WOW! What an incredibly moving debut book. The topics are heavy, focused on alcoholism and the effects it can have on the individual struggling with the addiction as well as the family watching the damage be done. While this was such a heartbreaking and sad story, it was very well done and deeply moving. Additionally, the audiobook is fantastic, and regardless of format, this novel will stick with you.

Highly recommend the read / listen!

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Muse Audiobooks for my ALC and ARC copies in exchange for my honest review.

Leah O'Connor has been married for ten years and has three children. She is at a point where a buried secret and the demands of motherhood cause her to lose herself and feel that she is sacrificing her career and herself. Her coping mechanisms find her at a precarious crossroads. Leah begins to feel further alienated from her extended family as her behavior becomes more erratic. This book focuses on themes of family dynamics, pain, addiction, alcoholism, motherhood with its joys and heartaches, redemption, and family secrets.

*Special thanks to NetGalley and Harper Muse for this digital e-arc.*

Heavy and heartbreaking but very powerful. Hard to get through but also I couldn’t put it down. A deep look into some heavy addiction and the people it affects. There was a lot going on in this book and a few things got lost along the way but I enjoyed the journey.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are mine alone.

Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea is a heart -wrenching look at the life of an active alcoholic. This story is a slow burn reminiscent of a tragic accident you wish you'd have never witnessed, yet somehow can't look away from. Leah is a free spirit who thought that being a mother might not be in the cards for her...yet here is she three kids, a husband, a close knit extended family deep.

The story felt so raw and real but one part of the ending felt more far fetched and kind of threw me off track. Overall I loved this story.

•Debut
•Slow burn
•First person POV
•Dual past and present timelines
•Addiction

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Muse for an ARC in exchange for my honest review. Publishing 5/13.

4 stars

I believe that one of the scariest things in life is addiction, and alcohol addiction, at least for me, is the worst one, because it's allowed, it's legal, and encouraged as people reach drinking age. Leah is a free spirit who had a difficult upbringing and is an artist. She fears anything that will tie her down, make her create roots and it's what happens when she discovers herself pregnant. She is a mother of three children that struggles among the roles she has: mother, wife, daughter, daughter-in-law, friend, artist. She also believes that her drinking is within normal levels until she finally realizes she's destroying everything she found once dear to her. She watches her best friend struggle to have her pregnancy to term after a natural abortion, a friend who has not told anyone her mother is still alive. She duels with her mother-in-law who also has a secret, she slowly drifts away from her husband who she resents for not helping more with the children until she falls apart and has to face life, her husband, her children, and find her sobriety and to start to live fully. Extremely touching, well-written, Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea, is a tale of womanhood, motherhood, family life and love that gives ample scope to ponder on what's really important.
I thank the author, her publisher, and NetGalley for this ARC.

I went into this book blind and was really impressed by how it tackled complex, emotional topics like strained family dynamics, addiction, and motherhood. Leah’s struggles—especially with her mother-in-law and feeling unsupported—felt raw and relatable.

It’s a tough, honest look at what happens when someone gives in to addiction and grief, and the ripple effect it has on a family. The ending was intense but powerful. A strong debut that will stick with me for a while.

This book starts with many names of characters to keep straight and I almost gave up in the first 40 pages. I hoped the people would settle into their respective roles and I would be able to keep them straight in my mind and by 1/3 in I was better able to ... but I had to keep reminding myself who each player throughout the book.

The author apparently used her real life struggle with alcohol to craft the story which I valued. I am a social wine drinker so her sharing the ways her main character hid her alcoholism was interesting. I felt the second half of the book was compelling but I struggled a good bit with the first half, in part due to the issue with so many characters, in part because the author was slow to lay out the main character's issues and compulsion. to drink

This book is a decent read but I wouldn't recommend it when there are other books I'd put much higher on a TBR list of a friend.

A woman spinning out. This domestic drama sees Leah self medicating with alcohol. She's unhappy with her life and more specifically with her husband Lucas and mother in law Christine. Turns out that there's more to Christine than she knew. Amy, her sister in law, is a help but it's not until the secrets they've all kept are surfaced that Leah can heal. This is a layered story with good sympathetic characters. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Good storytelling makes it a good read.

This is a tough one for me to rate. It's a well-written book that kept my interest and that I tore through pretty quickly. However, the book is very heavy, and for the most part, the main character is very unlikable. That is by intention, as it was shows the person she becomes as her alcohol addiction takes over, with the point being that she becomes someone unrecognizable who makes really poor decisions. But it put me in a tough position because this someone suffering from addiction, so while reading, I felt a sense of guilt about disliking her or judging her decisions and actions. Yet at the same time, having grown up with an alcoholic father and understanding how much trauma comes along with it, I suppose I am entitled to feel a certain way about the character in this book.

