Thank you so much for the opportunity to read and review this book ahead of publication. I loved it! My review will post to my blog on April 22 and I will also feature it on Instagram that day. The review will also be posted to Fable, The Storygraph, Goodreads and retail sites.

Review:

All of my life, I've loved theatre. I acted in high school and college, and when I moved to Texas, I was involved with a local theatre for 12 years as an actor, stage manager, and director. I loved it, and some of my best friends to this day are friends that I met while doing theatre. It's a world I loved and very much enjoyed being a part of, so when I read the synopsis for this book, I immediately knew I needed to read it. It did not disappoint! This debut - set against the backdrop of the glamorous and sometimes cutthroat theater world - is filled with rich characters and plenty of family drama. It follows the complex relationship between actress Sadie Jones and her daughter Jude, a relationship that is fraught with love, resentment, and plenty of misunderstandings.

Reimer's writing is both clever and compelling, drawing the reader into the lives of Sadie and Jude as their stories unfold in six acts. The mother-daughter relationship at the heart of the novel is portrayed with honesty and depth. Through alternating perspectives and flashbacks, Reimer skillfully explores the impact of Sadie's choices on Jude and the lasting effects of their strained relationship. The alternating timelines and perspectives really benefitted this book. I loved the structure and the way Jude's angst and heartache over her absent mother were established from the beginning, while Sadie was portrayed as a self-absorbed woman who only cared about herself - but ever so slowly, perspectives shifted.

We begin with Jude - now a mature adult - as she arrives at the theatre for a performance of Sadie's one-woman show. Jude doesn't trust her mother, and we learn what's at the core of that mistrust during the first act when we flashback to Jude's thirteenth birthday. She is traveling with her father's Shakespeare-focused theatre troupe, and they have stopped in California for a performance; Sadie will be in attendance. Jude has a list of things she intends to tell her mother, and she has a lot of questions that she wants answered - mainly why her mother wrote and performed a one-woman show titled "The Mother Act" in which she laid out all of the reasons she hated her child and never wanted to be a mother. Was Jude really that unloveable?

This sets the stage for the rest of the book, with each "act" set up with several chapters focusing on Jude as a thirteen-year-old, a summer after high school, and again in her 20s. Within each act, we also see things from Sadie's perspective as she runs away from her conservative home in the Midwest to New York, where she becomes a radical feminist, performs as part of an unconventional theatre troop, meets her future husband and eventually gives birth to Sadie and then one day - up and leaves. Through each act, more and more layers are peeled away, and the balance and our thoughts on each of the characters begin to shift.

At its core, "The Mother Act" is a novel about the choices we make and the consequences that follow, particularly when it comes to balancing personal ambition with familial responsibilities - especially when you are a woman. Reimer delves into complex themes such as gender dynamics, identity, and the nature of artistry, exploring how these factors intersect and shape the lives of her characters. Through Sadie and Jude's struggles and triumphs, the novel poses thought-provoking questions about the expectations placed on women, both as mothers and artists.

I loved this book. I loved the characters, the complex relationships, and the questions it asks. I felt like I knew these characters, and it made me miss my theatre family in Houston; it was almost like coming home. It is a stylish and engaging read that is sure to leave a lasting impact. This is an impressive debut, and I can't wait to read more by this author. I will definitely be adding a hard copy of this book to my shelves when it drops. There's a lot to unpack here, and this is one I'd like to revisit down the road.

What shines brightest for me in The Mother Act is that it goes beyond the experiences of an ordinary mother and daughter dealing with how the role of motherhood affects them. In this story both mother and daughter are actors, therefore expressing emotions is both natural and unnatural for them. Acting has been passionately pursued and developed by one, raised on and conditioned into by the other. While it’s visceral for both, expressing themselves through a “character” is also how they preferably choose to navigate through life, and be the lens through how they wish to express themselves when being themselves is less appealing an option. The Mother Act spotlights the push and pull motherhood demands on Sadie Jones, a struggling actor and fervent feminist who’d only ever viewed it as a threat, and how her choices later affect her daughter Jude.

Our formidable Sadie, an unorthodox actor, wears her heart on her sleeve as she spouts enlightenment on top of her feminist soapbox. She is self-centered, selfish, a narcissist that’s hard to like even in the sections told through her perspective. I don’t think Sadie is meant to be liked and there isn’t any real evidence as to why Damian, Jude’s father, is drawn to her. She’s so assertive about her views it doesn’t even settle as overwhelming. Every single time she’s in a scene she mentions how the patriarchy is bad, how motherhood is entrapping for women, being a mother is the worst thing that could happen to a woman, ultimately women should want more for themselves. And I respect those views, however having it dialed to an eleven in every scene she is present in makes her---as one of the two leading characters---unreachable, unrelatable, and makes it hard to believe she has any allies.

Then there’s her daughter Jude, a more classically trained actor and while a gifted performer, timid, and overly cautious about letting anyone too close to knowing the real her. She’s Sadie’s foil in personality where she isn’t in appearance. While on the surface readers will want to side with her without much evidence, Reimer fleshes her out enough that while we don’t blindly accept why Sadie abandoned her, we do see her as flawed as her mother.

The experiences and traumas of their childhoods and the image of how motherhood is understood by the generation before them set the blueprint for how they will go forward in life.

One of the interesting things I enjoyed regarding the portrayal of acting was that both mother and daughter start with unconventional stages but over time explore other mediums of acting—traditional theater performances or film.

Another fun decision Reimer makes to showcase their dynamic is by setting the stage of her novel using a creative, theater-reminiscent, six act structure in lieu of chapters. We get large doses of the past interwoven through snapshots of the present, see-sawing from mother to daughter, offering perspectives from both. Altogether an excellent character study and enjoyable for anyone in or interested in the theater world.

