Mothered is my second read by Zoje Stage, and one of my most anticipated books of 2023. I loved Baby Teeth and all of its despicable characters, and Stage with back with more unlikable characters.
We meet Grace, new homeowner and jobless hair dresser, during a pandemic lockdown. Her recently widowed mother, requests to move in with her, and why not? She can help with the mortgage and provide some companionship. This turns out to be a terrible idea.
Stage nails the claustrophic, anxiety riddled atmosphere of the pandemic lockdowns - I really enjoyed this aspect of the book, and I think it is something that everyone can relate to. Stage then adds a very strained, toxic mother - daughter relationship, and the events in this book go off the rails! There is so much unreliability that I had absolutely no idea whether to believe Grace or her mother's perspective. For much of the novel, I felt it was very thriller-esque until the end, where I found the solid influence of horror.
I've already recommended this book to a few people, and I need to read Stage's novels that I have overlooked.
Thank you to Netgalley and Thomas and Mercer for an ARC in exchange for review.

EXCERPT: Given how the evening was progressing, Grace was starting to think he was taking advantage of the situation. He hadn't even asked what medications "Miss Jacquelyn" was on when she requested a teensy refill and he splashed more wine into her glass. It was a fraction of what he and Grace had consumed - she had a cheap shiraz on hand that they dived into after finishing Miguel's much better merlot - but, his conversational efforts were revealing a mischievous undertone: she got the feeling he was plying her mom with alcohol.
His questions played into Jackie's worst social tendency to spin a funny tale - often at someone else's expense to make herself look witty. Miguel made it almost too easy, focusing on Grace's awkward elementary school years; he asked what sorts of hobbies she'd had, if she'd sung in the choir or played any sports. The less drunk part of her thought that he was probably hoping to hear Jackie boast about Grace's early talents, and maybe he was ready with supportive retorts, "She always loved a good karaoke night!", or "So that's how she learned to crush her opponents!" (Miguel believed she was too competitive when it came to board games.) He might also have been digging for more details about Hope.
'Can we do something else now?' Grace asked, lifeless. The school assembly memory was all the more bitter for being one of the few times her mother had been in attendance. Grace had been so excited, so nervous.
Miguel blew her a kiss and she read in his expression This will be over soon, which made her feel a smidge better. Maybe this was good, give Miguel a hearty dose of Brassy Mommy - which was a better match to Grace's descriptions than the Jolly Chef or Carefree Hostess he'd witnessed for most of the evening. Maybe Jackie hadn't really changed as much as it sometimes seemed. Her stresses were different now and her culinary skills improved, but perhaps underneath she was still the poisonous viper from Grace's youth, waiting to lash out.

ABOUT 'MOTHERED': Grace isn’t exactly thrilled when her newly widowed mother, Jackie, asks to move in with her. They’ve never had a great relationship, and Grace likes her space—especially now that she’s stuck at home during a pandemic. Then again, she needs help with the mortgage after losing her job. And maybe it’ll be a chance for them to bond—or at least give each other a hand.

But living with Mother isn’t for everyone. Good intentions turn bad soon after Jackie moves in. Old wounds fester; new ones open. Grace starts having nightmares about her disabled twin sister, who died when they were kids. And Jackie discovers that Grace secretly catfishes people online—a hobby Jackie thinks is unforgivable.

When Jackie makes an earth-shattering accusation against her, Grace sees it as an act of revenge, and it sends her spiraling into a sleep-deprived madness. As the walls close in, the ghosts of Grace’s past collide with a new but familiar threat: Mom.

MY THOUGHTS: Yesterday, upon the stair, I met a man who wasn't there. He wasn't there again today ; When I came home last night at three. The man was waiting there for me.
- William Hughes Mearns

Reading Mothered by Zoje Stage is a similar experience.

The author herself described Mothered as 'batshit crazy'. I have to agree. I have no idea how to describe what I have just read, other than to say that neither Grace nor I knew what the hell was going on. Good luck Silas!

I loved parts of it. I hated parts of it. Overall I fall somewhere in the middle.

