A Mother’s Secret

by Tess Stimson

‘Dark. Twisty. Addictive. I couldn’t put it down’ LISA JEWELL

She loves her family. She’d never let anything happen to them . . . Would she?



On the outside, Maddie is a happy young mother with a new baby. But on the inside, she’s afraid.


Afraid that her marriage to Lucas isn’t what she thought.


Afraid that she’s having mysterious blackouts where her memories should be.


But how can she ask for help when something terrible is done to her family?


Who can she turn to, who can she trust?


And how does she know it wasn’t her?



Full of twists and turns, this is perfect for fans of I Invited Her In and The Mother-in-Law.



‘More chilling than Gone Girl and twistier than The Girl on the Train, this emotional, raw, dark family drama keeps you guessing until the end’ JANE GREEN, author of The Friends We Keep


‘Truly gripping: the opening is heart-breaking and it never lets up, all the way to a genuinely shocking denouement’ ALEX LAKE, author of Seven Days


Join the readers already obsessed with A Mother’s Secret:
‘A cross between Jodi Picoult and Gillian Flynn’ Netgalley Reviewer


‘An edge-of-your-seat-wondering-what-is-going-on great thriller!’ Netgalley Reviewer


‘Engrossing, thrilling, never guess the ending’ Netgalley Reviewer


‘Would I recommend it? . . . Oh yes, 100%’ Netgalley Reviewer


‘A gripping, intelligent plot; realistic and well-drawn characters; a difficult subject tackled extremely well’ Netgalley Reviewer


‘Wow, what a great read! Very well written, it goes between past and present of the characters but this flows so easy throughout the book, lots of twists to keep you page turning! A must read for all psychological thriller fans!’ Netgalley Reviewer


‘WOW! I could not put this down. The writing is superb. There was nothing I didn't enjoy’ Netgalley Reviewer

Genres: Thriller, Adult, Mystery Thriller

416 pages, Paperback

First published May 5, 2020

About the author

Tess Stimson is the author of fifteen novels - including international bestseller The New House - which have been translated into dozens of languages, plus two non-fiction books. Her new book, The Perfect Accident, will be published in April 2026.
A former British journalist and reporter, Stimson was appointed Professor of Creative Writing at the University of Florida in 2002 and moved to the US. In addition to writing fiction, she continues to work as a journalist and teaches reporting for media and creative writing at a university in the Northeastern US. She now lives in Vermont with her husband, and is visited intermittently by her three grown-up children whenever they need their laundry done.
For more information, visit Tess's website or follow her on Instagram and Facebook.

Reviews

[Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book!
I had no idea how it would end!

[Kristin (Always With a Book) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you HarperCollins 360 for the gifted copy.

Domestic thrillers have become one of my favorite sub-genres within the thriller genre and I feel that each one has it's own unique quality to it that sets it apart - at least the ones I've read so far. And this one from Tess Stimson, a new-to-me author definitely fits that bill.

This is a dark and quite disturbing domestic thriller, yet it was one that once I started reading it, I could not put down. I needed to know what was going on and how it would all play out. While I had my guesses, I totally did not see that end coming - and I loved that. When you read as many thrillers as I do, you tend to predict how things will play out and I'm so glad I didn't this time.

I loved how the book was told. We are introduced to Maddie right away, and most of the story is told from her perspective but we are also introduced to Lydia, a young child that has the most horrific upbringing. I was so curious as to what the connection between the two characters was and could not read fast enough to find out.

This book has characters that you will love to hate (my favorite kind) and characters that you will be immediately suspicious of. Each character has their secrets and while some are eventually revealed, it doesn't make them look any less guilty. I immediately found myself rooting for Maddie as I felt she had no one in her corner.

This is such an addicting read, though at times, the subject matter can be a little tough to digest. I still recommend it as it was quite a thrilling read with plenty of twists and turns that kept me guessing all the way through.


You can see all my reviews at: http://alwayswithabook.blogspot.com/

[Meddings_Musings: Erin Meddings · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars -
The hits kept coming in this book and this made me keep looking at how much I had left in the book. Just when you think you finally got some answers, nope - new twist!
I am all about the crazy twists and turns but for me, this was a little bit too much.

[Scott Ravede · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are a lot of secrets and mothers and daughters in this book.

The mothers and daughters: There is Maddie, the main character, and from whose perspective most of the story is told. There is her mother, Sarah. There is her daughter, Emily. There is a parallel story about a girl named Lydia and her mother Mae and a brief mention of Mae’s mother.

The secrets: Seems like most of the characters have secrets. Besides all the mothers and daughters mentioned above, there is Lucas, Maddie’s husband and there is Candace, Lucas’s sister. They all harbor secrets of one kind or another.

