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Mother of All Secrets
Her freedom, her sanity, her life. How much will a young mother sacrifice to protect her secrets?
Sleep deprived and overwhelmed, first-time mom Jenn is struggling to adapt to her new role. Frustrated with her loving but preoccupied husband and still grieving the death of her own mother, she feels isolated and depressed. It’s only when she joins a new-moms’ group that she starts to think she’s finally getting back on track.
Until Isabel, the group’s leader, suddenly disappears.
Now Jenn’s baby isn’t the only reason she can’t sleep. Consumed with worry over Isabel, Jenn is teetering on the edge of obsession. Concern turns to paranoia when Jenn finds clues that force her to look at herself, her marriage, and the women in her support group, who have more in common than Jenn realized. Much more.
Saving Isabel means unearthing secrets that were supposed to stay buried forever, and Jenn has to decide what she’s willing to risk to help a woman she barely knows. With each revelation, she gets closer to a slow-burning act of retribution that could easily and irrevocably draw her into the flames.
Sleep deprived and overwhelmed, first-time mom Jenn is struggling to adapt to her new role. Frustrated with her loving but preoccupied husband and still grieving the death of her own mother, she feels isolated and depressed. It’s only when she joins a new-moms’ group that she starts to think she’s finally getting back on track.
Until Isabel, the group’s leader, suddenly disappears.
Now Jenn’s baby isn’t the only reason she can’t sleep. Consumed with worry over Isabel, Jenn is teetering on the edge of obsession. Concern turns to paranoia when Jenn finds clues that force her to look at herself, her marriage, and the women in her support group, who have more in common than Jenn realized. Much more.
Saving Isabel means unearthing secrets that were supposed to stay buried forever, and Jenn has to decide what she’s willing to risk to help a woman she barely knows. With each revelation, she gets closer to a slow-burning act of retribution that could easily and irrevocably draw her into the flames.
270 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 1, 2022
3439 people are currently reading
9729 people want to read
About the author
Kathleen M. Willett
2 books162 followersKathleen M. Willett is an English teacher who grew up in New Jersey and London. She lives in Manhattan with her husband, two daughters, and a cat named Mr. Sparkles.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 637 reviews
June 23, 2022
This book was a miss for me. Told from Jenn’s POV it starts off with Jenn struggling with new motherhood. It tells of her sleeplessness, inability to manage household chores and an inability to soothe her crying baby. Then it tells us about her sleeplessness, inability to manage household chores and soothe her crying baby….you get the drift. Her mother died when sh was 6 months pregnant which partly explains her depression but many of us have been there ourselves. I had my children in a relatively new city with no family support too.
Things improve a lot when she joins a mothers group. The infants are all just a few months old and the five mothers enjoy their weekly get togethers. While things improved for Jenn, they did not improve for me. The first half of the book was very slow and repetitive. Then, at last some actIon, one of the mothers, Isabel, disappears. She misses one of their meetings and does not answer her phone. Jenn and Kira stop by her house but learn nothing. Husband, Connor, seems very uninterested and Isabel’s mother, who seems like a really good sort is staying there to look after the baby.
Jenn, however, becomes obsessed with Isabel’s disappearance and gets herself in a quite a state about it. By the way, this part is still very tedious. After nearly a week with still no sign of Isabel one of the other mother’s suggests they spend a child free couple of nights in the Hamptons. A friend has offered her the use of a luxury home. The break will do them all good.
And that’s where I guess the plot finally got more interesting but also pretty silly. And I can’t even tell you why. But I found it just totally implausible. Maybe the first part of plan A may be something you would do. But what ended up happening, I guess this is supposed to be the twist. Of course you wouldn’t guess it because no one with half a brain cell would do this. There was much eye rolling I can tell you. Many thanks to Netgalley and Lake Union Publishing for the much appreciated arc which I reviewed voluntarily and honestly.
Things improve a lot when she joins a mothers group. The infants are all just a few months old and the five mothers enjoy their weekly get togethers. While things improved for Jenn, they did not improve for me. The first half of the book was very slow and repetitive. Then, at last some actIon, one of the mothers, Isabel, disappears. She misses one of their meetings and does not answer her phone. Jenn and Kira stop by her house but learn nothing. Husband, Connor, seems very uninterested and Isabel’s mother, who seems like a really good sort is staying there to look after the baby.
Jenn, however, becomes obsessed with Isabel’s disappearance and gets herself in a quite a state about it. By the way, this part is still very tedious. After nearly a week with still no sign of Isabel one of the other mother’s suggests they spend a child free couple of nights in the Hamptons. A friend has offered her the use of a luxury home. The break will do them all good.
And that’s where I guess the plot finally got more interesting but also pretty silly. And I can’t even tell you why. But I found it just totally implausible. Maybe the first part of plan A may be something you would do. But what ended up happening, I guess this is supposed to be the twist. Of course you wouldn’t guess it because no one with half a brain cell would do this. There was much eye rolling I can tell you. Many thanks to Netgalley and Lake Union Publishing for the much appreciated arc which I reviewed voluntarily and honestly.
