I thought this book was ok, but certainly not the 'utterly addictive crime thriller packed with gripping twists' it was described as. I do like a book that's told in different timelines, and this one has chapters titled 'now' and 'before' so that appealed to me, but I didn't like the main characters, Jess and Morag, or their unbelievable fascination with each other. I wouldn't recommend this book.

Jess has had more than her share of emotional and physical health problems this last year and was still finding life very hard. While at the park with her young daughter, they meet Morag and her daughter Daisy. Daisy waits until her mummy is out of range of hearing her, before whispering to Jess, that Morag isn’t her mum. The little girl looks frightened, and Jess isn’t sure what to do now. She knows that she can’t just let the little girl go but can’t tackle Morag about it either.

A strange relationship begins between the two women, one desperate to fit in for her daughter to start school with children she knows and the other determined to dig into her new friend’s past. But poking the past becomes an obsession. The story is told in the present time, and a gruesome investigation by the police, and in the past with chapters from both women.

I liked how the author toyed with me, revealing little by little of the two women’s pasts. The intrigue of the present-day story had me racing through those pages to find out more about them both.


The story keeps that edginess throughout that had my heart pounding with the choices that they made. It is frustrating and heartbreaking in so many ways, with a brilliant storyline that will make you count your blessing. I constantly had mixed feelings about the characters in the story, but that is a human fault judging people before we know the truth.

I wish to thank the publisher and Net Galley for an e-copy of this book which I have reviewed honestly.

This thriller is paced at breakneck speed.
A psychological family thriller that takes your preconceptions and expectations and crushes them under perfect prose.

Must read.

The Before and Now timelines in this story confused me at first but once I figured out the structure between the 2 characters and the present time, I was hooked on this complex story. I could never have imagined how it would all end, but a very satisfactory ending. I haven't read any other books by M A Hunter but will definitely look out for more.
Thank you to Netgalley for providing an ARC

3.5 stars. This was an enjoyable and suspenseful thriller full of secrets! Although a little predictable, there was a lot of action happening and it kept me intrigued to find out how it would all end. The two women, Morag and Jess, who have just met are both hiding past trauma and secrets of their own but they find themselves deeply suspicious of each other, They make many assumptions about one another, which questions, are they full of paranoia or are they right to be weary?
This was a really suspenseful book that I found enjoyable and would recommend for anyone who likes a good, easy thriller to curl up with on a weekend :-)
Thanks to NetGalley, Harper Collins UK and One More Chapter for a copy of this book in return for my honest and voluntary review, I enjoyed it :-)

3.5 stars

Jess - who lives in the London suburbs - has been wheelchair-bound for six months, since an epidural needle slipped and paralyzed her legs just before she gave birth to a stillborn son. Jess is still reeling from the double tragedy, but tries to keep life as normal as possible for her four-year-old daughter Grace. Thus Jess is watching Grace frolic at the playground when a little girl grasps the arm of Jess's wheelchair and nervously whispers "She's not my mum."

A moment later a fifty-something woman with a Scottish accent trots into view calling "Daisy? Daisy?" The woman apologizes to Jess for her daughter being a nuisance, and introduces herself as Morag. Grace and Daisy run off to play, the mothers start to chat, and they discover that Grace and Daisy will be starting school together next week.

Morag, apparently eager to help Daisy make friends, asks about arranging a playdate. She then says she's parched and suggests they all go to a nearby refreshment stand for juice and cake. Jess, whose husband Charlie has been pushing her to get out more, reluctantly agrees. However Jess can't forget Daisy's four little words - She's not my mum - and views Morag with deep suspicion. Morag is old to be Daisy's mother; evades explaining why she, her husband Angus, and Daisy recently moved to London; and appears anxious. Moreover Daisy is quiet and subdued, almost as if she's afraid to speak.

For Morag's part, she's uncomfortable with Jess's questions and senses that Jess views her with mistrust. Worse yet, Jess keeps looking at Daisy askance, as if she senses something is wrong.

After this initial encounter, Jess and Morag meet repeatedly, either by design - when Morag invites Jess's family to her home for a barbecue; or accidently - when the women are dropping their children off at school, shopping for groceries, or in a boutique shop. Jess becomes increasingly uneasy about Morag, does research online, and concludes Morag abducted Daisy. Jess confides in her husband Charlie, but Charlie - who's often harried and working late - thinks Jess is just being paranoid.

Actually Morag IS hiding something and trying to evade someone. Morag is uncomfortable with her repeated 'accidental' encounters with Jess and becomes convinced Jess has been hired to spy on her.

The tension between Jess and Morag escalates, there are further developments, and a homicide occurs.

