Little Darlings is a psychological thriller. I loved the fast-paced writing of Melanie Golding. I cannot wait to see this story come to life at the movies.

This was super creepy. It bounces between supernatural and psychological. I am so glad I didn't read this when I was pregnant or right after. I sat in awe at some points. I really had to break to digest some of what was happening in this book. Crazy but really great!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my advanced copy of Little Darlings by Melanie Golding. This book is fantastically creepy, with elements of Grimms Fairytales tied in there. I found this book so scary because it also hits on every parent's worst nightmare. Not knowing what was actually happening in this story was killing me! My only complaint is that I didn't love the open-ended situation with the husband and his potential infidelity. It felt like his story was started but never ended. Other than that, loved this book!

A creepy debut that mixes old fairy tale thinking with psychological trauma after childbirth that no new mother should be allowed to read.
Postpartum depression and sleep deprivation can cause rational women to do some really irrational things but when Lauren is found locked in a bathroom with her children screaming that a strange woman tried to steal her babies, not once but twice, the police and Lauren's husband really don't know what to make of things. With little evidence other than "mother's intuition", a policewoman and journalist try to prove Lauren's claims. You too will fall into the sleep deprivation category because once you begin this twisty tale you will not stop until its chilling conclusion. This is the stuff that nightmares are made of. My thanks to the publisher for the advance copy.

Excellent story, writing, pacing and dialogue. I was so interested and cannot wait to read more from this author. Didn't want it to end!

I could not get into this book. Maybe at anotytime, I was excited for this one
As I saw so much about it.

This book keeps you guessing until the end. The tension between reality and supernatural is finely wrought. Any new parent will recognize the emotions that overwhelm Lauren and hopefully we're at the point now in understanding post partum depression where most people will be screaming in their heads at her oblivious husband who turns his back on her when she's obviously suffering. The theme of loss is so perfectly woven in to the different characters, from the detective to the drowned village. A great psychological thriller with a supernatural patina.

This sounded deliciously creepy in all the right ways, however, it fell short for me.

I was able to put Little Darlings down several times, so I definitely would not label it as "unputdownable" for me, but when I sat down to read it kept me intrigued.

I found Golding's inclusion of writing relating to changelings as a nice touch, and was probably meant to add to the creep factor.  I didn't connect with the story or characters, and honestly found most of the characters a bit annoying.  All-in-all I was really hoping this would be more of a "can't-put-down-can't-sleep" book, and it just wasn't for me.

Little Darlings was a fantastically eerie story. It's made more so by the fact that it's so difficult to know what's "really" going on! Those hazy days of new motherhood, days that are full of sleep deprivation (especially with how little help Lauren is offered by her husband) and hormonal swings; combined with the suggestion that Lauren, who has experienced depression in the past, may be struggling with postpartum depression (or postpartum psychosis?) , mean it's difficult to know if she's a reliable narrator. Is someone trying to make her seem unfit? Is she really seeing someone lurking in the shadows, trying to replace her babies? Or is it really that most difficult to imagine thing- that something supernatural is happening?
This story kept me guessing all the way to the end, and I tore through it, worrying for Lauren and her babies.

Little Darlings by Melanie Golding was creepy and dark! Melanie Golding knew exactly how to build suspense throughout the full novel. I cannot wait to see this adapting into a motion picture.

An unpredictable page turner. It started a bit slow but the pace picked up and I could not pry my eyes away. It was a haunting and darker story that was unlike anything I have read. This could be a thriller with psychological twist. Regardless you will pick this story up and not be able to put it down needing to know how it all turns out.

Lauren Tranter was lying in the hospital because she is tired and stressed with the twins she has give birth to
When this scruffy haggard old woman tries to steal them
I had an ARC from HQ

A fairly enjoyable read. However, not my usual type of book. It was dark and creepy and really well written. Very atmospheric and I found myself gasping at parts. A good story. Maybe not great!

It’s been three days since I’ve finished this novel and I still don’t know exactly how I feel about this story. I think that, maybe, I am not 100% the correct audience for this book, as I don’t often read Psychological Thrillers. However, even though this is true, I did not find any problems with the story at all.

The idea behind the plot was intriguing, I found myself reading until late in the night to figure out whether this is a mental thing or if something more was going on that I just cannot comprehend. In the end, I was surprised to find that this was such an interesting read.

The niggles, I did not enjoy reading from the perspective of Lauren, the main protagonist and a real pain in my butt. She was so pathetic at times, that I had to grit my teeth not to send my table flying. Even then, the underlying fear and desperation came through so well that I understood why she acts the way that she does. If no-one believed me, I would also be doubting everything...

Harper, the other pov from which the plot unfolds, was easier for me to read and enjoy. She has the can-do-attitude that I enjoy. Also, her character seems a bit more developed and well rounded. The detective work might need a bit more work to add more interest, but for a first novel this was still done well.

The overall plot had so much going on, adding some much needed layers to the story, and keeping you at the edge of your seat for some time. When you figure out what is going to happen at the end, it’s worth finding out whether your right…

For a debut novel, this was one of the better ones that I’ve read in quite some time. I have a feeling that Melanie’s books can only get better from here. Watch this space, she will create ripples one of these days!!

Lauren has just given birth to two healthy baby boys. She spends her time in the hospital, figuring out this mum thing, and how to juggle twice the amount of baby at once. That is until she's visited in the dark by a mysterious woman, who tells her that if she's unwilling to swap one baby out for one of her own, the woman will come back and take both of her babies, replacing them with hers.

Imagine giving birth to twins, being on top of the moon, and then being frightened into paranoia by a midnight visit from a ghoulish entity like that. Lauren spends all day and all night thereafter haunted by this woman's threat, unable to eat or sleep, and barely able to function enough to look after her sons.

