Thanks to Netgalley for an ARC in return for an honest review.

This was a really good read. Some of it uncomfortable and some just plain creepy. I couldn’t put it down. A solid 4 star read.

Started off well, and enjoyed the first few chapters. Does definitely have a ‘gone girl’ feel to it. Sadly it all got a bit silly and unbelievable.

I was very excited to receive this from Netgalley in return for an honest review. This book sells itself as a dark suspenseful thriller. It has been quite popular among my peers but I felt kind of meh about it. I really enjoy stories with an unreliable nature and for a while I was really confused about Milly/Annie but felt like I quite quickly understood her patterns and behaviours. Her actions to me felt predictable and I wasn't shocked at any of the "plot twists". Surprisingly, one of my favourite characters ended up being Clondine, a friend of Phoebe. She seemed to be the most morally sound and realistic to me. A small character but an important one in my opinion. Most of the other characters felt really one dimensional and dull and I didn't really care for them.
This book claims to have a discussion about nature vs nurture but all this book seemed to say to me was "everyone is disturbed some just handle it better".

I wish we had seen more from Milly's mum, often referred to as 'You'. I wanted to feel more towards her and know her more and I waited and waited and was left slightly disappointed.
This thriller to me was just lacking in a few places. The idea was superb but just didn't hit it totally.

3/5 stars

Unfortunately this book was not for me. I wasn't struck on the style of writing. I found it to be quite slow moving as well. However other reviewers seem to have enjoyed it so perhaps it was just me!

This book has sat on my Kindle for over 6 months and I am yet to read it. Whilst I was originally really engaged by the blurb, it's yet to make it to the top of my TBR pile and it no longer really appeals to me. I'm really sorry and incredibly grateful for the opportunity to read and review this book though.

I really enjoyed this psychological thriller, it was really well written. A gripping, dark and chilling storyline, which is hard to put down at times!
However a little disappointed with how the story ended.
Would love to find more books of Ali Land.

I was intrigued by the blurb of this book but felt it a little slow paced and the writing style frustrated me a little. It is told from the point of view of a teenager who has been the victim of abuse and faces a court procedure where she has to testify against her own mother.. Annie, whose name was changed to Milly when she started her new life, is haunted by her past, her loyalties, her fears of the future and it makes for a dark , and uncomfortable read.

I really wanted to love this book but sorry, I could not find much about this book that I liked. There was no great story telling and no thrills and spills for me. very disappointing.

I read this some time ago and just realized I didn't send my review. I sometimes struggled a little with this book due to it's nature but that doesn't distract from the fact it is a good story. Well written and an insight into, what may seem obvious, that your past and your family have an enormous influence on your own and other's perception of you. It's how you react and what you do with it that shapes your future.

I really enjoyed this book although found the subject hard to read but very gripping. Would recommend this book.

I wish I could give this publication 2.5 stars as that would express my views on it most accurately. I liked the idea behind the book, but its execution left a lot to be desired.

The characters were stereotypical and lacked any depth. They were all unlikeable in various ways, with no redeeming qualities, which at some point impacts on the reader’s motivation to carry on with the book.

Finally, I could see the ending coming from about half way through and this was disappointing.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ecopy of this book in exchange for an honest and impartial review.

I’m not sure I have ever read a book quite like Good Me, Bad Me. It is dark, disturbing, horrific, compelling and utterly bewitching. This is a book that stays with you long after you’ve turned the final page and was one that when I wasn’t reading it I was itching to pick it up again.

Good Me, Bad Me is the tale of 15-year-old Milly, foster daughter to Mike and Saskia, biological daughter of a serial killing mother who is about to stand trial. Told from Milly’s point of view we are given a glimpse into her struggle to reconcile what happened in the house she grew up in, her culpability, her innocence and the battle between nature versus nurture.

Ali Land has written an incredibly accomplished and sophisticated novel and there is real skill in her use of language, particularly when it comes to the narrative voice of Milly. Hers is a voice that is disjointed and is, at times, a stream of consciousness mixed with flashbacks, dreams and occasionally her mother’s voice buried deep inside of her. I found this device so clever, and I really felt that I was inside Milly’s brain which added to the tension and gradual building of horror leaving me terrified and increasingly uncomfortable.

