I was excited to get a copy of this book as the description of it sounded interesting. Unfortunately, though, I was unable to finish the book which is not normal for me to quit mid-stream. The story moved so agonizingly slow that I became bored with it. The writer seemed to become so caught up in her descriptions that she lost sight of the actual plot. I really tried to hang in there and managed to read about 1/3 of it but I just couldn’t get into it.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a free electronic copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

After going to prison for the murder of his girlfriend, Stefan is released after three years. While his mother is happy to have him home, she needs to deal with his guilt, the protestors, and the hate of the community.

If you like intense family drama and character stories, you’ll like this one. The major even happens prior to the story and the plot is mostly about the family’s recovery and dealing with the aftermath. There is a mystery sub-plot that adds suspense the story but I didn’t find myself very invested in that. I enjoyed the characters and their growth.

“Even if he never did anything wrong before this, and he never does another wrong thing after this, would Stefan’s life always be defined by his one brutal act? Would it always be the only thing people thought about him? Even his own parents.”

The Good Son comes out 1/18.

Interesting Story, Perhaps Better Served By A Different Storytelling Technique. This is an interesting story of what happens after a person who has been accused of a heinous crime is released from prison and the toll wrought on the person and their family and friends - particularly in the face of continued harassment from the community. Readers who hate multi-perspective stories will enjoy the fact that we only really get one perspective here, but this is actually the weakest thing about the book to my own mind. For me, having a multi-perspective book with the prisoner's mother (the perspective we get here), the prisoner, and maybe even the stranger and the victim's mother, would have made this story quite a bit tighter and potentially, assuming it was done right, that much more interesting. The issues that the book does explore well - restorative justice, repentance, forgiveness, mother's love, etc - could have been further strengthened by this other technique as well. Still, for what we do get here, it is fairly solid but not "edge of your seat" reading. If you go into this expecting a thrill-a-minute... you're reading the wrong dang book. But if you look at this more as a character study / family drama with elements of suspense and thriller, you're likely going to leave this book more satisfied. Very much recommended.

Stefan is out of prison after a (too brief?) sentence for killing his girlfriend in a drug induced stupor. His mom is anxious to see him reclaim his life and move on, but the victim's mother and others are not ready for him to do that. This is a great premise! Not only is this a novel about forgiveness and atonement, but it touches on themes of abuse and parental love, plus there is some mystery/suspense factor with a stalker who claims there is more to the story. So much potential, so much emotion, yet so much rambling on and on.

The basic core of this book is wonderful -- tender and touching, gut-wrenching and suspenseful -- but there are pages and pages of meandering around in the thoughts and minds of the main characters that descending into boredom territory. Stefan decides to create a foundation, of sorts, that helps people atone for crimes/sins that are keeping them from living their lives to the fullest. A wonderful venture that should be uplifting and inspiring, but there are so many pages that focus on this venture in minute detail that it almost seemed to belong in a different book. These passages (and the pages and pages describing his landscaping projects) detract from the main story and seemed to be just filler. Too bad, since the basic plot and characters are intriguing enough to maintain the readers' interest. So....parts were excellent, but much of the book just a yawn!

I received an ARC of this novel from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

A teenaged boy is convicted of the murder of his girlfriend. His mother, who loved the girl, is broken. The family is pocketed, and an organization is founded by the victim's grieving mother in remembrance of her daughter.

When the young man is released from prison, there is both harassment and attempts at redemption.

The ending was shocking and unexpected; however, it was also comforting.

This would make an excellent book club choice. The discussions would be fabulous.

“I was picking my son up at the prison gates when I spotted the mother of the girl he murdered.”

Evocative and thought provoking. As a mother of an only son, this novel made me feel deeply and gave me so much to ponder.

Her only son. The pride and joy of her life. The memories of snuggles and giggles. Watching him grow and mature into such a good, kind person. But that was then.

Now, Thea sits outside the prison. Waiting for him to walk through the gates, those fond memories of his youth evaporate into complex emotions. Just how is she supposed to feel about her son returning home after time in jail for killing someone?

