I'll start by saying I think the book should've been titled differently. Brynn couldn't wait to me a mom. But after a difficult delivery she was overwhelmed and thinks back to "what if" she'd never had him. What kind of a mother was she? She's convinced she's not good at being a mom and struggles with postpartum depression. The book puts a lot of focus on nap and feeding schedules along with her comparing herself to other moms that make it seem easy. She's exhausted and now her husband has just been arrested for murder. She already felt like she was parenting alone, and now she really is. I really feel like this book could've been titled something more geared towards the murder plot with a side of Brynn's struggles. I was given an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review. Thanks to NetGalley and Minotaur Books.

I received an ARC copy of this book to review. This is my honest opinion.

I loved this book and couldn’t put it down. It tackles so many hot button issues and provides a very accurate depiction of postpartum depression/early postpartum days, in my experience. Motherhood is such a powerful and exhausting experience, and the other aspects of your life don’t just stop because you become a mom. “Such a Good Mom” portrayed this in a very honest manner that I suspect most mothers can relate to. It had twists and turns that I definitely did not see coming and it kept me interested right until the end.

TRIGGER WARNING: Post Partum Depression

Such a Good Mom comes out April 29, 2025
Julia Spiro’s Such a Good Mom is emotionally raw and gripping and blends psychological suspense with Brynn’s battle with postpartum depression, weight of impossible choices and marriage. Brynn Nelson is a woman who wears many hats, she’s a new mom, an author, and a wife. Brynn and her husband Ross and her baby live on the island of Marthas Vineyard, near by Ross’s family. Martha’s Vineyard a beautiful sun soaked island has hidden secrets that will eventually come to light. The vineyard, where summer life comes with lots of harsh realities, betrayal and loneliness. Brynn and Ross both grew up on the Vineyard, but were part of two very different social classes.
Spiro does an amazing job capturing the true reality of life after a new baby, the sleepless nights, and the self doubt Brynn has with being a new mom. Brynn Nelson should absolutely have it all she has a beautiful newborn, a loving husband, a successful career writing books, instead Brynn feels like she’s in over her head. A family friend Cecelia Buckley was found dead, increasing Brynns fragile emotional state. Her works is shattered when her loving husband Ross is arrested as the main suspect in Cecelia’s death. Will their marriage make it? Will Ross’s family continue to interfere with the murder investigation? Ross’s mother and father seemed like the perfect roll models for what life should be, but they were hiding secrets, secrets that people who shouldn’t know found out and were likely murdered for.
Spiro does an amazing job balancing the suspense of a murder mystery and Brynn’s postpartum battle.
Spiro does an amazing job writing relatable characters that are complex and raw. Brynn is flawed, raw, and just like any new mother. This novel highlights Brynns search for Cecelia’s murderer, but also how she is trying to find herself again soon after becoming a mom. Martha’s Vineyard is a perfect setting for this novels emotional depth and the tensions that are arising. It truly shoes the hidden darkness that has been kept away for so long as well as the beauty that the island has to offer which all the beautiful homes and all the beautiful beaches.
Such a Good Mom isn’t just about Brynn becoming a mother, but her journey for finding herself again after birth while combining it with a psychological thriller. It delivers a fast paced mystery, but Brynn’s journey is really relatable for many. Brynn’s journey is one that may will relate to, and see themselves in, its for the ones who lost themselves along the way.
Julia Spuro is extremely talented in her writing and this is an unforgettable read, you can tell it was truly written with passion and from the heart.
This book is one of those books that I will remember. I will look back and think about the story and the depth of it. I think the audiobook narrator Abigail Reno did an amazing job bringing this novel to life, and really capturing the turmoil that had become Brynn’s life while Ross was arrested for murder.

If you like:
* Relatable struggles of becoming a mom
* Murder mystery
* Martha’s Vineyard
* Secrets

Thank you NetGalley, Macmillan Audio and Julia Spiro for the ALC(Advanced listening copy) of this novel.

