Karen Bloom is not the coddling mother type. She believes in raising her children for success. Some in the neighborhood call her assertive, others say she’s driven, but in gossiping circles she’s known as: the tiger mother. Karen believes that tough discipline is the true art of parenting and that achievement leads to ultimate happiness. She expects her husband and her children to perform at 200 percent—no matter the cost. But in an unending quest for excellence, her seemingly flawless family start to rebel against her.
Her husband Noel is a handsome doctor with a proclivity for alcohol and women. Their prodigy daughter, Bronte, is excelling at school, music lessons, dance classes, and yet she longs to run away. Verity, Noel’s teenage daughter from his first marriage, is starting to display aggressive behavior. And Karen’s son from a previous relationship falls deeper into drug use. When tragedy strikes the Blooms, Karen’s carefully constructed facade begins to fall apart—and once the deadly cracks appear, they are impossible to stop.
Who would crack first under Karen’s tyrannical regime? What might bring about the toppling of the little kingdom of superiority she has envisioned? How will the family members express their resentments of the roles they are expected to play? Verity, the teenage stepdaughter, is literally overlooked to the point that she has to prepare her own meals and eats separately, while Karen is gallivanting around with Bronte to her activities. Karen’s son, a young adult, lives over the garage and does drugs and lays about with an equally troubled friend.
I was totally engaged in the author’s depiction of the characters, each of them realistic and three-dimensional, with all the emotions one would expect in a family as dysfunctional as this one. I especially enjoyed the character of DS Joanne Aspinall, on hand to help the family with their tragedies. She is diligent, down-to-earth…and she will get the perpetrator, even if she must put her own life in jeopardy. Discovering motives, connections, and the gradual unfolding of secrets led to a very satisfactory culmination. 5 stars.
***My e-ARC came to me from the publisher via NetGalley.
That’s awesome you liked this one! I have read The Mistake I Made by her. I liked it, but it was a little slow. Did this one feel slow to you?
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Thanks for stopping by, Deanna, and I have loved all of Daly’s books so far!
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You described this book very well. Karen was a piece of work indeed. I was glad to see Joanne again, as I had liked her character in other Daly books. I need to go back and read the previous book, which I own but neglected to read somehow.
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Thanks, Kay, I wanted to slug Karen a few times during the book….and wouldn’t have blamed Verity if she had done more than she did.
Enjoy the previous book! I love when characters show up in more books….
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This sounds like a tough read! I’m cringing at just the thought of Karen so I imagine the characters is pretty brutal to read. It does sound enjoyable and I love lots of connections and twists!
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Yes, a character I loved to hate, Katherine….and sadly, there are people like her. Thanks for stopping by.
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I’ll be posting my review of this book tomorrow but have to say the story didn’t go in the direction I expected at the beginning – in a good way, it was a very good read!
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Thanks for stopping by, Cleo…I loved it, too, just as I’ve enjoyed all of Daly’s books.
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This sounds a fabulous read in spite of the mother sounding like she had huge issues that burdened those around her. I think I need to put this on my wish list.
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Thanks, Kathryn, and yes, that mother was horrible…I kept wondering what, in her childhood, created the monster she became! I hope you enjoy it.
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I’d really love me to try this one, you’ve made it sound terrific.
BTW Laurel, how are you doing in northern CA with the disastrous weather I’ve seen on the news. How awful!
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Thanks, Diane, and there are parts of Northern CA that are flooding, and even here in the Central part of the state, the foothills and mountains have flooded. I think the waters are receding. I hope the rain is done for now. One weatherman said that we are actually “out of the drought” for now.
Enjoy your week!
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This seems a topical theme at the moment – I’ve seen a few TV documentaries recently featuring the tiger mother figure and each time i ended up feeling desperately sorry for their poor kids
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Thanks, Karen, and I definitely wanted to bop the character up the side of her head…maybe not literally. But she was impossible for me to like.
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This sounds wonderful Laurel. I love when the characters are well done and the events realistic.
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Thanks, Kimberly, so do I! And I am always happy with whatever Paula Daly brings us. Each new book is eagerly awaited.
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What’s sad is that I think a lot of families are like that these days. This sounds great to me.
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So true, Kathy…we called them “helicopter moms,” the ones who micromanaged their kids, even “editing” their homework. I liked how this book spotlighted the problems inherent in this behavior.
Thanks for stopping by.
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I’m glad you enjoyed this. That does sound like a harsh character. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
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Thanks for stopping by, Martha, and she was definitely a piece of work!
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