If you enjoy books about cults, I would HIGHLY recommend this wild ride! Just Like Mother was a quick and captivating read, full of characters who seem likeable on the outside but aren't in actuality. I do wish we followed Andrea's POV just a touch to see the mastermind behind everything that happens, but I really enjoyed following Maeve's POV as well. I was so not expecting the last page of the book to turn out the way that it did! Absolutely crazy; it gave me chills.

Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of Just Like Mother by Anne Heltzel.

Thank you to NetGalley for the e-ARC of this novel. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Release Date: May 17, 2022

Being a woman is a horror – mother, or not.

Unsettling, uncomfortable, weird pseudo feminism... I’m not sure my feelings. I’m indifferent. It was an easy, quick listen. Very predictable. Not boring.

“What else is there, other than having babies?”

Maeve and her cousin Andrea were born into a cult called “The Mother Collective” that preached and practiced strong beliefs of feminism and misandry. However, ‘womanhood’ is solely seen through the lens of fertility and birthing female babies. Though they left the cult as children and the two were separated for decades, the lasting impact of their lives in the cult manifest in their lives very differently. One has PTSD, the other attempts to revive the cult. One never wants children, the other wants a baby more than anything.

Infuriating insanity ensues. As the reader, we can clearly see what’s happening, but Maeve is lost to it all. I’m not sure I like this writing style, but I am not much of a horror reader to have more reference.

The final 10% was excellent and the final couple pages – eerie!

This was a twisted story about two cousins who lived in a cult style life when they were younger. Maeve and Andrea find each other years later after being separated as children. Maeve is happy to be with Andrea again. What will happen in the future is almost indescribable. Prepare for a dark and intense story.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing an advance copy in exchange for honest feedback

Okay, this book was wild. The creepy cult stuff? Loved it. The unsettling vibes? Perfect. But the execution? Ehh, it didn’t fully work for me.

The first half had me hooked—seriously, the tension was building so well. But then the second half kinda went off the rails. Some of the twists were predictable, and others felt so over-the-top that I found myself rolling my eyes instead of being shocked. Also, the main character made some choices that had me yelling at the book.

That being said, it was still an entertaining read. If you’re into slow-burn psychological thrillers with a creepy, culty feel, it’s worth checking out. Just be prepared for a lot of absurd moments by the end. Definitely did deserve the Goodreads nomination it received.

Just Like Mother by Anne Heltzel tells a compelling, suspenseful story about Maeve, a woman trying to escape her traumatic past in a cult, only to find herself drawn back into that dark world through her cousin Andrea. As Maeve becomes more entangled in Andrea’s life, the book explores themes of memory, trauma, and obsession, creating an atmosphere of tension and unease.

While the premise is engaging and the characters are well-drawn, the pacing of the novel can feel a bit slow at times. There are moments when the plot seems to drag as Maeve's internal conflict takes center stage, slowing down the overall momentum. That said, the story isn’t deeply unsettling in the way one might expect from a psychological thriller. It maintains a steady, creeping tension without pushing into truly disturbing territory, which makes it more of a psychological mystery than a horror novel.

Overall, Just Like Mother is an intriguing read that explores the complexity of family, trauma, and the difficulty of escaping one’s past. While it may not be as intense or unsettling as some thrillers, its thoughtful exploration of these themes keeps the reader engaged, even during the slower sections.

Then you NetGalley and publisher for the opportunity to read and review this arc honestly.

I’ll start with, I’m not a fan of the cover. It’s very off putting and creepy but once you get past that this is a really good character, and has the eerie time to it. Pace and characters were great, will definitely read more from this author!

Horror done well.....exceptionally well. A collective....yes, we know what it should be called.....of women keep a breeding stock of men captive. When Maeve is 8, the collective is raided and the young children placed in foster homes. Maeve loses touch with her friends, including her best friend, cousin Andrea. As an adult, Maeve takes steps to find her cousin, learning that the two of them have led very different lives. As they start to learn what they have missed in each other's lives, Maeve will have many more questions than answers. Can you hear the spooky music starting to play in the background? When Anne Heltzel introduces a baby doll, Olivia, to the story, I almost had to stop reading.....that's how you know it's authentic horror. If I give any more clues, my nightmares will start again. Let's just say, this is an original plot that will stir up the creepiness factor past 10 pretty easily. 5 easy stars.

I wanted to like this. It has a cool’s cover and a lot of potential. Unfortunately this book is far from unique and I found the main character to be very frustrating.

Maeve started her life in a cult although to her it was just normal. When she fled, it was to prevent another child from abuse but it exposed the cult and brought it down. The main thing Maeve regretted was losing track of her best friend and cousin, Andrea. Maeve was lucky enough to be adopted quickly and grew up in a middle class life. These days, she is in New York City, using her education to work in the publishing industry as an editor.

