Tantrum

by Rachel Eve Moulton

In this electric horror novel from the author of The Insatiable Volt Sisters, an exhausted mother thinks her newborn might be a monster. She’s right.

Thea’s third pregnancy was her easiest. She wasn’t consumed with anxiety about the baby. She wasn’t convinced it was going to be born green, or have a third eye, or have tentacles sprouting from its torso. Thea was fine. Her baby would be fine. 

But when the nurses handed Lucia to her, Thea just knew. Her baby girl was a monster. Not only was Lucia born with a full set of teeth and a devilish glint in her eye, but she’s always hungry. Indiscriminately so. One day Lucia pointed at her baby brother, looked Thea dead in the eye and said, “I eat.”

Thea doesn’t know whether to be terrified or proud of her rapacious baby girl. And as Lucia starts growing faster and talking more, dark memories bubble to the surface--flashes from Thea’s childhood that won’t release their hooks from her heart. Lucia wants to eat the world. Thea might just let her.

Crackling with originality and dark humor, Rachel Eve Moulton’s Tantrum is a provocative exploration of familial debt, duty, and the darker side of motherhood.

Genres: Horror, Fiction, Audiobook, Thriller, Adult, Contemporary, Novella

192 pages, Hardcover

First published August 5, 2025

Reviews

[Mai H. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well, shit.

Am I a horror fan? Who have I become? Who have I always been? Why am I having an existential crisis?

Part I: Temper

I am fucked up. I love this.

This is the kind of horror I live for. The horror of mothering three babies, one of which might be a demon incarnate (real? fake? stress?), with the most unhelpful husband of all time.

Just kidding. He's a very "regular" husband, who I'm sure gets off on calling watching his own kids "babysitting."

Gag me. No, truly, nothing makes me want to have children less. Where was I going with this?

Part II: Wean

This is still weird as hell. And I'm still liking it. But I'm a little confused. And that's fine. I don't know if it's magical realism or being lost in Thea's head or something else, but whatever.

But now we know what we're working with. Bad parenting begets bad parenting, until changes are made. You know what I'm talking about.

Part III: Latch

Things are still weird, but starting to make sense. I'll let the middle section slide, because we get reveal after reveal after reveal.

In FEVER series like fashion, we never quite find out what is what, but I don't think that matters here. Monsters are monsters, but really, humans are monsters. And what is scarier than reality?

Useless husband actually turned out pretty cute in the end. Love that. Mostly.

Book pairings: BAT EATER AND OTHER NAMES FOR CORA ZENG | BONES & ALL | ROSEMARY'S BABY | THE EYES ARE THE BEST PART | WHAT HUNGER

📱 Thank you to NetGalley and G.P. Putnam's Sons

[Sadie Hartmann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Title/Author: Tantrum by Rachel Eve Moulton

Pub date: Aug. 5th, 2025

Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons

Page Count: 192

Affiliate Link:
 https://bookshop.org/a/7576/978059385...

Format Read: NetGalley eBook

Recommended for readers who enjoy:
- Motherhood, Marriage, Parenting, Family life, Pregnancy
- Mother/Daughter relationships
- Societal norms/expectations on women to be maternal, nurturing, natural mothering instincts
- Dark humor/Unlikable narrator
- Creepy kids
- Feral girlhood
- Intergenerational trauma
- Feminine rage
__
Minor complaints:
- The first 50% and the last 50% feel like different books
- Narrator/MC is unlikable (which is fine) but also really unrelatable so it's difficult to invest but not hard to be entertained

Final recommendation: We meet Thea shortly after the birth of her third child. She has anxiety about some of the strange behaviors she is witnessing from their youngest, Lucia. Mostly, she worries that Lucia is becoming a lot like her--a bit of history repeating itself, which she doesn't understand because her own childhood behavior problems were a result of neglect and instability, plus some physical/sexual abuse from strange men Thea's mother brought into the home.
Thea and Dillon work hard to provide a safe and loving environment for their children.
All of that to say, these concerns are triggering for Thea and she is forced to reflect on her childhood dealing with a narcissistic, emotionally unavailable parent and wondering if this intergenerational trauma has made her a monster who is destined to create yet another monster.
Being in Thea's head is darkly humorous as well as unsettling and unpredictable. I appreciated the use of metaphor to highlight some painful truths about motherhood and passing trauma on to our children through anxiety, projecting, and probably biology too
I like that this story didn't try to be a full-length novel--sometimes horror can drag out well past where the story would naturally end, losing its bite. This one keeps its sharp teeth.

