I was pleasantly surprised by this one, not expecting to like it as much as I did. That being said, I didn't just love it either. I did enjoy the neighborhood drama--especially because it wasn't my drama!

This book gave me Big Little Lies feels. It does not compare in the mystery or drama that Big Little Lies made me feel. The characters are complex and while easy to follow they come off as a little boring and stale. I wanted more drama, I was expecting a much more explosive ending than I what I got. This book is not one that I would recommend because it just didn't give me what I would want in a book.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to review this book by Kate Sise. We Were Mothers. I will not give any spoilers. I really enjoyed this book. It held my interest and I enjoyed the characters. It did take me awhile to get into it but I did and I would recommend it to my fellow book friends.

Although I had requested an ARC, I was not able to download the document before it was archived. So, this review is based on a copy loaned to me by a friend.

While many people seemed to enjoy this book, it was just ok for me. I was never able to get into the story and found myself skimming most of the pages. There were a lot of characters and the plot was very loose, which led to my disengagement. The novel was similar to Laine Moriarty stories in some ways and I consider her books ok too. As much as I wanted to like this book, it was just not my favorite. Definitely give it a try if you enjoy domestic suspense.

I have had a few days to think this over and I still can't come to a conclusion on a star rating. I would have to say I am torn between a 3.5 and 4. Overall I liked the book, but there were so many characters to keep track of and I felt that some were not as fully developed as I would like. The epilogue felt a bit rushed to me and some of it was a bit unbelievable.

There was definetly a Big Little Lies vibe going on here with all the neighborhood drama which I though worked rather well. Cora, married mother with 2 year old twins finds out early on that her husband might be having an affair. Laurel, the friend next door is dealing with domestic abuse while discovering that her missing daughter might be pregnant. The entertainment doesn't stop there, far from it.

The last 40% of the book revealed so many twists and turns that I could not stop thinking We Were Mothers would work so well as a tv series with all the cliff hangers.

Thank you to NetGalley for my copy of the ARC.

This novel follows four neighbors and friends. Cora is married with two year old twins until she finds evidence her husband may not have been faithful. Laurel is in in an abusive relationship and wants to leave her husband. Jade is married to a dominating man who won't listen or respect her desire to adopt a baby. Sarah is Cora's mom. Although they are friends and neighbors they also have another element tying them together, Cora's sister Maggie's death.

This novel reminded me of a soap opera. There was backstabbing, betrayal, and death. There was also random dramatic elements thrown in there that really didn't go anywhere. The main characters were amazingly written. I thought Cora was the most developed and she was portrayed perfectly as the overprotective mom. The pacing was off as I found the first 60% slow with all the major action happening in the last 40%. The plot was good with the true cause of Maggie's death being revealed but I was surprised by Mira's disappearance. My one main complaint about this novel was how baby crazy everyone was> I know it's called We Were Mothers but still.

In summary it was a good mystery novel with great characters, a good plot and lots of twists and turns. Thank you to Netgalley for this ARC.

With a comparison to Liane Moriarty's Big Little Lies that is a big book to live up too and it does just that!
If you liked Desperate Housewives then this b0ok is for you!

We Were Mothers is a brilliantly crafted work of fiction by Katie Sise. From the first page to the last, you’ll experience spectacular, head spinning suspense and twists.

Multiple devoted parents in a beautiful town have bigger secrets than meets the eye. They show up to events and discuss the multiple deadly things that can hurt their children like gluten, but fail to contain the danger in their own homes where dark (and sometimes deadly) secrets abide. It’s these numerous secrets, devastating losses, and multiple points of view that made this read spectacular and so well crafted. There were multiple characters, but they were so well-developed and well-done.

Many times, I can predict the ending of books but not this one……WOW! Sise does an amazing job of hooking you and not letting you go. I didn’t want to leave the house, just wanted to see what would happen next. We Were Mothers is a 5-star read and an instant favorite for me! I can’t wait to see what Sise does next!

I received a review copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley for my honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Synopsis from the Publisher/NetGalley.com
A brilliant, twisty novel about a missing woman, an unfaithful husband, and the dark secrets that will destroy two perfect families.

A scandalous revelation is about to devastate a picturesque town where the houses are immaculate, and the neighborhoods are tightly knit. Devoted mother Cora O’Connell has found the journal of her friend Laurel’s daughter—a beautiful college student who lives next door—revealing an illicit encounter. Hours later, Laurel makes a shattering discovery of her own: her daughter has vanished without a trace. Over the course of one weekend, the crises of two close families are about to trigger a chain reaction that will expose a far more disturbing web of secrets. Now everything is at stake as they’re forced to confront the lies they have told in order to survive.

It was an interesting read. I haven't read Big Little Lies so I enjoyed this. I liked reading from multiple POVs

I really wanted to like this book, but the characters felt flat. I found the plot to be slightly lacking as well.

I would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book free of charge.

I was super excited to get into this book but it just wast not my cup of tea. I am highly interested in domestic dramas but this one wouLD get 3 STAR REVIEW.

Cora O'Connell believes she is happily married, despite the normal stresses of parenthood. Until she discovers the journal belonging to the teenage daughter of Laurel, her good friend and neighbor. The journal suggests that the daughter, who serves as a babysitter for Cora, has had an inappropriate relationship with Cora's husband. Cora is stunned, devastated and unsure how to proceed,

The events that occur after Cora's discovery threaten the peace and tranquility of what is, from outside appearances, a quintessentially American neighborhood in a lovely town where everyone is acquainted and friendly. When Cora's daughter goes missing, the action moves at a frantic pace with shocking revelations. Author Katie Sise emphasizes that it is impossible to ever really know one's friends and neighbors because there can be dark, disturbing secrets hidden behind otherwise seemingly idyllic facades.

