I enjoyed this book, but did not love it. When a book really grabs my attention , I struggle to put the book down. This one took me about a week to complete as I was not totally pulled into the story from the very first page. Once You get past the first part of the book, then it starts to grab your attention. Usually I can predict the thrillers but the twist at the end I did not see coming. This was the first book by this author and although I struggled a little bit with this one, it will not be my last read from this author. Thank you to St. Martin's Press for the ARC.

This was a solid domestic suspense. I appreciated how it showed each character's take on the same events and kept me guessing up until the end. It wasn't perfect, but an enjoyable read. My first book from this author, but not my last! Thank you to St. Martin's Press for the ARC.

I'm a sucker for books that have multiple points of view. This book makes you think about how your raising your kids and the relationships you have with your close family members. I loved the ending for Lucy and Ollie. Just wish Diana had figured things out sooner. #thankyounetgalley

This story based around a mother in law and her children and children in law is poignant and touching in unexpected ways.
When Lucys mother in law Diana turns up dead everyone is confused and as the investigation unfolds the confusion only grows deeper.
While Lucy, like many women, did not have the best relationship with Diana the questioning develops, was she involved? What secrets did Diana hold that could have led to her death?
I truly enjoyed this novel and was sad yet satisfied in the end.

Thank you to NetGalley, Sally Hepworth and St. Martin’s Press for the free e-book in exchange for an honest review.

From the moment Lucy met her mother-in-law Diana, she realized that her dreams of a close relationship with her was never going to happen. Lucy wants to please her mother in law but it’s hard when Diana is such a pillar of community and advocate of social justice. Now ten years later, Diana has been found dead with a suicide note, but the autopsy showed she died of suffocation. Everyone in the family is hiding something, but who would murder Diana?

This was my first novel by Hepworth and I wasn’t really sure what to expect, but I have always heard great things. I wasn’t disappointed at all! I loved the characters in this novel, even the ones that were hard to like. I loved how Lucy wanted to have a mother and daughter relationship with her mother-in-law, but Diana has other plans. I also loved the way that Diana was handling the family even though it is a bit hard to understand at first, but as you get to know her, it is much easier to understand. I loved how the chapters went back and forth from past to present and let us see what was going on in their lives to see how they ended up where they are today. I really loved the pace of this novel and the twist in the end that I didn’t see coming until much further into the novel. I will definitely be picking up more novels by Hepworth!

Out April 23rd!

A very compelling story. I got the novel, thinking that it was a mystery/thriller. While there was a mystery, the central theme of the book was familial relationships between women. I think that all women will be able to see aspects of their relationships with their mothers or mothers-in-law while reading this story.

“The Mother in Law” was my first read by Sally Hepworth but you can guarantee, it won’t be my last. Let’s face it, mother-in-laws typically get a bad rep. In this mystery, all Lucy wants is her mother-in-law, Diana’s, acceptance and love….but that will only happen over Diana’s dead body. In this novel, everyone has a secret and almost nothing is how it seems.
I won't go into detail because the last thing I want to do is spoil anything. I can say that this book was fantastic. I loved the characters, the mystery ( that twist!) , the pacing. I can’t wait to read more from this author soon. Definitely a psychological thriller you do not want to miss!

* I received an eArc of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review*

This is a suburban domestic mystery centered upon relational dynamics between in-laws, particularly mother and daughter. When Diana is found dead, her daughter-in-law becomes a suspect.

Sprinkled with thriller-like scenes, the storylines, presented in crisp chapters from two points of view, falls in line like a recipe for a murderous disaster. As the ingredients for any family disaster begin to appear, each member has secrets, which rise with the tension expressed in the author's witty prose.

As a reader of urban fiction, I am familiar with the portrayal of horrendous mother/daughter-in-law relationships. But, this is the first time I have seen it in mainstream mystery fiction.

The Mother-in-Law is sure to be a hit as a cross-over text, as it presents a glorious array of family drama, contemporary issues, and possesses a criminal element.

Highly recommended to all mystery readers. I especially recommend this book to fans of women's fiction who may be seeking a more mysterious tale.

Dies ist eine wahrhaft vielschichtige Geschichte, die weit mehr als einfach nur ein Thriller ist. Das Buch lebt von der Geschichte und den Beziehungen der Hauptpersonen. Spannend und emotional.

I enjoyed this book from page one. It begins with a visit from the police to inform Lucy that her mother in law is dead and it looks like suicide. Of course, now we all know that cant be the end of it. the book explores the relationships within a family, mother, husband, wife, sister and brother in law. Each chapter is a voice of one of the family members either in the present or past and that is the clever way this story unfolds. Sally Hepworth has long been a favorite of mine...but I believe this book is one of her best... I read the entire book in one day and needless to say neglected everything else I was planning to do ....I think you will enjoy the story and the clever way it is written. Add it to your library.....