Her husband is an unwilling and selfish person who basically lets his wife fall apart and continues to make her feel paranoid and alone in her attempts to keep her head above water (so to speak). It's not until he puts his foot down and instructs her to go outside and breath in some fresh air that Lauren finds any sense of relief from her predicament.

But it's shortlived. As Lauren and her boys stroll through the park, the sun beating down on them and the wind whistling through the trees, Lauren's fatigue gets the better of her. When she stops to rest on a bench, she falls asleep. And when she's awoken, her babies are gone.

For a debut novel/author, this was a really compelling read. I found myself wanting to pick it up and read it every spare moment I had because I just wanted to know how it would all end. Was Lauren suffering from postpartum depression, or was this ghoulish apparition real? The book was incredibly easy to read, the writing flowed well, and the chapters were short. Definitely something you could finish in one sitting.

I recommend this book to anyone who likes a bit of supernatural in their thrillers. Someone who likes Lovecraft, Poe, or the Grimm Fairytales.

Lauren Tranter had just given birth to identical twin boys, Riley and Morgan. She was worried. She was "still waiting for the rush of love. That one you feel, at once the second they're born..." She felt that she might be "...trapped in her little family unit...". After all, husband Patrick was unwilling to help. He felt Lauren alone must sacrifice and embrace "parenthood". Caring for the twins wasn't actual work, he said.

Lauren is panic stricken upon seeing a grimy faced, dark haired, seemingly toothless woman enter her room in the maternity ward. The ghastly woman told Lauren that she had twins as well, but her twins were cursed. She wanted to make a deal with Lauren because she felt that Lauren had been given "everything" while she had "everything taken". She wanted to change babies, one for another. Lauren grabbed Riley and Morgan, ran into the bathroom, locked the door, and dialed the police to report an attempted child abduction.

Detective Sergeant Joanne Harper routinely checked overnight incident reports and happened upon an attempted child abduction at the Royal Infirmary Hospital. The incident was considered a false alarm. It was noted that MHS ( Mental Health Services) was involved. Jo had a "gut feeling of dread". Lauren must be terrified. Jo requested a copy of the CCTV hospital disc despite her superior DI Thrupp's insistence that the case was closed.

Lauren and Patrick Tranter are home from the hospital with the twins. Convincing his wife to leave the safety of their home, Lauren's first outing will have a devastating outcome. Sleep deprived Lauren falls asleep while resting in the park, awakening to a missing double stroller. Where are the babies? When they are found, Lauren screams that they are not her babies! Are they changelings?

DS Harper vacillates between belief and disbelief in Lauren's insistence that these "creatures" are not hers. Is the "kidnapping" a hallucination? How will Jo separate shadowy, inconclusive data from reality? Both Lauren Tranter and DS Jo Harper are truly unsettled by the disturbing events surrounding Morgan and Riley. Has Lauren experienced postpartum psychosis, a "temporary impairment of her mental health"? In true fairy tale style, each reader's interpretation will be his (her) own.

"Little Darlings" by Melanie Golding was a unsettling, eerie fantasy wrought with much uncertainty. It is a dark fairy tale-like read that will have the reader intent on separating fantasy from reality. An excellent debut novel I highly recommend.

Thank you Crooked Lane Books and Net Galley for the opportunity to read and review "Little Darlings".

Little darlings by Melanie Golding is a highly unique, creative story teaming up a dark psychological mystery with a fairytale. It features a married couple, Patrick and Lauren Tranter, who have just had twin boys and reveals the struggles, not only in their marriage, but also in raising two babies at once with all their needs and demands. Not only is this exhausting, extracting a physical and mental toll, especially when done on your own as Lauren is forced to do, but something far more sinister and extraordinary seems to be occurring. Walking the line between sanity and reality, Lauren fights for what she believes is true out of a ferocious love for her babies, even at a high cost to herself.
This story is part folklore, part horror, and part maternal love story. It’s imaginative, unusual and hauntingly entertaining. I will admit that although the conclusion was somehow fitting, it was nonetheless unfulfilling, leaving me wanting more...more answers, more compensation, and more resolution.

DNF- Tried twice to get into this book but couldn't get into the plot or connected to the characters. I do not publicly publish DNFs.

A eerie tale reminiscent of those such a Grimm Fairy Tales. This tale is about Lauren, New mother of twin boys. Overwhelmed and overtired she is convinced she was a victim of a horrible act. But was she? This story will keep you captivated a m.p.h. d guessing until the very end. Leave your lights on!

I love fairy tales. I’ve read the entire collection of the Brothers Grimm and have been intrigued by folklore from around the world. So, the theme of this book was right up my alley.

A changeling is from folklore. It is believed that fairies “stole” babies from our world and replaced them with babies from theirs. There are different ways to get the real babies back. Changelings have been used in other novels, Outlander and The Stolen Child, to name a couple, but in this book it takes center stage on a different level.

The book starts off at the end, and then flashes forward to the beginning, about a month before. Lauren has just given birth to twins. Soon after, at night in the hospital, she hears someone in the bed next to her. It is an old woman who offers to exchange her twin babies, who are animals and not human, for Lauren’s twins. Is it real, is it a nightmare, is Lauren just exhausted? Lauren becomes too scared to leave her house and sees the woman lurking there, but no one else believes her, until they finally do. Because, really, folklore is usually based on a factual story…

At first, I didn’t like Lauren. I found her weak and annoying. I found her husband Patrick even more unlikeable, and wanted to slap him a few times. But, as the novel went on, I liked her and her strength. Patrick was still a jerk.

The novel really doesn’t take off until about halfway through. I did want more to the changeling story, but what is presented gives you enough of a shiver. I can see why this has already been picked up for a movie.