This book is a thrill ride in page form. Loved this one from the get go and did not want to put it down.

Crazy On You by Christen Bensten is a gripping psychological thriller that explores the dark and twisted depths of envy, resentment, and the desperate pursuit of a seemingly perfect life. In this four-star read, Bensten skillfully weaves a tale around Olivia, a woman tired of feeling invisible and determined to break free from the bleakness of her past.

Set in the seemingly perfect suburban town of Huntwood Valley, the novel introduces us to Olivia, whose life takes a turn for the better when she becomes a mother and befriends three diverse women in the same stage of life. The contrast between Olivia's challenging home life and the affluent, picture-perfect world around her sets the stage for a narrative filled with suspense and intrigue.

Bensten delves into Olivia's complex psyche, exploring the impact of a difficult upbringing and her relentless pursuit of the life she believes she deserves. The author masterfully builds tension as Olivia's friendships with Claire, Charlotte, and the seemingly perfect Beth evolve, highlighting the delicate balance between genuine connection and the dark undercurrents of obsession.

The character development is a standout feature of the novel, with Olivia's descent into volatility and obsession portrayed with chilling authenticity. As Olivia's actions become increasingly erratic, the tension escalates, keeping readers on the edge of their seats.

The exploration of themes like envy, mental health, and the consequences of unchecked desires adds depth to the narrative. The pacing is well-crafted, and the story unfolds with a series of twists and turns that keep the reader guessing until the final pages.

Crazy On You is a psychological thriller that delves into the darker facets of the human psyche, offering a compelling and unsettling journey into the mind of a woman consumed by her desires. Christen Bensten's storytelling prowess shines through, making this book a recommended read for fans of intense psychological dramas.

What a fun ride! This psychological thriller delves into the lives of a group of new mothers, focusing primarily on one woman named Olivia, who becomes increasingly obsessed and envious of her friends' seemingly perfect lives after having babies.

As Olivia struggles with her own infertility and the inability to conceive a child, her jealousy intensifies, leading her down a dark path. The novel vividly portrays the unsettling transformation of Olivia as she becomes more unhinged, making increasingly irrational decisions and taking drastic measures to fulfill her desires for motherhood. The narrative grips readers with its suspenseful plot twists and psychologically intense moments, showcasing the lengths to which someone can go when consumed by jealousy and desperation.

The book masterfully navigates the blurred lines between sanity and obsession, creating a chilling and gripping tale of a woman's descent into madness due to jealousy over her friends' ability to have children.

This was really a roller coaster type of book! It deals with the reality of post partum depression and how it can destroy a woman's life if not dealt with correctly. Recommended.

I loved this book!

It was so dark and twisty!

5 stars and a must read, especially for those who love thrillers and books with twists and turns.

Olivia lives in the wealthy suburban town of Huntwood Valley where most people live charmed lives. However, Olivia's life is far from perfect as she lives with her parents. Her mother is mentally ill and her father is abusive. She becomes a mother herself and makes three new friends: Charlotte, Claire, and Beth. Olivia fixates on Beth and wants the life she has, which leads to a breakdown of the friendships. The women become afraid of her and have no idea how far she will go to get the life she wants. The plot was great, the characters were well-developed, and the ending was awesome. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced reader copy.

A really compelling and well-written domestic thriller. I was hooked from the first page. I love anything involving explorations of motherhood especially with unhinged characters and Olivia was just that, but written in a way that was plausible and very human.

‘Crazy on You’ by Christen Bensten has some potential as a psychological thriller, but suffers from a shocking lack of editing. There are several egregious errors in the book that should not have made it past the roughest of rough drafts. This intriguing synopsis deserved more.

The first error I caught was early on when Olivia becomes jealous that Beth and Claire are bonding over both having boys. ‘But doesn’t Claire have a daughter named Dalia?’, I asked myself and had to read back to confirm. I was correct. The second error that made me want to hurl my e-reader across the room happened when the moms are attending the preschool lottery. ‘Nine’ is the first number called and they react saying that the drawing really is done at random. The fourth number called is ‘nine’ which could be forgiven as a slip (well even that should really be caught) except that Charlotte reacts to the number with glee because - wow - SHE is lucky number nine! What? This is not the most magical thing about Charlotte, however, oh no! She also conceives at the beginning of Summer (confirming that she is not pregnant but is trying before the Nantucket trip) and births perfectly healthy twins around - if we are being generous - the middle of Fall. Beth becomes pregnant an unspecified time after Charlotte and has a due date in the winter of the same year. No wonder other mothers are envious of the women who can defy normal human gestational periods! After I went on a long rant about this to my husband, he asked if the book was written by a man. I literally yelled, “NO!” in frustration as it’s bad enough when men are absolutely ignorant about the female body but feels worse when a woman is so wilfully inaccurate.


Phewf. It feels good to get that off my chest. Apologies to my husband for the yelling. Unfortunately I am not finished berating the lazy editing of this novel as everything happens at a breakneck speed in a confusing timeline of snippets of main and extraneous storylines which make the whole thing feel frenzied and unfocused. An editor needs to step in like a gardener to thin seedlings and pull out weeds so the story can actually grow. Far too often the timing of things makes no sense. When the couples are out to dinner, Olivia seemingly finishes her glass of wine and orders another bottle within literally two sentences. Tom finishes an entire cup of fresh, presumably piping hot coffee in about six. Waiters miraculously have orders ready in the span of a few lines of dialogue which would take approximately two minutes if both parties were speaking extremely slowly. Beth is suddenly back in the room when there was zero indication that she had ever left. The timing between chapters is sometimes seconds and sometimes weeks or months and the reader is left to just figure it out based on context clues. These details made the writing feel amateurish, in need of a mentor with a red pen. Or at least more than spell check. You know that famous Carly Simon song about irritated nurses putting IVs in the arms of dehydrated patients? ‘You’re So Vein’? Me neither because the song is ‘You’re So Vain’. This error happens twice - once even in the playlist credit. Incorrect homonyms are plentiful in this novel, but that one was my pet favourite.