Periodically she tried to find Andrea. When she used one of the DNA companies, Andrea found her and they got together. Andrea has done well. She is an entrepreneur who is running a multimillion dollar company and she and her husband have just bought a mansion in upstate New York. Maeve is embarrassed as her job is low paying, she lives in a tiny apartment and her main romantic interest is a guy she has just been sleeping with no strings attached.

Andrea asks her to come up for a weekend. Maeve agrees and rides up with Andrea's right hand help, Emily. The company specializes in lifelike dolls and support for mothers from conception to grieving if necessary. Maeve is a bit put off but glad to be back in Andrea's life. When she returns to find that she has lost her job followed by a personal loss, she moves in with Andrea. At first she is glad but as time goes on she suspects that things aren't as good as they see.

Anne Heltzel is known for her horror writing. Like Maeve, she works in the publishing industry and like Andrea has moved to upstate New York in an old mansion. In this book, the horror builds slowly as the reader tries to determine if Maeve is just unlucky or if there is malign purpose behind her issues. The truth about the original cult is slowly revealed. This book is recommended for horror readers.

Love suspenseful reads that involve cults or elements of cults. This one is a hum dinger for a cause! Two sisters escape their childhood home after enduring physical and psychological abuse at the hands of "Mother". They are then separated and do not see each other again until they are both adults. One sister has greatly struggled to recover from the abuse, while the other seems to have beaten her demons and thrived as a successful businesswoman, wife and mother. She invites her more troubled sister to visit. A wonderful reunion or a sinister ulterior motive?

Content Warning: Rape, Imprisonment, Abuse, Gratuitous Sex Scenes

Just Like Mother by Anne Heltzel is marketed as a horror novel and is centered around two cousins who were in a "mother worshiping" cult together and escaped but went their separate ways. When the women are reunited, things get weird.

I was unable to finish this book. There was so much going on that I wasn't interested in reading - things that weren't obvious from the description of the book online. I am not interested in reading about rape, graphic sex scenes, etc. I know that this book is for some because of the high ratings I saw, but it wasn't for me. Since I have to star rate it even though I didn't finish it, I will give it a 1 star.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest thoughts.

This was absolutely chilling and addictive. Such a page turner. I loved guessing the mystery as it unraveled. Kept me up all night trying to find out what happens next!

This book is VERY creepy. It also has all the motherhood (and other) triggers, so please go into this one knowing it’s a rough read at times.

You know I love a cult story and this one DELIVERS. If you’ve ever wondered, how do people become cult members, this book gives a storyline that shows how it can happen. It also shows how quickly it can spiral out of control.

I can’t say I found any of the twists particularly surprising, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t say WTF…out loud…on the train…several times. If you like a dark thriller/horror novel and cults, Just Like Mother might be for you. It’s out now!

Thank you so much for this ARC! I just finished listening to the audio of this book.

If you love cults, this is for you. Super creepy and interesting - I loved it! There is something so intriguing about cults, especially a cult about women and motherhood. I would have enjoyed learning more about the actual group dynamics, not just the outside, but that definitely didn't impact my rating of this book.

The characters were great and it made for an awesome audio book. I definitely felt eerie and uncertain throughout. The strange coincidences made it a bit predictable. As with all thrillers, when things seem too good to be true, they probably are not! The ending was fantastic.

Hold on... a book about a cult you say? Sign me up! This horror/thriller was so freaking creepy and intense and unsettling. It made me feel super uncomfortable and I LOVED IT!

Creepy cover, creepy book. I had a great time. The book kept me on my toes until the very end, but I felt satisfied knowing I could figure out some of the story on my own. While cult stories have been having a moment, this felt like a fairly unique take on cults.

You know that unstartling feeling you get when you feel that there are eyes watching you somewhere, but you can't seem to find where they're coming from? This is how I felt while reading this book! There are definitive parts of this book that creeped me out, which is very rare for me given that horror is one of my favorite genre's to read. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and look for more from Anne Heltzel!

I was hoping to like this book more than what I did. I guessed some of this book and the ending so it made it a little bit, boring in that way. It was well written and a little scary and I did like that. Overall, it was a okay read for me. I thought character raised in a cult would be a good book idea. When Maeve's cousin reappears, I looking forward to what happens next. But I wanted the author to pull me into the story a bit more. *This book was given to me for free at my request from NetGalley and I provided this voluntary review.*

This cover is eeeek for me. So this one did make me a bit nervous to finally read.

The descriptions itself also gave me a bit of pause. While I love a good thriller, creepy stuff really freaks me out. And this book did that!

The whole part of the two girls in the woods and the one going crazy was ahhh! Bloody Mary was a scary and creepy game from my childhood and definitely brought back memories.

I liked the cult aspect as well. And then getting the grown up version of the girls in the story then.

The pacing of the book is great and ending left my jaw on the floor. Such a creepy and interesting thriller.