You can honestly skip the first five chapters of this book and start with, 'Alice was going out of her goddamn mind.'

The writing leans into a heavily stylised, almost literary register that doesn’t quite land:

'The door became a bulwark between life and an abyss, his hammering fists the harbingers of a threat that had once pledged to protect and cherish her ...'

This tone dominates the opening, but from chapter six the plot picks up and becomes genuinely engaging, offering some reward for perseverance.

Three stars, generously.

Motherhood was supposed to bring Alice joy. Instead, it brought isolation, overwhelming guilt, and the creeping fear that she might harm her baby. Trapped in a penthouse with her baby, Ellie, while her husband Max works long hours, Alice feels like she’s losing her grip on reality.

Then one sleepless night, she finds Max with a dead woman in their living room. She calls the police. But they can’t find a body.

They can’t find her baby, either.

And Alice’s husband now insists that Ellie never existed. That the baby is a figment of Alice’s imagination.

Alice knows she’s not crazy.

Ellie is real. Alive.

Her husband is lying.

But why?

And where has her baby gone?

Oh my!!!!!! I loved it. I thought it was intriguing. I will recommend to others.

Thanks to Sterling & Stone and Netgalley for this eARC.

💡 Trauma, Truth, and the Tightrope of Motherhood

Postpartum isn't just a thriller—it’s an excavation. Nolon King and Lauren Street tear into the mythos of maternal instinct and psychological recovery with surgical precision. What emerges isn’t a neat morality tale but a haunting portrait of unraveling, stitched together with dread and compassion.

The story revolves around Penny—new mother, trauma survivor, unreliable narrator. Through her eyes, the familiar postpartum experience becomes an emotional labyrinth: sleepless nights aren't just exhausting—they're sinister. The lines between real danger and mental disintegration blur like wet ink on a hospital chart.

King and Street excel at building tension in silence. It’s not the thunderclap of horror but the creeping unease—the bottle left unwashed, the monitor blinking oddly, the baby’s cry too sharp or too long. Each moment feels slightly wrong. And that’s exactly the point.

🧠 A Psychological Ecosystem

The brilliance of this novel lies in its refusal to simplify Penny’s suffering. Postpartum depression isn't framed as a one-note affliction but a complicated state of mind shaped by past trauma, social isolation, and internalized guilt. The narrative suggests that healing isn’t linear—and survival isn’t always pretty.

Supporting characters aren’t window dressing. They orbit Penny’s story with conflicting motives, leaving readers unsure who to trust. Is her husband protective or controlling? Are the doctors dismissive or simply overworked? Everyone plays a part in the machinery that fails women at their most vulnerable.

🔍 Postpartum is not a comforting read—it’s a necessary one. With sharp prose and psychological depth, King and Street force us to consider how we listen to women, how we define recovery, and how we confront trauma that doesn’t present itself neatly. It lingers, like the scent of antiseptic and regret.

Review: Postpartum by Nolan King and Lauren Street

In Postpartum, Nolan King and Lauren Street deliver a psychological thriller that takes readers on the unsettling journey of new motherhood gone wrong. The novel utilizes the fragile state of a new mother dealing with postpartum depression, crafting a story in which neither the protagonist nor the reader can fully trust reality.

The plot follows Alice, a new mother in a penthouse with her infant daughter, Ellie, while her husband, Max, works long hours. The mystery intensifies when Alice finds Max over a deceased woman in their living room. The authors skillfully navigates this book by withholding information until the right moment. The climax reveals a series of twists that may lead readers to reevaluate previous events. While some twists are predictable, others are genuine surprises.

Post Partum is recommended for fans of psychological thrillers that intertwine domestic suspense with unreliable narrators.

Thanks to Netgalley and Sterling & Stone for providing a complimentary advanced copy for my honest review!

Post partum by Nolson king with Lauren street is a wild ride of a book that keeps you guessing at every turn.
Alice thought postpartum depression was her biggest hurdle until she found her husband standing over a dead woman. She calls the police but they can't find a body...they also can't find her baby. Now Alice's husband insists that Ellie never existed and that Alice has made her up. That her baby died during childbirth. Trapped on a penthouse with her baby Ellie and her husband max who worked long hours. Alice felt like she was beginning to loose her grip on reality.
This book messed with my head in the best way! Definitely want to read more from this duo! Huge thank you to Nolson King and Lauren Street for partnering with NetGalley. I received an advanced reader copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion and review.

This book was crazy but in a good way. Alice was dealing with a lot of mental health issues and you weren’t sure what was real or wasn’t. She was an unreliable narrator and you were pulled into her depression and her confusion of what was real and what wasn’t. I thought she was dealing with post partum depression and then we find out Ellie was a doll, but she’d heard the baby crying, so we don’t know what was going on. We find out it was Max all along and Ellie was real and alive. He’s a psychopath and he gets what’s coming to him, which is satisfying to see.

