"Like Mother, Like Daughter" by Kimberly McCreight is this really intense and emotional book that dives into the whole mom-daughter relationship with a lot of mystery and suspense. Cleo, an NYU student, gets back home one day, and her mom's nowhere to be found, and things look kind of out of order. Cleo starts digging into what really happened and she finds out her mom, Kat, has been hiding things from her past.

The book really gets into Cleo and Kat's different personalities—Cleo's all over the place and rebellious, while Kat's playing the part of a hotshot corporate lawyer and caring mom. It also dives deep into some serious stuff like lying, finding yourself, and how far a mom would go to keep her kid safe. Digging into the lies people hold on to and the tough truths they dodge brings an extra dose of psychological depth to the story. The heart of the story is the relationship between the mom and daughter, showing how they're determined to keep each other safe from all the craziness.

"Like Mother, Like Daughter" is not just some nail-biting thriller; it's a deep dive into how families work and the crazy things people do to protect each other. Kimberly McCreight mixes in suspense, feelings, and deep thoughts, making this book a real page-turner for anyone into wild family stories with a bit of excitement.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC. I devoured this book. I loved all the twists and turns, I never really knew what to expect next.. I work in a high school library so while this books isn't YA I think it would be appropriate for high school students to read, there's nothing too graphic or obscene.

Kat is a lawyer at a top-notch law firm in NYC. Actually, she's their "fixer" for anything that goes wrong with clients.
Cleo is her daughter who goes to NYU and is the exact opposite of Kat.
Cleo arrives at their Brooklyn home for dinner one evening and finds Kat missing. And so, the mystery begins. What happened to Kat? Why is her husband Aidan being shady? And what's up with Kat's "fixer" job at the law firm? (Which Cleo has no idea about - she just thinks her mom is a corporate lawyer.)
We soon find out Kat had a troubled childhood and spent several years in a group home, Haven House in Connecticut. And the law firm takes on the problem of Darden Pharmaceuticals, who is under suspicion of dispensing a drug that may have caused fetal fatalities/deformities.
I liked Cleo and Kat and Kat's role at the law firm. I wish there was more background story regarding Haven House. There were some old diary entries of Kat's, but I think the story would have been better if her time at Haven House had been more fleshed out, instead of the Darden Pharmaceuticals storyline which became convoluted.
Overall, a decent read.

Engaging and immersive. McCreight is consistently entertaining. A recommended purchase for collections where crime and WF is popular.