LOVE, MOM

Mackenzie Casper, daughter of a famous thriller writer, begins to suspect her mother’s so-called accidental death may not be what it seems. After the funeral, Mackenzie starts receiving cryptic letters signed “Love, Mom,” which turn out to be diary entries that unearth a hidden history of secrets. As Mackenzie digs into the past, she uncovers a chilling truth. The revelation upends everything she believed about her family and herself as she races to reclaim the truth and justice. I tried to read Love, Mom a few months ago and got one page in and thought “nah” and considered it a DNF. Fast forward to now… the book is being republished, and I spotted an ARC on NetGalley, hit request without really knowing why, anddddd I was approved. At that point, I knew I had no choice but to dive back in and see what this book is about. And let me tell you…I am SO glad I did. This book turned out to be a dark, twisty, edge-of-your-seat ride that kept me guessingggg. I cannot for the life of me guess the twist- ever, but literally this one, WOW lol The blend of family secrets and betrayal that goes deep is what made this book really good. Super glad I gave this one a second chance! If you love psychological thrillers with family drama and secrets, this one deserves a spot on your never-ending TBR. I received an advanced copy of the book and am leaving this review voluntarily. Trigger warnings: death of a parent, grief, identity theft, gaslighting, emotional manipulation, murder, violence, child loss

This book was great when I was in a slump and needed something different, it definitely helped me get back into reading!

What a page turner! Kept my eyes glued to its pages. So many twists and turns, by far, the best thriller I’ve read. This one trumps them all!

I flew through Love, Mom. The premise pulled me in right away a bestselling thriller author dies under suspicious circumstances and her daughter starts receiving eerie letters from a “#1 fan” along with pages from her mother’s diary. It had all the ingredients I love in a domestic mystery: secrets, family drama, and the question of how well we really know the people closest to us. Even though I did find parts of the plot predictable, I still genuinely enjoyed the reading experience. The pacing was quick, the tension was there, and the diary entries were a fun device that kept me turning pages to see what would be revealed next. My biggest critique is the ending. Lately I’ve noticed a trend in thrillers where everything gets wrapped up a little too neatly, and this one fell into that category for me. I tend to prefer messier, more unsettling conclusions that linger after the final page, and this one tied things up a bit too cleanly. Overall, this was an engaging and easy binge read that I finished quickly. If you like family-secret thrillers with a meta publishing-world angle and don’t mind a more polished ending, this is definitely worth picking up.

It was good and then the ending was weird.