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The Playdate

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Two mothers. Two daughters. Two sides to the story.

When Sara leaves her high-flying London life to move to Dublin, her only concern is her nine-year-old daughter, Lexie. For Lexie's sake she tries to get to know other mothers at the school gates, but they appear uninterested - particularly their leader, the beautiful and charismatic Vanessa, whose daughter rules the playground.

After a simple misunderstanding between Vanessa and Sara, none of the other kids at school want anything to do with Lexie. Desperate to mend fences, Sara offers to look after Vanessa's daughter one afternoon. But when the playdate ends in catastrophe, Vanessa is convinced that what happened wasn't an accident.

With allegations flying in all directions, Sara is forced to ask herself what she has unleashed? And how far a mother will go to protect her daughter?

359 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 22, 2024

88 people are currently reading
351 people want to read

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Clara Dillon

2 books6 followers

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5 stars
194 (26%)
4 stars
279 (38%)
3 stars
197 (27%)
2 stars
34 (4%)
1 star
16 (2%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews
Profile Image for Aoife Cassidy McM.
830 reviews384 followers
February 24, 2024
Well this was quite the suspenseful suburban noir. It really kept me turning pages and I stayed up past my bedtime to finish it, always the sign of a good suspense novel.

This debut novel by Irish anaesthetist and writer Clara Dillon is set in suburban south Dublin. Sara and her husband Adam have moved from London to Dublin with their daughter Lexie for a fresh start.

While Adam is busy getting his fledgling business off the ground, Sara is occupied with trying to settle Lexie into her new school. She invites popular classmate Polly on a playdate, but Polly’s mother Vanessa, queen of the so-called “Beautiful Mums” is a force to be reckoned with (or a royal pain in the arse depending on your perspective). When a tragic accident happens on the playdate, Sara is desperate to prove that it wasn’t her fault, but who is to be believed and how will they all move on?

I read the book in three sittings. While some suspension of disbelief is required (as with all thrillers) and the schoolgate politics is somewhat exaggerated (though these cliques definitely do exist 👀) , the writing is excellent and the story is clever and compelling. I thought I had figured out the direction it was going but I was wrong. I think if you like Liane Moriarty or Sally Hepworth, this is one you’ll enjoy. I’ll look forward to reading more from Clara Dillon. 3.5-4/5 ⭐️

*Many thanks to @penguinbooksireland for the advance copy. The Playdate was published this week and is widely available. As always, this is an honest review.
Profile Image for Tracy Fenton.
1,146 reviews222 followers
June 4, 2024
Wowsers… The Playdate is a really great psychological thriller with a clever little twist on the narration as the book starts with our main character Sara telling her husband her side of story.

Set in Dublin, Sara, her husband Adam and their 9 year old daughter Lexie have relocated from London to Adam’s childhood town in Dublin. They’ve agreed to give it a year to see if Adam’s new company takes off and are renting a home near his parents. Adam’s work requires him to spend most of the week back in London so Sara and Lexie are basically starting from fresh, trying to fit in and make friends.

At Lexie’s new school, Sara tries to make friends with the other mothers but it appears the social ladder is controlled by Vanessa, mother of the most popular girl, Polly and head of the so-called “Beautiful Mums”, who seems to take an instant dislike to both Sara and Lexie. However, Sara’s not used to be ignored and is determined to break into their inner circle at whatever cost.

Running alongside this story is Zoe’s story, which at first confused me and I thought it was a completely different book, but stick with it as everything slowly begins to make sense.

This is a story of toxic mums, school gate dramas, and bullying on a completely new level. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would definitely recommend it to fans of psychological thrillers.
Profile Image for Trish at Between My Lines.
1,138 reviews336 followers
March 31, 2024
4.5 stars

Deliciously dark and terrifyingly familiar. I was on the edge of my seat reading and devouring the intrigue.
Profile Image for Caroline.
989 reviews45 followers
June 14, 2024
The Playdate is the story of Sara who, along with her husband Adam and daughter Lexie, has relocated from London to Dublin, Adam's place of birth.
Sara tries to make friends with some of the mums she meets at the gates of her daughter's new school every morning. It's specifically the yummy mummies that she'd like to befriend, and one in particular; Vanessa, mother of Polly whom Lexie is in awe of.
This is the story of what can go wrong when you host a playdate in an attempt to impress a yummy mummy, the repercussions for all involved.
The Playdate is a thrilling, suspenseful, psychological read that really packs a punch.
Profile Image for Melissa.
90 reviews
August 27, 2024
I absolutely devoured this one, could not put it down.

