Stone Mothers by Erin Kelly

☆☆☆☆
Kindle Edition, 368 pages
Expected publication: April 23rd 2019 by St. Martin's Press, Minotaur Books
first published April 4th 2019)
About the Book:
Marianne was never supposed to return to town, the town where she grew up in the shadow of the Nazareth Mental Hospital. Her mother may be suffering from dementia nearby, but she had thought she'd left that place, and its dark secrets, behind her. That is, until her husband buys a flat in its newly renovated interior so that she can be close enough to help her mother, and Marianne can't tell him why the place fills her with such dread, she can't risk destroying the careful life she's built. Erin Kelly, the master of suspense, will delight fans with her next thrilling novel of psychological suspense.

The Victorians used to call their mental hospitals stone mothers.

This book started off a little slow for me but the writing itself was so incredible that I continued on and am SO glad I did. Once you get to the big reveal it comes in like a wrecking ball and doesn't let up. You will think to yourself that some of the plot is predictable after that but you have to keep reading to see what other surprises the author will throw into the mix, and there are quite a few.

Erin Kelly is an amazing writer, this book...it reads like a true story; it does not read like fiction. This was a wonderful mystery that is told with insight and sensitivity. It was absorbing and was hard to put down for any length of time. The story is told bit by bit, so there's a constant tension that I really enjoyed. I was incredibly curious about Marianne and her secrets, and liked the suspense and mystery around it. I was especially blown away by the third part of the book. The characters are well flushed out, and you will either love them or hate them. This is a well written, emotional novel, and for the most part, Stone Mothers was a pretty good read. So, yes, I do recommend it and it absolutely deserves a four star rating.

Thank you NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, Minotaur Books and Erin Kelly for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an impartial review; all opinions are my own.

#NetGalley