Mother Mother

Mother Mother tells the story of the Hurst family, focusing on Violet and Will, two siblings navigating life with their controlling mother Josephine. The narrative alternates between their perspectives as a family crisis forces long-buried tensions to surface. Will, a homeschooled 12-year-old boy, sees his mother as perfect and struggles to understand why his older sister Violet acts out. Violet wakes up after a night of drug use with no memory of what happened, setting off a chain of events that threatens the family's carefully maintained façade. Through flashbacks and present-day scenes, the novel examines the complex web of manipulation, denial, and co-dependency within the Hurst household. The father's absence and the whereabouts of a third sibling, Rose, loom over the story as persistent mysteries. The book explores themes of narcissistic parenting, gaslighting, and the ways family members can perceive shared experiences in radically different ways. It raises questions about memory, truth, and the stories we tell ourselves to survive.

Readers describe this psychological thriller as an unsettling portrayal of family dysfunction and narcissistic personality disorder. Many reviews note the realistic depiction of manipulation and gaslighting by the mother character, with several readers sharing personal connections to similar family dynamics. Readers appreciated: - The alternating perspectives between siblings Violet and Will - Accurate portrayal of narcissistic abuse - The building tension throughout the story - Complex family relationships Common criticisms: - Slow pacing in the middle sections - Some plot points felt unresolved - Character development for secondary characters needed more depth - Ending disappointed some readers Ratings: Goodreads: 3.7/5 (13,000+ ratings) Amazon: 4.1/5 (1,200+ ratings) Barnes & Noble: 3.8/5 (300+ ratings) "The mother character was so real it was triggering" - Goodreads reviewer "Captures the subtle ways abusers maintain control" - Amazon reviewer "Strong start but loses momentum" - Barnes & Noble reviewer

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🔖 Author Koren Zailckas wrote her debut memoir "Smashed" at age 23, chronicling her battle with alcohol addiction from age 14 to 21, which became a New York Times bestseller. 🔖 "Mother Mother" marks Zailckas' first venture into fiction writing after publishing two successful memoirs, demonstrating her versatility as an author. 🔖 The book explores Narcissistic Personality Disorder through the character of Josephine, drawing attention to this often misunderstood mental health condition. 🔖 The narrative alternates between two siblings' perspectives, Will and Violet, creating a complex portrait of how different children cope with the same toxic parent. 🔖 The story was partly inspired by Zailckas' own complex relationship with her mother, though she emphasizes that the character of Josephine is not based on her mother specifically.