<em>The Mother-In-Law</em> kept me guessing all the way to the end. What a ride!

Through chapters that alternate between the past and the present. we learn about Lucy's highly charged relationship with her mother-in-law. Lucy's mother died while Lucy was still young, and she'd hoped that Diana would be like a second mother to her -- embracing, warm, someone to share love and secrets and confidences with. Diana is none of these things -- a stiff, proper, upper class woman who seems more focused on the refugee women she helps than on her own children. And every time Lucy thinks they've finally made a connection, Diana's coldness or insensitive comments push Lucy away one more time.

We also get chapters from Diana's perspective, showing us the other side of the story. Diana would be no one's definition of warm and cuddly, but by showing her background and her thoughts, we gain an understanding of why she behaves as she does, and how her internal thought processes run in very different lines that what's obvious from the outside.

As the story opens, Lucy and her husband Ollie get the news that Diana is dead. While it initially appears to be a suicide, there is enough contradictory evidence at the scene to cast doubt on that assumption. Was it murder? If so, who would have a reason to want Diana dead? And why was Diana keeping so many secrets -- about her health, and about her intentions for her fortune?

This book is completely absorbing and fascinating. Diana comes across as very unlikable at the start, but as we get to know her, we start to see how her core beliefs stem from the challenges and struggles she experienced as a young woman, and we see how her unwillingness to help her grown children comes not from being miserly, but from trying to get them to work for what they want. At the same time, I can easily imagine how painful it must have been for Lucy to constantly hope for a closeness that just wasn't available to her, and the hurt she experienced as she perceived herself as being rebuffed and belittled time and time again.

I've read several other books by this author, all just as compelling and full of complex characters. <em>The Mother-In-Law</em> is a terrific read -- highly recommended!

I liked how the book showed different perspectives of the same even from each main character's point of view. Great summer read!

Sally Hepworth's The Mother in Law had me fully invested and turning the pages...until the Big Reveal. Then it was one eye roll after another unfortunately.

First, I would like to thank the publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this exciting book! The opinions expressed here are my own.
Sally Hepworth is my favorite author. Having read all her previous books, I am always waiting for a new publication from her. And I can honestly say that the author didn't disappoint with The Mother-in-Law!
She portrayed the dynamics and emotions within families, particularly between wife and mother-in-law. Filled with the author' trademark twists and turn, you can't wait until you get to the end of the book! Fabulous book! I highly recommend to all readers, especially those who enjoy great psychological thrillers!!

This was a quick read, and kept my interest. It goes back and forth between the present and the past, and different points of view of the characters. It wasn't hard to follow, as I sometimes feel going back and forth between multiple characters will do. I thought I has the ending figured out (the obvious choice), but I was surprised. I will definitely be looking into reading more books by this author.

This was just an average read for me. There are definitely parts of the book (towards the end in particular) and parts of the characters that I enjoyed (Diana's backstory), but overall I didn't feel connected to the characters at all. The big reveal of what caused Diana's death should/could have been shocking but by that point I didn't much care anymore.

This has been advertised as a thriller but it is more like contemporary fiction involving a mystery.

I throughly enjoyed the development of the relationship between Lucy and her mother in law.

Nothing was as it seemed and the author really leftvuou questioning who could have killed the mother in law? The story was intricatelyvwoven, all loose ends were resolved and it was very though provoking.

Thank you Net Galley for giving me the opportunity to read this book.

Lucy and her mother in law Diana have never really gotten along all that well. Nothing too unusual or suspicious about that, until Diana is found dead with a suicide note. The note reveals she has cancer and doesn't want to live anymore....questions start to be raised about Lucy however once it is discovered that Diana didn't have cancer. Was it really suicide or a hastily covered up murder by Lucy? How far will people go when they don't get along well with their in laws?! An addictive read that had me spellbound until the very end. My first time reading a Sally Hepworth book and it won't be my last. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC on exchange for a fair and honest review. #themotherinlaw #sallyhepworth #goodreads #netgalley #bookstagram #tea_sipping_bookworm #kindle #amazon #forreadingaddicts #macmillanusa

This is the first book I've read by Sally Hepworth and it definitely will not be the last. I really enjoyed the depth of the characters, the intrigue, the relationships. Even though the book went back and forth from one person to another and from past to present, it was easy enough to follow. Each chapter has a header to let you know who is "speaking" and what time period is involved.

The author does a wonderful job of bringing you into the story from page one and then developing the background so you understand how things have evolved to the present point. There is enough conflict among the characters to enhance the intrigue.

I really appreciate receiving an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. I am looking forward to reading more books by this author!

The premise of ” after x’s death ” is not a new one but the choice of the MIL – DIL relationship as the focal point for the narrative of the family’s dynamics is new . Both are very engaging  & often witty and their voices are done well .  Through Diana’s and Lucy’s narratives , we come to understand their relationship in a way which they never would , because we get an uncensored view into their mind workings . The host of secondary characters have also come out well .