September 22, 2023
Thank you so much to every reader and reviewer for spending your time with my book!! It means so much to me!
July 22, 2022
Mother of All Secrets by Kathleen M. Willett is a book about secrets, many secrets. This is a review that is difficult to write because not much can be divulged without giving away too much information about this great plot. Jenn is a first-time mother of a newborn daughter. She finds herself out of her element until she joins a young mother’s group. She finds companionship and empathy among the young women from her neighborhood. Things are looking up until the leader of the group, Isabel, disappears suddenly. Jenn feels drawn to the mystery and worries about Isabel’s safety and attempts to involve the other mothers. This is where the secrets begin to be revealed, ever so slowly, peeling back the layers of an unpredictable plot. The characters are so well drawn that the reader feels as if they know these women. Each one contributes much to the story, good and bad. The plot is fresh and original : the reader will hold their breath till the conclusion. This is a great revenge novel, the kind that draws us in and does not let go. I will reread Mother of All Secrets, just to examine each character now that I know what happens. This is my first book by Kathleen M. Willett and I hope to read more in the future. Highly recommended. Thank you to Lake Union Publishing, NetGalley and the author for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.
July 16, 2022
Review to come
July 27, 2022
I struggled with this book in the beginning. It dragged a lot for me but eventually it picked up. I didn’t care for the ending. This one was just ok.
Jenn is a new mom struggling to stay afloat. She tired and overwhelmed with her new responsibilities. To add to her predicament her mother passed away and her husband is preoccupied.
Jenn decides to join a new moms group. Just when she thinks she’s getting a grip on her life, the groups leader Isabelle disappears. Jenn becomes consumed with figuring out what happened. The deeper she digs the more secrets she uncovers; secrets that force her to look at her relationship and the people she thought she knew.
Mother of All Secrets is available August 1, 2022.
Thank you to Netgalley and Lake Union Publishing for this arc in exchange for my honest review.
January 25, 2022
Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an eARC of this book!
“Mother of All Secrets” follows new mom Jenn as she navigates the ever exhausting and often thankless world of motherhood. Her husband is often more than useless when it comes to their infant daughter, Clara, and to top it all off she is grieving her mother.
And while her new mom group helps get her out of the house, she often finds herself jealous of how put together the other moms are. Until one of them disappears.
Jenn and the others moms- Vanessa, Selena, and Kira soon find themselves tangled up in a dangerous situation as they discover just what happened to the other missing mom, Isabel. And they soon learn they have more in common than babies.
I noted a few reviews that mentioned finding the first part of this novel slow and actually didn’t find Jenn annoying. I found her incredibly sympathetic and someone who was doing her absolute best to keep her head above water despite numerous difficulties.
With that noted- the motherhood aspects and detailing of Jenn’s day to day life was best part of this book. Everything was going swimmingly up until we discover what secret connects the mothers.
And then things get a bit wonky.
Honestly, I was really into this book up until the exciting parts happen! It seemed as if there was an attempt to make this book super twisty and WOW, but for me personally it fell a little flat. The entire scenario just felt so incredibly contrived. The book was a slow burn thriller that I thought was going to pack a real punch only to be given something that felt hollow.
It also felt like there were simply too many attempts to shoehorn in societal commentary in a way that did NOT lend itself to the story and these moments fell flat instead of being impactful.
“Because as a Black woman, I can’t mess up. You get that, right? Your biggest problem may be that your husband doesn’t help with laundry or whatever, but mine is that my son will be looked at as less than because of the color of his skin. Or that he’ll be arrested for something he didn’t do. Or worse. I have to be very, very careful as his mom, from the day he’s born until the day I die, and God willing that’ll be long before he does.”
The quote above is taken from the black woman in the group, Selena, and the character eventually apologizes for this outburst.
There were also moments in the big climax where the dialogue just felt like a big info-dump. It was meant to tell you why THIS character DOES that instead of showing us these character motivations.
Without missing a beat, Isabel said, “I think you crave the power you didn’t have as a child. I think you measure your worth in bowling pins—deals at work, women—because it allows you to convince yourself that you’re winning the game, in control of everything and everyone. I think it’s a distraction, too—from the fact that you’re a bad person and the world would be better off without you.”
With all of this being said- I’m giving this a three in that I did enjoy the first part of this book and I would probably still recommend this book with notes on issues I noticed.
“Mother of All Secrets” follows new mom Jenn as she navigates the ever exhausting and often thankless world of motherhood. Her husband is often more than useless when it comes to their infant daughter, Clara, and to top it all off she is grieving her mother.
And while her new mom group helps get her out of the house, she often finds herself jealous of how put together the other moms are. Until one of them disappears.
Jenn and the others moms- Vanessa, Selena, and Kira soon find themselves tangled up in a dangerous situation as they discover just what happened to the other missing mom, Isabel. And they soon learn they have more in common than babies.
I noted a few reviews that mentioned finding the first part of this novel slow and actually didn’t find Jenn annoying. I found her incredibly sympathetic and someone who was doing her absolute best to keep her head above water despite numerous difficulties.