This author writes original and unique stories. She first impressed me with Tinfoil Butterfly, which is terribly underrated in my opinion. I reviewed that book for Patreon, HERE
Moulton's storytelling style defies traditional story beats and structure. I appreciate the way nothing stacks up in a predicable sense--sort of in the same way I love alternative music that uses discordant sounds to interrupt harmony, at first it's jarring and unsavory but the more you listen, the more those moments become your favorite parts. This is how I'm feeling about Rachel Eve Moulton--this is my second book and the more I read, the more she becomes a favorite. I'm looking forward to reading, The Insatiable Volt Sisters and any forthcoming books.

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

ARC for review. To be published August 5, 2025.

4 stars

It’s so difficult to be the mother of a newborn, especially when you have two other children to raise and you are living off the grid. Any mother could be forgiven for thinking the new baby is a monster. But Lucia actually is.

Thea is trapped is the nearly deserted New Mexico desert with her busy husband, a five year old, a three year old and her infant daughter Lucia. As soon as the nurses handed Thea her daughter she knew something was wrong. She’s progressing at a terrifying rate and Thea doesn’t know if the boys are safe around her. Or what she wants.

This clever, very short book is about monsters of various sorts and how we deal with them. Moulton is an interesting writer. I like her point of view (and that she’s not afraid to have one) and I liked this fanciful story.

[Kurryreads (Kerry) · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars

What the hell hahahaha that was INSANE

https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZT6mq3ptP/

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was WILD!!!

When Thea was pregnant with her first two boys she was worried and anxious all of the time. Afraid she would mess them up in some way with her own poor choices. Of course, her boys are fine, angels really, and they make her so very proud to be their mother.

Then Thea became pregnant with her daughter and her worries and anxiety simply vanished away. It was her easiest pregnancy yet. Hallelujah!

There is one little problem, though. Thea is afraid that Lucia, her beautiful baby girl, is a monster with her mouthful of teeth. Lucia's strength and vocabulary being exceedingly far advanced for a baby her age. Concerningly so. And then there's her voracious appetite. What has she brought into this world? And how will she protect her family? You'll have to read this to find out!

"Of course, I've spent that last three months protecting them and my husband from our third baby, who, in all likelihood, is some kind of devil. I hope they'll forgive me for not only allowing this chunky piece of dynamite into their lives, but for making it fat with maliciousness before I ever pushed her out of my ravaged lady parts."

As always with a Rachel Eve Moulton book you never know what to expect. This lady's imagination knows no bounds. I love a writer that continually surprises. Tantrum is a book about mother / daughter relationships. Moreover, it's a story of trauma at the hands of people that were meant to love us. Thea's acerbic narration kept me grinning from ear to ear which I appreciated. It kept this book from being too dreary and depressing. Now the ending does go a little off the deep end. Like her previous novel, The Insatiable Volt Sisters, the story goes into bizarre territory that won't be to all readers liking. Still, I'm a fan, and a big one at that, and, as always, I can't wait to see what she comes up with next! 4 stars!

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for my complimentary copy.

[Roman Clodia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've felt pregnant with this rage baby my whole adult life. She's not small or weak - but she is curled tight in my gut. Hidden inside of me at my own request. What if I let her out? What if I roared as loud as I could? Would the world end?

This book is built on an extended metaphor of trauma, maternity and female anger and pulls it off seamlessly.

