While the plot was interesting, it was much too chick-flicky for me. I never guessed who did it but the process of finding out was a long one. Reminded me a bit of Girl on a Train as far as the rambling goes. This chick's life...a mess.

THE BABY GROUP is a thought provoking read about several things….who we really are when no one else is looking.........the nature of friendship…….things we do when we are young and stupid……….how much can we rely on those we love for support and validation….......….the ease with which we can manipulate others ……the thirst for revenge that lurks in all of us……….paranoia……….betrayal…….greed …well you get the picture.  It’s a literal cornucopia of exploration into the seven deadly sins that would make any psychiatrist seeking a case with a load of human drama jump for joy..  None of the characters gracing the pages of this tome are particularly likable but that does not detract from the addictive nature of the narrative, so buckle up and get ready for an invigorating psychological ride.  4 1/2 stars

I haven't read anything by this author previously but I will definitely check her other books out. I quite enjoyed the book. I was hooked by the premise and thought it very intriguing and when I started reading the book it did not let me down. 
Scarlet, the protagonist's life seems perfect. She is a popular blogger who shares her life and her husband and baby's life in pics. But ofcourse things cant be as rosy as it depicted.  Scarlet heads back to work leaving her baby behind. She is anyway stressed about it when she realises that there seems to be a problem in the way her boss and others at work are looking at her. That's when she realises that a sex tape of Scarlet is sent to all the people whom she knows. 
Although it is from years ago she is stunned and completely shocked to know that it has reached everyone from her life. The only people who haven't been sent this is her three friends from her new mothers' group: Cora, Emma and Asha. 
And that's when the cat and mouse game begins with Scarlett trying to figure out who would do this. She starts unravelling the mystery and realises that it's not wise to trust anyone.  
I love thrillers and this one checked all the boxes. It was pacy and had me engaged from the beginning. 
I liked the way the characters were fleshed out and I really enjoyed the author's way of writing.

I will definitely be reading more of her books.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for sending a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is the sort of book I love to read.
It is a book that examines our friendships, what humans do when socialising and how we are made to belong in groups. It looks at our unique personalities and how our experiences shape us as well as how our pasts can define us.
The Baby Group is about 4 mothers, brought together in an NCT class. There is Scarlett who is the central character, as well as Asha, Cora and Emma. The book is brilliant at conveying that period in life, during maternity leave with first born babies, where you don't go to work but throw yourself whole heartedly into the new mummy lifestyle and where your days are dictated by singing groups, soft play and when your little one needs a nap or a feed.
This then makes the book immediately relatable for many women, myself included. It takes you back to a time where you remember the before and after of motherhood, the way priorities change, the way women (and bodies) change and the sometimes devastating strain put on marriages through lack of sleep, worries, boredom and endless baby talk. And yet this story has a contemporary feel that I didn't experience as a mother because these women live in the digital age where social media is King of the Land, where money can be made as an influencer and where reputations can be destroyed at the touch of the share button.
Scarlett Salloway is a social media influencer with her Cheshire Mama blog and seemingly golden perfection of a life. The Baby Group is all about the dismantling of her life and how her past which she has buried so well comes back to haunt her. Past decisions and choices are plastered all over social media and this exposure begins the slow and emotionally torturous descent in paranoia for Scarlett.
Is her husband Ed cheating on her? Can she trust her friends? Who wants to destroy her? And why?
An easy, compelling read, with enough tension and red herrings to keep you guessing and sufficient character development to make the reader care about what happens next.
I found the reveal a bit of a disappointment. It came earlier than expected and was a bit drawn out. However the why of events did make sense and the need for Scarlett to carry on hiding her past very believable.
I am not of an age where bringing up babies is what I do day to day but even so, it does make you question our trust in people we readily accept as friends. Are they friends? Or do they want something from you?
Definitely worth a read and I liked this book slightly more than Through the Wall which is also another good book from Caroline Corcoran.

This is the first book I have read by Caroline Corcoran and  it was so good! I loved the characters and the story kept me guessing until the end.  A must read.

Scarlett has it all - a lovely home in the country, a young child and a hard working husband. She regularly meets a group of friends from NCT classes. 

Then her world is torn apart. She heads back to work after maternity leave to discover that a sex tape that she made years ago has been sent to everyone - colleagues, friends, family and even her Dad. 
Throughout the book, Scarlett deals with the humiliation of what’s happened, having to close down her successful Mummy Blog and contend with the arising facts that someone close to her released the video! But who is it!? 
The book kept me guessing until near the end. Another fantastic book from Caroline Corcoran. I enjoyed this as much as Through The Wall. Looking forward to her third book already.