I do like that this book shined a light on the dark side of motherhood. Comparison has always existed and rarely serves a good purpose, but in today's world, it's so much worse. Now even when we aren't around others in person, we can see them on social media. It's so easy to forget that social media rarely shows the struggles and the darkness that we all encounter at times. It's easy to get caught in the comparison trap and wonder why you don't have what "they" have, or why you don't feel the bliss of motherhood like others seem to. But the truth is, a LOT of mothers struggle, for a multitude of reasons. This book focuses on some of the more common reasons that you hear women open up about (feeling like they've lost themselves, feeling frustrated that their husband's lives barely seem impacted or changed by children while the mother's world is expected to revolve around the kids, etc.). But instead of just gently talking about these things, this book lets you inside the main character's head to really feel, see, and bear witness to what it's like to live with these feelings.

In the case of this character, her struggles lead her to depend on alcohol to relax, which ultimately turns into her depending on alcohol more and more until it becomes a serious addiction. I have no doubt that I have people in my life that have ended up in this place. That don't see it as a problem because they can still get through their days, hold down a job, take care of the kids, etc. It's easy to explain it away...until it's not.

The one thing I would've really liked to have seen from this book was more about Leah (the main character) overcoming her addiction. I think many women will feel seen by this book. For some, it'll just be because of the struggles with motherhood. With others, it will be because of the alcoholism. So I would have loved to have seen this book give more of an explanation of how to break free of addiction, how recovery often doesn't go in a straight line, how some never do become sober, etc. A friend forcing you to go to one meeting and then your family saying they'd like to see you get help may work on occasion, but that's the exception, not the rule. I know this book isn't a self-help book or a manual on recovery, but it felt like the main character's recovery was explained in the space of a single paragraph, which felt unrealistic and unsatisfying to me.

Other than that, I did think it was a good read and I think it will resonate with mothers having the same struggles with motherhood as the character in the book (whether or not they turn to alcohol to cope).

Thank you to HarperCollins Focus and NetGalley for the e-arc in exchange for my review.

3.5 stars, rounded up.

This is one of those books that will dig in deep and make the reader cringe or… perhaps… relate to the journey that is addiction. And more specifically alcohol addiction.

From page one I struggled with the main character Leah, she drove me nuts with her passive aggressive attitude to her mother-in-law and the distinction she tried to have between raising her daughters versus battling her mother-in-law.

Perhaps it comes with a lens of raising my own sons, missing my own mother-in-law, or the way society has villainized mother-in-law’s in the last 5 to 10 years. So trigger warnings in abundance, it is not a light read.

What it is… isis an honest read.
It’s life with an addiction and it’s trauma when a friend sees history repeating itself.

You may relate as a mother, a friend, a spouse or even a child of someone whose pain is masked through a bottle. Recent for me, is someone I grew up with who reached for that same bottle, but never did survive it.

And so well, Leah irked to me. I wanted to hug her as well. Luring the lines between someone we know that has gone too soon and reading about a character who is floundering.

For some readers, they may think that the pain that she’s holding, which led her to the bottle isn’t significant enough. And with that I would just caution it by saying that, there are layers upon layers, which have an addict looking to escape..

I’m actually not sure I can star this book because it made me extremely uncomfortable. Emotional. Frustrated. And sad.
I do know that it’s one of the most raw and honest glimpse into alcoholism without being too dark.

BOOK: Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea
AUTHOR: Jessica Guerrieri
PUB DATE: May 13, 2025, by HarperCollins Focus
PAGES: 320
RATING: 5 stars
GENRE: Women’s Fiction

I am honored to have been given an advanced copy by this debut author! A tremendous THANK YOU to @HARPERCOLLINSFOCUS, @HarperCollinsMuse @netgalley, and @jessicaguerri. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

SYNOPSIS: In this emotionally charged novel, Leah’s life is upended by an unexpected pregnancy after falling for the charming Lucas O’Connor. Over a decade & 3 kids later, she struggles with unfulfilled artistic dreams, mounting resentment, & a growing dependence on alcohol. Tensions with her self-sacrificing mother-in-law Christine & an increasingly absent husband only deepen her isolation. When Leah shares a damaging secret with her sister-in-law, it threatens the fragile unity of the O’Connor family. As her erratic behavior escalates, Leah must confront her self-destruction, the pressures of motherhood, & the complex dynamics of the women around her to decide whether her family will be her redemption or her downfall.

QUICK & SPOILER-FREE REVIEW: Applause to this debut author! An unputdownable tale of secrets, sacrifice, & stunning twists. From the first page it had me completely hooked. It tells the raw & riveting story of a complex woman, flawed, & achingly real, who finds herself drowning in a life she never imagined. The pressures of motherhood, trying to measure up to her mother-in-law & husband’s family all mount in quiet, suffocating ways. She’s not unhappy exactly, but she’s lost. And it’s that quiet unraveling that makes this book so compelling. What sets this novel apart is how skillfully it weaves in a long-buried secret from her past; one that simmers beneath the surface until it explodes in a way I never saw coming. And at the very end, the author threw in a twist so unexpected & breathtaking. This is more than a domestic drama. It’s a story about identity, betrayal, & the choices we make when we feel like we have none. The ending hit like an emotional earthquake. I’ll be thinking about this one for a long time! Highly recommend!

