'Mother Knows Best' by Kira Peikoff is a gripping psychological thriller. Claire Abrams, haunted by a genetic mutation that took her son’s life, seeks redemption. With a maverick fertility doctor and a scientist, they create the world’s first baby with three genetic parents. Secrets unravel as Peikoff weaves suspense and family drama in this page-turner.

This was such an interesting concept for a thriller. I definitely didn't expect it to go the way it did, which was a good thing. I normally don't get into medical thrillers too much, but i was captivated with this book from the first page. It took off super fast and went breakneck until the very end. A decent thriller!

Mother Knows Best
By: Keira Peikoff

4 stars

This story was an awesome read. From beginning to end, it had me guessing. Claire has already lost one child to a genetic mutation. When rumors swirl in an internet group about a doctor that can possibly give her a healthy child, she jumps at the chance. Claire goes on a journey that leads her, her family, and her doctors on a path like no other, leading to life changes never guessed.

This story was really a powerful story of a mothers love. I loved the characters and the faxst paced feel. It was dangerous and full of mystery. It brought past, present, and future into play in a beautiful, yet, scary way. Full of science, mystery, and revenge, this was a great read for anyone who like a psychological read.

They say “mother knows best,” not in this case. A twisted, topsey, turny read that leaves you torqued and possibly in need of a tourniquet.

Claire really just wants another baby, and she doesn't want him/her to suffer like her first little boy did, so she goes to Nash who has begun doing amazing things. Only he has this intelligent but crazy research assistant. And Claire's husband isn't in for lab babies. His growing paranoia about his wife causes everything to come out and puts Claire, her unborn baby, Robert, and Jillian in peril. Claire takes off as Robert and Jillian are arrested and later put on trial. Robert then has to care for Claire as a result of complications. Jillian goes on trial and is eventually convicted leaving her life and work in ruin. Robert is found guilty in absentia.
It was a thrilling, scary, emotional read. Just when you think you know what's going on there's a twist and you're confused again. It's a little mind-boggling to know that this could actually happen and probably will but fascinating at the same time
I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Wow!! What a unique, captivating thriller! I loved how this was science fiction but not too difficult to get through. What a wild ride.

I could strangely enough identify with the pain Claire was experiencing. I've thought about it myself, what if I have some horrible genetic disease that I spread through my children's DNA, how could I prevent it? This sets the background to a "what would I do' type of situation, and makes is relatable to the reader. Entertaining read.

Thanks to Crooked Lane for the free book.
I am so glad I finally got to this book, and I'm also wondering why did I let it fall into my NetGalley backlist. This was gripping, intense, and so thought provoking. I was hooked from the first page, and could not stop listening to the audio. It definitely made me think about genetically altering embryos and what a tricky topic that is. I also knew that this story would be twisty, and it delivered. I liked how the author slowly built suspense by alternating between characters and timelines for the chapters. With each chapter end, I was left wanting to rush forward even more because I just had to know what was going to happen. This was a fun one and a great reminder to keep working through my NG backlist because there are gems waiting for me.

Review coming soon. Fell behind due to illness, amd working on all of the old ones now.

This one will not be forgotten. I don’t think I should read scary books about mothers!
Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the ARC; opinions are mine.


Pub Date was September 10, 2019
#KiraPeikoff #MotherKnowsBest #NetGalley

Unfortunately this book was not for me, it was a bit slower than I would like and it just didn't hold my attention. I am sure other people will love it!

Repetitive, predictable, not enjoyable. I struggled with this one quite a few times and finally decided to stop reading it.

I truly enjoyed the pacing of the story and the well-written characters. This book took me by surprise. It kept me interested throughout the story and I needed to see what was going to happen. I would recommend this story to all thriller and who-done-it lovers.

This was an average thriller, nothing special and nothing that I haven't read before. The characters were annoying and the story was predictable.

I was really hoping to love this but it just was not for me. It was a very slow start so by the time it picked up I just wasn’t very interested.

I was not sure what I expected from this medical thriller but I was pleasantly surprised.

Mother Knows Best kept me interested until the very end. So much so that I can't wait for the next book.

Looking forward to reading more books by this author in the future!!

A very unique peel the layers back suspense novel. Dealing with genetics and fertility doctors I found this novel to be incredibly interesting for the times we live now. Highly recommended.

It has been a very long time since I read the synopsis for Mother Knows Best by Kira Peikoff, so I really had no idea what to expect going into it. After a bit of a slower start, this turns into a very complex and suspenseful read, and I couldn't put it down. The story is told from 3 viewpoints - Claire, Claire's daughter Abigail, and young scientist Jillian. There are definitely some terms used that I wasn't familiar with, but for the most part, Peikoff made it all pretty easy to understand which I really appreciated. I loved the different viewpoints, and it was especially nice that the audiobook had a narrator for each one. Sophie Amoss, Marni Penning & Jennifer Jill Araya did a great job bringing the 3 characters to life for me, and I always knew whose POV I was in thanks to their distinct voices. I don't think we delved too deep into Jillian as a character, but you definitely get a feel for her enough that you know what's up with her.

There is a little bit of a sci-fi feel to the book thanks to the experiment and a baby with 3 genetic parents, but mostly this is said to be a psychological thriller which I think is the best categorization overall. I really felt for both Claire and Abigail, and when we start getting towards the conclusion there are quite a few twists that get thrown our way. If you are a mom you might appreciate the story even more than I did, but I loved how original and interesting it was. I saw quite a few readers call it predictable and while it was for me it was just a teensy bit and I was pretty surprised for the most part. It took me a minute to wrap my head around what had happened for some reason, but once I did it isn't hard to understand how someone would see it coming. I don't think this would ruin the enjoyment of the story though, and at times it was pretty wild! Mother Knows Best is my first-time reading Peikoff and it certainly will not be my last.

I received a complimentary digital copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Wow! Going in, I honestly didn’t even expect to like this one. I figured there would be too much that went over my head, since I’m not science-y at all, or that things would feel really dumbed down and come off as really condescending and infantilized. But the end result was a feeling of understanding, of being in the loop.
This was an incredibly twisty and shocking story. There was always something around the bend that came out of nowhere!
We follow a couple, Ethan and Claire, who lost their 8 year old son Colton to a mitochondrial disease. The unimaginable has happened to them, and they’re ready to try to be parents again. Claire’s only caveat, they need to see a doctor of her choosing to move forward. The problem is, the doctor she’s chosen, is one that Ethan hates. Dr Nash is a pioneer in his field, but some don’t think what he’s doing is ethical, and that includes Ethan. It’s revealed to us that Dr Nash’s postdoc, Jillian, is completely batshit crazy, and that’s where the sh*t hits the fan. That woman just sent the whole system into a nose dive.
Such an intricate and unpredictable story. I totally loved it. I’ll be recommending it to everyone I can!

Thank you to Netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Decided to finally give this one a go, I got about 6% in and already know this book isn’t going to be for me, the writing seems repetitive and not connecting with the characters

Science fiction genre?and a psycholigal thriller??? I mean mixing genes and getting 3 parents!
I don't know this was interesting but weird at the same time
And it felt cat and mouse!
Yes to read it
Thanks netgalley for the opportunity to read this book.