With that noted- the motherhood aspects and detailing of Jenn’s day to day life was best part of this book. Everything was going swimmingly up until we discover what secret connects the mothers.
And then things get a bit wonky.
Honestly, I was really into this book up until the exciting parts happen! It seemed as if there was an attempt to make this book super twisty and WOW, but for me personally it fell a little flat. The entire scenario just felt so incredibly contrived. The book was a slow burn thriller that I thought was going to pack a real punch only to be given something that felt hollow.
It also felt like there were simply too many attempts to shoehorn in societal commentary in a way that did NOT lend itself to the story and these moments fell flat instead of being impactful.
“Because as a Black woman, I can’t mess up. You get that, right? Your biggest problem may be that your husband doesn’t help with laundry or whatever, but mine is that my son will be looked at as less than because of the color of his skin. Or that he’ll be arrested for something he didn’t do. Or worse. I have to be very, very careful as his mom, from the day he’s born until the day I die, and God willing that’ll be long before he does.”
The quote above is taken from the black woman in the group, Selena, and the character eventually apologizes for this outburst.
There were also moments in the big climax where the dialogue just felt like a big info-dump. It was meant to tell you why THIS character DOES that instead of showing us these character motivations.
Without missing a beat, Isabel said, “I think you crave the power you didn’t have as a child. I think you measure your worth in bowling pins—deals at work, women—because it allows you to convince yourself that you’re winning the game, in control of everything and everyone. I think it’s a distraction, too—from the fact that you’re a bad person and the world would be better off without you.”
With all of this being said- I’m giving this a three in that I did enjoy the first part of this book and I would probably still recommend this book with notes on issues I noticed.
May 8, 2022
Jenn is a first time mother and feeling exhausted and overwhelmed. This compounded by the recent death of her mother is making her situation lonely and very difficult. When Jenn decides to join a new-mom’s group she starts to get the support she needs and things start improving, until disaster strikes! The leader of the group, Isabelle, goes missing!
I was really excited to read MOTHER OF ALL SECRETS. The description just sounded so good. I can say I was not disappointed, this was a great book. The story and writing from debut author Kathleen M. Willet was outstanding! I am very excited to see what she will come up with next.
Many thanks to Kathleen M. Willet for my ARC in exchange for my honest review.
This review will be posted to my Instagram Blog (@coffee.break.book.reviews) in the near future.
I was really excited to read MOTHER OF ALL SECRETS. The description just sounded so good. I can say I was not disappointed, this was a great book. The story and writing from debut author Kathleen M. Willet was outstanding! I am very excited to see what she will come up with next.
Many thanks to Kathleen M. Willet for my ARC in exchange for my honest review.
This review will be posted to my Instagram Blog (@coffee.break.book.reviews) in the near future.
January 23, 2022
Jenn is an over-tired, first time mom to three month old Clara. When she joins a mom’s group, in hopes to connect and commiserate, she never expected to find that one of the 5 women suddenly disappears in the middle of the night.
Jenn spends most of this novel either not sleeping, complaining about motherhood and scouring for clues about Isobel’s disappearance. I found this novel to be slow in parts and very repetitive. The sudden injections into the plot 3/4 of the way through felt like CPR was trying to be performed on the plot line. They were jagged and quick; changing the dynamic of the novel quite quickly and dramatically from the first part.
Jenn spends most of this novel either not sleeping, complaining about motherhood and scouring for clues about Isobel’s disappearance. I found this novel to be slow in parts and very repetitive. The sudden injections into the plot 3/4 of the way through felt like CPR was trying to be performed on the plot line. They were jagged and quick; changing the dynamic of the novel quite quickly and dramatically from the first part.
August 20, 2022
"I’ll never really be me again, because I will always be able to truthfully say: we killed someone."
I'm not a mom (to human children, anyway) and I have yet to suffer through those first months with a newborn. But reading these first few chapters I felt like I had. Exhausted, annoyed, in love, irritated, emotional, and did I mention exhausted? This author has the gift of immersing readers so deeply and truly into their story, their characters that they experience it as if it were them, their life, their experience. So, naturally, I was hooked and could not put this book down.
Jen, a brand new, first time mom, attends a mommy group. As the ladies chat, gripe, gossip, and snack, they realize one of their members is strangely absent. Upon further inspection, it turns out the police are parked in front of her house as is her husband and she is missing!
Oh man! This pulled me in and would not let go. I was so sucked in to this story, wondering who was behind it all while at work or trying to place an author to the letters while eating dinner. This is fast paced and jam packed with twists and secrets revealed. A must read!
"'Cheers to new friends and new beginnings,' she declared pensively. 'And of course, to our precious babies, for whom we would do anything. Anything.'”
I'm not a mom (to human children, anyway) and I have yet to suffer through those first months with a newborn. But reading these first few chapters I felt like I had. Exhausted, annoyed, in love, irritated, emotional, and did I mention exhausted? This author has the gift of immersing readers so deeply and truly into their story, their characters that they experience it as if it were them, their life, their experience. So, naturally, I was hooked and could not put this book down.
