Thank you NetGalley for a copy of The Perfect Child.

OH MY GOODNESS! I honestly don't even know where to begin with this review. This book was unreal and made me feel so sad for Hannah. Hannah is desperate for a child so when her husband Christopher forms a bond with an abandoned 6 year old who is admitted to the hospital they both work at, they decide to foster-to-adopt her. Janie's relationship with Christopher is like a father-daughter relationship from the very start and she is fiercely loyal to him and vice versa... The way she is with Hannah is the complete opposite. Janie goes extended periods of time not speaking to Hannah at all, not even a word, but speaks to other adults including strangers. When she does speak she's incredibly rude, telling Hannah she hates her and that she's a mean Mommy. The things that Janie does to Hannah is unimaginable and so manipulative. The biggest problem is that she doesn't act this way when Christopher is around. He continues to look out for Janie, giving her the benefit of the doubt based on her past, and loves her unconditionally. This honestly was the hardest part of this book for me. After everything Janie does (which I won't reveal and give any spoilers) it is shocking to me, that until the very last page practically, Christopher still loved her. From the very beginning of this book, you know something is off with this child but it only gets SO MUCH worse!

Sorry, this wasn't for me. I couldn't get into it or connect with the characters. Thanks for the earc anyway.

This was definitely promising. But it fell short for me. It was really predictable in my opinion and I just lost interest as I kept reading. I felt frustrated by all the events happening and the husband's disbelief with everything happening was annoying. Everything just felt over the top and ridiculous. I was honestly so relieved when I finally finished this. I kept waiting for this to get better, but I was sorely disappointed. I know a lot of people loved this, but it just wasn't for me.

This was a really good enjoyable read, I was hooked all the way through. The only bit I didn’t like was the torture of the animal. All in all amazing story and great characters. But I thought the ending was a little bit rushed... I will be looking out for more books by this author in the future.
Thank you netgalley for the opportunity to read this

A good read but extremely disturbing. It's the kind of story that stays with you long after you read it. If you have a sensitive nature then this book is not for you.

*thank you to Netgalley and Thomas & Mercer for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*

4 stars.

This is not an easy review to write but the book is far from an easy read.

I am in two minds about this. Yes it was well written and the story was a page turner. The characters were all interesting and none of them bored me. Yeah one annoyed me but I'll get to that later. Yes, it was dark and disturbing as we had been told it would be from the description. But that's where my issue is.

Don't get me wrong, I love dark disturbing stories. But I should of had alarm bells sounding though with this as it was 'dark and disturbing' BECAUSE of Child Abuse. I can usually handle Child Abuse and I am always prepared when I go into a story with such themes. But this one went to a whole new level. By 60% of the way through it was very triggering. Anyone who has had some type of childhood abuse done to them will see bits and pieces of themselves in this story. That is why I was able to predict a couple ways that Janie would reacted to certain situations. While mine wasn't 'violent' abuse, I could still relate to Janies trauma. I do still have PTSD and this book should come with a warning label as it is more intense than most child abuse fiction books I have read. That is why I have dropped a star from my rating. People need to be aware. I also need to say that there is animal cruelty in this and it's not an easy part to read.

That said, I can now focus on the positives more. This story was captivating. You don't know the outcome with any of the characters. Christopher did annoy me at times. The fact that he didn't believe Hannah did really bother me. It was so easy then to understand how she ended up. This is a page turner. Even if all of those pages aren't such for positive reasons.

I don't want to say it's a bad book, because it's not. As far as a thriller suspense goes. It's right up there near the best. I just wish the author, who is a trauma psychologist and should have known better, had stated just how deep and prolonged the abuse is in this book and that to some it maybe a trigger. 

If you are going into this story and have suffered Childhood abuse, just be warned. Otherwise, if it's not so much of an issue, I think most will really have their expectations meet.

WHOA!!!!

This is one intense, disturbing, terrifying, infuriating thriller! I am going to be thinking about this one for a long time!

I honestly can’t put it in any better words than HOLY CRAP!

"The Perfect Child" by Lucinda Berry was an incredibly intense, powerful, and deeply disturbing story. This novel was terribly difficult to read in parts and extremely unsettling, but undeniably addictive and engrossing.

