This book was so odd, so dark, and so funny - I really enjoyed this strange read. It slightly reminded me of Rachel Yoder’s “Nightbitch” … not in plot at all, but in the different writing style and how it rips the skin right off the ferality of mothers and motherhood.

Abby had a traumatic childhood, with a mother who loved booze and bad men a lot more than her daughter. When Abby gets married, she’s hoping to find a mother figure in her new mother-in-law, Laura. Unfortunately, Laura is cold and cruel; a woman who loves her son in the way that no woman would ever be good enough for him in her eyes.

Abby also works at a nursing home, and eventually finds the mothering person she’s been searching for in a patient there - but man, her daughter is an ungrateful bitch who wants to ship her mom off to a horrible facility where she won’t be cared for in the proper way. How can Abby save the one woman in her life that makes her feel safe and needed?

This book is written traditionally in some parts, and like a play in others, perhaps to show how a lot of the things in Abby’s life seem so outrageous that they are meant for the stage. Normally that discordance would bother me, but it worked well in this book. This dark comedic horror book isn’t for everyone, but it was definitely for me. Four stars for a very different novel with a very different execution … in more ways than one! I don’t eat meat, but if you do, you’ll never look at chicken á la king the same again. 😈

(Thank you to Knopf Doubleday, Ainslie Hogarth, and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my review.)

Motherthing by Ainslie Hogarth is a wild and crazy ride through the eyes of an unhinged woman, who wants nothing but to be the perfect wife and mother- no jellied salmons spared.
Living by an outdated cook book like it's her own personal bible, Abby Lamb tries everything in her power to bring her husband back from a deep depression following his mother's death. Never having understood the intense and co-dependent nature of their relationship, Abby stops at nothing to not only win back her husband's love, but also banish her mother in-law from his thoughts forever. Afterall, Abby wants to become a mother ASAP, and she needs her husband for that; otherwise their perfect love baby might never happen.

Once things start to go sour with a patient's daughter at her work, Abby finds herself becoming obsessed with not only her husband, but also her elderly patient. And nothing will stop her from achieving what she wants. Nothing.

This book is funny, shocking and very dark. I loved the narrator, even though she's completely unreliable and clearly unhinged. This book was an experience I won't forget for a long time.

My opinion? Buy the book, read it and save your family.

It deserves all the damn stars that there ever is. I loved this book so much that I need to do a Ted talk to convey my emotions!!!!! I loved Abby. I loved that the concept is so original. I loved the humour and witty remarks. Also the cover!!!
I can't wait for this book to be published, so I can just buy the physical copy. I hope it gets the attention it deserves, when it finally does.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of Motherthing.

I love this cover! It's so retro, like the old timey horror movie posters from the 70s/80s. It's got this vintage, yet not cheesy vibe.

I wish I liked the story as much as the cover.

This isn't horror, or not horror to me. But it takes a lot to scare me.

Motherthing is about the death of a vindictive, suicidal woman named Laura, mother to Ralph, mother-in-law to Abby.

After she dies, Laura's ghost haunts the young couple, finally leading Abby to take drastic action to save herself and her husband from this freaking woman who won't let go!

Motherthing is less about the scary haunting, and more about the mother/daughter bond Abby never had.

Her childhood was disturbing, unstable, with an erratic mother and a series of many boyfriends, none of them appropriate.

Abby has mother issues, and daddy issues, I'm sure, but Motherthing is about Abby and how she never really had a mother. How she wished Laura could have been the mother she needed and never had. How Abby desperately wishes to be a mother so she can be the best mother she can be because she knows she can be.

Despite being in her early 30s, Abby is immature, her character and personality more of a teenager than an adult.

Her thoughts meander all the time, they're almost stream of conscious-like; she imagines horrible, bloody scenarios in her head before snapping back to reality.

it's clear Abby needs a mental health professional.

I get it; we all came from a mother and we all need a mother, and poor experiences with our parental figures do shape and influence us in ways we can't possibly imagine.

But, Abby is incredibly one-dimensional; I know nothing about her.

What makes Abby other than her obsession with finding mother figures everywhere in her life?

I don't know her likes and dislikes; why she became a support worker, and I don't recall her mentioning what happened to her mother, unless I missed that part.

Motherthing wasn't scary, I know all about mama's boys so Laura's behavior and personality was nothing new.

I was looking for an actual ghost story, a haunting that drives Abby mad or eventually helps her realize to stand up for herself, but Motherthing was something else entirely.

Some readers might like this, but this wasn't for me.

Motherthing is a startling slow-burn that reaches into your chest, grips your heart, and tears it to shreds--in the best possible way. At the surface, it's a book about a woman whose mother-in-law dies and comes back to haunt her son and his wife, but this book is so much more. It's a literary marvel designed to challenge notions on motherhood, womanhood, and wifehood.