Jen, a brand new, first time mom, attends a mommy group. As the ladies chat, gripe, gossip, and snack, they realize one of their members is strangely absent. Upon further inspection, it turns out the police are parked in front of her house as is her husband and she is missing!
Oh man! This pulled me in and would not let go. I was so sucked in to this story, wondering who was behind it all while at work or trying to place an author to the letters while eating dinner. This is fast paced and jam packed with twists and secrets revealed. A must read!
"'Cheers to new friends and new beginnings,' she declared pensively. 'And of course, to our precious babies, for whom we would do anything. Anything.'”
July 9, 2022
Odd contrast of realistic postpartum life with bad decisions
Descriptions and feelings of a new mom: very relatable. For most of the first half I had a lot of compassion for the main character. Somewhere along the line I found myself not liking her; exasperated with her choices and perspectives. Also, when I was in those postpartum shoes, there was no energy or brain power to pursue a mystery.
The plot: I could see early on a few directions it could go, and it dragged along before clues were revealed. I hadn't guessed how twisted the one character was, though I was on the right track.
Had a few enjoyable points that were greatly outweighed by too many bad decisions, including nursing moms drinking way too much, and social media contributing negatively to mental & physical well-being. Other examples would be spoilers.
Some aspects of the story caused me to think, which is a good result. My cogitations were constantly interrupted by some eye-rolling event or a character's series of thoughts. If this is written for upper-west-siders BY an upper-west-sider, I suppose it's their mindset. I'd encourage the author to either make clear this is about social setting, or expand perspectives and develop characters to appeal to a broader audience. Lastly, the epilogue was too tidy with everyone seeming to be completely unscathed.
Descriptions and feelings of a new mom: very relatable. For most of the first half I had a lot of compassion for the main character. Somewhere along the line I found myself not liking her; exasperated with her choices and perspectives. Also, when I was in those postpartum shoes, there was no energy or brain power to pursue a mystery.
The plot: I could see early on a few directions it could go, and it dragged along before clues were revealed. I hadn't guessed how twisted the one character was, though I was on the right track.
Had a few enjoyable points that were greatly outweighed by too many bad decisions, including nursing moms drinking way too much, and social media contributing negatively to mental & physical well-being. Other examples would be spoilers.
Some aspects of the story caused me to think, which is a good result. My cogitations were constantly interrupted by some eye-rolling event or a character's series of thoughts. If this is written for upper-west-siders BY an upper-west-sider, I suppose it's their mindset. I'd encourage the author to either make clear this is about social setting, or expand perspectives and develop characters to appeal to a broader audience. Lastly, the epilogue was too tidy with everyone seeming to be completely unscathed.
September 7, 2023
This didn't work for me.
I found Jenn annoying and obnoxious.
I found the incidents from the Hamptons extremely unbelievable.
I found Jenn annoying and obnoxious.
I found the incidents from the Hamptons extremely unbelievable.
February 1, 2022
3.5 STARS 👩👧🕵🏽♀️🍼
First things first, this book is my first ever ARC!! A big thank-you to NetGalley and Kathleen Willett for allowing me to be an early reader!
Mother of All Secrets is Kathleen Willett’s debut novel. It is a thriller and suspense read about a group of mothers who reside in the Upper West Side of New York.
Jenn, a new mom, who struggles with early motherhood is looking for a group of other mamas who can relate to her and offer support. When Isabel, also a new mother, reaches out to Jenn regarding a group that she leads, Jenn is over the moon.
Jenn joins the group that consists of herself, Isabel, and three other members: Vanessa, Selena, and Kira.
After a month of weekly meetings, Isabel goes missing. Now, it’s not only Jenn’s baby that keeps her busy and stressed, but also the fact that she could be linked to the disappearance of her group leader.
As the group of mothers gets together, they realize that they need to save Isabel. And after coming together, they realize that they were all invited to join the mom-group because there’s something that connects them all together. But what exactly is that something? And are these new mothers willing to risk everything they’ve worked for - their children and their families - just for a group leader that they’ve only known for one month? Read to find out.
The climax of this book was so intense and exciting, and it made me want to never put the book down. There were some points where the book dragged on a bit, but overall it was a fun read!
I loved the perspective this book had. Jenn being a new mother and sharing her raw and real struggles with caring for a baby, while having a mother who recently passed away, and a husband who works all day - it was such an original book! Not to mention the point of view of mothers who experience postpartum depression. Such an important aspect to shine light on!
If you are looking for a book that will keep you on your toes with the thrill and plot twists, then this one is for you! And also if you are looking for a unique book that illustrates the bouts of motherhood, then look no further! Mother of All Secrets will be published in June of 2020, stay tuned! x
First things first, this book is my first ever ARC!! A big thank-you to NetGalley and Kathleen Willett for allowing me to be an early reader!
Mother of All Secrets is Kathleen Willett’s debut novel. It is a thriller and suspense read about a group of mothers who reside in the Upper West Side of New York.