What this book does best is create a platform for thought. I found myself constantly questioning beliefs and long-standing opinions on a variety of issues. As a mom, my heart was upended and made to consider just how sacrificially and unconditionally I would be able to love in Thea’s situation.

But what the story does best also bogs down the plotline. This story is told in introspective narrative from Thea’s point of view. We get a deep dive into her psyche as she gets to know her son anew, comes to terms with the small town turning away from her family, and reels from the unnerving text messages she continually receives from a young woman that claims to know what happened the night Belinda died. Thea’s thoughts and emotions are laid bare and create a thought provoking narrative. But at times, I felt a bit lost in her head. The introspection sometimes slowed the story to a crawl and impeded the mystery in play.

The last 30% of the novel makes up for all of the previously tedious parts, picking up pace as the mystery became active and engaging. This section really grabbed my attention and gave a satisfying ending to the novel.

Thank you Jacquelyn Mitchard, Harlequin Trade MIRA, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review an advanced copy of this book.

When Stefan Demetriou was seventeen years old, he got hooked on drugs. For each new drug he tried, he became addicted to it. One night, the drugs fueled a deeply hidden rage in Stefan that caused him to brutally murder his girlfriend, Belinda. However, Stefan has no memory of his actions.

Sentenced to prison as an adult, the novel opens, three years later, when Stefan is released. To quote the back cover, “he’s released to a world that refuses to let him move on” and a world he does not recognize. Life on the outside is hard for Stefan. He wants to make amends for what he’s done, but the community doesn’t seem to want to help him.

I have never read a novel that focused on the hardships convicted felons endure after their release. Stefan fails at first in his new venture, but I thought he succeeded too quickly. It was almost too easy. I don’t think it would be easy to do what he wanted to, even if he hadn’t been an ex-con.

His mother, Thea, is also struggling. For the last three years, Belinda’s mother continues to lead a group who protests in front of Thea’s home who won’t let Belinda’s death be forgotten. It’s a daily reminder of what happened to her son. Thea isn’t so sure that what happened the night Belinda died is the truth. She teams up with the detective who initially investigated the murder in order to learn the facts.

“The Good Son” receives 4 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

The book captured my attention because it looked at a tragedy in the eyes of the perpetrator. The plot is intriguing. However, there were some aspects of the story I found to be predictable. The mother, who is the narrator, at times felt as if she was too passive in how she handled situations. At times I saw her as being naive which didn't make sense to me since she is a college professor. I think the author had a good concept for a plot but I felt a stronger character was needed.

Our main character is the mother of a young man released from prison. People in the town reject the son, and by association reject his family too.

The story is long and quite detailed. The mother receives odd phone calls. The son begins a project called The Healing Project. This book will be interesting for people who enjoy detailed action and thoughts.

Mitchard has written an unusual book. Many thanks to Netgalley and Harlequin for sharing this with me.

This book about a mother whose son is released from prison for killing his girlfriend had a lot to offer in terms of thinking about forgiveness and "what would I do?" situations. I like that there was hope in the book but there were no easy answers. The ending went in a direction I wasn't expecting and I'm not sure if that helped or hurt the book.

The Good Son by Jacquelyn Mitchard tackles an important issue, prisoner reformation, which leads into a compelling storyline about family. I’ve read a few of Mitchard’s books, who is most well-known for The Deep End of the Ocean.

As per usual, I knew little to nothing about the storyline and was completely intrigued by the first sentence, “I was picking my son up at the prison gates when I spotted the mother of the girl he murdered.” This does everything that a book needs to do on the first page; it sets up the story and engages the reader. I wanted to know everything from that could cause a mother to state those words, and I imagine you will too.

The book offers a lot of topics for discussion as we see this young man, Stefan, come home after three years in jail. We see how hard it is for him to gain employment, the new disdain neighbors and friends treat him with, the guilt that overpowers him after killing his girlfriend in a drug induced rage, and how hard the parents try to make life okay for him. The author does a good job of showing the small intimacies within a family and the cracks within a marriage.