⭐⭐.5

#Mothered #NetGalley

I: @zoje.stage_author @amazonpublishing

T: @zooshka @AmazonPub

#contemporaryfiction #familydrama #friendship #mentalhealth #mystery

THE AUTHOR: Zoje Stage lives in Pittsburgh with her cats.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Thomas & Mercer via Netgalley for providing a digital ARC of Mothered by Zoje Stage for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

For an explanation of my rating system please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the about page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

This review is also published on Twitter, Amazon, Instagram and my webpage

Thank you NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review. This one releases 3/1/2023!

I love Zoje Stage and her books. Unfortunately, this one was not it. It centered largely on the pandemic, which I’m not a fan of in books. Grace was an unreliable narrator and this felt all over the place. I kept chugging through in hopes that the ending would be worth it and it wasn’t. The ending fell flat and I feel like it pained me to get through it.

This book was eerie, suspenseful and truly unputdownable! I devoured it and loved every second. Highly recommend, 5 stars!!

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with an eARC of this book.

I absolutely love Zoje Stage's writing style. I have loved everything that I have read from her, and this is no exception. Typically, I would be turned off by a pandemic thriller, but in this case it really worked. I think we probably could have gotten the same story without covid being such a big part of it, but it was fine. I really enjoyed how disoriented this book made me feel. By the end I didn't know what was real and what wasn't. I do know that I did not like this lady's mother. I couldn't imagine sharing a house with her. I would have loved to learn even more about Grace's childhood and what happened between her and her sister. I honestly was having such a good time reading this that the ending kind of snuck up on me. I wanted to just keep reading more about these characters. I am slightly confused about the very very end (last page) and not really sure what was actually happening there. This book was super disturbing. I loved that it centered on mother/daughter relationships as well as sister/sister relationships. It was just overall a really fun time.

When an author describes her own book as “batshit crazy”, you know you are in for a wild ride. In this pandemic-era novel, Grace has just lost her job as a hair stylist and her financial situation is looking a little precarious. When her estranged mother Jackie asks to move in, Grace wishes she didn’t have to say yes, but she needs Jackie’s income to help pay the mortgage on her new house.

I think we all remember what the early days of the pandemic felt like – tense, isolated, anxious. Now imagine spending those days cooped up with a manipulative mother with whom you share a lot of emotional baggage and things start to feel truly claustrophobic. Grace starts having horrific, vivid dreams and losing chunks of time. These dream sequences are where the author’s talent for horror really shines – Grace’s dreams are grotesque and feel terrifying real. The first couple of dreams I was like OMG what is happening here?! Unfortunately, this novel over-relies on this device, making me unsure what was real and what was Grace’s imagination. I’m guessing that’s what the author was going for, but it felt redundant after a while and kind of lost its shock value, as a lot of the most nightmarish events were just that.

While I loved the unsettled, creeped-out feeling this book gave me (reminiscent of Gillian Flynn’s Sharp Objects), ultimately I was frustrated by unanswered questions and loose threads left dangling. I’m also going to need someone to explain that epilogue to me!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for providing me an advance copy of this book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for this ARC. I requested Mothered after seeing it was by the same author that wrote Baby Teeth, a book I really enjoyed. I had high hopes for this one and was a bit let down.

I feel that the plot for this story was twisty and I did like how it went back and forth from present to the past, although sometimes it was confusing. I think Mothered started off strong, but more than halfway through I felt it became repetitive and I didn’t enjoy how much Covid was the center of the story. I didn’t know this going into it and I probably wouldn’t have read if I knew that before.

The ending felt rushed, but I wasn’t completely against it. This was a slow burn thriller featuring fever dreams that feel real! I enjoyed the writing for this and I would read more by Zoje.

This was too confusing and disjointed for me. I was extremely disappointed as I enjoyed Baby Teeth very much.