Jenn, a new mom, who struggles with early motherhood is looking for a group of other mamas who can relate to her and offer support. When Isabel, also a new mother, reaches out to Jenn regarding a group that she leads, Jenn is over the moon.
Jenn joins the group that consists of herself, Isabel, and three other members: Vanessa, Selena, and Kira.
After a month of weekly meetings, Isabel goes missing. Now, it’s not only Jenn’s baby that keeps her busy and stressed, but also the fact that she could be linked to the disappearance of her group leader.
As the group of mothers gets together, they realize that they need to save Isabel. And after coming together, they realize that they were all invited to join the mom-group because there’s something that connects them all together. But what exactly is that something? And are these new mothers willing to risk everything they’ve worked for - their children and their families - just for a group leader that they’ve only known for one month? Read to find out.
The climax of this book was so intense and exciting, and it made me want to never put the book down. There were some points where the book dragged on a bit, but overall it was a fun read!
I loved the perspective this book had. Jenn being a new mother and sharing her raw and real struggles with caring for a baby, while having a mother who recently passed away, and a husband who works all day - it was such an original book! Not to mention the point of view of mothers who experience postpartum depression. Such an important aspect to shine light on!
If you are looking for a book that will keep you on your toes with the thrill and plot twists, then this one is for you! And also if you are looking for a unique book that illustrates the bouts of motherhood, then look no further! Mother of All Secrets will be published in June of 2020, stay tuned! x
July 11, 2022
I’m glad this book was free due to Kindle First Reads or I would have requested a refund. I wish I had chosen another book.
I was really looking forward to this book based on a preview I read. However, I struggled to finish it. I only kept reading to sed if there was anything at the end to save it from its misery!
The main character Jenn D was pathetic and very annoying. The first 50 pages were so tedious about her inability to do anything but breast feed her newborn. Way too many repetitive details about new mothers and breast feeding that didn’t need to be described ad nauseam. I wanted to tell her to suck it up and pull herself together.
After I figured out the plot, it was so ridiculous and implausible. None of the women were likeable and there’s no way it could have happened in real life the way it did. There wasn’t any chemistry between them to pull off Plan A or Plan B.
And the letters interspersed made it hard to follow.
Don’t waste your time or money.
I was really looking forward to this book based on a preview I read. However, I struggled to finish it. I only kept reading to sed if there was anything at the end to save it from its misery!
The main character Jenn D was pathetic and very annoying. The first 50 pages were so tedious about her inability to do anything but breast feed her newborn. Way too many repetitive details about new mothers and breast feeding that didn’t need to be described ad nauseam. I wanted to tell her to suck it up and pull herself together.
After I figured out the plot, it was so ridiculous and implausible. None of the women were likeable and there’s no way it could have happened in real life the way it did. There wasn’t any chemistry between them to pull off Plan A or Plan B.
And the letters interspersed made it hard to follow.
Don’t waste your time or money.
July 24, 2022
I liked this book- it was fast paced and twisty. It centers on Jenn, a struggling new mom who joins a mom group in the upper west side of NYC. When one of the moms goes missing, Jenn gets caught up in the mystery, but once she digs in deeper things are not all that they seem.
You do have to suspend your disbelief a little bit during the book but that was ok to me because it was surprising and satisfying throughout. There was also a theme of moms supporting each other and an overall understanding about how it’s equal parts hard and thrilling to have a new baby.
Overall, fun read that I would recommend as long as you don’t take it all too seriously. I finished it within a few hours. This was an Amazon first read book- thanks to Amazon and the publisher for a copy.
You do have to suspend your disbelief a little bit during the book but that was ok to me because it was surprising and satisfying throughout. There was also a theme of moms supporting each other and an overall understanding about how it’s equal parts hard and thrilling to have a new baby.
Overall, fun read that I would recommend as long as you don’t take it all too seriously. I finished it within a few hours. This was an Amazon first read book- thanks to Amazon and the publisher for a copy.
July 31, 2022
another woke book
Can you just write a book without trying to persuade peoples opinion on your social agendas? I’m sick of it.
Can you just write a book without trying to persuade peoples opinion on your social agendas? I’m sick of it.
January 29, 2022
Big thanks to Netgalley for the ARC!
Mother of All Secrets tells the story of first-time mom Jenn who — believing that she was failing as a mother to three-month-old Clara — joined a new moms' group in the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Then one day, Isabel, the group's facilitator, disappeared.
This book, though with an intriguing mystery, was honestly hard to get through. The main character, Jenn, is annoying, for lack of a better word; her personality just boils down to being a tired mom, nothing more. She is also overly talkative, which could have been a good plot device to let us know more about her and the other characters but her talkativeness was done in a very repetitive way, making it a tedious read. There were chunks of paragraphs where she just kept going in circles talking about something that ended up being irrelevant to the story as a whole.
Also, while I do appreciate the attempt at tackling societal issues such as race, the delivery in this book was not done properly, IMHO. As a result, it all came out forced and a little insincere.
Mother of All Secrets tells the story of first-time mom Jenn who — believing that she was failing as a mother to three-month-old Clara — joined a new moms' group in the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Then one day, Isabel, the group's facilitator, disappeared.