My heart broke for Milly at times, brought up in a house where love was shown in a dark and disturbing way she craves affection and uncomplicated love from an adult. Her foster family have their own problems, a mother who is detached from reality and a teenage daughter, Phoebe pushing the boundaries. The complicated relationship between Phoebe and Milly was so well written – teenage girls are complicated at the best of times but when one of the teenagers feels neglected by her yoga obsessed mother she is going to feel threatened by a new, vulnerable girl living in her house. Bullying, gas lighting, manipulation – their relationship has it in spades.

This is a cleverly constructed and plotted book which left me reeling. It tackles a sensational story but doesn’t sensationalize. There is clever, subtle writing which made the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end and gave me a thud of unease in my stomach. Good Me, Bad Me is one of those novels that really stands out due to its bravery and its reluctance to veer into mawkish or stereotype territory. I loved it.

I really disliked this book,to the extent that I read one third of it and gave up.I didn't like the author's style of writing in very short sentences,mainly in the present tense.I didn't like the plot either. Life's too short to spend time reading books I don't enjoy,so I will happily move on.Sorry!

Good Me, Bad Me, has been tipped as the new Gone Girl, Girl on a train etc etc and has been voted Heat magazines novel of the year for 2017, however it has led me slightly underwhelmed. The novel is about Annie, a girl who has finally left the grasps of her mother, a serial killer and starting a new life, as Milly. The book follows Milly in her new life, but constantly being haunted by the devastation her mother caused, and as the trial of her mother is to begin the haunting images start to take over. There is no doubt this book captures the haunting images of the past well and the story in her new role isn’t entirely without merit, but a thriller it is not.


The books finest moments come between the hatred between Millie and the daughter of family she has sought temporary home with. It was an angst driven coming of age story with a darker undertone. It never stepped it enough. The secrets of the past do haunt the character but it there is never a sense of a story worth revealing, I never felt like I learned anything new, which left character development very limited. As I was reaching the books conclusion I was expecting a twist which has become accustomed in the novels its been compared to, however the ending seemed systematic of what had happened throughout the novel and was never a great surprise, leaving me particularly underwhelmed and disappointed with the novel.

A chilling story about the daughter of a serial killer. She reports her mother and goes to live with a foster family, but it seems that she is not quite the innocent she appears. A difficult read, with a disturbing plot, but (apart from some poor grammar) hard to put down. Thanks to the publisher for an ARC.

Well, this is quite something. Land's debut is explosive, compelling,
and intelligent, and is set to be one of the psychological thrillers of
2017.

Annie's mother is a serial killer, torturing and murdering nine children in her
care. Annie knows this, because it was her who turned her mother into the
police, telling them almost everything what was happening in their house. When
she is given a new name, Milly, and sent to live with a foster family, she tries to
move on and prepare for testifying against her mother at the trial, but there are
some things that you just can't outrun, and blood maybe one of them...

Ali Land has written a fantastic debut novel. Milly is, by turns, vulnerable,
sympathetic, insinuating, manipulating, and terrifying; both younger than her
age, and far older and more experienced than a teenager should ever have to be.
The violence and horrendous nature of her mother's actions are hinted at,
rather than fully revealed, which only adds to the creeping sense of horror that
pervades the narrative. If you like psychological thrillers that are intelligent
and beautifully-written, you'll love this.

Prepare to be seeing a lot about this in the next few months - its set to be a huge
hit.

Good Me Bad Me was an enthralling and haunting read.
The book follows Annie, who after handing over her serial killer mother to the police, begins a fresh start with her new foster family...or so she hopes.
While I'm not sure whether it was the pacing or the style of writing that put me off from continuing the book after the first 20 pages, I'm glad I perceived as Land as created fully fleshed out characters and an incredible atmosphere within the book. I look forward to her next book!

A good read, but would have liked the end to have gone on a little bit longer. What affect does a parent's bad behaviour have on their child. If your Mum is a murderer what does it make you especially when you look exactly the same.

She cant sleep or think straight. Her mum has murdered. She starts a new life and changes her name but cannot shrug off the past. Time to go and watch her mums trial for murder...