Thanks to #netgalley for the ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.I loved Babyteeth and was very excited to get a copy of this book to read. Whilst I liked it, I didn't love it and I can't really pinpoint why.
When Grace finally purchases her first home it comes right as the pandemic is set into motion. Thrilled to finally be a homeowner she is then let go from her hairdressing job when her boss lets her know she is closing the doors for good. Now she's panicking on how she is going to make her mortgage payments when her mom, Jackie, gives her an idea. Why doesn't she move in with Grace? Now that her second husband has passed away and left her some money she would be able to help pay the bills relieving some of Grace's stress. Told in 2 timelines, we go back to the past when Grace was a child left to care for her twin sister, Hope, who had cerebral palsy while Jackie worked to support them as a single mother. Hope has a dark side though and liked to torment Grace. Meanwhile Jackie doted on Hope and made sure Grace knew who her favorite daughter was.
Now mother and daughter are quarantined together pitting them against each other once and for all. I enjoyed the dark side of Hope, but the dream sequences were a little annoying, in that Grace would be reliving something that had happened revealing Hope's dark side etc and then we would find out it was a dream and it maybe didn't happen, I found this to be a little confusing for me also,
there were some really creepy parts that were unnerving in the best way. It just isn't one of those books that stayed with me once I was finished with it. Maybe I was expecting another Baby Teeth and this one just didn't hit the mark for me. #zojestage #mothered #netgalley #tea_sipping_bookworm #goodreads #litsy #thestorygraph #amazonaustralia #kindle #thriller

If thinking about the covid19 pandemic and lockdown is traumatizing to you, I'd recommend you not read this book. Taking place during the height of the pandemic, Mothered, finds Grace and her recently widowed mother Jackie quarantining together in Grace's home. Grace isn't thrilled about living with her mother, but after the loss of her job, she needs help to pay her mortgage. Being so close again with her mother sends Grace into thoughts and dreams of her childhood and her twin sister Hope who had cerebral palsy. She has trouble distinguishing reality from memories and is truly starting to spiral. After an accusation from Jackie really sets Grace off, will her life be changed forever? This is a creepy, claustrophobic slow burn of a thriller! Highly recommend if you can handle the reminders of quarantining!

Having read Baby Teeth, I expected this one to revolve around a messed up mother-daughter relationship. And Zoje delivered with an absolutely incredible story about a woman whose mom moves in during a pandemic, which ultimately leads to an uncomfortable exploration of their shared past, plus all the awful and relatable aspects of the pandemic.

I liked the way the characters were written; the small cast worked well in creating a sense of isolation. The plot was paced a lot by dreams, and it led to scary sequences and a neat way to explore the unreliability of the narrator. However, it sometimes took me out of the story.

Overall, this is a rock solid psychological thriller that gave me a lot to think about. The horror elements were apparent and incredibly effective where used.

This book was really strange, but in a good way. Not a great way. I liked Grace, the main character, and how she was difficult and a puzzle of some sort. The way we couldn't relly on her helped the development of the story; the way the macabre and the thriller are mixed in the plot works very well. The ending wasn't as good as the beginning and the middle. It felt unnecessary and, therefore, send the book downhill when it could've been great. But I still enjoyed a lot, and will totally recomend it!

This book was bananas in the best way. If you enjoy a claustrophobic book full of nightmares and family issues then I have the right one for you. The dreamlike state this book left me in was kind of hazardous for sleeping but I was thoroughly entertained. I loved Zoje Stage's BABY TEETH and GETAWAY and highly recommend those.

Thank you to NetGalley, Thomas & Mercer, and Zoje Stage for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

This one unfortunately was not for me, and I ultimately chose to DNF. I just couldn't connect to the story or any of the characters.

NetGalley is the only platform I will be leaving any sort of review, as I don't feel it's fair to review books on consumer sites if I don't finish them.

I would like to thank NetGalley for a copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book is something else. Like it screwed with my head, giving me a headache trying to figure out who did what and what was true. Like they both had their reasonings but that still doesn't make it any less messed up.

I thought Grace was a very normal individual during the whole beginning of the book. Like I know she had family issues with both her mom and her sister, Hope. I believe Hope was like the biggest problem in this whole thing. Though she was disabled, she still used it as a way to use Grace and torture her because she knew her mom would believe her before Grace. Grace was like the runner up in everything it seemed. So I perfectly understand her not wanting he mom back in her life.

Honestly, I believe her mom was the biggest issue as well. For she, brought up these past memories and "issues." Like I think Jackie was way too pushy with things around Grace's home. Like taking over the kitchen and reorganizing everything.

Maybe they both have the same hallucination and nightmare problems. Like they both are still haunted by Hope and her memory that it still scars both of them even after some many years.