It starts off as if we're in a Rosemary’s Baby or The Fifth Child situation with a demonic child but then morphs into something more hallucinogenic and fantastical as we gradually learn of Thea's maternal anxieties stemming from a childhood with her troubled mother. Themes of toxic mother and daughter relationships and the passing down of abusive legacies are revealed alongside figurative usage of the idea of monsters and hunger associated with rage and revenge.

It could have turned into a mess but the tight control of the writing keeps it all beautifully on track. The mix of snarky humour at the start moving through painful revelations to some kind of catharsis is almost classical in structure, just be aware that there is a section of grotesque dreamlike action that might not work for some readers.

Keeping this short maintains impact and effect in a story that benefits from a fast, ideally one-session, reading. Gory in parts with quite a lot of gushing blood, the real horrors are not so much from birthing creatures as from the monsters in our families.

[Brandon Baker · Rating 4 out of 5]

An allegorical, and ultimately kind of sweet story about the trials + tribulations of motherhood in the wake of realizing there might be something *very* wrong with our MC’s newest daughter.

It has a very slow start- after a brief taste of what’s to come, the first third of the story is basically exposition, but after that and we got to know our MC a bit more, I was hooked. I found it a bit hard to follow where we were in the timeline (like, it took me a sec to understand the plot progression and where we were headed) but things eventually fall into place and it makes for a pretty trippy, emotional read.

I was expecting things to get a bit crazier, but once I figured out where the story was headed, I understand and appreciated the conclusion

[Me, My Shelf, & I · Rating 1 out of 5]

This should be right up my alley, but unfortunately I did not like it.

Maybe it's a disservice that I read Victorian Psycho earlier today and absolutely loved it, and that had a similar unhinged woman/monster/murderer/cannibal angle with a wry sense of humor that fully nailed the tone in a way that felt effortless. Maybe there's something about Contemporary mothers to monstrous children that I just don't really enjoy as subject matter (We Need to Talk About Kevin and The Push both didn't land for me).

Okay, so I should talk more about what this book is rather than comparing and contrasting it to other books. This is women's fiction inexpertly couched in Horror. The humor they're clearly aiming for is fairly consistent, but never felt funny to me. Maybe a narrator could bring it to life, but mostly it just sounded... mean. The main character is very burdened and has a victim complex and her sarcasm isn't the kind that's in on the joke. It's just bitchy and off-putting. And it's very obviously trying soooo hard.

Which is a real shame, because it chafes even more when the book essentially becomes a therapy session where they enact a hypothetical conversation to reach catharsis and healing (and it's not short either-- it basically takes up the entirety of Part III, or roughly 13%ish of the book). It feels a little preachy, but mostly just raw in a cringe sort of way where I don't feel comfortable with how much they're exposing their emotions and tender, beating heart to me. I desperately want to look away and let them have their moment of healing and please please please don't bring me along as a spectator by working it into your novel like this. (It's the kind of personally validating conversation you imagine in your head when you can't sleep at night and keep thinking about the person who wronged you; the kind of conversation someone writes into a fake tumblr post and then everybody claps. Only- for the characters in this book- it's also real.)

It's also all wrapped in this really heavy-handed magical realism metaphor for feminism and misogyny and patriarchy, but handled in what feels like a really toxic/messy way? And they all but drop the pretense during the therapy enactment scene.

I honestly think there are better books on this topic, in this genre, with more insight and wit and nuance, and I can't picture myself recommending this in their shadow.

Thank you to NetGalley and G.P. Putnam's Sons for the ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own. (So sorry)

Alternative Recs for Motherhood/Post-Partum Horror:
Nestlings

More General Motherhood/Complicated Mother-Daughter Relationships:
Woman, Eating

If drifting more into gothic or speculative Horror I might start throwing around titles like
The Unsuitable
Someone You Can Build a Nest In

[BiblioPeeks · Rating 4 out of 5]

"It's passed down, I suppose, the skill of parenting, which means, of course, that I don't have it."