This book, though with an intriguing mystery, was honestly hard to get through. The main character, Jenn, is annoying, for lack of a better word; her personality just boils down to being a tired mom, nothing more. She is also overly talkative, which could have been a good plot device to let us know more about her and the other characters but her talkativeness was done in a very repetitive way, making it a tedious read. There were chunks of paragraphs where she just kept going in circles talking about something that ended up being irrelevant to the story as a whole.
Also, while I do appreciate the attempt at tackling societal issues such as race, the delivery in this book was not done properly, IMHO. As a result, it all came out forced and a little insincere.
September 5, 2022
What a joke of a book, I wished I DNFed it, but I wanted to finish so I could leave a low rating review. None of characters are likable starting with the main character Jenn, she makes motherhood experience sound as delirious, nearly catatonic state, that cripples women into being barely functional. The plot - it was so far fetched with so many beyond unrealistic coincidences that it left the Earth’s orbit. (All women had had babies around the same time? Lol) Overall it felt that author was working a very strong angle for a targeted audience. In my honest opinion - don’t waste your time reading it…
April 5, 2024
3.5 rounded down
It took a while to get into this. Almost stopped reading a few times. Turned out to have a nice twist and ending but took far too long to really grab my interest
It took a while to get into this. Almost stopped reading a few times. Turned out to have a nice twist and ending but took far too long to really grab my interest
May 25, 2022
Mother of All Secrets
By Kathleen M Willett
Release date 08/01/2022
From the book :
Sleep-deprived and overwhelmed, first-time mom Jenn is struggling to adapt to her new role. Frustrated with her loving but preoccupied husband and still grieving the death of her own mother, she feels isolated and depressed. It’s only when she joins a new moms’ group that she starts to think she’s finally getting back on track.
Until Isabel, the group’s leader, suddenly disappears.
My Review
4 🌟🌟🌟🌟S҉҉T҉҉A҉҉R҉҉S҉҉ for this debut author. I read this book easily in one sitting. Jenn is a struggling mother, and she indeed shows an honest reflection of what I am sure all first-time moms feel and go through. (My hats off to all the mamas out there, truly🫶🏻)
Isabel goes missing, and Jenn can’t let it go. She is on a mission to find out what happened to her. And boy does she.
Finding out how all these women in the mommies group connect is jaw-dropping. Add this book to your tbr asap
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#motherofallsecrets
By Kathleen M Willett
Release date 08/01/2022
From the book :
Sleep-deprived and overwhelmed, first-time mom Jenn is struggling to adapt to her new role. Frustrated with her loving but preoccupied husband and still grieving the death of her own mother, she feels isolated and depressed. It’s only when she joins a new moms’ group that she starts to think she’s finally getting back on track.
Until Isabel, the group’s leader, suddenly disappears.
My Review
4 🌟🌟🌟🌟S҉҉T҉҉A҉҉R҉҉S҉҉ for this debut author. I read this book easily in one sitting. Jenn is a struggling mother, and she indeed shows an honest reflection of what I am sure all first-time moms feel and go through. (My hats off to all the mamas out there, truly🫶🏻)
Isabel goes missing, and Jenn can’t let it go. She is on a mission to find out what happened to her. And boy does she.
Finding out how all these women in the mommies group connect is jaw-dropping. Add this book to your tbr asap
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#motherofallsecrets
August 16, 2022
The loss of words is bubbling within me...
I completely devoured Mother of All Secrets. I am left with goosebumps parading my skin. What did I just read?
The detailed narration made you feel as though you were experiencing the actions within the book firsthand. The constant anxiety that took over my body was a feeling I just could not shake.
I initially planned to just skim the first couple of chapters to see if this was going to be my next book but within the first chapter I knew I was in for the long haul. Bye, bye dinner, bye, bye, laundry! There was always tomorrow!
The prologue alone will pull you right in. There is just so much more to this book than what is described in the synopsis. Thorough out the entire book my attention was held. There were many secrets uncovered and the twist was one you will not be able to see coming.
After reading Mother of All Secrets, I became an instant fan of Kathleen M. Willett and can not wait to see what is in store for her future!
I completely devoured Mother of All Secrets. I am left with goosebumps parading my skin. What did I just read?
The detailed narration made you feel as though you were experiencing the actions within the book firsthand. The constant anxiety that took over my body was a feeling I just could not shake.
I initially planned to just skim the first couple of chapters to see if this was going to be my next book but within the first chapter I knew I was in for the long haul. Bye, bye dinner, bye, bye, laundry! There was always tomorrow!
The prologue alone will pull you right in. There is just so much more to this book than what is described in the synopsis. Thorough out the entire book my attention was held. There were many secrets uncovered and the twist was one you will not be able to see coming.
After reading Mother of All Secrets, I became an instant fan of Kathleen M. Willett and can not wait to see what is in store for her future!