I have a few things which did not sit well with me though….

For one thing , there were too many sub-texts / afterthoughts within the parentheses ,  which I felt , cramped the free flow of the narrative . Another thing which I thought was very unnecessary is the time-stamping throughout the book . . The voices of both Diana and Lucy are very distinct and the reader can easily get to know who is speaking and of which time-frame the narrator is speaking about . I think the readers today have been exposed quite well to alternating time-frame narrations and multiple POVs that they don’t require much help from the author by way of PAST and PRESENT time stamps along with the narrator’s name at the start of every chapter . Read the complete review at
http://sherlockedsharon.com/2019/06/20/the-mother-in-law-book-review/

Wow! This book was fantastic. I read it in one sitting, around 2.5 hours; I simply could not put the book down! Sally Hepworth is a phenomenal author and I have read a couple of her previous books. I am hooked!
This story has a couple of different narrators: Lucy and Diana. The time changes from past to present, which is clearly noted on each chapter. The flashbacks to the past are interesting and provide a deeper look into this family. Lucy is a young mother, who wants nothing more than approval from her mother-in-law Diana. Diana is seemingly cold-hearted and not interested in any kind of relationship with Lucy.
One day, the police come to the home of Lucy and Oliver to announce Diana has passed of an apparent suicide. However, it turns out it may not be as simple as that. Throughout this story, you learn more and more about a seemingly perfect but far from it family. A must-read for mystery lovers.
Thank you to Netgalley for providing a copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

This is more of a family drama than a mystery/thriller. The matriarch of a family seemingly commits suicide. While the police work to figure out of it was foul play or not, the narrative goes between alternating POV of mother and daughter-in-law, past and present. It was a decent family drama but I was expecting more of a mystery book.

I received an advanced copy through Netgalley in return for an honest review.

If your in the market for a family drama thriller than look no further. This was an addictive fast paced addictive storyline.

The story starts with the family learning of Diana's death, Lucy's mother-in-law. Told in chapters by the past and present you begin to piece together what may have been the cause of Diana's death as well as all the problems the family is facing. The ending is definitely not one that I saw coming. I think that reader's will be surprised by the twists.

This was a highly enjoyable book that I would recommend to thriller fans. A perfect summertime read! Once I started I had a hard time dragging myself away from it!

I try not to give out 5 stars too often but this one was special and deserving in terms of how much I enjoyed it and took away from it. I went into this thinking it would just be a typical mother in law story but there was so much more to it than that. It explored not just the mother and daughter in law relationship but also the dynamics between child/parent, husband/wife, and siblings. It was one of those reading experiences in which you seriously start reflecting on your own life and how you deal with family members.

Lucy, the daughter-in-law in this book, desperately wants to bond with her mother-in-law, Diana, but finds it quite difficult to accomplish. Hepworth is such a good writer with many intuitive descriptions of a complicated relationship. The story had suspenseful moments but the constant back and forth between chapters was a bit distracting.

I have found that after reading so many titles in the suspense and mystery genres, it becomes easy to predict the twists and outcomes. This was not the case for The Mother-in-Law by Sally Hepworth. This unique mystery kept me guessing who could have possibly murdered Diana, with so many characters in play with their own struggles with her largely misunderstood persona, but also had me smiling through the typical mother-in-law antics and struggles that many women know too well.

Diana and Lucy, mother-in-law and daughter-in-law. Never meant to be as close as Lucy would have liked. I found Lucy to be a bit needy and unrealistic in her expectations of her relationship with Diana. Having lost her mother at a young age, she craved the maternal love that she had missed all these years. Unfortunately for Lucy, Diana was not going to be the one to provide her with this. Diana was not so much evil as awkward and unable to behave "correctly" in social situations (even though some of the things she did were questionable.) When Diana ends up dead of an apparent suicide, fingers are pointing at the family due to the sizable fortune that was to be gained from her demise.

I was hoping I’d getinto this book, but it definitely didn’t happen. I’ve tried other books by this author and I think I just don’t like her style.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book about the dynamics of mother-in-law/daughter-in-law. Lucy is the daughter-in-law and, after losing her own mother, all she wants is a relationship with her mother-in-law, Diana. This book jumps back and forth between the present and the past and gives Diana's view and Lucy's view. That makes the story more interesting because you can see why Diana is the way that she is. Also, you keep wondering if she killed herself or if she was murdered.

I received this copy for free to read and review by Netgalley. This book ended up being nothing like what I had expected in the best way possible. I was expecting a creepy and intense murder mystery, but instead it focused so much more on family and the relationships within it. How they change and grow (or diminish) from what situation to another. The ending was nothing like what I had expected, and that is why I ended up loving this book so much.