I wasn't quite sure what to expect with this small novel (practically a novella at 173 pgs), but what I got was much darker than I imagined. I didn't realize this would be so heavily focused on maternal concerns, which I'm definitely not the right audience for. That aside, I was quite riveted by the notion of what was happening. Lucia wants to eat. Eat what, you may ask? You'll just have to read to find out.

If you're expecting a fun, crazy little monster story, this is NOT that. This is deeply raw, vulnerable and exposes ugly truths of expectations that are thrust upon mothers and women in general. There is quite a bit of trauma, mostly of the childhood variety, but what stood out to me was the way Rachel Eve Moulton handled the very real aspects and concerns of generational trauma. It was quite brilliantly executed. That's not to say this tale isn't gruesome, and horrifying; it most definitely IS and that's kind of the point.

I did a combo read with the audiobook, which I highly recommend. The humor, fear, anxiety, doubt and worry were executed perfectly by Rachel L. Jacobs' performance. Her inflections, along with modulation and changes in pace left no doubt about what Thea was feeling and experiencing!

TANTRUM is a crazy, wild, deranged, uncomfortable, bloody fever dream reality of a mother's worst fears along with pain and old wounds coming to life. Definitely check trigger warnings, and anyone who has childhood trauma may want to read with caution. If you're in for an 'what in the world did I just read' experience that has REAL DEPTH, along with body and psychological horror, you need to pick this baby up ASAP!
____

Notable Quotes:

"It's a lot of power, isn't it? Think of the influence we have over our kids. We're already shaping their story. We must be!"


"My mother told me what I was, so I was. Does it matter that I wasn't?"


"You, their mother, are their everything. Their everyone. and how could someone so small, so sweet, be at fault, be ignored?"
____

Thank you Putnam Books and Penguin Random House Audio for my gifted copies. All opinions are my own.

[Laura · Rating 2 out of 5]

Um, what was this? Sooooo bizarre. And honestly, not that good. Maybe it was meant to be more satirical, but it was more just confusing, disjointed and odd. Probably would not recommend this one.

Thank you to Goodreads and the publisher for allowing me to read this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

[Adrienne L · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25-4.5ish

(I meant to write a review of this days ago when I finished, but life got in the way, so here of some of my - hopefully coherent - thoughts).

Thea is the mother of three young children, living in the mountainous desert of eastern New Mexico on a homestead built by her husband. While her husband works from home, Thea dreams one day of building a studio on their land to get back to the creative pursuits that she abandoned in the face of the challenges of motherhood. And the biggest challenge of all seems to be staring back at her from the eerily precocious, devilish gaze of her three-month-old daughter Lucia, who's turned out to be a handful in more ways than one.

I really enjoyed this book. There's nothing extraordinary about it, really, but it it was a story I kept looking forward to getting back to as soon as possible each time I had to put it down. The writing is good, Moulton has her own voice for sure, but I don't think it will agree with everyone. I also think a lot of people may not particularly like Thea, and not in that trendy unlikeable female character way. But I found her POV relatable, even if her experiences of life and motherhood were quite different from my own.

I do think the end got a little heavy-handed with the metaphors, but I still enjoyed the journey, and I would even reread this. I have Moulton's The Insatiable Volt Sisters on my shelves, and reading Tantrum has definitely brought it closer to the top of my t0-read list.

[Robert · Rating 2 out of 5]

I felt mislead by this book. I was expecting a book about a monstrous baby and how a mother learns to deal with it. Instead, I read a book complaining about a mother and how hard it is to be a mother. The baby barely does anything truly monstrous.
The tone shifts completely in each of the three parts of this book. The first and longest being about the struggles of being a woman and mother, the second turning into a surrealist dream and exposition, and the final becoming almost cartoonish. It wrapped up in a very happily-ever-after way that I did not appreciate.
The main character tried too hard to be quirky and fantasize about female villains, but they seemed to all come from a top ten best female villains list and I don’t believe the author knew much about these characters. It almost made it seem like she wrote a different book then tried to pad it with these villains and the ‘monster’ to try and make it stand out from similar books.
It’s nothing other writers haven’t done already, but packaged with a lie of a thesis.