Finally, I absolutely love a title that takes on multiple meanings.

This warm and witty debut, structured as a play in six acts, depicts a mother-daughter relationship gone horribly wrong. Told from two perspectives, Remmer ingeniously explores themes of motherhood, identity, and ambition. Propulsive, fun to read, thought-provoking and entertaining.

The Mother Act is a novel written as a six act play imbued with the atmospheric theater world. It is a compelling exploration of what it means to be a mother when you have aspirations to be and do so much more. What is the price of self-fulfillment at the expense of those you vowed to cherish and care for; or of abandonment and how that shapes self-image? And what happens, not only when you choose a path that is unconventional and hurtful to others, but you decide to share intimate details of that decision with the public?

My reaction when reading this book was physical. My heart was pounding as if I was reading a thriller. And a way this was. Family drama can sometimes turn into a symbolic blood bath — there are a myriad of ways to inflict harm on those we supposedly love. I clearly was on Jude, the daughter’s team. Sadie was a difficult person to connect with. But many of us have made concessions that she would not abide. Maybe Sadie, despite her often self serving behavior, was brave and we wished we had some of that bravado.

The story:

Sadie ran away from a traditional, religious family and their expectations when she was 17. She had a larger than life personality and fulfilled her dream to live large and out loud. She became an actress and controversial feminist. Sadie never wanted to be a mother. In fact, she went to great lengths to make sure this would never happen. But then she had a change of heart and Jude was born.

When Jude was two, Sadie left her with her father and never made an attempt to connect with her for six years. After that, there were sporadic, brief visits. Jude grew up with her actor father and spent her childhood touring with his Shakespearean company desperate for a real relationship with her mother. That was not to happen. Sadie becomes famous for her one woman play revealing her rage in caring for her baby. As an adult, Jude becomes a successful actress in her own right.

As you can imagine, there is a reckoning worthy of the two women.

The book raises issues of feminism, motherhood, self-identity, and ambition. There is so much to think about. I would highly recommend it as a book club pick.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Penguin Random House for the opportunity to read this advance reading copy.

I love and miss the theatre. This book indulged my craving for the acting life and plays. Reimer wrote a great mother-daughter story that had dual POV. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

The mother act follows a mother and daughter complicated relationship in the backdrop of the theater world.

If you want a story with a complex mother and daughter relationship than you have found it. This story follows a dual pov from Sadie (mother) and Jude (daughter). The story was beautifully woven together until it reaches the present. This debut was well written, an easy read and doing a deep dive into complex mother and daughter relationship's. It shined light on what people would do for fame and who would they leave behind

Wow. If you like in-depth character studies, this one is excellent. Sadie and Jude have been estranged their entire relationship. Sadie is a feminist who loudly declared at her one woman show that she never wanted to be a mother. Years later Jude is now also a successful actress attending her mother’s new play. Tension and resentment has always run high between these two. I love a family drama and this one is so good! Mother and daughter relationships are often fraught, but this one takes it to a new level. Highly recommend.

Not for me unfortunately; I think I will pass on this for our collection as it just didn't really stand out to me. Nothing new here that I haven't seen before.

Sadie Jones, a dazzling and controversial feminist icon, takes center stage in this emotionally charged narrative that delves into the complexities of motherhood and the pursuit of artistic greatness. In "The Mother Act," author Heidi Reimer skillfully weaves a tale that spans two decades, exploring the intricate relationship between Sadie and her daughter, Jude.

Sadie's larger-than-life persona and her resolute decision to forgo motherhood set the stage for a story that unfolds with profound emotional depth. Jude, the daughter left in the wake of Sadie's ambitions, spends her childhood yearning for acknowledgment and validation from a mother who remains elusive. Sadie's meteoric rise to fame, fueled by her provocative one-woman show, "The Mother Act," thrusts her into the spotlight as a symbol of maternal rage, leaving Jude to grapple with the aftermath.

As the narrative unfolds, the tension between mother and daughter comes to a head on a December evening in the heart of New York City, during the premiere of Sadie's latest play. The stage is set for a poignant exploration of love, resentment, and profound misunderstanding. The intertwined stories of Sadie and Jude unravel, laying bare the raw emotions and unanswered questions that have lingered for years.

"The Mother Act" poses thought-provoking questions about the costs of being a devoted mother and a devoted artist. Reimer skillfully navigates the complexities of Sadie's unapologetic pursuit of greatness and Jude's yearning for maternal connection. The narrative prompts readers to reflect on who gets to decide if the collateral damage is justified in the pursuit of personal and artistic fulfillment.

This novel is a riveting and emotionally charged exploration of the intersections between motherhood and art, leaving readers with a lingering resonance that speaks to the universal struggles of love, ambition, and the choices that shape our lives. "The Mother Act" is a compelling read that dives deep into the human experience, offering a nuanced portrayal of the sacrifices made in the pursuit of passion and the enduring bonds that tie mothers and daughters together.

DO YOU LOVE COMPLICATED MOTHER/DAUGHTER RELATIONSHIPS?! Me too!

okay, this one was so good. I loved the dynamic between Sadie and Jude, the fact that she was raised by her father (so often fathers abandon the children) and her mother is so selfish and self centered that she can’t even comprehend why leaving her daughter was uncalled for. The story is written from Jude and Sadie’s perspectives, woven together until they meet in the present day. Holy cannoli- talk about a modern day stance on motherhood, empowerment, generational trauma, and the expectations put on us to be mothers.

Well written, easy read and just so so so well done.