Claire Seeber

I may have mentioned in the past that my favourite fairy tale is Cinderella, but Snow White comes a close second. The Stepmother is something of a modern fairy tale for grown-ups loosely based on Snow White, but with strange ghostly goings-on instead of cute little dwarfs.

Jeanie has had a tough life but she thinks her dreams have come true when she meets and marries Matthew, after a whirlwind romance. Jeanie and her son, Frankie, move into Matthew's home which has an evil Queen style ornate show more mirror and its very own turret. Matthew has two children from his previous marriage: twins, Luke and Scarlett. Scarlett's moods are as red as her name - she's very angry that her parents have split up and resents Jeanie moving into what was once their home. Luke is more accepting and quiet on the outside, but is he more affected by his parents' split than we realise?

When strange things start to happen, all seemingly directed at Jeanie she feels her marriage crumbling before her eyes. Jeanie has a secret (or two) hidden in her past and like many secrets, nothing ever stays buried for long. As one of Jeanie's secrets is discovered, it is used against her and even Matthew doesn't side with her. As Jeanie is mentally tortured, she starts to think that Matthew also has a few secrets hidden from her as the paranoia in The Stepmother reaches record levels. As Jeanie's mind whirled with questions, I was eager to find out the answers too! What really happened to his previous marriage? What's behind the locked door? Who is the woman whose post gets delivered to the house?

The Stepmother kept me on my toes from start to finish; filled with secrets, lies and paranoia it's such a gripping read that I found difficult to put down. I loved the links to Snow White: 'mirror, mirror on the wall', the good instead of evil step mother and the young beauty of the story being represented by red instead of white. Hugely enjoyable, twisty and gripping: make sure you put The Stepmother on your list to read.

I received this e-book from the publisher, Bookouture, via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. show less

This novel is packed with intrigue and mystery – the author demonstrates a determination to keep the reader guessing as well as having a keen ear for toddler-speak (I loved Freddie – he didn’t speak much but everything he said was hilarious).

A huge cast and any number of illegal goings-on (both in the present and in the past) keep everything bubbling furiously, and to finish the book was a must, just to find out how the author would draw the multiple threads of the story together. show more Secrets are kept judiciously, and at one point the baffled narrator Rose is reduced to trailing round after the errant men in her life demanding that they jolly well tell her the truth. They never do, of course, because that would ruin the story. But at one point she gets to sit on a sofa “in the shape of a vagina” (whaaat?). It was moments like that – and the many references to real people or events – that added spice to the story.

There were times when the author’s tendency to water down her descriptions grated on me. At one point we had a ‘rather stooped’ man in a ‘slightly threadbare suit’, people laughing ‘rather hysterically’ (all within a page) – I longed for something bold...less fence-sitting.

I don’t want to give too much away, but it’s not one of those stories that end on an anticlimax, nor does it hinge on implausible coincidences. What it is, though, is very complex and I suspect only a diagram the size of a small town would enable me to comprehend the loyalties, connections and motivations of every character. For that reason it wasn’t an altogether satisfying ending, but in terms of sheer entertainment value and honest desire to entertain the reader, I cannot fault this novel. show less

This was a cracking read that I think should be renamed (you will read this within) 24 Hours as once you pick it up, you really can't put it down. It zips back and forth between 'then' and 'now' so every time you finish a chapter you have to read the next one and the next one...

Laurie is separated from her husband and while their daughter, Polly, goes on a trip to EuroDisney with Granny, Laurie takes the opportunity to have a spa weekend with her friend Emily. While Laurie is nipping out to show more the car for Emily's migraine pills, a fire breaks out in the hotel and Laurie can't get the door of their room open to rouse Emily. Emily perishes in the fire but the police believe that it is Laurie who died. Laurie believes that the fire was meant to kill her so she goes on the run to meet Polly off the Eurostar while people think she is dead.

The story is so pacey that I felt I was on the run with Laurie and I was reading as fast as she was travelling. All the time wondering who was trying to kill her and sometimes wondering if it was all in her head. As events unfold from 'then' everybody that Laurie has been in contact with is painted in such a way that any one of them could be the killer. Even when all is revealed there is still a little twist that I didn't see coming at all.

An absolutely thrilling read from Claire Seeber - I shall be seeking out more of her books, although they're definitely not for reading on a work night.

I received this e-book from the publisher, Bookouture, via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. show less

Jeanie is swept up in a wirlwind romance and marries Matthew. Jeanie and her son Frankie go to live in the fairytale home that Matthew shared with his first wife Kaye. Jeanie becomes stepmother to Matthews children, twins Luke and Scarlett. When things don't go to plan Jeanie relies on her sister Marlena.

This story is told from the point of view of both Jeanie and Marlena, but mostly Jeanie. I did enjoy though the punchy voice of Marlena and would have liked a bit more. However Jeanie story show more is very compelling as she tries to be a stepmother.

From the very beginning the story drew me in and I knew that Jeanie had got something in her past which was not nice and that her new life will not go to plan. I really couldn't wait to see what was going to happen.

I really liked the references to Snow White and how it was fitted in around Jeanies story. Could Jeanie be a good or wicked stepmother.

The story was pacy and keep my interest at all times. When trying to work out who was 'it' I hadn't got a clue. It really could have been any of the characters. Red hearrings where there to keep me guessing.

It did feel towards the end that one of the events was thrown in quickly just to tie up a loose end. I did also think that the final revelation came out of nowhere and I didn't think it was really needed.

However the book was a cracking read and I do enjoy the domestic thrillers. These characters could be the people who live next door and you wouldn't even know.

I highly recommend this book. Thank you to Bookoture via Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book for review. show less