This novel has me a little torn. I liked it. I did. But it just seemed a little familiar. The ol' daughter-in-law and mother-in-law conflict mixed with the feeling that perhaps the mother-in-law is a little bit evil, perhaps a bit two-faced. There was even the mention of the mother-in-law claiming cancer. Have you read The Other Woman? This happened with that evil mother-in-law too. But in this case, is the claim true or false? Is the mother-in-law truly against the daughter-in-law or is she just misunderstood? This is the real question of this Hepworth novel. And one I wanted the answer to enough to keep reading. The pages turned quickly with the easy-reading style of writing and I felt pleased upon the conclusion, even if I didn't have that 'please don't end' feeling.

Outstanding domestic suspense story-line; family relationships, parenting, success all factor in to this highly readable book,

Four-and-a-half stars.

The Mother-in-Law by Aussie author Sally Hepworth is an intense, gritty psychological thriller which I thoroughly enjoyed. Told by Diana and Lucy, and in the “past” and “present day”, it melded well and felt seamless. Plenty of twists, lots of red herrings and the trauma of relationships fed this book well.
I recommend this book

The Mother-in-Law by Sally Hepworth is a solid domestic drama with a heaping helping of suspense. When Lucy’s mother-in-law, Diana, is found dead in her home, the evidence initially points to suicide. Of course, an open and shut investigation does not a quality suspense novel make; a closer look by law enforcement increases suspicion that Diana was murdered, along with the belief that the murder was committed by someone close to her.

Hepworth is masterful in her slow reveal of Diana’s character, and the mere title of the book, with the negative connotations surrounding mothers-in-law, may even be a bit unfair to Diana. In the opening of the book, Diana is cold and unlikeable to the point of being cruel. Yet as the novel progresses, more of Diana’s past is learned and her benevolence is shown.

The Mother-in-Law is certainly in the same vein as the novels of Liane Moriarty (I guess well-written Australian domestic suspense is trending?), and highly recommended.
Thanks to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press and the author for providing an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

I enjoyed this. I thought it was a very good character study of mothers and daughters. I really liked Lucy and hearing Diana' side was very interesting. I thought the actual mystery part had a few twists but was a bit predictable.

This book is twisty, complicated mystery. Told from different perspectives, the plot slowly unwinds and you learn how everyone ended up in the situation they found themselves in. I found myself thinking I had figured everything out until the next chapter. There are so many twists in this story....you may think you know what’s happened but you are in for a surprise! I cannot wait to read more from this author. Thank you NetGalley for the advanced readers copy for review.

WOW! This was the first book I have read of this authors and it will not be my last! Holy conflicts!
I actually thought this was a thriller, and it was but it was much more. The story was told in differing perspectives, which is one of my favorite styles.

In this book we meet Lucy and her mother in law Diana. I experienced a myriad of feeling reading this extremely well crafted book. One minute I was mad and the next I was literally crying.

The writing is stellar. I cannot wait to pick up my next Sally Hepworth novel.

For the first half of the book I just hated Diana for her inability or apparent unwillingness to give her children the support they needed. Then, gradually, I began to see the other side of the story and started thinking about my own parents and parents-in-law, our numerous quibbles as well as happy moments nobody can take away from me.
'Everyone, no matter how old they are wants their mother's approval. And everyone, no matter who they are, wants their mother-in-law's....' Every mother needs to know her children can survive on their own when she is gone. Every mother-in-law finds it impossible to reach a perfect balance in her relationship with her daughter-in-law.
I loved Sally Hepsworth's style: her catchy metaphors and her attention to detail. The mystery element of the story was utterly gripping, I just kept reading compulsively, even though by the end of the book it was clear that there were so many possible culprits with so many motivations, that it was impossible to guess and it probably didn't matter. What mattered was how and why you end up being so misunderstood.

'The casual eye doesn't see everything..'.
This book made me think about my own relationships and the endless potential for miscommunication and misinterpretation of other people's intentions.
Strongly recommended.
Thank you to NetGalley and St.Martin's Press for the ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

The book opens with the police arriving at the home of Ollie and Lucy Goodwin to inform them that Diana Goodwin, Ollie’s mother, is dead of an apparent suicide. As the story develops, we find that the autopsy doesn’t really support a suicide and the breast cancer that Diana told her family she had is nonexistent.. The police begin to investigate Diana’s death as a homicide. The remainder of the book flashes back and forth between Diana’s past and Lucy’s past and present, helping us to understand both women and how their relationship as mother-in-law and daughter-in-law has evolved. This was a very interesting look into relationships within the Goodwin family. The author did a good job of keeping the reader guessing who might have murdered Diana. Everyone in the family could have killed her and all are potential suspects. Well worth reading!

Thank you St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to review this book.

I received this book as an ARC from Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for an honest review. I have to say this book wasn't at all how I expected it to be. It was a very good mystery book, and it did keep you guessing theoughout the book who the culprit was. The more you read the more confused you get as to whom it could be as it could be almost anyone . The ending was surprising as it was not only a twist , but had a meaningful message as well which I found so enspiring. Thank you St. Martin Press for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book. It was a good read . I highly recommend it.