But the other thing that gets me is would a normal person be able to live with the smell of a dead body? Because that's what Grace did like she waited until Miguel was out of the hospital before calling the cops. Like how to you just deal with it? Like your mom's dead on your kitchen floor and you continue to clean and try to make your life a little normal? That gives me unstable vibes, but she also wanted to make sure Coco was able to go back home at the same time. She fought able the situation until she finished up any responsibilities she had left.

In general, this novel gave me a suffocating feeling. Like I just couldn't quite catch me breathe
Like the walls were moving in on me.

I don't know. This novel messed with my head. Perfect novel if you want to be absolutely confused on what is going on.

It's lockdown in 2020 and Grace just lost her job as a stylist in a beauty salon. She also just moved into her first house the day lockdown began. Grace is worried about how she is going to pay her bills when her mother, Jackie, threatens to move in with her. Grace isn’t sure it is a good idea. However, Jackie agrees to pay rent and stay out of her way. How could she say no?!

Reading this book is kind of like watching a car crash, you just can’t look away. She really captures the claustrophobic atmosphere, fears, and anxieties about Covid and the very dysfunctional relationship between Grace and her mother.

I wasn’t really sure where this plot was headed throughout most of the book, which kept me reading. However, not much happened in the second half of the book which left me disappointed and with a few questions.

This book was just okay for me. I read Baby Teeth by this author so I was pretty excited for this book. This book wasn't bad but I just didn't connect with many of the characters. I thought the writing was done well.

1.5 ⭐️ rounded down for goodreads

My second attempt at a Zoje Stage book & although I was able to finish this one, clearly this author is not for me…

Did not like the characters, did not like the storyline, did not like reading about the pandemic, overall just did not enjoy this one.

I really enjoyed the concept of this book. It sounded interesting, and it didn't bother me that it is set during the pandemic. However, I had a hard time with my comprehension and understanding throughout the book. I know that was the way it was intentionally written, but I didn't like not being able to distinguish between reality and "fantasy." I do think there is a specific audience for this book, I was just not it. Thank you for providing me with an arc copy in return for an honest review.

Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free, electronic ARC of this novel received in exchange for an honest review.
Expected publication date: March 1, 2023
Grace is finally living the independent life she dreamed of after purchasing a house of her own. But when her aging mother is suddenly widowed, and Grace loses her job as a result of the pandemic, Grace is forced to take her mother, Jackie, into her home. Since the death of Grace’s disabled twin sister years ago, Grace and Jackie have grown farther apart, but Grace is hopeful that living together will force the two to reform their bond. But the pandemic stress only serves to add to the tensions brought up by old wounds and then Jackie accuses Grace of the unforgivable- killing her sister. Although Grace is certain Jackie’s accusations aren’t true, she has her doubts, but one thing is for certain- both of them will resolve their differences, or one of them will die trying.
Zoje Stage knocked my socks off with “Baby Teeth”, with its dark, deeply disturbing subject matter and psychologically deranged plot. Although I haven’t had the chance to read another Stage novel since, I was so fascinated with her debut that I was ecstatic to get the chance to read “Mothered”.
This novel is delectably twisted and uncomfortable, taking pandemic fear and dysfunctional relationships to a new level. “Mothered” was hard to get into, as Stage’s writing style took some adjusting, and the story was initially confusing. The plot did sort itself out, however, and once it did, I was hooked. There are so many mysteries to be solved in this novel (the biggest one being who is the one doing the gaslighting) and not all of them find resolution, but the quest to the end was satisfying.
Grace’s dreams are next level creepy, literally leaving me with goosebumps. Jackie, too, has her moments, where she teeters back and forth between sane and not quite so, tossing blame around and emotionally manipulating her only surviving daughter.
The story is narrated by Grace in the present, with smaller sections representing Grace’s recollections of past events, so the reader only experiences Grace’s side of the story intimately. Stage telling the story this way makes the reader question reality, and it is so unsettling (in the best way). After reading the prologue, hints are given toward the ending, and there are enough teasers to attract attention, without giving away the final moments.
“Mothered” is not for the faint of heart, and it will definitely creep out even the most experienced horror reader. But those who are willing to take a chance on a uniquely bizarre story with a twisted plot won’t be disappointed.