I wasn’t super crazy about this one. It was thankfully short but nothing much happened, so I think I was expecting something entirely different and the bar was set too high. Not for me.

This was my first novel from Zoje Stage and I have heard so many good things. I was very excited to dip my toes into what this book/author had to offer. This book tackles the very trick relationship between a mother and a daughter. It deals with trauma, grief, and the thoughts that we have when those very things take hold in a relationship that is so near and dear to our hearts/wellbeing. I really enjoyed this book overall, it does get darker than I was expecting but nonetheless, I still really love it!

I had high expectations for this book and I am disappointed it didn’t deliver the thrill I was anticipating. Maybe part of it was my own fault for reading back-to-back books set during the pandemic, but it was more than that too. At times it was confusing trying to differentiate between dreams, memories, and reality, and I’m still not certain I ever sorted all of that out completely. I was reading on my kindle, but a hard copy of the book would have been a bit more helpful as I scrolled back several pages from time to time. The ending wasn’t a surprise, although I did find parts of it very strange. The last part with the therapist wasn’t satisfying either. It simply needed MORE. I would read a sequel of it would bring all of it together.

I do like the author’s previous book Baby Teeth, but Mothered just wasn’t for me.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with the opportunity to read and review this book.

Zoje Stage best book to date. I will definitely be picking this up when it comes out in print, as well.

This book was like none other I've read before. I remember thinking several times, what in the world is going on in this book?! It was really great and kept my attention. At like 60%, things really got good and I just couldn't wait to figure out what the heck was going on. It was like a car wreck, you just have to keep reading to figure out how bad it is. Haha. I loved it and can't wait to read more from her.

Mothered
Zoje Stage

- [ ] Just the introduction sucks you in. Be sure to read authors note.
- [ ] You immediately sense tension between two characters as they begin to develop in the book plus another sister
- [ ] Little things also immediately come to your mind to keep track of for later on IF needed.
- [ ] Rollercoaster ride of the relationship of mother and daughter in the past and present
- [ ] Sat within the times of quarantine without making it the main focus
- [ ] The dreamscapes keep your attention and have perfect visuals
- [ ] Fever dream aspects
- [ ] Little slow burn at times
- [ ] Accusations making you question what you think
- [ ] Keeps you questioning what is real and what isn’t
- [ ] Ending was chef’s kiss
- [ ] 100% recommend reading

Review Copy

I knew I had to read MOTHERED. The little I knew told me it was a must read, and Zoje Stage killed it! This book about the pandemic and it's effects on a mother/daughter is fantastic.

Parts of it mirrored my own recent life. My husband of 26 years passed away during the pandemic (unrelated cause) and I found myself living with my daughter. She's married, so similarities end there. But the related stress was all too familiar.

Grace and Jackie haven't lived together since Grace was 18. She's now 38 and both of them have changed. It ain't easy, just imagine...

Lockdown, no vaccine, tiny house - and it all adds up to book you won't want to put down. Recommended reading for all.

Fevered,nightmarish and claustrophobic. I mean that in all the best ways. I’ve been a fan of Zoje Stage since her brilliant debut Baby Teeth and this novel might be her most chilling yet. It’ll be awhile before I get this one out of my head.

Highly recommended.

Baby Teeth is one of those books that I still think about. I was excited to get a copy of Stage’s newest book. This one is so weird and creepy and totally confusing. Is this real? Is it a dream? It is set in the beginning of the pandemic, so if isolation is triggering, you might not like it; however, being quarantined with your mom is a great premise for a horror book. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC

Well, this being my first Zoje Stage novel, I wasn’t disappointed. I happened to see a tiktok of her showing off the physical arc and the cover drew me in (I like scissors for some reason. Idk.)

I started this one not knowing much, just that it was a thriller. I was quickly sucked in and my mind kept going back and forth about what’s going to happen. It was pretty slow to begin with but still had be wondering what was real and what was a dream and just when I thought I had it, nope. It was a dream. I loved that aspect of this book. I was a little underwhelmed by the ending and it seemed rushed and missing pieces. I wish it had more explanation of what was actually wrong with Jackie and Robert. I’d love to read a second book about Grace and how she does after the pandemic. That’s another thing! I try not to read pandemic related things. I lived it don’t need to read it. So I wish there was something in the synopsis about it being a pandemic novel.

Overall I was so pleased with this book and will more than likely buy a physical copy when it’s released. I can’t wait to read more from Zoje!

Interesting read. Not one I would normally choose to read. But I’m glad I did. It was very different. But exciting. Very well written

I really loved this book and its storyline. Stage does such a good job at blending nightmares and reality, to the point where I was constantly questioning what was memory, reality, or another nightmare. Yet another creepy story that highlights the relationship between mother and child!

This book had me hooked from the very beginning. The cover alone caught my eye right away! I absolutely loved Baby Teeth so when I saw Mothered was available for an early read I couldn’t resist. This author has a way of making almost anything creepy (in the best way possible) Although this book is heavy on the Covid pandemic it gives us an inside look on how very differently it can affect your mental state. Grace & Jackies relationship was destined for disaster from the very beginning but that ending had me speechless. Overall this book was wonderful, but I still have questions!