Abby Lamb is doing everything in her power to be a good wife. She takes care of her husband Ralph, nurturing his wounds after the passing of his mother Laura. Laura won't win Mother of The Year, and the abuse seems to have carried over into the afterlife as Laura refuses to leave the happy couple alone. Abby struggles to maintain a happy face as her perfect life starts to crumble. Abby and Ralph struggle with abusive pasts, their mothers digging their nails deep into their psyches. As Ralph slips into a deep depression, Abby is forced to unravel her own trauma.

Hogarth creates a beautifully disturbing narrative revolving around motherhood that will leave readers spinning.

My thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book!

Motherthing is such an interesting contradiction - it’s premise sounds like a humourous “Monster in Law” supernatural tale but under the surface of that the book has some profound things to say about modern life for those who struggle with human relationships. We follow a lonely protagonist who, though she loves her husband very much, struggles with his deep depression after the loss of his equally depressed (and controlling) mother. Hopeful to start a family together and move on, she is caught between the memory of her mother in law and her husband who is spiraling into the depths of depression. Given that she has no friends or family, the lack of connection to anyone else puts her in a tough spot. She’ll fight to claw her husband back…but is his depression something more? Is her mother in law truly gone?

Don’t look for a straight forward ghost story here. Read this book for the things it has to say about life, marriage, and family. Stay for the supernatural hints.

While I was reading my advanced reader's copy of Motherthing on my lunchbreak at my day job, I laughed out loud ALOT. This book hit a lot of my sweet spots: dark humor, gothic vibes and a ghost story. At this point in my life I am able appreciate the humor that serves as a commentary on domesticity and relationships with in laws. I loved the premise of having an annoying mother in law during her life who continues to be be intolerable as a ghost as well. Motherthing definitely doesn't shy away from deeply personal topics surrounding parenthood: such as care of aging parents, desire to be a parent and relationships with in laws. Motherthing doesn't neglect the way these issues effect spousal relationships while exploring these different dynamics. All of these issues are touched upon in an entertaining way. This story is very funny while doing what horror does best: looking at the disturbing aspects of life and bringing voice to complexities.

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC!

Oh my goodness! What an amazing book this was! I knew just by the cover that this book was going to be great, and my expectations were surpassed. I love the horror almost comedy like elements, the writing was done incredibly, and the twists in this book! It surprised me with the darker side of things in this book, but it was most ddefinitely a pleasant surprise. The whole book I was just waiting for Abby to snap, and let me tell you, when she does, well, I won't spoil it, but be ready. I loved every second of this book!

A strange little fugue state of a book, Motherthing by Ainslie Hogarth will stay with me. After a troubled woman takes her own life, her son and daughter-in-law find themselves coping in unexpected and increasingly grim ways with the loss, and how their mental patterns have been shaped by the maternal in their lives. I found the narrator to be charming and insightful (up to a point), and I willingly followed her down increasingly bizarre paths.
I received an advanced review copy from NetGalley.

Unhinged female narrators are my fave type of narrators and Motherthing absolutely delivers.

When Abby’s mother in law commits suicide, her husband Ralph descends into depression and grief, believing his mother is still around as a ghost. Things only spiral from there as we follow Abby in various areas of her life including glimpses into her own childhood and experiences with a toxic mother, at her job in a care home where she becomes a little too attached to one of the residents, encounters with her colleagues, and her deep desire to become a mother herself.

Right at the beginning of the book when Abby and her husband are at the hospital after her mother in law passes, they encounter a mystic who gives them a business card. Later in the book as Ralph’s depression deepens, Abby decides to pay her a visit and is told the only way to save them and get rid of the demon attached to him (his mother’s ghost), which Abby takes a little too far and devises a chilling plan involving a unique recipe for chicken à la king…

I expected this book to be a kind of campy horror but after reading it, that isn’t the case at all. Abby is such a fascinating narrator who is snarky, darkly funny and not afraid to imagine enacting violence on those around her when they bug her, making the whole book super engaging and interesting to continue reading as we watch her slowly lose her mind. The book delves into some pretty heavy topics including suicide, self harm, toxic parent-child relationships, childhood trauma, miscarriage, obsession, violence and more.

Overall I was so pleasantly surprised by this book and can’t for more people to be able to read this! For fans of Nightbitch by rachel yoder, The Odyssey by lara williams, Bunny by mona awad and all the unhinged girlies who love a plot twist!!