The story switches back and forth between Before and Now, and is told in the alternating voices of Jess, Morag, and Detective Inspector Mike Ferry, who's investigating the homicide.

In the Before chapters we see what led to the murder. In the Now sections, DI Ferry is probing the crime with the Chief Super on his back to make an arrest. Ferry's unit had a recent run-in with Professional Standards and barely escaped with their jobs. Now the boss wants things done fast and by the book. But Ferry is having difficulty making sense of the death, and working with his detective ex-girlfriend just makes things harder.

The story is cleverly constructed, and tension builds as Jess and Morag's secrets are slowly revealed, and the details of the crime are unearthed bit by bit.

A positive aspect of the book is the depiction of Jess as a recent paraplegic who gets around on her own. Jess and Charlie can't afford an electric wheelchair and Jess has to hand push her chair's wheels to bring Daisy to school, do the shopping, take a train, bring Daisy to the playground, etc. Manipulating the wheelchair is painful and exhausting, and Jess's determination to be a good wife and mother - and perhaps get back to her job as a journalist - is encouraging.

Part character study and part police procedural, this novel will intrigue mystery lovers and armchair detectives.

Thanks to Netgalley, M.A. Hunter, and One More Chapter for a copy of the book.

Jess and her daughter Grace are spending time at the park when another little girl whispers the words, “she’s not my mummy” to her. Jess is immediately suspicious of Morag and wants to find out what little Daisy meant.
Is there something sinister going on or is Jess imagining things? It turns out that Jess is on medication and has not been taking it. Is she spiralling into a paranoia episode or is Daisy really in danger?
Jess becomes obsessed, her family are worried. Morag is definitely hiding a secret but what is it?
When Jess is found following an incident at Morag’s house the police begin an investigation.
This book is told in the Before and Now beginning from 3 days ago when Daisy 1st approaches Jess and Now as the police investigators try to find out what has happened and who is responsible.
I felt the story was just a little predictable and at times slow, I couldn’t identify with either female character and just felt they were a little flat. I wasn’t impressed with the police investigation and just felt it was slapdash and lacking. There was a previous investigation into the main police officer which kept being mentioned but never in detail, there is a failed relationship between him and a female officer which was also hinted at but not in detail (whether this is a follow on from a previous book I’m not sure as this is the 1st book I have read by this author)
That aside, I did find this a good read and am looking forward to discovering more from this author in the future
Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this title

Another great book
Read in one sitting
It will keep you guessing to the end
Brilliant
Thanks NetGalley

Jess meets five year old Daisy in a park with her mum Morag. Jess doesn't suspect anything is wrong until Daisy whispers, 'she's not my mum'. Jess then becomes paranoid and desperate to save Daisy as she is so sure of what she heard, or is she?

Hunter has a great writing style, I was intrigued from the first chapter and raced through the book. Hunter writes from several characters points of view and switches from past to present, his two main protagonists are both unreliable narrators which made me constantly try to predict what would happen next. I didn't enjoy chapters written from the detective's point of view as much and I did think the ending was rushed.

Hunter includes physical disability which is central to the plot as well as mental health problems but please be aware of trigger warnings which also include a traumatic birth experience and infant loss.

I recommend this book as it is a well written and pacy thriller!

A huge thriller to Netgalley, Harper Collins UK and One More Chapter for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest and unedited feedback.

The Before and Now timelines in this story confused me at first but once I figured them out, I was hooked on this complex story. I could never have imagined how it would all end, but a very satisfactory ending. I havent read any other books by M A Hunter but will definitely look out for more. Highly recommended. I loved this book.
Thank you to Netgalley for providing an ARC

Mummy’s Little Secret by M.A. Hunter

Two women
Two little girls
Two husbands
One murder

Secrets, lies, and
Four little words…

“She’s Not My Mum”


This book flips between past and present looking at the lives of two women who meet one day in a park while little girls are playing. The four little words Daisy utters set in motion a series of events that leave all involved changed forever.

Intrigued by the idea of what I would do if a child came up to me and told me that the woman she was with was NOT her mother, I looked forward to reading the story. But, as I began to read and realized that it was not linearly told, then could not relate to the women or the situation, I found myself skimming to get the gist of it and some of the specifics. In the end I understood why the story was told as it was but never fully invested in the reading, story or outcome.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Collins for the ARC – This is my honest review.

3-4 Stars

Mummy’s Little Secret by M. A. Hunter is the first book I have read by this author and so glad it was a stand alone book. I loved it and was hooked within the first few pages. Mummy's little lie is a physiological thriller that kept
me awake all night as I wanted to find out if she was the little girls Mummy..........