I received the audiobook from Netgalley and so enjoyed it. Such a Good Mom is a mystery, but also a story about being a mom. I'm a mom of 3 and very much related to the difficulties of postpartum depression that Brynn suffered from. Brynn not only had to deal with struggles as a new mother, but also a murder that affected her family very closely. Loved it all, from the beginning to the end. Great story!

𝘚𝘶𝘤𝘩 𝘢 𝘎𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘔𝘰𝘮 by Julia Spiro

Thank you, Macmillan Audio, Julia Spiro, and NetGalley for this ALC audiobook!

🎤 Narrated by Abigail Reno

𝗠𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀:

A major portion of this book focuses on Brynn navigating motherhood while dealing with postpartum depression. I felt like so much of that was relatable. Being a new mom can be scary, right?

There's not a lot of time spent on the actual mystery/murder. That pretty much takes a backseat to Brynn's baby worries.

I did think this was a good book, but I don't think it's a "light beach read" given the subject matter.

Such a Good Mom by Julia Spiro is simultaneously an homage to motherhood and a love letter to Martha’s Vineyard. Abigail Reno’s narration is beautifully performed.

Strong imagery and solid characterization make for an enjoyable read. Spiro writes, “How could anything bad happen in such a beautiful place? How could anyone feel pain and suffering on an island where the sunset was so vivid, painted in bright hues of apricot and coral, that it seemed to be pouring right out of the sky and into the sea?”

Spiro’s use of epistrophe, anaphora, and parallelism create a lyrical quality. For example, “But she knew that tomorrow, nothing in her life would be quiet. Tomorrow would be full of noise. Tomorrow, she would have to talk to the polce. Tomorrow, she'd confront Ginny about her meetup with Ross…Tomorrow, she'd have to face questions from Annie and Marcus…Tomorrow, the island would begin speculating and hypothesizing…Tomorrow, Brynn would try to find the orange sun.Tomorrow.”

The novel is a gritty, honest look at motherhood through the lens of postpartum depression, exhaustion, and self-doubt.

“She might even, somehow, turn herself into a good mom, instead of the bad one she was sure she was.”

After news of a murder spreads through the island, gossip is rampant. Through the daze of a newborn’s incessant needs, Brynn tries to believe her husband in spite of all odds.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for providing an advanced review copy of the audio version of this title for an honest review.

Little bit thriller, Little bit human experience.
Most if us know how difficult the first days of parenthood can be. It’s easier with a supportive husband & family. Our main character is really lacking in the support category. She feels like she’s losing her mind. Things are about to go from miserable to unimaginable!!! Who is telling her the truth?

The best part of this book is the candid and accurate portrayal of postpartum depression and especially the stigma attached to it. The main character, Brynn is overwhelmed with her newborn son yet pretends to be managing, compares herself to other parents and is afraid to be honest with her closest friends. And then her husband is arrested for murder and in a brief interaction with Brynn, he asks her to look for clues to discover who the real killer is and so the murder mystery begins. As Brynn slowly unravels clues, she gradually begins to open up to her friends as she figures out who she can trust and eventually determines how and why a young woman was killed.
I enjoyed the depiction of the difficulties faced by first time parents and the importance of supportive family and friendships. The murder mystery part of the story was only so-so with really no major twists or surprises. I thought that the portrayal of wealthy privilege of. the residents of Martha’s Vineyard was overdone and mostly ridiculous and unrealistic. For this reason, it was hard for me to become engaged in the solving of the murder. And while unnecessary to the story, it was nice that Brynn recognized at the end that even though she consciously chose her in-laws over her parents, she discovered that her own mother was the person that she could rely on the most.
I would rate this book 3.5 stars overall rounded up.
I listened to the audiobook version of this book and did not enjoy the narration at all. The voices, especially the males were poorly done and distracting.

2.5*
Books that have the main character - who is not a police officer / investigator - solve the mystery are silly to me. I really enjoyed Brynn's story re new motherhood, but the mystery part of the story was very lacking for me.

I enjoyed reading this book and I also enjoyed listening to it!

I didn’t think I was a fan of mysteries, and this book changed my mind! It had a perfect amount of suspense without a bunch of gory details or terrifying moments.

Thank you, MacMillan Audio for the opportunity to listen to an advanced copy. In return for an honest review..