A twisted dark comedy about mothers and how having a bad one can affect us. Abby desperately wants to be the perfect wife/mother, but has no examples to follow. After her toxic mother-in-law dies, her ghost haunts Abby and her husband Ralph, making Abby all the more crazed and motivated to get what she wants.
Abby's narration style was disturbing yet forlorn enough to make you sympathize with her. The more she slips into madness, the more she reveals about her dark past, you can't help but feel sorry for her. I am normally fairly good at predicting what will happen but I *did not* see that ending coming!
A great read for someone who enjoys unhinged narrators or women's horror.

Motherthing is one of the strangest books I've read and I absolutely loved it! I found the dark humor in this book wildly entertaining and I was hooked from the beginning.

Abby longs for a mother. She fantasies about what that relationship would be. When she marries Ralph she thinks her mother-in-law will be the one to finally fill that role, but that is not the case.

Clever writing, flawed characters, and an underlying ghost story all come together in this genre-bending novel to create an unforgettable read.

Fans of Mona Awad should definitely read this one.

Have you ever lived with your mother-in-law? (or any inlaw)
I have and let me tell ya, I cackled way too much at this!
Laura Lamb is something else when it comes to being a mother-in-law, she'd probably still be bathing and breast-feeding her son Ralph if he'd let her! Abby, Ralph's wife, (who was never good enough for him) would LOVE to love Laura. Seeing as she has never really had a loving mother. Laura decides to haunt them after taking her own life, and can't seem to let Ralph go. To make matters worse, Abby may be losing Mrs. Bondy too. A resident she cares for at work. Abby goes to great lengths to try and keep everyone she loves safe and close.

On the dark side of humorous!

I received an reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review

I have no idea what I just read and I think that was kind of the point. I have no idea if I liked it or hated it. But I do know I kept reading it. All the way through.

3.5 what the fudge stars rounded up.

Two people who are damaged from years of manipulation attempt to save one another, when they can’t really even save themselves. This is one of the most unique books that I’ve ever read. The plot was bizarre and I never knew what to expect. The characters were strange and obviously trouble, but they also loved one another enough to look out for each other. The writing was strange and took some time to get used to, but I enjoyed it. All in all, this book left me wondering, “What in the world did I just read?” But in a good way.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. Thanks to NetGalley and Vintage for this opportunity.

Not exactly what I thought it was going to be but still pretty entertaining. I loved the dark humor and the character development was flawless. I felt like there were a lot of moving parts and I found myself having to reread to make sure I didn’t miss anything but overall I enjoyed the read and especially the ending

I thought this was going to be a horror book, but it isn't really. This is such an odd book. I wanted to like this one, but ultimately ended up not being a fan. The writing style was so quirky and made no sense in a lot of it. I think this will be a hit or miss kind of book for many.

Oh how I loved this story! A haunting by a MIL has to be one of the worst scenarios ever. This has laughs but serious moments as well. Great story.

**Thank you to the publisher and author of this book for the ARC.**

Abby and Ralph are a perfect couple, just starting on their journey to becoming a real family, when his mother kills herself and starts haunting them.

The descent into madness here is spot on, I've never felt more empathy for an unreliable narrator before. This horror novel was laced with the perfect amount of camp and humor, making it a fun read, despite the gore and cringe. Abby has a very horrific inner dialogue, but it feels somehow familiar. Her struggle with desire to be a mom when she has always been surrounded with nothing but horrible examples of parenting, felt so close to home, and he codependency on her husband to make her human, well, sometimes love is a thin line. Ainslie Hogarth says out loud, our most disgusting and feral thoughts, what we dread others finding out about us.

This book doesn't shy away from any uncomfortable thing, and still somehow makes the protagonist someone you root for, which is no small feat. The book ends on an open note, which I actually loved in this instance. The cover was what drew me in, and it didn't disappoint. Perfect, pulpy horror with a heart!

Never have I ever been more uncomfortable with jellied food. Motherthing takes psychological and supernatural horror elements and wraps them into a bizarre suburban sandwich.

Abby, our protagonist, is a dark horse of intrigue. While she never got along with her mother-in-law, Laura, she takes the next step by stealing Laura's favourite ring off her corpse just hours after taking her life. What a way to begin a story! Slowly we begin to see the strained dynamic between Ralph and Abby, through their grief and Abby's desire to start a family. However, something is starting to haunt the house and their minds.. guess who?

Abby is a tenacious force, for better or worse, and I loved her character's exploration. I was charmed and made uncomfortable by her actions, at times horrified. Her thought pattern was particularly interesting to me, playing a line between adoration, dedication, and desire that led her to do some really wacky things for herself and Ralph. Ultimately, I loved the writing. I will be picking up Hogarth's next book!

Thank you to Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group and NetGalley for the ARC!