I was very intrigued to read this as the world we live in is very much centred around online presence. The storyline started out well and loved the dual storyline that was being told from the point of view of the main character Scarlet and the person behind it all. Having said that it was extremely slow paced and repetitive. It could have been about a 100 or so pages shorter. The storyline really didn’t flow well when it came to changing scenes. The perpetrator was very obvious from early on. I found it hard to like any of the characters but that might be due to the fact we didn’t know a lot about the majority of them. I really was looking forward to this one and I’m sorry to say it fell short. 

Thanks to Netgalley and Avon Books UK for the opportunity to read and review this ARC that was published on the 17th of Sept.

A solid thriller that's a bit slow in places but would be perfect holiday reading for the ideal escapist mystery whodunnit set in the world of new mums.

“It’s a strange thing, thinking about who released a sex tape of you while you eat a blueberry muffin next to your baby”. 

Scarlett’s world is turned upside down when somebody sends a sex tape of her to everyone in her family, friends and work colleagues.  Thank goodness it never got sent to her new friends from her baby group right? Wrong! One of her baby group friends is actually her frenemy and she is intent on ruining Scarlett’s perfectly crafted life. 

If you’re a fan of psychological thrillers, you had better add this to your list. From the absolute cracker of a first line until the epilogue, you will be sucked into the plot. You’ll sympathise with Scarlett and be driven mad by her feckless husband. You’ll spend the time you aren’t reading hypothesising about which of the baby group has orchestrated this revenge. You will  be chilled which you read the chapters from the culprit’s point of view. and watch their own sanity unravel in their quest to ruin Scarlett’s life. You will predict some events and feel smug about it and then be floored by the end.  

“The baby group” should jump to the top of your TBR pile immediately.

Wow this sure makes you sit back and think how much of our lives are posted online and will send shivers down your back thinking about it.

Quite the thriller/mystery even though we pretty much know who it is quite early on We are still left to find out why. The characters and plot were great and I had no set backs reading the story. In fact I didn't want to put it down until it was completed.

I enjoyed the two different POV. This made things easier for me to keep up and follow along with and gave the "who" a voice of their own so to speak.

My first story from this author and I hope to pick up more!

This book was heavy handed, repetitive, overblown and honestly ridiculous. I find it really hard to believe that a sex tape like this would be more than a minor blip in someone's life, in this day and age. Omg shock horror, a mum had sex before having kids! Literally no one cares. Having a sexual history is not some big shameful stain on your character. I just felt like everyone's actions and reactions in this book were way too melodramatic and unbelievable. The protagonist was annoying. The whole thing was basically just two or three basic ideas reworded in different ways for like 30 something chapters. I'm afraid I just can't scrape up a good thing to say about the hours of my life wasted on this.

Great book.  I knew this book would be brilliant from the blurb and the beautiful front cover and I was not disappointed.  Gripping and twisty, I absolutely devoured this book.

I can't wait to read more books by this author in the future.

I would firstly like to thank Netgalley and the publishers for allowing me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review. 

Keep your friends close and your enemies even closer! That's how the saying goes, right? 
And it could be more true! Full of jealousy, lies, betrayal, and scandal, this book definitely kept me at the edge of my seat, constantly guessing who would go so far, and why, to ruin their 'friend's' life. Shocking!
A tad bit slow at the start, but the more I read, the more interested I got, and then came that conclusion! A read I definitely recommend!

This book started so well. I was hooked right from the start!
As a teacher, the idea of social media and 'revenge porn' terrifies me!
The protagonist of this story has to deal with this, and I felt for her straight away.
The premise of this was fab!!

However, I felt really let down by the book. The ending was naff and the pacing felt really off. After being incredibly invested in the book all the way through I felt really let down by the ending. Also, the book overall was quite long, and I think it could have had a good hundred pages cut to make it even more pacey. 

I did enjoy the book, but I just felt the ending was a let down. With a thriller you're always wanting to know 'who-dunnit' and this book was no exception. However, when you found out 'who-dunnit' there was very little reasoning behind it.
i enjoyed the writing style though, and would most likely be reading Caroline Corcoran again.

Thanks to Netgalley and Avon Books UK for my copy.

Scarlett has worked hard to re-invent herself and leave her wild past behind her. Whilst on maternity leave she is writing a blog detailing her perfect life as a yummy mummy and wife.

As she returns to the office she is greeted by stares and whispers from her co-workers. Someone has sent a shocking video to everyone in her office of Scarlett from her wild youth. Scarlet flees the office but then is confronted with the fact the video has been sent to all her family and friends as well.

The only people not on the receiving list are the group of mothers Scarlett has made friends with since the birth of her baby. Who is to blame for the leaked video? Who can she trust as all her relationships become strained?