July 2, 2022
Kathleen M. Willett’s debut novel Mother of All Secrets is an engrossing novel. This book started out a little slow for me then exploded into a book I could not put down. Ms. Willett has a well thought out plot with well developed characters. A young new mother, overwhelmed and sleep deprived finds a support group turn friends that will take you on an emotional roller coaster ride. This is a thrilling book with mystery, murder, secrets and twist and turns. The friendships and loyalty come through along with an unexpected secret that they all have in common and how they deal with it. I very much could relate to this story and highly recommend it. I am looking forward to future books by this gifted author.
Thank you Kathleen M. Willett and Lake Union Publishing for an advanced copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review.
#motherofallsecrets #kathleenmwillett #arc
#lakeunionpublishing
Thank you Kathleen M. Willett and Lake Union Publishing for an advanced copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review.
#motherofallsecrets #kathleenmwillett #arc
#lakeunionpublishing
July 21, 2022
I was absolutely sucked into this book from the very beginning.
The story mostly revolves around Jenn and her struggles with new motherhood. While this may be boring or annoying to some, to anyone who has had a baby and struggled will totally relate to this character.
Beyond the motherhood struggles, Jenn ends up becoming obsessed with the disappearance of a woman from her mom's group. Things happen that she cannot remember or figure out and she simply blames her lack of sleep. She's also keeping a secret, but it won't be the secret you think it is!
It had such great twists and turns towards the end and the "secrets" are finally revealed! I really enjoyed this book!
Favorite quotes:
"Add it to my list of secrets."
"He’d robbed me of the freedom to be vulnerable in front of him without feeling judged."
"But I couldn’t help but wonder if he was as undeserving of my trust as I was of his."
The story mostly revolves around Jenn and her struggles with new motherhood. While this may be boring or annoying to some, to anyone who has had a baby and struggled will totally relate to this character.
Beyond the motherhood struggles, Jenn ends up becoming obsessed with the disappearance of a woman from her mom's group. Things happen that she cannot remember or figure out and she simply blames her lack of sleep. She's also keeping a secret, but it won't be the secret you think it is!
It had such great twists and turns towards the end and the "secrets" are finally revealed! I really enjoyed this book!
Favorite quotes:
"Add it to my list of secrets."
"He’d robbed me of the freedom to be vulnerable in front of him without feeling judged."
"But I couldn’t help but wonder if he was as undeserving of my trust as I was of his."
August 10, 2022
Don’t Bother
If you’ve read Girl on the Train, Gone Girl and Little Big Lies, then there’s absolutely no reason to read this book. It’s literally bits and pieces of each of those books stolen and smashed into one. The plot line is weak at best. The characters are not likable at all. I didn’t care what was happening in Jen with two n’s life. I just wanted her to stop whining about how hard it is to be a new mom there are plot holes bigger than the hole in the ozone layer. Overall this was a frustrating read.
If you’ve read Girl on the Train, Gone Girl and Little Big Lies, then there’s absolutely no reason to read this book. It’s literally bits and pieces of each of those books stolen and smashed into one. The plot line is weak at best. The characters are not likable at all. I didn’t care what was happening in Jen with two n’s life. I just wanted her to stop whining about how hard it is to be a new mom there are plot holes bigger than the hole in the ozone layer. Overall this was a frustrating read.
July 17, 2022
Attempting to capture the sheer difficulty of having a new baby, the author never brings the up the overwhelming love of the baby which is why it's makes being so exhausted and in love so confusing. The main character comes off so unlikable I couldn't make myself finish it. If a book can't pull you in a third of the way in, it's never going to get you.
July 10, 2022
So-so with a bit of ridiculous
I enjoyed the book fine until toward the end. Ridiculous and totally unrealistic. That’s about all I can say without giving it away. While the book was entertaining, once it got to the plan I didn’t even want to finish it.
I enjoyed the book fine until toward the end. Ridiculous and totally unrealistic. That’s about all I can say without giving it away. While the book was entertaining, once it got to the plan I didn’t even want to finish it.
August 7, 2022
Perfect summer read! This book had me hooked from the start and with the twists and turns it took I couldn’t put it down. Excited to see what Kathleen Willett comes out with next!
July 11, 2022
Jenn is a first time mom to baby Clara. Her husband, Tim, tries, but not really hard enough. She is sleep deprived and very overwhelmed. She decides to join a new moms’ group so she can meet other moms in the same situation as her. Meeting once a week, Jenn meets Vanessa, Kira, Selena, and the leader of the group, Islabel. At one of the meetings, Isabel is a no show; she’s gone missing. With blood on the pavement outside of her home, Jenn is convinced something bad happened to Isabel. While she wants to figure it out, the other girls distance themselves from the situation. Is Jenn willing to risk it all to save Isabel? What exactly happened to Isabel?
The book started off great, I was insterested an invested. And then it slowly went off the deep end. I understand that the premise of the book is about new moms, but I felt like the author focused too much on being a new mom then the actual plot of the mystery. At one point I said to myself, “I get it, being a new mom is hard; let’s move on with the story.” It really felt like the author was beating a dead horse with how much she described Jenn’s experience as a new mom. Then came the mystery part of the book. Like the beginning of the book, it started off great, and then it fell flat. I understand reading these books there hasto be a suspension of belief, but the author took that notion and made the reader have to suspend every belief in order to not roll their eyes reading it. The way that the author chose to play out the plot was just crazy – there could have been another way. There was one twist that I didn’t see coming, and for that I would give it three stars. I think with a better editor to steer the author in a better direction, this author has the makings to be great.