Who is her mummy? OMG!!

WoW I found this book full of twists and turns throughout and it had me guessing. All the characters were likeable and all played a good part within this new book.

I highly recommend this book,. A very good read.

Big thank you to NetGalley and One More Chapter for providing an advance copy of this ebook.

This book was ok. Not as good as the other series by this author. But good enough. It was thrilling and I did finish the book. I didn’t connect with any of the characters and I feel like that spoiled the story a little for me. The writing was ok and I really loved the before and after set up. This was a easy was for me to keep track of all the different povs.
All in all it is a good book. Not the best by this author but definitely enjoyable.

I received this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

A fast -paced thriller that I had to finish to find out just what was going on.. Great read for the end of summer last hoorah. I would definitely recommend to all readers who love mysteries.

Thank you to NetGalley and publisher for chance to read and review.

A complex family drama/ thriller.

Well written and in depth.

It has lots of twists and turns and a lot of characters with a lot going on but everything is well covered.

A Domestic Thriller if there ever was one. And it is complex. If you are NOT a fan of multi-POVs then you will want to skip. If you are like me and want to get into everyone's heads...then yes, read this. GO ahead, I'll wait.....
Ok, so what did you think of poor Jess and what her and her husband have been through???? That is a story in its self!!
I had this book recommended to me as I have become disablable in the last few years, which is hard enough, I can't imagine if I was grieving my son at the same time.
The depressed (who can blame her) Jess. At a park, she comes to know Morag and a little girl named Daisy.
What Daisy says to Jess sets off a psychological chain of events that will have you on the edge of your seat.
I could have used a little more spent on Morag's past but all in all I am very happy with the way the multi=POVs were used to unfold the story. Then to think by knowing their backstories, we know what is next...wrong.

This is my first experience with Hunter's writing - and I am quite thankful to have been directly invited to read this one by the publisher!! It hooks the reader in from the get-go! Jess, a woman dealing with a lot of her own pain, takes her young daughter, Grace to the park. While there, another young girl tells her that the woman she is with isn't her mother. This sets into motion a plot that culminates in a corpse - the structure of the book shifts from Jess' before the body - as well as Morag's (the "not-mum") as well as the Detective Inspector in the "now".

The pacing is a bit slow to build after the initial hook - largely because of Jess' sections. Wheelchair bound, grieving and suspicious, she is a sympathetic character, but not always a very likable one. There are twists to the story - some more unexpected than others. The latter half of the book really moves a lot faster than the first half. Despite being a bit uneven, I did enjoy this one and would definitely read more from Hunter in the future!

Thank you NetGalley, author M.A. Hunter, and One More Chapter publishing for giving me a free arc copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
How would you react to the words from a little girl "She's not my mum?"
5 stars
This book will keep you up at night still reading until the very last page. This story is told from two perspectives of Jess and Morag, alternating between the past and present. As the story is being told from their perspective, the reader will begin to question what is the truth and what is just an illusion.
I love reading M.A. Hunter's books. The author has such a great way of pulling the reader into the story and then taking them on a crazy roller coaster ride of twists and turns. The writing makes it easy for a reader to fly through the story and keep up events as they unravel. I can't recommend this book enough! It is the perfect book for those who are psychological thriller fans! I can't wait to read the next new release by this author.

A Mum called Jess isn’t having much luck. Disabled as a consequence of a botched operation giving birth, the loss of an unborn child, a career put on hold as a consequence of unspecified mental health challenges…. Now a little girl comes up to her in the park as says the woman she is there with is not her Mum. This sets off a chain of events in which she takes it upon herself to “rescue” said child, even if it means hacking off the other Mums at school, her husband and her mother all of whom worry for her sanity.

This is an easy read and a good yarn - good enough for me to download some previous books by the author. It does go on a bit though and there are some irritating oddities and inaccuracies. Who thinks that Barnstaple is up north and who is/was the mystery woman in the very tight red skirt?

Fun if rather improbable.

Thanks to NetGalley for a free copy in exchange for a fair review

Wow. That was awesome!

I have some thoughs what this book could be about. Little girl saying "she's no my mummy" and behaviour strange in the company of woman who introduce herself as her mum is like a red alert. The same here. But the truth seems to be much more compliacted as I assume.

This book is great. At the beginning I was a bit lost, but then the action speed up and I cannot put it down. So thrilling, compelling and unexpected.

Topic? Totally up to date. The full image of motherhood. Beautiful moments worth to remember but also depression, baby blues and worries about the grown up kid who is out of control.

The book is divided. There are like three points of view - Jess, Morag and Mike. There is also a distinction between before, now, after, so it feels to have a full story to get into it.