I felt very sorry for Scarlett being thoroughly humiliated but she was a bit uppity and full of smug importance. Having said that my sympathy lay entirely with her and loss of dignity.Her husband Ed was very unlikeable and and unsupportive.

This was a great read with an absorbing plot and believable characters.

Released 17 September 2020

This one is hard to review. It took me a while to get into it and then I got engrossed and then it dragged and then the end was a big cliche.

This book follows Scarlett salloway, mummy blogger moved to the country side from the city. As the title implies it revolves heavily around the group of women Scarlett did antenatal classes with. 

Lots of drama, some of it unexpected and others blatantly obvious well to me anyway.

I enjoyed the friendships, if you can call it that, I feel like so many woman could probably relate to the situation of feeling like you have nothing in common with other mums other than the obvious bonding of that you are all mother's! I enjoyed delving into Scarlett past, and I liked seeing her and eds relationship. I found alot of it relatable. 

The parts I didn't really like were when she finds out who did the deed, I found that part repetitive and to be dragged out. Honestly without the main plot of the sex tape, I would have just enjoyed reading about scarlett and her life.

It's so hard to find good genuine people these days. Everyone is usually hiding something or using you for some unknown reason. 

Scarlett seems to live a charmed life. That is if you believe everything she posts to social media and her blog. We all know that there is always something below the glossy venire. Even if it is something from years ago that would never have been thought of again. 

Once a video from Scarlett's past surfaces everything changes. She becomes the stay at home mom, but not the ideal one her husband would have preferred. Tormented by who could possibly have done this, Scarlett starts to search for the culprit. Starting in the past and working her way forward. 

Scarlett wouldn't anticipate the mountain of deceit that she is about to uncover and the lies that have been lying just beneath the surface. 

The Baby Group was a very gripping and thought provoking book. Making you question how well you know the ones you trust the most.

The author’s 1st book ‘Through the Wall’ was really good, I have read the 2nd book can be difficult especially if the 1st a success, not so with this book, its awesome
And yet I nearly passed this one by re the title ( I don’t think it gives enough feel of the book and sounds like its all about babies ) but read the blurb and knew it was for me!

Scarlett, half reluctantly, half excitedly, goes back to her job in the City after maternity leave in her Country cottage with Ed her hubby and her baby Poppy.....as she strides into her workplace she feels her colleagues are avoiding her, looking the other way or looking nervously through her
She is flummoxed by their reception until she is led into a boardroom and her boss tells her everyone has had a copy of a ‘sex tape’ and its her, from years ago, with 2 men...as the day goes on she finds out everyone in her life has had it, her Dad, Sister, in-laws, friends, literally everyone...everyone except that is her 3 New Mummy friends she met at pre birth classes, the 3 people bar her hubby she is closest to, trusts and loves
But as the book progresses she ( and we ) learn never to trust anyone as a multi layered deception is underway, one she would never, could never imagine and when she finds out the bitter, nasty truth well the real fireworks start
Awesomely written, draws you in and just never lets you go, shocking, dark, yet at times humorous you will finish the book with a WOW knowing you have read an incredibly good book

10/10
5 Stars

This is a brilliant read.
Wonderful well written plot and story line that had me engaged from the start.
Love the well fleshed out characters and found them believable.
Great suspense and found myself second guessing every thought I had continuously.
Can't wait to read what the author brings out next.
Recommend reading.

I was provided an ARC from NetGalley and the publisher.  This is my own honest voluntary review.

Scarlett attended an antenatal class with Cora, Emma, and Asha.  Her precious little girl, Poppy, is now the age where Scarlett can return to work.  She has has a successful blog called Cheshire Mama.  Scarlett is married to Ed, a wealthy financial manager.  In her much younger days, Scarlett drank a lot, did drugs, and had sex with lots of men.  It is a past of which she is very ashamed.  Today, a video pops up of her having sex with two different men.  It has been sent to her friends, family, and co-workers.  Scarlett is shocked and humiliated wondering who would have done this to her.  She hunts down the men involved and they both swear they did not post the video.

She checks with an attorney and internet expert to see if they can help her find who posted the video.  Meanwhile, her marriage to Ed is slowly crumbling and she is getting odd messages from someone tormenting her about her past.  Who would do this and why?

As this take unfolds, we see lots of selfish and self-centered people.  I am becoming more and more against social media and this book has pushed me to finally delete my Facebook account, and to congratulate myself for never opening an Instagram account.  Why share every minute of your life with no-telling what nutcase out there?  The book lays it all out - the grit, the dirt, and the weird side of people.  I rather feel like I need a shower after reading it.  Thrillers like this beckon me to bow to the incredible imaginations of authors.

Copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.