A fast paced murder mystery thriller, about a mother going to the depths of reason to save her son's life.

As much as I enjoyed it, the story dragged a little in the middle of the book, until it got to the great ending.

I would look out for more by this Author.

Clara has a very sick child who needs experimental medical treatment. In order to secure the expensive treatment, Clara travels back to her hometown - the scene where her parents disappeared under mysterious circumstances a decade earlier - to film a tell all documentary.

While there, Clara finds that not only is the entire town out to get her, but the local detective also has his sights on her as the #1 suspect in her parents disappearance.

This was just an okay read for me. I was able to figure out the main culprit about 30% of the way in and just wasn’t invested in the characters.

I wish there was more story around James, her child that she was so desperately trying to save and the circumstances surrounding my her parents disappearance.

Great read! Looking forward to reading more by this author! I highly recommend this book and author to all!

This book raises an old question and problem. What would you do in order to save your child's life. Well, me personally would do anything I could.
Clara has agreed to a documentary detailing the disappearance and death of her parents, in order to be able to afford her son's cancer treatment. Unfortunately the documentary raises a lot of issues and a lot of the past comes back to haunt her.
Well written and thrilling to the end!

This whole novel was a mess from the characters to the plot. The killer was easy to figure out. Also I just couldn't get into the plot as far as the whole mother son thing and the cancer...I could not relate to anything.

Very fast paced and very intriguing. I enjoyed how it kept me hooked and it was an original story. Nowadays so many books read the same. Highly recommend

A mother's lie by Jo Crow.
Clara McNair is running out of time to save her son, James. When the two-year-old is diagnosed with a rare form of brain cancer, only an experimental treatment can save his life. She desperately needs money to pay for the surgery, but she’ll have to travel back to the site of her darkest memories to get it.
a very moving yet shocking read. A fantastic read. read this in one go. Couldn't put it down. 5*.

This book had me staying up late at night to read. It was quite a page turner and just when I thought I had something figured out a new twist was around the corner. I would definitely read more from this author.

I would like to thank NetGalley and Relay Publishing for a free copy.

I was drawn to this book by the excerpt. A desperate mother trying to save her two year old son, who has a rare form of brain cancer.

Clara McNair returns to Hickory Hills, North Carolina to partake in a documentary surrounding the mysterious disappearance of her parents. At eighteen, Clara fled, leaving unanswered questions, and suspicions regarding her. Clara is only back to get money to pay for her son's treatment, but the town's people are not happy having her back. Then, Detective Tony Elkins shows up with some unexpected news. Someone isn't happy that Clara is back, and she starts to become a target. Clara will have to confront many issues, but the biggest one is a long buried tragedy.

I enjoyed this thriller. It kept me guessing on who Clara could trust and the lengths a mother will go to save her child.

A very well written psychological thriller. Was excited to read this book from all I had heard about it from my book reading friends, and I was not disappointed! Lots of twisty curves in the plot, which I love. A new author that came out with a bang, and I will be on the lookout for more from her.

Clara McNair tries to do her utmost to save her son James's life. The two-year-old toddler suffers from a brain tumor that's causing seizures. Unless a new uncovered experimental treatment can save James, he'll die within a couple of months. To raise the necessary amount of money she arranged a film crew to shoot a documentary. Clara is thrown back to her own past on the tenth anniversary of her parents' sudden disappearance. When she returns to her family turf the town seems different. Strange things happen, people not only dislike her but threaten Clara personally and go multiple steps beyond what's reasonable or explainable at first sight. Nothing is what it seems. Best friends become enemies until Clara is left to her own devices.

Given the book titled A Mother's Lie, you expect author Jo Crow to unearth Clara's life to expose a lie from the past so that truth and justice will prevail. The novel turns out to be a mixture of a crime fiction (whodunnit), a thriller with several unexpected, well-timed twists, and threats that become more personal and mean with every chapter. I'll leave the exact storyline to be discovered by the reader. I enjoyed the book as a quick read once you nested yourself in the darkening narrative.

What would a mother do to save her son’s life? That’s the question Clara McNair must answer. Her son has a tumor disorder and may only have a few months to live. There’s a new drug that could possibly help, but insurance won’t cover it. On top of that, it’s the anniversary of her parents’ disappearance, and people want to talk to her, as she had been a prime suspect. She needs the money the documentary could provide, but could it end up costing her her life?