There are a couple of redeeming qualities to the work, such as the depiction of bipolar disorder, but I honestly cannot get past the bad writing and blatant errors. The idea behind the story was good and it deserved more.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of ‘Crazy On You’ by Christen Bensten.

This story follow 4 new moms who join a play group together. The main character is Olivia who feels invisible. She is struggling with being a new mom and the one who decides to start the group to make friends and new connections. But will Olivia take things to far and let her obsession over take her?

Wow, just wow this book was crazy and the twists were great... it kept my interest throughout and I finished it in about a day or so

If you loved Desperate housewives, then you will love this. Oh the drama….with a dash of murder. Focusing mainly on four women who live in Huntswood Valley, Olivia the main character befriends 3 others and zooms in on Beth. She wants everything Beth has as her life seems perfect. But we all know not everyone’s life is not as perfect as it seems. But how far will Olivia go to be like Beth. Or to take Beth’s place? With the short chapters and fast moving, drama filled plot line, you will have no issue reading on to find out.

This book was different than expected but that didn’t make me love it any less! Creepy and entertaining, 5 stars!

This book was different than many i have read. I was very surprised by the ending and twists. The writing style was very good. Once I got used to the style, it was a good read. I'm still not sure how I feel about how it ended.
I would recommend giving it a try

Oooh I loved this salacious, dramatic tale. It almost reminded me of one of the housewives shows. This psychological thriller takes us through new motherhood, relationships and obsession. There are so many emotions at play and Bentsen kept it all very real and interesting. The ending also shocked me! I really enjoyed reading this fast paced story.

🏠 Town of Huntwood valley…
Four struggling new moms: Claire, Charlotte, Olivia and Beth….brought together through a playgroup….
Olivia who is struggling with her PPD and anxiety…. finds herself envious of Beth’s happy marriage & perfect lifestyle
She wants to be her only friend….
A friendship that turns into obsession….
An obsession that turns a mother of one into a killer….
A thriller that didn’t sound like one until the end of the book…
A title that matches PERFECTLY with the story…

🏠 This was my first book by the author and throughout the book I kept asking myself: Is this even a thriller? Because it sounded more like a book about challenges of motherhood until the story picked up pace. But it didn’t stop me either from finishing this book in two sittings. Because yes it was addictive, crazy and creepy. The chapters being told from multiple perspectives were short and easy to read.

🏠 Being a fan of happy endings, I found the ending crazy, unrealistic and unsatisfying. But then it could not have gotten any better. This is the first book in the huntwood valley murder series and I will definitely wait for the next one. Thanks to NetGalley for the ecopy.

Yeah, uh, I was not crazy on this book.

This book is being marketed as a psychological thriller but it's more a study on mommy groups and has an overall DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES feel to it.

The synopsis: Olivia is a mom with a traumatic past and lots of anxiety surrounding her new role as mother. She meets three other new moms and they form a playgroup. All Olivia wants is to fit in. How far will she go to do that though?

I was intrigued enough to keep reading but GOD, I hated Olivia. She was a twisted woman with no redeemable qualities. I do love me a twisted protagonist but Olivia was too much. And for me the book dragged on. There were lots of (short) chapters that showed the reader the lives of the other women, but it honestly didn't add anything to the plot.

Honestly if there was less in the present and more information on Olivia's upbringing, I probably would have been sold on the book.

Oh and I feel like this is worth mentioning: the women live in the affluent community of Huntwood Valley, a DC suburb. On the cover of the book it says CRAZY ON YOU is the first in the Huntwood Valley Murder Series so we will probably see more of Olivia in the future.

CRAZY ON YOU is available June 16.

Thanks to @netgalley for the e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Overall, I really enjoyed this dark, chilling, well-plotted story. It was intense and fast paced and I raced through this in a few hours, frantically turning the pages, desperate to find out how it was all going to be resolved. With that dramatic ending, I wasn’t disappointed! I’m already looking forward to the author’s next book.

I really enjoyed this book! The characters were complex and mostly believable. The monologues about motherhood felt so accurate, especially thinking back to those newborn days.

One thing I took issue with- and this is not really the author’s fault- is how many women who suffer from postpartum depression, anxiety, and psychosis are often portrayed just like Olivia is in Crazy on You. I felt a bit frustrated that there’s yet another novel proclaiming postpartum a woman with these particular struggles is a dangerous person. There’s so much stigma around it already, and I’ve read three or four similar novels- I just wish postpartum depression was treated with more compassion.

The writing- good, possibly excellent
Characters- well-written
Plot- ended up being a bit of a surprise at the end!

This was a great read! I was hooked from chapter 1! The cover drew me in but the story kept me! I have not read anything else by this author but I am not definitely a fan!

This book started off really great! I loved Liv and the constant struggle she had with herself. Her obsession with her PERFECT friend Beth. Liv goes out of her way to just be there wherever Beth is to the point that it's definitely noticed. The book started off strong... but for me it just didn't work out. I thought there was going to be some action but alas it falls quite short. The ending seemed rush and didn't quite make sense. I was expecting so much more from the story. I was expecting some consequence... or SOMETHING. There was nothing. All in all, the book started out great but ended way too suddenly.