Alice has been struggling after the recent birth of her daughter, Ellie. She cannot sleep and feels like she is getting nothing right. Her husband, Max, works long hours so she constantly feels alone. During one of her sleepless nights, Alice finds Max with a dead woman in their living room. She calls the police but they cannot find the body. Ellie is also gone. Max tells Alice that Ellie was not real. That Alice was imagining Ellie after losing her during birth. But Alice knows that Ellie is real.

This was a pretty twisted read! I did not know who to believe or where the story was heading. This was my first read by this author duo, and it definitely will not be my last. It was really hard putting this one down and I enjoyed all the twists and turns. The authors did an excellent job at showing how fragile our minds truly are. Finished this one in a day as I could not put it down.

Thank you Sterling & Stone and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Review of Postpartum by Nolon King and Lauren Street

I went into Postpartum with high hopes, as the story and plot seemed genuinely compelling. Unfortunately, I was so disappointed that I didn’t even finish it. The biggest issue for me was the writing; it felt robotic, as if it had been either written by AI or heavily edited with AI assistance. The prose lacked personality, and the tone was lifeless, which made it difficult for me to connect with the characters or the emotions of the story.

It’s a shame because the premise itself had a lot of potential. If executed with more depth and a human voice, Postpartum could have been an engaging and fantastic read. However, the mechanical, almost unnatural flow of the writing made it impossible for me to enjoy.

Since I didn’t finish the book, I won’t give it a rating, but I will say that while the story had promise, the writing style completely took me out of the experience. If you’re someone who values prose as much as plot, this one might not be for you.

We need more books that explore postpartum mental health in a fun and engaging way! Overall I enjoyed this book. As a perinatal mental health specialist, I always have a want for books that are going to be really true to the postpartum experience while exploring the fiction of their novel, and this book is close!

This book definitely will make you question yourself time and time again. I kept going back and forth on who was telling the truth and who wasn’t. The twist was somewhat predictable but the story was interesting and dread-inducing.

This book had me in its grip from the first page. Twists I did not see coming, will recommend to any thriller reader!

Post Partum is a gripping and addictive psychological thriller that had me completely mind f*cked. Throughout the entire book I couldn't tell what was real, what was not, who was telling the truth and who was not. Although this novel explores postpartum depression, mental health and isolation, it also brings a level of suspense that just kept me flipping those pages late into the night.

Alice was a very raw and realistic feeling character so it was easy to grow attached and empathize towards her. Her struggles, her emotions, everything was valid. The plot unraveled at the perfect speed unveiling twists that left me shocked and turns that made my head spin.

Overall, this was an addictive psychological thriller that kept me hooked. Fans of the genre mixed in with emotional depth will definitely enjoy this one!

✨️Thank you to @netgalley, @sterling&stone, @laurenstreet & @nolonking for my gifted ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Twisted and dark is two good words about this book. I enjoyed it a lot! The twist are neverending and I could not for my life predict the outcome.

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for an e-ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

This was a really tough read for me. If you or someone you know has had postpartum depression or postpartum psychosis I would suggest that this is probably not the book for you.

I really didn’t know what to expect going into this book and honestly almost didn’t finish it.

I put the book down for a few weeks and then came back to it because I received an ARC in return for my honest review and I try to, now that I am not in the throws of toddlerhood, do just that.

The premise itself is interesting, a little twisted if I am being honest. Other reviewers have already given a synopsis of the book in their reviews so I won’t do that.

It did take some twists and turns that I didn’t expect and I was satisfied with how the book ended.

I’m not sure who the audience is for this book so I will end my review here.

#PostPartum #NetGalley #Suspense #Horror

This book was great! Lots of twists and turns. I thought I knew who was behind Alice’s hallucinations and deliriums, but I was wrong. The story kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time.

This one was an interesting read. There were times I thought a certain comment or theme was overused and other times I was like wtf? The story definitely kept me guessing. As a mother, I was able to resonate with some of the aspects of postpartum as far as the blur that is the first couple of weeks following childbirth. Overall, I enjoyed it!

This book was a complete mind f*ck. It was so dark and twisted, the true definition of a psychological thriller. I had no idea what was true and what wasn’t. I was a step ahead for most of the book but there were so many times I was second guessing myself. This was an excellent read.

This was a good read it kept me engrossed and wanting to turn the pages to find out what happened and I read it within a few hours!

An incredible book. I trusted no one, not even Alice. The book had me on the edge of my seat and reading way past when I should have gone to sleep. The ending shocked me, but looking back we were given all the clues we needed, I just didn't want to believe it.

I love a thriller with an unreliable narrator. I really liked this one, but the beginning was a little long and it took a while to get to the action, but once it did, I really liked it!