Christopher and Hannah are a happily married surgeon and nurse with picture-perfect lives. All that’s missing is a child. When Janie, an abandoned six-year-old, turns up at their hospital, Christopher forms an instant connection with her, and he convinces Hannah they should take her home as their own.

But Janie is no ordinary child, and her damaged psyche proves to be more than her new parents were expecting. Janie is fiercely devoted to Christopher, but she acts out in increasingly disturbing ways, directing all her rage at Hannah. Unable to bond with Janie, Hannah is drowning under the pressure, and Christopher refuses to see Janie’s true nature.

Hannah knows that Janie is manipulating Christopher and isolating him from her, despite Hannah’s attempts to bring them all together. But as Janie’s behaviour threatens to tear Christopher and Hannah apart, the truth behind Janie’s past may be enough to push them all over the edge.

The story was told from the alternating perspectives of Hannah, Christopher, and the social worker. It was highly suspenseful and so fast-paced, but I managed to keep up with all of the events and happenings. This novel was certainly never boring! I could not turn the pages fast enough to discover what dreadful occurrence would come to light next.

I shall be reading Lucinda Berry's backlist and watching out for future offerings. "The Perfect Child" is very highly recommended and well deserving of a five-star rating.

I received a complimentary digital copy of this novel, at my own request, from Thomas & Mercer via NetGalley. This review is my own unbiased opinion.

I absolutely loved this book. I cant wait for the next book from this author. Thank You Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read this. This is by far the best book I have read in the past few months. The only think I didnt like was the ending. I thought it was abrupt and that there should have been more to it. Maybe there is a sequel?

One of my new favorite books! This author has such a way with words the pages flew by in no time! I can’t wait to see the next work by this author! This was such a joy to read!

I’ve read this as well as a couple of other books that have similar themes and this one is, by far, the best. I also read some of the comments about this book and understand where people are coming from and certainly agree with some of the pros and cons.
I love the premise of an infertile couple who are both medically trained stumbling into the foster care system, rather than going through it as a planned thing. I think Christopher as an orthopedic surgeon is only partially believable. He is obviously well educated but portrayed as suckered and naive, and I agree that he gaslights his wife by not taking her concerns seriously. She is also well educated and yet is able to maintain an objectivity to her approach to a clearly emotionally traumatized child. I think in reality of dealing with special needs of any sort that role flips from one parent to the other on any given day. I also find it hard to believe that Christopher would be able to take as much time off from his work as he did.
In terms of Janie and Hannah, I’ve worked in mental hospitals and I don’t think it’s unreasonable for families who are not in the mental health field to have the sorts of questions that they had given what they were witnessing. I thought Hannah would have been smarter to set up a “nanny cam” and been able to give video proof to her sucker husband, but then there wouldn’t have been much of a story....
This book kept me engaged and turning the pages despite my medical knowledge. I definitely think it is the best thriller in this genre that I’ve come across recently.

#ThePerfectChild #NetGalley

I really enjoyed this book! Kept me guessing the whole time whether the child was really ever mistreated or if she was just crazy and did it all to herself. And then whether the foster mom was involved or not! It had some very detailed yucky parts like Janie biting Hannah when trying to nurse and Janie killing the cat but I really liked the book and it held my attention until the end.

This book was so intense and disturbing!! This was haunting, anxiety producing and crazy! It really was a pulse pounding thriller.

OMG.....this book....just when I thought Janie was at the top of what she could do.....ummmm...... the story begins with a lovely couple (doctor and nurse) who become attached to a young trauma patient. As they have not been able to have children, they agree to adopt her. This is when the 'fun' begins.....hang on, you are in for a roller coaster of emotion, saying "No way" and then "oh my god".....I couldn't put it down. I was afraid something would happen while I wasn't ready!!!

Amazing good, worth a read. I was hooked from the start. I did feel it started of a bit slow at first but it turned out to be a great book.

What a thrilling ride that was! I am prewarning you, if you start this book, cancel all of your plans! I can guarantee you that you will not be able to put it down!