There are a few lulls in the action, but it’s a solid psychological thriller with numerous twists and turns. There’s not as much character development as I would’ve liked, along with a bit of overdetailing. However, it’s an enjoyable tale overall.

This was a very enjoyable book. I liked the cover which is why I first picked it up. It didn't disappoint. This is a great mystery story that has many twists and turns along the way and is not in anyway predictable! Most mysteries these days seem to be pretty predictable but this book took my imagination down many wrong turns and when the mystery is solved it's not anywhere close to where I thought it would end up. The story is also about family and small town living and love. There are heartwarming parts and characters.

The rendering of the mother's character in this story was very compelling and realistic, and very empathetic, even though she has some difficult choices to make. She is confronted with so many issues returning to her childhood home, and dealing with them pushes the narrative quickly forward. I highly recommend this for mystery readers.

Clara has to deal with the past and rewrite the lies of the past. Her poor child ill and needs expensive treatment. Can you help him ?

Ten years ago Clara's parents disappeared and although there was no evidence, the police and the peolle of the town thought Clara was responsible for murdering her parents. Clara has since returned to her hometown to do a documentary on what is to be the anniversary of her parents disappearance. Clara is doing this for the money because her son needs experimental drugs for his failing health. I thought it was a good mystery.

Good plot. Good twist. Kinda lost its momentum at the end

A Mother's Lie is a psychological thriller with good enough twists to keep you hooked and a writing that you can devour.

The plot follows a mother, Clara McNair's, desperation to fund her only son, James', cancer treatment and is left with no choice but ot head back to the town where her parent's had disappeared ten years ago...and she had become a lead suspect. She's approached to film a documentary in the same house of her hometown, but is once again being pointed at when bones appear there. The plot as such is quite well plotted with the twists and turns peaking the graph at the right places, though expected places. It's a good enough story to not put the book down but the ending became a bit evident, for me, which kind of let down my high presuppositions.

The characters are yet another one of my problems. They aren't absolutely terrible or haven't been developed at all, but they remain under-developed and that;s about the same thing for me. Clara has gone through a ton in her life, already, yet when she's thrown in this situation, she ends up making mistakes that nobody should (would) be making in that particular scenario. Sure, I might be acting like one of the viewers who keeps shouting at the character to not go down in the kitchen in a horror movie, but a few things could've been well avoided. However, that's a completely solo take on things and it might work as a plot builder for other readers. Even the side personalities weren't given a voice of their own and worked too predictably, which frustrated me all the more.

Why did I give it 3 stars then? Mostly for the writing. Despite the foreseeable ending, the book was gripping for most parts only because of the steadily paced writing. There are certainly unneeded big words that often irritated me and a little too many descriptions but it was actually very well written.

Though the book didn't impress me much, I would certainly recommend it to those looking for a thriller narrated in a gripping prose.

This was an interesting premise. I felt the characters were a little too stereotypical. I pegged whodunnit in the first chapter because the language felt stilted and false between two characters. It was a really quick read and certainly enjoyable so I feel that I would read more from this author.

How far would a mother go to save her son's life? It's a question every parent hopes they never have to figure out but it's a question Clara McNair faces on a daily basis in A Mother's Lie. Her two year old son has been diagnosed with a tumor disorder that may only give him nine more months to live. A new experimental drug is available but with insurance not covering she's got to find a quick way to make enough money to cover it. Not so luckily her parents disappeared and the ten year anniversary is coming up and she's been contacted to do a documentary on the disappearance and how it's effected her. Sounds pretty easy except she has to go back to her hometown for filming and all anyone remembers of Clara is her wild teen years and the fact she was the prime suspect in her parents disappearance. How far will the town push to get Clara out? How far will Clara push to find out the truth? Will she find out the truth before it kills Her?

I haven't been this impressed by a debut from an author since Behind Closed Doors by B.A. Paris. The author really nailed making you feel just how isolated Clara was and just how desperate she was. Too many times while reading this I was gasping out loud due to a turn I hadn't seen coming or an injustice I just couldn't believe. It usually takes me about seven days to read a book due to work and kids but I devoured this in a little over 24 hours. I can't wait to spread the word about this knockout debut.