This was so good!!! For any moms out there especially if you suffered from post partum depression this is sooo relatable. I thought oh I know who it is… then there was a twist! I couldn’t stop listening until it was done!

Who have this author my diary?! Hehe just kidding...kinda. I'm a author/stay at home mom so I immediately could relate to the story. But instead of my first kid, I am postpartum with me third. However, I read to escape, and am not a fan of so many recent books focusing on the nagatives of motherhood. I'm not in the mental space to enjoy that type of storyline right now and feel like it's been really overdone with thrillers as of late. It's becoming cliche. There was also a lot of info dumping right off the bat and tons of telling rather than showing. So, although I love thrillers that tackle motherhood, this didn't feel fresh and just wasn't the type of story for me right now. I did like tha narrator though and thought she did a great job voicing the book.

This was an easy read. I really love how the author wrote postpartum depression. I feel like all of her descriptions of motherhood, c sections, and the terrifying newness of bringing a baby home were right on the money.
This is more of a drama than a thriller, so good though. I was invested in the story Spiro was weaving the entire time.
Thank you so much netgalley and Minotaur for inviting me to read this one! Would recommend.

Thank you so much to Macmillan Audio and St. Martin's Press for the audiobook and eBook!

As someone who really loves what I call "baby mama drama thrillers", I was so excited for this one!

I loved the post-partum aspect a lot and watching our main character, Brynn, navigate life after motherhood. That aspect felt very realistic!

In this case I actually cared more about Brynn and her motherhood struggles than I did about the actual mystery. Once the mystery started coming to a conclusion, it was told to the read very matter-of-factly and not revealed in a creative way.

I also struggled with the repetition of so many of the same points and lines over and over again, especially surrounding the reveal.

Overall, it was an easy and quick read, but not one that will stand out to me!

SUCH A GOOD MOM has a plot that appeals to me, more of a domestic thriller.
I did like the ambience, the setting and - in general - the cast of characters and the mystery.
However, Spiro's writing failed to hold my attention. I just didn't clique with it.
Also, I isually don't mind slow-paced mysteries when I'm invested in the story or, more importantly, with the author's writing. That didn't happen here with this book, unfortunately. I've struggled with the pacing and I wanted less drama and more chilling mystery.
The audiobook narrator is, in my opinion, decent enough. She does a decent job voicing all the different characters.

Thank you, NetGalley and Macmillan Audio, for allowing me to listen to this audio copy in advanced.

This is a serious book about postpartum depression with a murder mystery on the side. Brynn is a first time sleep-deprived mom, totally in denial that she is severely depressed, questioning her worth, her ability to be a mom, her marriage, her career, her own mother, her extended family, her baby son’s love for her and her husband’s loyalty. Ross has been less than a perfect father, not always aware how overwhelmed his wife is, but still obviously in love with her. Brynn and Ross are residents of Martha’s Vineyard, a relatively small place in the off season. Ross is employed by his father’s shady construction company, and of course, everyone on Martha’s Vineyard knows everyone. As if things couldn’t get worse, Ross is suddenly accused of murdering another islander. He insists he’s innocent, tells Brynn not to trust anyone(including his family), and to look for the “orange sun.”

Even as Brynn’s world is imploding, she does believe Ross couldn’t have killed anyone, and she tries to figure out who was really responsible.

The murder mystery is simple, but the story is still overwhelmed by Brynn’s state of mind. We get multiple flashbacks to Brynn’s awkward relationship with her own mother and stories of childbirth followed by the disappointment of motherhood. As much as you want the murder to be solved, you also want Brynn to break away and get the mental health support she really needs.

The audiobook is superbly narrated by Abigail Reno, who brings Brynn to life and allows us to empathize with her. But, overall, this is a sad book with a broken main character. 3.5 stars for the story, 5 stars for the narration.

Literary Pet Peeve Checklist:
Green Eyes (only 2% of the real world, yet it seems like 90% of all fictional females): NO No eye colors are mentioned, but a lot of tears are shed.
Horticultural Faux Pas (plants out of season or growing zones, like daffodils in autumn or bougainvillea in Alaska): NO Not much is mentioned about the unique vegetation of the Vineyard.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press/Minotaur Books and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy!