[nico · Rating 5 out of 5]

a visceral story about the horrors of being a woman

[ThatBookish_deviant · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.0/5

Ha! Such a deliciously unhinged, feral delight.

[Brandy Leigh · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well I mean it had potential… torn between 2-2.5 ⭐️

Maybe it was the length, but something felt off about the execution. The last page was a mic drop moment… where I closed the book and wondered to myself “so what was the point of this?”

And don’t even get me started on the characters. Unlikeable characters sure, we love to hate them. But this main character? The worst.

[Kim ~ It’s All About the Thrill]

I usually love dark humor. Unfortunately this just didn’t work for me. I decided to DNF rather than push on. Others have loved it. So it’s probably a me thing. Thank you Putnambooks for the gifted copy.

[Katie T · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a really difficult book to read during a pmdd cycle. It was so good but very depressing. The rage and despair in Tantrum was a pretty visceral experience for me. Decide what you will about who or what the monster is in this horror story….. but for me the monster is just the very fact of being a woman. With or without a child. A victim of sexual assault or not. Married or single. Just the very fact of being a living woman is the horror in and of itself.

[Nikki Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow! Man, I had no freaking idea where this was headed. I definitely didn’t see it going there from where it started.

Thea and Dillion have a nice family. Two sons and a new three-month-old baby girl, Lucia. The boys are all sweet and lovely, however, Lucia is a whole other story. Lucia has an insatiable hunger that must be fed.

Listen, this story gets bonkers but it sends a VERY IMPORTANT message. Trauma. The lasting effects and impact of childhood trauma that can be in your life. It brought up my own childhood memories that were clearly traumatic. Moulton’s message is loud and clear, your family should always be nurturing and number one. Protect the ones you love!

I actually loved this. I love a good maternity horror novel! If you enjoy storytelling with a fever dream, definitely give this a read.

4 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Out Tuesday 8/5/25

[Cassie · Rating 4 out of 5]

“I eat,” she says with a smile so wide I can see her creepy molars in her creepy baby mouth. This child. This little Lucia Lucifer is just three months, and she is so full of teeth and words that I feel sick.

I have to be honest, I went into Tantrum expecting it to be another Baby Teeth – a book about an evil child terrorizing her family. And I don’t mean that in a bad way at all, because I love an evil kid trope; I was just expecting something purely fun, that wouldn’t make me think too much. But what I got was almost exactly the opposite. Full of social commentary and startling insights about modern motherhood, Tantrum is a little book that packs quite a large punch.

Three months ago, Thea gave birth to her third child: a daughter, Lucia. Thea’s pregnancies with both of her sons were fraught with anxiety and fear, but with Lucia, it was different. Thea felt calm and unbothered all the way through the pregnancy, excited to meet her baby girl. So imagine Thea’s surprise when, only moments after being born, that baby girl revealed herself to be a monster.

Coming in at under 200 pages, Tantrum is a book that begs to be read in one sitting, which is exactly what I did. The book starts off in a relatively “normal” horror realm but becomes something entirely different midway through: a fever dream exploring generational trauma, complex mother/daughter relationships, and female rage in hallucinatory but meaningful ways. This is a book about monsters – monsters who look nothing like you’d expect – and how motherhood can make a monster out of a woman. It’s so thoughtful and insightful and unapologetic, with Rachel Eve Moulton making some bold narrative choices that really paid off for me. Moulton sets the novel in the desert of New Mexico, and the isolated, stifling atmosphere works so well with the story she’s telling.

I really enjoyed this. It’s weird, wild, and thought-provoking. Moulton brings something entirely fresh to the horror genre, and I can’t wait to read whatever she comes up with next. Thank you to G.P. Putnam’s Sons for the early reading opportunity.

[Barbara Behring · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.50

Wow, I sure didn't expect that when I started this book! let's just say like Mother, like daughter, like daughter, etc. I was kinda bored halfway through but that ending. Worth the read.