There are triggers to consider: Addiction, Suicide, Miscarriage, and Alcoholism.

A thought-provoking book touching lots of emotions. The author captures the struggles Leah faces, trying to prove herself a worthy wife, mother, artist, friend, and a good daughter in law. Her complicated dynamics with her in-laws are depicted expertly. As she refuses to take help, she finds herself in depths of alcoholism, bitterness, and frustration. A powerful representation of emotional difficulties mostly every woman faces at some point in her life. Excellent ending. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the eARC.

I went into this book blind and was very impressed with this debut novel that covered multiple difficult topics. There was lots of family issues (books that focus on bad mother is laws make me so thankful for my excellent MIL) struggles with alcohol, and difficult pregnancies and loss. This book will stick with me for a long time and I do find some of the issues that Leah struggled with in motherhood are relatable. Leah did not have the support to help when she was struggling but at the same time, she had made herself pretty unlikable to her husband’s family as well. The ending was a lot and it does show what happens when someone gives into addiction. I do feel like there was great character development throughout the book and I really enjoyed it.

This is debut novel had me thinking about it days after I finished it. Thru the protagonist the author delves into the complex and complicated experiences that can sometimes come with motherhood. With the portrayal of realistic characters, it is understandable how as when drinking becomes a daily ritual, relationships can become strained until there is no place to go but downhill.

If you are in the throes of raising kids and trying to balance between your spouse, career and being a Mom then you will totally relate to this debut novel. Leah is a mom of 3 who's husband has decided to reinvent the family restaurant when she is struggling to find her identity as a professional artist but not quite finding the time to devote to it. She has the support of her husband's family but suddenly feels they are smothering her and as she pulls away from everyone she turns to alcohol more and more as she tries to find herself.

Thank you to Harper Collins Focus and NetGalley for the advanced reader copy!

3.5 🌟releases 5•13!

First off: Mia Hutchinson-Saw did a phenomenal job with the characters in this audiobook. She solo narrated the entire thing and her voice never once felt flat or monotonous. The writing was so beautiful and I can’t believe Jessica is a debut author.

This book follows the parallels between being a mother/wife/friend and living through what all of us mothers know as the brutal season of endless giving and no taking. We love our kids..let me repeat this: WE LOVE OUR KIDS… but the constant ‘give all of yourself until you’re raw in the soul and bones’ with zero taking for yourself is a horrible hole and it’s hard to not fall into.

This novel follow Leah’s journey towards becoming an alcoholic and touches upon how “wine culture” for moms handling stressful parenting seasons can be a slippery slope. While I don’t agree having a glass of wine to decompress after a long day is a problem I do agree in that if you aren’t handling your shit it is a dangerous habit.

The ending was incredibly powerful but the middle meandered a bit too much for me and that’s why I’ve settled at 3.5 stars. My mother died of alcoholism and I’ve done many years of therapy to heal from that so this book was triggering but manageable for me. If you have addiction circling your life and you have yet to heal… maybe revisit this version of addiction until it would be easier to consume.

Overall, an intense and powerful read I’d recommend but (again) use caution ⚠️ if you have triggers towards cheating, addiction, unworthiness in the context of family dynamics, or are struggling in motherhood without support.

Thank you to Netgalley and Harper Collins for this eARC/audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Harper Muse for the opportunity to preview Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

The book started out easy and light hearted- a story of a young, free-willed artist falling in love and being absorbed by a tight night family, with a controlling matriarch. I could easily relate to the main character, Leah, and her desperation in losing her sense of self to motherhood, the demands put on a mom while the husband continues to live his dream. I also could see myself the family dynamics of the family relationships and dynamics of the in-laws, and the friendship between Leah and Amy, her pal, her confidant, and sister-in-law. The book started out as happy and free, but slowly spiraled down into dark and anger and frustration. I realized near the end of the book this was the skill of the author, reflecting in her writing the hold of alcoholism. I can't say I enjoyed the second half of the book, but you are not meant to. Leah's demons come out because of her drinking, which she was needing to escape her demons. Those that care for her step up, but she fights them believing no one can understand her struggles.

After reading the author's notes I have more respect for this book because this book is a fictionalized story of her own struggle I believe. I admire her struggles and her triumph, and also her determination to get her story out in a relatable way. The book was relatable, but not a happy one. Reading about the author made me take the book to heart, but I enjoyed the first half of the book much more. That makes the book more realistic to Leah's struggles- a good book for discussion. 3.5 Stars. Hard to rate because it was a well written story, but not an enjoyable book.

This was incredibly deep and powerful. Really raw and ridiculously well written. I look forward to more from Guerrieri!

Enjoyable, thoughtful, insightful read. Motherhood is hard, very hard. Leah’s journey is eye opening, and definitely a good read.

A raw, emotionally resonant exploration of motherhood, identity, and addiction. Guerrieri's prose is both lyrical and unflinching, offering an intimate portrayal of a woman on the brink.