bliss for decades. Lucy wanted so much to please her new mother-in-law.
That was five years ago.
Now, Diana has been found dead, a suicide note near her body. Diana claims that she no longer wanted to live because of a battle with cancer.
But the autopsy finds no cancer.
The autopsy does find traces of poison and suffocation.
Who could possibly want Diana dead?
Why was her will changed at the eleventh hour to disinherit both of her adult children and their spouses?
With Lucy's secrets getting deeper and her relationship with her mother-in-law growing more complex as the pages turn, this new novel from Sally Hepworth is sure to add to her growing legion of fans.
My Thoughts:
Do we ever really know anyone? I asked myself this question many times while reading Sally Hepworth’s latest novel, The Mother-in-Law. When I initially agreed to review this book I thought it was a sort of “who-dun-it”; I guess it ends up becoming a bit of one, but this book is so much deeper than that. This novel is one of mystery and intrigue, with the added complexities of life that many authors fail to include. At the end of this novel I found myself reflecting on my own relationships with my in-laws; I feel blessed.
The Mother-in-Law kept me on the edge of my seat the entire way through. The complex relationship between a daughter-in-law and her mother-in-law is one many of us can relate to. In Sally’s new book this relationship is unraveled on both sides of the coin, making us see there is often misunderstandings that create hurt feelings between very well-meaning women.
I would highly recommend this read to anyone who enjoys a genuinely good book about relationships within a family. There is a bit of a mystery intertwined, but ultimately this book is really about family and the connections that hold us together. It is about how everyone has a past, one you may have no idea about, but it is a past that defines who we are in our everyday lives.
Click to add The Mother-in-Law to your Goodreads shelf!
About the Author:
Sally Hepworth is the bestselling author of The Secrets of Midwives (2015), The Things We Keep (2016) and The Mother’s Promise (2017), and The Family Next Door (Feb 2018). Sally’s books have been labelled “enchanting” by The Herald Sun, “smart and engaging” by Publisher’s Weekly, and New York Times bestselling authors Liane Moriarty and Emily Giffin have praised Sally’s novels as “women’s fiction at its finest” and “totally absorbing”. Sally’s novels are available worldwide in English and have been translated into 15 languages.
Sally lives in Melbourne, Australia with her husband and three children.
You can find Sally Hepworth at sallyhepworthauthor.com or follow her on Twitter @sallyhepworth
Truly,
P.S. Here is my little disclaimer…
Thanks goes to St. Martin’s Press and Netgalley for allowing me the opportunity to review this book prior to publication. All opinions expressed in this review are solely mine, and I did not receive any payment for this review.