[Irene Well Worth A Read · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thea never wanted children until she met and married Dillon, but once she did she was determined to be a better mother than the one she had. She worried herself sick over her first two pregnancies, but her beautiful, healthy boys are the light of her life. The third time, however, was not the charm. She didn't worry at all. Everything was fine until they put her baby girl in her arms. That was when she knew she had birthed a monster.

Exhausted and struggling to cope with a baby who is developing a mean streak and a miraculous growth spurt, Thea begins to uncover blocked out memories from her traumatic childhood and the disturbing details of her forgotten past with her own mother.

Motherhood is probably the only experience that millions of women can share while still having nothing in common. Each experience is as unique as every child. Tantrum is a supernatural story about trauma and abuse and the darker side of motherhood—those uncomfortable thoughts we may punish ourselves for when one child is harder to cope with than the others.

5 out of 5 stars

My thanks to G.P. Putnam's Sons for the advance e-ARC

[Torrin Nelson · Rating 1 out of 5]

If the intention is for the reader to throw a tantrum for having wasted their time, it was successful.

[Ghoulfriend_pls · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 rounded up
This is a weird and disgusting but absolutely beautiful story that says so many things that need to be said. It is not quite what I expected but in a good way! This made me laugh out loud, groan, empathize, get angry for the character and women everywhere, and feel validated in some of my own feelings I’ve felt sometimes. I found the main character Thea very relatable. Mother is part of my identity for sure but it has never been my sole identity. This book validates mothers no matter how much or how little we embrace that part of us. This book validates women. This book validates humans and all that comes with being one-imperfections and all. It says a lot in not so many words. It did all that but also held true to horror and included some gore and horrific parts too that at times took the forefront. I really enjoyed this and would highly recommend it. It satiated so many aspects I long for in a book.
I will say this, like every book, will not be for everyone. It is certainly not a “I love being a mother all the time every second of everyday” sort of book and the main character is most definitely crude and brutally honest-even an as*hole at times but it makes some really good points.

One of many awesome quotes from this book but this is one of my favorites and kinda gives an idea of some of the vibes of this book:
“She said, ‘Babies?…I’m just asking if you plan to have some, because you might want to do so soon. Clock is ticking.’
I wanted to say, ‘Clocks don’t tick anymore b*tch’”

[Martie Nees Record · Rating 1 out of 5]

Genre: Horror/Dark humor
Publisher: Putnam
Pub Date: Aug 05, 2025

"Tantrum" takes black comedy to an extreme. I considered the plot to be ridiculous. I just kept reading because I wanted to know if the mother was mad, suffering from posttraumatic stress, or if she actually gave birth to a monster. I rolled my eyes when I read the absurd explanation. I was expecting a "Rosemary's Baby"-type of quality read. To the author's credit, she did an excellent job blending terror with humor. Still, I can't recommend this book because it wasn't for me. But, if you prefer fast-paced, outrageously amusing dark humor, give this one a go.

I received this Advance Review Copy (ARC) novel from the publisher at no cost in exchange for an honest review.

Find all my book reviews at:
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[Lena Prissel · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really don’t understand the higher ratings on this book. I wanted to like it, a pregnant mom fearing her unborn baby is a monster, and it ends up she actually IS a monster! Such high potential, but I’m not too sure what I read. It was kind of all over the place for me, too many different side stories and yet did not really finish any of them. Not the worst book I’ve ever read but certainly nothing worth reading again.

[Danika at The Lesbrary · Rating 4 out of 5]

That did not go where I was expecting, and it was a great time.

[nathan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Major thanks to NetGalley and G.P. Putnam's Sons for this ARC in exchange for my honest thoughts:

"𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘮, 𝘢𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘳, 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘻𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭𝘴 𝘢 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘱𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘢𝘵𝘦."

Motherhood sure is spiteful. Inverted 𝘙𝘰𝘴𝘦𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘺’𝘴 𝘉𝘢𝘣𝘺 with 80's B Horror humor. Its strong points are reflections on how postpartum affects not just the body, but creates emotional fissures too.