Ultimately, We Were Mothers is the story of two mothers, Cora and Laurel, dealing with and struggling to make sense of their own and others' secrets, lies, & betrayals all in the name of protecting their children. Because they are mothers, first and foremost. The story is soapy, extremely dramatic, surprising, and utterly engrossing. Because the action is nonstop, it can easily be devoured in one sitting.

I requested We Were Mothers because the blurb is pure drama. Coming off a year full of brilliant TV and films focusing on women’s lives, I was looking to continue similarly into the winter but unfortunately We Were Women didn’t quite take me there. Thanks to Little A and Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Secrets and loss will tear people apart. Set during a single weekend, We Were Mothers shows the unravelling of two families as well as those closest to them, as family secrets come to the surface and threaten everything. That is what you’re expecting from We Were Mothers. Even if it doesn’t quite deliver on the drama. its central themes of secrecy and loss, of hiding behind a façade, are interesting at this particular time in popular culture. Think of Big Little Lies or even Sharper Objects, stories about seemingly privileged women who hide dark and ugly truths behind their shiny front doors. The latter two have stirred debate about everything from motherhood to white feminism and to alcoholism, and We Were Mothers makes an attempt at joining that conversation. Unfortunately, it doesn’t quite hold the gravitas of its topic, even though it has its own merit.

During the last few weeks at work there has been a lot of attention on unconscious bias and as I was writing this review I realized I had some unconscious bias myself towards this book filled with mothers, women thinking about being mothers, and children struggling with their mothers. Although Sise does show each woman is more than “just” a mother, it is still presented as something central to a woman’s life. I don’t know if and when I will ever be a mother, so that strong theme kind of kept me away from really appreciating the book as much as I would have liked. On top of that We Were Mothers presents motherhood as something consistently beautiful. No matter how hard things might be or how much a child cries, it is always fulfilling and worth it. For a novel trying to straddle the divide between Mystery and Literary Fiction I would have expected something a little bit more daring.

Katie Sise has written a range of Young Adult novels and this is her first adventure into Adult fiction. Sise’s experience in YA comes through quite strongly at times, especially in the tone of the novel. It is all rather preppy and even if it gets ugly it stays almost PG. We Were Mothers didn’t offer as much suspense or grit as I had anticipated, being at times overly melodramatic when I would have preferred something a little starker. In that sense, it almost feels like a more profound Desperate Housewives at times. Sise hides away some rather astute truths about womanhood, motherhood and loss into her novel, but they don’t get to shine as much as they could as they’re hidden under (at times very campy) plot twists. Overall, We Were Mothers is a quick and engaging read that doesn’t require too much from its readers.

Although I enjoyed We Were Mothers, I almost forget I read it after a month. At the time I was caught up in the twists and the turns of the plot, the drama and excitement of it all, but once the book finished none of it had made a really deep impact on me. Although I’m interested to see what Sise writes next, We Were Mothers is for those readers who want to be engaged but not challenged.

ahhhh....this one was just too much drama and not enough good story.
Characters were a bit flat. I think the author is a very good writer, just maybe with a different type of book.

I found the neighborhood and neighbors quite interesting. Secrets unveiled slowly with a rhythm gaining readers attention.

Enough chaos to keep plot interesting. The jumble of drama and characters meshed a bit of suspense, keeping me on my toes as I tried to untangle the knots Sise created.

Ending could have been better, fun read.

If anyone reading this book is a mother you most certainly will identify with at least 1 character, possibly in some ways the main character. This is an excellently absorbing painful joyride of a journey through life as parents may or may not know it.

So... I was going back and forth between a 2 and a 3 star for this one. This reminded me a little bit of Big Little Lies but unfortunately fell flat to that comparison

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

I would possibly rate this 3.5 stars. The reviews I've been reading have been pretty spot on. It is very soap opera-ish. There are a lot of characters with a lot of different storylines. I had trouble keeping them all straight. I don't think the book has the time or space to dig really deep into any of the particular stories. There were a couple I'd like to learn more about and then a couple that could have been cut completely. The last part of the book did have some twists and turns that I didn't see coming. Some of them seemed forced, but I did enjoy the book and it was a quick read for me.

This book has been categorized as psychological suspense, but I would call it more of a domestic drama. The secrets hidden by the weak women and misogynistic men of a wealthy, family-friendly suburb are almost too numerous for this novel to handle.

If you’re drawn to anxious and fretting characters who defer taking action, this is the book for you. The women of Ravendale all have their secrets from their husbands and in the end, the husbands, too, have shocking secrets from the women as well.

The book Is pretty well written, compelling enough to finish, but I think the author bit off more than I could chew on for one book. A tragic accident, a cheating husband, a missing twenty-something neighborhood ingenue, a hidden pregnancy, an abusive husband, fertility issues, closeted lesbians...and this is not an exhaustive list of everything going on!

Taken individually, each storyline is absorbing enough to flesh out fully for its own book. I enjoyed Katie Sise’s work, but I’m hoping next time she’ll pare things down just a bit.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I'm really not sure what to think of this book. It was a definite soap opera and at times I had a hard time following it because there were so many narratives, which can work in stories (Big Little Lies, All the Pretty Girls) but this time it fell flat. there were so many characters, I completely felt so confused because I couldn't keep track of who was who. they were all intertwined but it was so much so, I got lost. Wasn't one of my favorites though.