There is a second storyline peppered throughout the book from a semi-anonymous caller that continually warns Thea, Stefan’s mother, that Stefan can never speak about the night of the murder. Creepy and threatening events happen to the family and Thea is convinced there’s more to the story than what she knows. Is this mother’s intuition or is she being played? I found this storyline to be a great addition to the plot but after some time, it became laborious. I wanted it all wrapped up quicker than it did. This will be a winner for fans of mysteries wrapped around a family drama.

I was really hoping to like this book but I ended up only finishing it to say that I did. I did not connect with any of the characters, I found them all to be whiney and shallow. The main character never asked any logical questions about what was happening, it was very frustrating. I never got a clear picture as to where this story was heading. what was the point? I couldn't tell you.
There was not a big surprise/interesting ending and the "villain" was not engaging and just repeated themselves the entire story.
I'm so sorry for the negative review. I read to the end with a hope of an engaging or a twist ending but was left disappointed.

The Good Son is the latest novel from Jacquelyn Mitchard. I was very excited to be able to read an advance copy thanks to Net Galley. In this new work, she explores family, motherhood, and what it means to truly love someone. Thea Demetriou's life has been on hold for three years, ever since her son Stefan went to prison. It seems that Stefan, rendered insensible by recreational drugs, killed his girlfriend Belinda. Once he's released, the world refuses to let Stefan move on. And obviously Stefan himself is no longer the seventeen year old went to prison. He is his old self at times, then at others he's floored by guilt and post traumatic stress. Stefan makes a concerted effort to make amends, especially to Belinda's mother, who is bent on avenging her daughter's murder. Throughout the process Stefan is meet with resistance and threats. It comes to the point where Thea doubts she ever really knew her own son. As she tries harder to come to terms with her impression of her son and what really happened the night his girlfriend died. Mitchard writes with her usual heart and flowing prose, making an emotionally tense story feel incredibly real. This is an excellent book for book clubs. Anyone who loves the author will appreciate The Good Son as will anyone who enjoys a very good read.

This novel begins with the son, Stefan, leaving prison after serving his time for murdering his girlfriend, Belinda. The book tells of how a family has to cope with their ex convict son's difficulties reentering society and how he himself has to deal with restarting his life. Interesting? Definitely. But there is so much more to this book.

We meet some of the neighbors whose lives are interrupted by the constant presence of the protesting group founded by Jill, the mother of the dead girl. There are the journalists who also are ever present. There are the extended family members, some of whom still can't come to terms with the ex con in their midst. And of course, the people who can't accept that Stefan gets to live his life, while Belinda is in the ground, dead. Add into this mix the creepy guy stalker, in the hoodie, who constantly harasses Thea, the mom, with phone calls, breaking into their home, and showing up wherever Thea happens to be.

This is one hell of a page turner. And you will never be able to predict the ending. I highly recommend, "The
good Son".

My Review:
Wow!!!!! I’m not going lie I have mixed feelings about this book. We will get to that in a minute but first I wanted to let you know that this is my first book by this author. I did see the movie that was based off of another of this authors book called The Deep End Of The Ocean which I absolutely loved. To this day it is still one of my favorite movies. I never read the actual book though so I can not comment if that was the same as the movie. The Deep End Of The Ocean movie was the main reason why I decided to pick up and read this book. Ok, now let’s talk about what my thoughts were of this book. So, I really enjoyed this book but I had to muddle through the very slow start. I’m talking it was slower than a snail. I am happy that I stuck with it though because it turned out to be a really great memorable read. I felt this book was very realistic in its portrayal of what it was like to try to integrate back into society after a jail sentence. I also loved the way the author worked in the idea of repentance and forgiveness. I believe in both of those things in order to move forward with your life otherwise you will be stuck and miserable for the remainder of your life. Now on to that shocking ending. The author put a little mystery into the story and OMG it was a doozy. My mind was blown. I don’t want to say too much about it as I don’t want to ruin it for the readers. I do want to say though that the ending was the best part of the book for me. I loved how I didn’t see it coming. I do what to say that even though I thought this was an excellent read I did minus it by one heart because of the slowness at the beginning of the book. I would definitely read another book by this author.