As a mother of two and someone with a history of post partum depression, the realness of early motherhood was beautifully captured. For Brynn, the sleepless nights, the changes in her relationship, losing her identity, and struggling to keep up with the daily basics is a enough to bury her, but then add in the fact that her husband has just been arrested for the murder of a young woman…how is she supposed to get through this? This explores the importance of support systems, friends, and admitting when we need help. The focus is on Brynn and what she is going through mentally and emotionally during this time of her life. The murder is obviously significant, but the story leans more strongly as women’s fiction novel vs mystery/thriller. I do wish there was more depth regarding the other mothers in the book and their relationship to Brynn throughout the book. Some of that seemed rushed at the end. It would have been a great through line/mirror/juxtaposition.

The narrator did a fabulous job! Especially for the emotional acting required.

Thank you NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for this ARC. This review will be shared on NetGalley and Goodreads.

Pub Date Apr 29 2025

Thank you to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for allowing me an ARC Audio edition of Such a Good Mom.

3.5 Stars

I devoured this thriller about a newly postpartum mom whose husband is arrested for murder. Being 1 year postpartum with my second, so many things in this story were relatable and its a great insight into the mind of a new mother suffering from post partum depression. The setting of Martha's Vineyard gave this a beachy feel. The "who done it?" kept me going to see how it ended. However, by the end the twist was somewhat expected. While I enjoyed this story, it failed in some areas and won't be a reread for me. The narration of the audiobook was done very well.

I've read two other Spiro books, so naturally, I was excited to dive into this one. Full was a hit for me, and Such A Good Mom? Well, I devoured it. Spiro absolutely nails the absurd, soul-crushing pressure society dumps on women to be the perfect mom—because, of course, if you’re not hand-pureeing organic vegetables while running on two hours of sleep, you’re basically failing.

Some reviewers found the postpartum scenes intense, but let’s be real—what’s a good psychological thriller without a little emotional distress? If a book about motherhood doesn’t make you question your life choices at least once, is it even doing its job? Those moments were crucial to understanding Brynn, and Spiro handled them with just the right amount of grit.

I won’t spoil anything, but if you love thrillers that keep you engaged without needing a detective board and a PhD in plot analysis, this one's for you. It’s the perfect blend of “What fresh hell is this?” and “I physically cannot stop reading.”

Also, minor detail, but I now have an urgent need to vacation in Martha’s Vineyard. Not the point of the book, I know—but still, priorities.

3.5⭐️
Overall I enjoyed reading this in that I wanted to get to the end to find out what happened. But the book doesn’t know what it wants to be. Its description dangles that’s it’s a “perfect beach read” and puts it in the Women’s fiction category, however, it wants to be a mystery/thriller. A beach read it is not.

I liked the “mystery” part of the book the most even if it’s overly predictable. It does give an interesting examination of post partum depression. It goes into detail about scenarios the FMC brings up in her head as well as some frightening intrusive thoughts. There is a lot of prose dedicated to the mundane newborn activities that don’t drive the story forward.

I listened to the audiobook and that’s where the biggest problem was. The narrator Abigail Reno did a fine job with the recitation with one glaring issue… she said a majority of the geographic locations wrong. It was really frustrating to listen to when you’re a person who lives in the area that the book mentions. Massachusetts towns and locals are notorious for being stumpers for people not from here. It was disappointing that the narrator didn’t do even the small amount of research into how to say them properly and that the author approved the final copy of the audiobook.

I recommend the book to read but not the audiobook for the above reason.

I am thankful to have gotten the audio ALC for free from Macmilliam Audio through NetGalley to read which gave me the opportunity to voluntarily leave a review.

My rating system since GoodReads doesn’t have partial stars and I rarely round up.

⭐️ Hated it
⭐️⭐️ Had a lot of trouble, prose issues, really not my cup of tea (potentially DNF’d or thought about it)
⭐️⭐️⭐️ Meh, it was an ok read but nothing special
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Really enjoyed it! Would recommend to others
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Outstanding! Will circle back and read again