I started this book thinking it was going to be just your basic thriller/suspense, but it is far from basic. The Perfect Child delves into the lives of Hannah and Christopher Bauer. A married couple eager to become parents. After a sequence of events, they come to adopt, Janie. The 'perfect' life they had imagined as parents are anything but. It's absolutely horrific. The story is told from 3 perspectives, Hannah's, Christopher's and Pipers(the cps worker). This delivery really added to the intensity of the reading experience. It moved at a perfect pace, drawing out the story as it unfolded but still giving us just enough where we had no choice but to keep flying through the pages. It hooks you until the very end! Excellent writing and superb storytelling. Definitely one of my favourites of the year so far!

This book was completely disturbing as in I-cant-look-away disturbing. Infertile couple adopt an abused child and horror ensues. The husband was clueless and the ending was abrupt, but I still think it's worth a read.

I really enjoyed this book. It kept me going and I couldn't put it down! I have to admit, though, I didn't care for the ending. It seemed abrupt and it felt like it should have gone on more. Like there was no finality in it.

Oh my goodness! This book held my interest and I didn't want to put it down. Christopher and Hannah both work in the medical field and have been struggling with infertility issues. When a toddler comes into the hospital severly abused and injured, in the course of working on her case Christopher gets attached to her, and she to him. the opportunity to foster her comes up and after convincing Hannah, they foster--things with Janie start to change a little--it's obvious that she is much more attached to Christopher and not a fan of Hannah. What follows is truly a roller coaster ride, mysteries about her real moms death, behavior that Hannahs sees that Christopher doesn't truly believe. This was a gripping suspenseful story--I acutally stayed up until 1:30 am finishing the book because I couldn't put it down! I highly recommend! Thank you NetGalley for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of this book that I received in exchange for a fair and honest review.



Half the time, unless I find it to be just dreadful, I don't even write about endings. Endings, to me, are such a small part of the book that unless they are just dreadful, they just aren't that important. they are a way to wrap things up, which is always my least favorite part. That's why it will probably seem unusual that for this book, Lucinda Berry's The Perfect Child, I'm going to (no spoilers!) talk about the ending first.



I wasn't bothered by the ending of this book. A lot of people really, really were. In fact, if you spend three minutes on Goodreads looking at reviews of this book, that is by far the most common review point: no ending. Now, I get that complaint. Technically, it is a bit open-ended. But seriously, only technically. Like I said above, I won't give you spoilers, but what I'll say is this: the event that the book ends on is outlined enough in the pages leading up to the end that readers should get a sense of closure. The major question that is asked throughout the book is answered (although I will say that anyone who has ever read a book will know the answer pretty much from the jump). There is official closure. The book does have an ending.



All that said, I don't know how I felt about this book.



Once I was able to get into it, I read it pretty quickly. I kind of had trouble getting myself to read it at first, but once I started *actually* reading (you readers know what I mean) I finished it in two days. It's a quick, easy read and there's enough consistent action that I was sucked in.



that said, what's with all these books having such a gross, anti-adoption undertone? Before someone says I'm reading too much into it, let's be real: the attitude is very much "because she's a bit troubled, this adopted kid is not our actual family." it is there and it is blatant enough that a family member even says it.



Now, I can already hear your protestations: but Bib, she's evil. the child is evil.



Okay, that's true, but biological children can be evil. Biological children can be rapists, murdered, thieves, whatever. There is just as much chance of that. and don't we see it on the news all the time: when children mess up in huge ways that hurt people, their parents, for the most part, are still their parents. I'm not sure it's fair to the adoptee-adoptor relationship to suggest that most adoptive parents aren't just as loyal to their non-biological children.



and speaking of not fair: Christopher, whyyyyy? why are you, and basically all men in similar books (think Baby Teeth) such gaslighting buttholes to your practical, logical wives? Do you have no respect for them? Do you think they're dumb? why do men treat their wives live crazy, irrational children in this whole evil-child genre? It's a bit upsetting.





In summation: this was a quick and easy read that, despite making me want to throw it once or thrice, was worth the couple hours it would take to read it. 3.5/5 stars.

https://bibwithblog.blogspot.com/2019/04/the-perfect-review-of-perfect-child-by.html