In conclusion, the plot, the characters and all the twists in this book made this book an enjoyable read. I would definitely recommend it and happily give it 4 Hearts❤️❤️❤️❤️

This book is about a mother whose son has just been released from prison after being sentenced for killing his killing. The premise of this book was good. The narrative was a little confusing to me, because the story was told in the past tense, but at times would do a flashback. I had a hard time knowing what was present in the timeline and what was past. I also had a hard time figuring out who was speaking at times. It made it hard to really get lost in the book.

This was a tough read. Interesting enough, but missing it’s mark. It was clear where the author wanted to go, but I just couldn’t get there. Not in-depth enough with the building the characters or relationships.

The concept sounded interesting, but this book didn't live up to its potential for me. Things were too drawn out, making it a tedious read. Overdetailing stalled the plot, and I was never really able to connect with any of the characters.

“I was picking my son up at the prison gates when I spotted the mother of the girl he murdered.”

So begins The Good Son by Jacquelyn Mitchard. Thea Demetriou, a college professor, must help her son Stefan reintegrate into society after he served his time in prison for the manslaughter of Belinda McCormack, the girl he loved, while finding her own way to love and forgive him after such a heinous action. Stefan had never even had so much as a speeding ticket, had never been a rebellious teen, so how can she reconcile that with a young man who could murder his girlfriend?

One thing that softens the blow for his family is that Stefan was out of his mind on drugs that night he bashed in Belinda’s head. He does not remember one thing about this episode, but he was the only one with her, and the murder weapon is covered in his fingerprints. He took full responsibility for the murder, pleading guilty. After his release from prison where he was a model prisoner, he struggles with how to go on with his life, deal with his guilt, redeem his reputation, and find a way forward when so many doors will now be closed to him, a convicted felon.

Jill, Belinda’s mother, has found her next steps by forming an activist group against domestic abuse in their town, intimating that Belinda’s relationship with Stefan was abusive. Thea knows only a loving relationship between Stefan and Belinda who met when they were five-years-old and had been best friends ever since, which makes the murder even more puzzling. Jill has campaigned steadily the past three years against Stefan and could be the force behind some of the things happening to the family, including daily protestors, a stalker, and an ugly word painted on their garage door.

While Stefan struggles with his demons, Thea and her husband Jep must deal with the fallout. People are up in arms that this young man murdered his girlfriend and is home after time served in a five-year sentence. Thea and Jep have lived through some ugly episodes while Stefan was in prison, and now they must protect him as best they can as the situation heats up with his release.

Thea is still dealing with a worrisome caller who tells her she knows what happened the night in question as she was there. Thea tries to shrug her off as just another nutcase harassing the family, but this girl is persistent. Could she really have been there at Belinda’s when this terrible incident happened? What knowledge could she have that might help or hurt Stefan? What starts off as a story of love and redemption turns into a thriller as Thea is determined to find out what happened that night.

Jacquelyn Mitchard’s first novel, The Deep End of the Ocean, was made into a feature film produced by and starring Michelle Pfeiffer. Mitchard writes for both adult and young adult readers. The author, who grew up in Chicago, now lives in Wisconsin.

My review will be posted on Goodreads starting November 24, 2021.

I’d like to thank MIRA/Harper Collins and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in return for an objective review.

Wow! Jacquelyn Mitchard has once again blown me away with her latest novel The Good Son! Thea Demetriou finds herself in a state of devastation and disbelief as her beloved son and only child is accused and convicted of murdering his girlfriend. Stefan at the age of 17, was under influence of several drugs and does not remember anything, but is completely shattered that he could be responsible for her death. Now that Stefan has finished serving his time, the Demetriou family tries to carefully find their new normal. They know this road won’t be easy, but they most definitely are not prepared for what is in store for them!

I have such high expectations for Jacquelyn Mitchard novels and I am so thrilled that she did not disappoint! Jacquelyn is a master at creating storylines that evoke a ton of emotions—I feel like I went through every emotion imaginable throughout this addictive novel! The character development was on-point and I found myself daydreaming of what it would be like to find yourself in their positions. The Good Son is 5 star read that would make a fantastic book club selection! I highly recommend this must read to everyone!