I did suspect that Sara might not have been the saint she was making herself out to be, but I did not expect that ending.

Really excellent!
Profile Image for Teresa Nikolic.
927 reviews130 followers
February 20, 2024
Sara has agree to leave behind her well paid job in London and move to her husband Adam's home town of Dublin, they'll give it a year and see how it goes, her main priority is the wellbeing of her nine year old daughter Lexie. The hardest part is going to be getting to know the other mum's in the playground, some of whom have been friends since they were at school, but everyone wants to be friends with Vanessa, the most popular mum at the school and the same goes for her daughter Polly, who seems to attract the other girls without making any effort. After a playdate at Lexie's house ends in disaster, Sara is left reeling and it would appear that the battle lines have been drawn, just how far will a mother go to protect her own?

The Playdate is narrated by Sara to her husband, with occasional chapters from Zoe, this confused me at first, as it appeared as though it was from a different book, but then it all started to come together and make sense. Every playground has the popular mums and the groups that everyone wants to be part of, but this one took cliques to a whole other level completely, I really felt sympathetic towards Sara and didn't like Vanessa at all, she was so full of herself. I don't usually get upset during a thriller but there was one part in this book that made me cry. This is a fast paced read with some great twists along the way that kept me on the edge of my seat, but nothing prepared me for that ending. This is a new to me author whose writing has really impressed me and I look forward to reading more of her work.

I'd like to thank Penguin General UK, Sandycove and Netgalley for the approval, I will post my review on Goodreads now and Amazon on publication day.
Profile Image for Bobbie Darbyshire.
Author 10 books22 followers
May 31, 2024
Trying to settle her young daughter into a new school, Sara runs into trouble with the vindictive mother of another child.
I enjoyed this a lot and was always eager to get back to it. The way it is intriguingly told in retrospect by Sara to her husband had me thinking of ‘We Need to Talk about Kevin’, but this story has a different twist. Very clever. It held me to the unsettling and satisfying end.

40 reviews
November 14, 2024
A fabulous debut novel from Clara Dillon, set in the leafy suburbs of Dublin. I will be looking forward to reading more from her in the future.
Profile Image for Lynda Kelly.
2,210 reviews108 followers
March 22, 2025
This irritated me because I had to mark it down 1* and all because of some irritating mistakes, one including the misspelling of one's own character, which I always dock a star off for, as for me that's the most unforgivable mistake an author can make.
I do get a kick out of these types of gossipy, school-gates tales as I don't have kids and, I have to say, the more I read of this type of story, the more I'm relieved I never had to encounter people like this !! (Or their kids, in all honesty).....
It is set in Ireland but for some reason the author's gone with Americanised spelling, another bugbear of mine. I learned PDQ I'm not 'down with the kids' as I needed to google what vocal fry was. Proper peculiar that turned out to be !! I was puzzled too when we're informed that Lexie was good at maths, knowing all her tables, even the multiplication ones. What other types are there ??
Sara did annoy me a bit as she was so eager to excuse Vanessa's atrociously rude behaviour toward her. I'd have not given her as much leeway, that's for sure. She was just an ignorant cow altogether, I thought. There are some VERY funny remarks peppered throughout that really made me giggle to myself. The way some of these women spoke too was a tad retarded, to say the least, though I'm betting that some mothers really DO speak to other adults like they talk to their kids (or pets, maybe) !! There was some sadness as well, though.....mainly in reading about George for me. It's a really gripping tale, though, and holds some real shockers within and I really liked it.
There are a lot of missed/misplaced apostrophes, americano and dewberry needed capitalising, penetrant was used not penetrating, relative not relatives then THAT misspelling Zoe by dropping the umlaut for some reason...that really should've been spotted ! Despite this transgression I'll definitely read another by her.

Profile Image for Farah G.
2,058 reviews42 followers
December 22, 2023
This is the story of two mothers, two daughters, and one playdate which goes badly wrong. When Sara leaves her job in London to cut down on the demands of her career by moving to Dublin with her young daughter Lexie, one of her primary reasons for doing so is to provide her daughter with the best childhood possible.

But the other mothers at Lexie's school are not particularly welcoming - least of all the glamorous queen bee of the yummy mummies, Vanessa. And when Sara's attempt at improving Lexie's chances of inclusion go wrong, the gloves come off as the cardinal rule of motherhood - protecting your child at all costs - becomes the only thing that matters...