The book started off great, I was insterested an invested. And then it slowly went off the deep end. I understand that the premise of the book is about new moms, but I felt like the author focused too much on being a new mom then the actual plot of the mystery. At one point I said to myself, “I get it, being a new mom is hard; let’s move on with the story.” It really felt like the author was beating a dead horse with how much she described Jenn’s experience as a new mom. Then came the mystery part of the book. Like the beginning of the book, it started off great, and then it fell flat. I understand reading these books there hasto be a suspension of belief, but the author took that notion and made the reader have to suspend every belief in order to not roll their eyes reading it. The way that the author chose to play out the plot was just crazy – there could have been another way. There was one twist that I didn’t see coming, and for that I would give it three stars. I think with a better editor to steer the author in a better direction, this author has the makings to be great.
June 14, 2022
New mom Jenn is feeling sleep-deprived and overwhelmed. Since her mother passed away recently, she feels particularly alone in her role as a new mother. She joins a local moms’ group and meets Vanessa, Selena, Kira and Isabel. After months of weekly meetings, Isabel goes missing. Now Jenn is not only adjusting to motherhood, but scared for her friend. As she digs deeper into the mystery of Isabel’s disappearance, it seems as though these women all have more in common than they realized.
I loved this book!! Luckily my toddler napped so I could finish it because I could not put it down. As a mother of two, I related to Jenn’s early motherhood days very well. The exhaustion, the foggy brain, isolation, second-guessing yourself but loving this little being more than you ever imagined you could love someone…it’s just early motherhood in a nutshell. The author did a phenomenal job of capturing that season in life. Besides that, there was also a mystery weaved into this story as to how these ladies all came together. Without giving too much away, there were some twists I didn’t see coming that were just great. I was highly impressed that this was the author’s debut novel!!
Thank you to Kathleen Willet for the ARC 🙂 “Mother of All Secrets” comes our June 28th.
This review will be posted to my Instagram blog (@books_by_the_bottle) shortly!
I loved this book!! Luckily my toddler napped so I could finish it because I could not put it down. As a mother of two, I related to Jenn’s early motherhood days very well. The exhaustion, the foggy brain, isolation, second-guessing yourself but loving this little being more than you ever imagined you could love someone…it’s just early motherhood in a nutshell. The author did a phenomenal job of capturing that season in life. Besides that, there was also a mystery weaved into this story as to how these ladies all came together. Without giving too much away, there were some twists I didn’t see coming that were just great. I was highly impressed that this was the author’s debut novel!!
Thank you to Kathleen Willet for the ARC 🙂 “Mother of All Secrets” comes our June 28th.
This review will be posted to my Instagram blog (@books_by_the_bottle) shortly!
December 24, 2022
Well this is a tricky one because the premise of the book is very promising and the first few chapters of the book started great, with a balanced element of suspense and narration...
But as the pages went on.., the story stalled further and the I started to easily lose interest. I eventually struggled to finish it.
I'm a huge fan of thrillers and specifically psych-thrillers considering my background, which led me to read so many books within this category... but this particular story lacked a tight plot and a matching writing style that would support it. I expected a lot more from it, and maybe I needed to decreased my expectations to enjoy this book better.
Overall, I really appreciated the premise and the idea of the main character being an exhausted new mom. I also appreciated the chapters structure, representing several days, almost like diary entries.
Thank you NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange of an honest review.
But as the pages went on.., the story stalled further and the I started to easily lose interest. I eventually struggled to finish it.
I'm a huge fan of thrillers and specifically psych-thrillers considering my background, which led me to read so many books within this category... but this particular story lacked a tight plot and a matching writing style that would support it. I expected a lot more from it, and maybe I needed to decreased my expectations to enjoy this book better.
Overall, I really appreciated the premise and the idea of the main character being an exhausted new mom. I also appreciated the chapters structure, representing several days, almost like diary entries.
Thank you NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange of an honest review.
February 11, 2022
This book instantly drew me in. Jenn is a new mom and struggling to adjust to her newborn and her new life after baby. She joins a mom's group with fellow new moms Kira, Isabel, Vanessa, and Selena. Their weekly meetings are a way to get out and connect but it seems pretty superficial. When Isabel goes missing, Jenn becomes ridiculously obsessed with investigating her disappearance. As we learn more about each member of the group, including Jenn, we learn that they are all tied together in an unexpected way and it is not by accident that they ended up in the same mom's group.
I was engaged in the story and although I guessed some of the plot elements, I was still surprised by the main twists and the ending left me satisfied. Would definitely recommend!
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.
I was engaged in the story and although I guessed some of the plot elements, I was still surprised by the main twists and the ending left me satisfied. Would definitely recommend!
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.
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