This is described as horror, but there’s very little of it. If anything it’s just gory. And then weird.

A quick fine read that derails in the second and third act. Heavy whips on themes of generational trauma, the patriarchy, and mothering, but it’s exactly that: plain whip.

[Kristen Miller · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was just…different.

[Louise · Rating 5 out of 5]

“I turn to look at Lucia and see that while she is still herself, a baby girl, she is also me. In some fundamental way, she is me.And I am her.”
A woman dealing with unhealed childhood trauma and the realization that her mother had the audacity to treat her the way she did. Having her own daughter, Thea is flooded with fear and pain. Reliving her long forgotten memories awakens something within her. A hunger. A rage.

"Remember how I told you it wasn't always the mother's fault?"
"I do," I say.
"Well, sometimes it is. Your mother has been staying with me, and she's a real asshole."

I really enjoyed this. It’s a short read, but really impactful. I can see my sister in the main character. She’s on her own journey of healing childhood trauma and with a little “monster” of her own. Teetering on the edge of the cycle, but wanting more than anything to break free.

[S.A Reidman · Rating 4 out of 5]

So much deep-seated trauma in the past comes to the surface in the form of a jarring hallucination. Little traumas and the really big ones. The layers of protective forgetting undone by the birth of a daughter. 

Thea's mother is vile: "You should be grateful for those men" 🤬🤢 a vile creature regardless of her status as a physical monster.

This is a great piece on what could either be post partum depression - because depression can mask all too well yall I've done my tango with it. Could it be an allegory on genetic, hereditary mental illness? Or are we looking at the sometimes precarious delicate nature of the mother-daughter relationship and the "mother wound" - Thea believes she, wait let me use her words in summation, she thinks she "cooked up this demon" because of her "old eggs and bad genetics" 

Then, there's the parentification of Thea as a child to an alcoholic true narcissistic mom with no stable father figure and deep maternal ancestral trauma? A mother who hated what pregnancy did to her body and drilled the message in her mind while Thea tried to placate her the way a mother would to a pouting toddler about to unleash hell. It's not even surprising when Thea says "My mother is crazy, and I hate her, but in a few ways, I listened."

Maybe it's a psychological pushback against a life she didn't want - she was a dream-chasing filmmaker all independent and trying now she's getting chicken eggs in the desert with spotty WiFi - her own words:
"...every morning I wake up wondering why I’ve trapped myself in this hellish loop of motherhood and marital bliss." So, maybe she didn't want this?  She goes into a self-hate spiral at one point calling herself a monster and her husband a pretender.

Maybe all of this manifested in Lucia Lucifer biter of thumbs, poker of eyes, chicken head ripper etcetera. It's one of these or maybe the kid is just a bacon-chomping, chicken-killing babbling spawn of Satan. 

Either way this was an intense read. I still believe that what Thea was seeing during the showdown was a hallucination, it was just a mother and daughter truly hashing it out and the daughter washing her hands clean of her. Maybe or they were 2 monsters fighting. 

That Characters:  Thea is a hot mess so naturally I love her. Dillion is whatever. Lilabeth🤣
Favorite/Curious/Unique Scene: The Birth of Lucia oh and no lullabies kids, soft lists of all kinds. To be fair I love this idea. Like a podcast of mundanity 
Favorite/Curious/Unique Quotes:
🖤 We are born. We are uncomfortable. We wither. (Helping old Lilibeth off the ground)
Favorite Concepts/Theme:
■mother-daughter relationships
■Maternal Generational Trauma
■Theas love for villains mirrors my own
■Oof,  Lucia and Thea doing Shadow work

Cover because I'm a bird: It's fitting
This book's whole vibe: Dry Desert Desolation
GR Rating: 3.5⭐
CAWPILE: 7
Re-readabilityHeck Yeah!
StoryGraph Challenge: 1800 Books by 2027
Challenge Prompt: 150 Novellas by 2027