The Plot: Maddie and Lucas have 3 children – Emily, Jacob, and Noah. Emily is Maddie’s daughter from a previous marriage. Noah dies early in the book. The plot revolves around whether Noah’s death was accidental or deliberate and if deliberate, who killed him. Lydia’s story comes well into the book, out of nowhere, and is eventually tied in to the main plot. Maddie has memory lapses which she hides from her husband for some reason and also for some inexplicable reason delays seeking medical help.

While this book is definitely a good read, the ending is dark and disturbing and seems somewhat contrived. But I’ll keep that a secret.

[RebeccaReviewedIt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow yall, this one was crazy. It was a little bit reminiscent of a Gillian Flynn novel in the way some of the plot goes down. Here’s the summary. Maddie has a great life – a sweet husband, 3 kids, a horse sanctuary – but she also has these strange incidents where she can’t remember what she’s done for the past 10 minutes or so. When something tragic happens in her family, she questions everyone, even herself, trying to figure out how this could have happened. I enjoyed the twists and the breadcrumbs left throughout the book. The author definitely let you play along with figuring out what happened and where everyone fits into the story. I also love a book set in the UK. I don’t know why I giggled everytime I read the word “kerb,” but it was just delightful. It was a great library choice, and I’m so glad I was able to get my hands on it! I will forewarn you, there are a lot of trigger warnings in this book. People are going to die, some of them are children, and there are is some child abuse that’s talked about that will just break your heart.
#bookstagram #RebeccaReviewedIt

[Jacklyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not everything is always as it seems...
To most, Maddie appears to be a happy wife and mother of three. In reality, she's terrified. She's recently found out that her marriage isn't exactly what she thought it was and has started experiencing mysterious blackouts and missing memories. Now, something terrible has happened to her family. Who can she turn to for help? Who can she trust? And how can she be so sure it wasn't her who caused this pain?
This was another great read by Tess Stimson. It started off a bit slow, but really picked up. I was a little bummed to find a prediction I made early on was true, but the other jaw-dropping moments more than made up for that. The narrator, Sophie Bentinck, did a wonderful job bringing this story to life. I can't wait to read more of Tess Stimson's work!

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoy books with a twist. Most of those twists, I can see coming. The first twist I was completely blindsided. The second one I had an inkling. The way it was incorporated was great. The ending had me for sure.

[Barb · Rating 3 out of 5]

I struggled with this book for the first third of the book, but oh my goodness, sometimes it's about sticking with it! The twists were crazy and just when you thought you had answers, it changes again. Nice job Tess Stimson

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

wow thisbone blew me away! I read a lot of thrillers and they tend to follow the same pattern. not this one! I never figured out anything ahead of time! it kept me reading late into the night. I am definitely going to try and read more by this author

[Delinda · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lot of twists and turns, but I had a feeling that I knew who had done it before it was revealed. Great read.

[Jazmine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Full of twist. Definitely kept me hooked and reading. I only saw the end coming in the last chapter. Definitely one of my favorites.

[Amanda J Morgan · Rating 4 out of 5]

The beginning was hard for me to get in to. I almost set it down but glad i stuck with it ended up being a very good book. Some touchy subjects though relating to children

[Courtney Highstone · Rating 5 out of 5]

So many good twist that kept me wanting to read more. Certainly hard topics of child abuse but a great physiological thriller.

[Carrie Demaree · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought I had it figured out… then… nope took a crazy turn! Great book with many twists and turns

[Rachel C. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not her best characters especially Madison

Unreliable narrated trope is my least fave

[Ashlea Richardson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Once you think you have it figured out think again

[Kasie Bailey · Rating 4 out of 5]

A book that will make you suspect everyone! A suspenseful book that kept me turning the pages as fast as I could! If you liked the book The Push, then this is a book for you!

[Laura Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very drawn out storyline. Having read The New House and One in Three, this was a huge disappointment.

[Clare Murphy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great 1st twist. Second one was predictable - all in all it was fine. Read a few books that were similar with better story

[Sandra Mistretta · Rating 3 out of 5]

Audiobook only from my libraries

[Isabel · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was just eh. I did guess the twist good for me! The one perspective scenes were SO upsetting. And the ending was kind of bad.

[Janelle Herrera]

Just when you think you know what's going to happen........

[Bev · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found the storyline troubling. I skimmed most of it to find out what really happened and found I had guessed it early on.

[S!ERRA · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.7 stars, this book was SOO good up until the end and it just got so stupid. the twist was fine but the way the author executed it felt rushed and lazy.