This is a fast-moving story, which holds the reader's attention well. Not all the characters are likeable, but that isn't necessarily a deal-breaker. There are twists and turns aplenty, so that the reader are kept guessing until the end. All in all, an enjoyable read that gets 3.5 stars.

I received a free copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review
Profile Image for Michelle Maree.
Author 1 book
March 21, 2025
I really enjoyed this book. I was skeptical at first as it's partially written in 2nd person, as the main character is telling her side of the story to her husband. I thought I wouldn't enjoy that type of POV, but after a few chapters I hardly noticed at all.

I was captivated from the start, the story and the writing pulled me. I had a hard time putting it down, and kept going back to read more. I could not get enough. The author gives just enough suspense to keep you guessing. I knew there would be a twist and I always try to figure it out along the way.

I will say the ending and last few chapters were a bit of a letdown for me; I was expecting a little more after such a big build-up. I knew what the author was going for, but she didn't quite get there. I finished feeling a little let down and slightly confused. Some questions weren't answered, and I suppose it was left to reader interpretation. Despite that bit, it was well-written and entertaining, and I would be interested in reading other books by this author.
Profile Image for Steph.
1,015 reviews18 followers
January 20, 2024
This book had so many twisty surprises and drama filled pages. Easily read, it had me engrossed. I did feel at times that it was going to be so predictable and I did guess at certain things but I never expected that outcome!

Sara is new to Ireland, along with her daughter and native husband. Her husband Adam is never there as he’s always travelling for his job and her daughter isn’t finding it easy to settle in.
Every school has the queen bees, the popular mum group and why people want to be in their clique I don’t know as their usually nasty up themselves women.

The queen bee Vanessa is no exception and she makes it her mission to not like Sara or her daughter.
What begins to transpire is shocking and amazing at the same time. It was so vengeful and it made for gripping reading. I loved it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin General UK for the ARC in return for an honest review.
255 reviews
February 24, 2024
#ThePlaydate #NetGalley
Awesome.
When Sara leaves her high-flying London life to move to Dublin, her only concern is her nine-year-old daughter, Lexie. For Lexie's sake she tries to get to know other mothers at the school gates, but they appear uninterested - particularly their leader, the beautiful and charismatic Vanessa, whose daughter rules the playground. After a simple misunderstanding between Vanessa and Sara, none of the other kids at school want anything to do with Lexie. Desperate to mend fences, Sara offers to look after Vanessa's daughter one afternoon. But when the playdate ends in catastrophe, Vanessa is convinced that what happened wasn't an accident. With allegations flying in all directions, Sara is forced to ask herself what she has unleashed? And how far a mother will go to protect her daughter?
Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin UK for giving me an advance copy.
7 reviews
June 10, 2025
3 and a half stars. It took me a while to get into the story but once I did it was a definite page turner, with a couple of unexpected twists at the end. One of those books where you go back and reread bits now that you have more knowledge of what was really going on.

Some things didn't really add up though and the unreliable narrator element wasn't always done in a way that was fair to the reader. It was also, as others have said, very difficult to really care about any of the characters. Even the narrator's daughter came across as a bit precious and annoying.

Small point, but the names of the children sounded more like names you'd hear in a middle class London school. A few Lillys, Ellies and Fiadhs would have made it sound more typically middle class Dublin.


Profile Image for Sabrina.
52 reviews
March 30, 2024
Fast paced and pretty gripping