After Baby Teeth I had so much excitement for Mothered. This was a slow spiral into madness in an elderly mother/ daughter household during quarantine which has been super relevant these days so it made it that much more real. So much unresolved trauma and stress can only lead to trouble. The open ended ending is classic Zoje Stage and left me wanting to know more.

Thank you NetGalley for this arc

Mothered is the type of thriller that is difficult for me to summarize or review.

I have a mixed past with this author, and I wanted to give her a second try after devouring Baby Teeth in a all-night reading stupor. Mothered is about a mother and daughter stuck in a house together when isolation and nightmares combine to bring out the worst in their shared trauma. Based on that description alone, it would be a great domestic thriller for me; however, it left out that it is set in 2020. Everything in this book is driven by the Covid 19 pandemic. It has an abundance of pop culture references, and at times, the novel almost felt like a meme to me. I love reading pandemic and outbreak novels, but there is something so referential about Covid novels that I just don’t like. This is a personal preference, of course, but my main complaint is that this isn’t mentioned anywhere in the synopsis. It seems like a silly thing to leave out.

The actual plot of the novel was way too slow at the beginning and way too fast at the end. I didn’t feel like the story got to the real “thriller”moments until the 50% mark. Once I reached the main payoff of the story, the mysteries that kept me reading were never answered, and the ending action sequence felt so fast that I didn’t get to experience the book being a true thriller for very long. I think the perspective of the novel hurt it here, but it still had so much potential.

I also didn’t enjoy how the disabled (and dead) character in this novel was a villainous character. I would not recommend this to any of my disabled or chronically ill friends.

All that being said, I think this book is for someone who is newer to the thriller genre or likes a calmer more paced out ride.

I received an ARC of this book from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this book! I couldn’t put it down. Zoje is starting to become one of those authors that I will read anything they put out. I devoured this book in a couple days. Love it!!

This author's books give me endless nightmares. I always say "nope not reading another of those" and then the second I have the opportunity I do whatever I need to do to get my hands on that book. In this case I signed up for a Netgalley account.
The "this gives me nightmares" is fitting for this book.
I am grateful Hope was written as a fully actualized nightmare child, and not a perfect angel, as many write disabled children. She was ..real and clearly loved by Grace. That is a true twin relationship.
And the end! The end was too perfect.

This book I really wanted to like it but I wasn’t able to get into it. I feel like the writing is all over the place I could not get into and then I was starting to get confused.
Example: At the end of a chapter she was hugging gay friends and without any leading they were kissing.
I had to page back to make sure I didn’t miss a sentence or two because I was so confused. I didn’t miss a sentence….

I have enjoyed the authors previous novels, all of which straddle the line between the horror/thriller;/literary fiction genre. "Mothered" is both a domestic drama and a story of the pandemic and how the fears and isolation made all of us feel unsettled and untethered to our former lives. Grace is a 36 year old hairstylist who has just gone back to work part time and is afraid she will lose the house she just bought. Her best friend Miguel, a fellow hair stylist is the only one she sees in person and she has just received a request from her mother to move in with her. Grace and her mother have not seen each other recently and there is no love lost between them, mostly because Grace had felt neglected as a child when all her mother's attention was on Grace's twin sister Hope, who was born with Cerebral Palsy, As the story unfolds we find out Grace was made to feel like a nursemaid to her sister who wasn't very nice and often cruel.

Jackie (the mother) moves in and Grace begins immediately having disturbing and violent dreams, often involving her sister. For a great deal of the book we don't know what is real and what is a dream since Grace wakes up and doesn't know herself if various conversations, dinners or things happened. I found this to confusing after awhile and wanted some clarification as what was real and what was a dream. When Miguel becomes ill with Covid, and Jackie begins to turn mean and accusing to Grace, her mental health takes a turn for the worse with a terrible outcome. I liked the author's attempt to put the mental health of people isolated with Covid into a fictional novel, but there were too many scenes where something normal seemed to happen like the mother making lasagna, and we are then t0ld it was a dream. At times I felt the mother was gaslighting Grace and there is a general feeling of unease throughout the novel. I also felt like Grace wasn't a very nice person and her hobby of catfishing seemed strange as it appeared she did have actual friends even though she couldn't spend much time with them in real life. Interesting book and topic but too many dream sequences for me. Still, Stage's writing is always literary and well done and I will read whatever she puts out. Thanks to Thomas and Mercer and NetGalley for a free ARC of this book in exchange for a review.

I am a huge Zoje Stage fan. I will read anyyyyyything she writes! Stage knows how to write a suspenseful and thrilling story.
Mothered takes place during the start of the Covid-19 pandemic lockdowns. It was very well written, and has a very claustrophobic feel to it. This book blew my mind and I absolutely recommend it.

I want to thank Netgalley,and Thomas & Mercer for an arc of this book.