Very cleverly written with plenty of twists and turns. I only liked one character in the whole book, and that was Sarah and Adams daughter, Lexie (and of course her dog George too). I didn't care for a single other character. Infact I completely disliked everyone else and I think this helped me to absorb the story so much because I honestly didn't care who lived or died!!
I don't have children, so I don't know what goes on at school gates, but the carry on of these grown women really got on my nerves. I wanted to slap every single one of them!
It reminded me of the tv show Motherland, albeit a lot darker. Worth a read.
917 reviews3 followers
July 21, 2024
4.5 Stars. What an amazing psychological thriller. The tension builds slowly as London transplants Sara and daughter Lexie move to Dublin, the hometown of father Adam. From the outset 10 year old Lexie is shunned by her classmates at St Catherine's School. At the same time Sara, is also ostracized from the "Beautiful Mom's Clique" headed by Vanessa, mother to Polly. Despite Sara's efforts to fit in and see Lexie welcomed, her efforts are thwarted by Vanessa at every turn. This relationship takes a staggering downward spiral when Polly somehow ingests peanuts at a play date at Lexie's house, for which Sara is blamed. Things get more toxic from there. A great ending and a wonderful read.
410 reviews2 followers
May 9, 2024
Such a suspenseful and interesting read. I loved all of the entertaining mum drama and seeing how the dynamics of the parents and children changed throughout the story. It got a lot darker towards the end than I was expecting so that was a nice surprise. I found a lot of references to parenthood relatable. The characters were all well fleshed out and easy to tell apart. The only slight issue I had was the end twist which just felt a bit over the top and unbelievable but other than that I really enjoyed this one and would definitely read from this author again.
Profile Image for Donna McCaul Thibodeau.
1,350 reviews31 followers
June 30, 2024
Sara hopes their move to Dublin will be good for her daughter, Lexie. And it is, until the night of Vanessa's dinner party, when things go suddenly wrong, and Lexie is ostracized. By child minding Polly, Vanessa's daughter, can Sara make things right again?
I bought this book in a Dublin airport, and I'm glad I did. The writing was crisp and kept me turning pages late into the night. Highly, highly recommended.
Profile Image for raney .
227 reviews
July 13, 2024
The Playdate is super engaging and often infuriating in a way that makes it fun to read. That said, I wasn’t convinced by the ending and I don’t think the narrative structure in which the narrator is monologuing to her husband for the entire book worked very well. Also, there was not a single likable character in this novel, which left me no one to root for. Still, I was *dying* to find out what happened and I didn’t predict the ending, even though I probably should have.
Profile Image for Steph.
279 reviews
December 26, 2024
Ok

This isn't a challenging read at all, and although there are twists described in the write up, there really wasn't anything surprising in the end. It relied very heavily on the unreliable narrator trope. It was quite silly and over the top and on a personal level I would have preferred it not to escalate but to explore the dynamics. But I can imagine this becoming a popular film, and it's got enough of a plot to be engaging.
Profile Image for Janaya Kabamba.
636 reviews10 followers
December 18, 2023
What a book! From the very outset it had me invested and I loved every second of it. The twists were jaw dropping, the characters so well brought to life. The writing style was just natural and had the reader completely in captivated and it was all described so vividly without being too wordy! Absolutely loved it
Profile Image for Gwen.
96 reviews1 follower
June 20, 2024
Thought this was one of those nice, sit back, relax & go with it thrillers.
The author deftly captures the drama and politics of the school yard and turns them into an increasingly nasty situation. I found some of the plot with the protagonist Sara’s husband a bit distracting, adding a layer to the story that I’m not sure it needed.
The worry and agonising Sara experiences for her daughter rang especially true, as well as her perspective on an Irish school setting & community.
Beware the school gate mom indeed.
1 review
August 25, 2024
Enjoyable turn pager throughout but the final chapter seemed as if the Author had just run out of steam and wanted to reach the ending. It reminded my of the classic TV detective show where everything falls in place/is revealed in the last 5 minutes. A damp squib would best describe it!
83 reviews
September 24, 2024
I found this book very drawn out and quite boring at times. The main character was obsessed with her daughter. There is a lot of drama between parents and kids.
I guessed the culprit very early on......
Profile Image for hannah.
29 reviews
January 29, 2025
“Men were like that with their daughters while they were still young and sweet. They secretly thought that because this was their daughter she would be somehow better than other females. She’d stay young and adorable for longer and never turn into a Woman.“

OKAYYYYYYYYY
190 reviews2 followers
July 25, 2025
3.5* rounded down. I enjoyed this - love a children/mothers psychological thriller. Wasn't very fast-paced but a steady solid read. Would have been better if the title of the book was better matched to the story as really 'the playdate' seemed such a small part of it..
2 reviews
October 4, 2025
Really enjoyed this one, the 2nd person POV was interesting and I had a good giggle out of all the mum drama. Although I will say the last few chapters are sort of a let down considering they spent so much time building up the drama, but I was still happy enough with the ending.
Profile Image for Lucy Kenneally.
57 reviews5 followers
January 2, 2024
Loved everything about this book, characters you just love to hate and others that you root for. Edge of the seat thriller. The Playdate was one of my favorite books. Cant wait to read more.
Profile Image for Anne Marie.
28 reviews1 follower
March 6, 2024
Loved the style of this. Reminded me of 'we need to talk about kevin' in structure which I adored. A real page turner. Wouldn't have guessed the ending. I'd deffo read more from this author
Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews

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