This wasn’t my favorite book by this author. And the title, Off the Deep End, is about Jules, whose mental state spirals out of control after she crashes her car into a frozen lake, and loses her son. Instead, her friend’s son survives.

This had a lot of twists and turns, but I didn’t feel as shocked by them as I normally did with her precious works. Both Amber and Jules, our two POV characters, seemed quite unlikeable, though I wasn’t sure if they were intentionally written that way. That being said, I’m not sure Jules’ POV was necessary? It didn’t seem to add much to the story that we don’t find out later, anyway.

I appreciated the message it was trying to send, without spoiling it, but the climax seemed to come out of nowhere. I also found myself skimming at some points in the middle because the scenes seemed repetitive.

I will continue to read Ms. Berry’s future works, though, and will continue to go through her backlist as I have enjoyed many of her other stories. ( )

From a genre point-of-view, this book is a psychological thriller, but from a mom's point-of-view, it's a horror. The title is absolutely perfect. In a car accident where a car "goes off the deep end" into a lake (a personal nightmare of mine), the mother saves her son's friend but is not able to save her son. She then mentally "goes off the deep end" and spirals into a dark depression - quite understandably! Then 10 months later, the boy she did rescue vanishes. So to recap, a mother loses her son, and another mother has her son go missing - two of a mothers' absolute worst nightmares. See... horror!

This book has a lot of psychological stuff to unpack which is one of the reasons I love Lucinda Berry's books so much. As a former psychologist she is so knowledgeable, and she brings that knowledge into her novels. This book is a really good look into the dark side of mental illness, and what grief can do to people. ( )

3.5 Stars.

This story changed so many times for me. What started out with a horrible accident and grieving mother, went into survivors guilt, which went into something else and left me scratching my head at a final revelation.

I did enjoy the psychological background and the explanation of the mental health issues. Characters weren’t very likable but were understandable in the situations. I could see people doing this to protect their loved ones. One part of the ending left me feeling cold. It was well written, and the authors knowledge was front and center.

Thanks to Ms. Berry, Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley for this ARC. Opinion is mine alone. ( )

Off the Deep End by Lucinda Berry is a recommended psychological thriller involving two families and a tragic accident

Amber Greer asks her neighbor Jules Hart if she could please give Amber's son Isaac a ride home when she is picking up her son, Gabe. A car accident results in the death of Gabe while his mother, Jules, and Isaac both survive. The aftermath of the accident leaves Jules in an unstable and sometimes violent mental state resulting in her institutionalization for a time. Jules also feels a weird connection to Isaac, which causes Amber to take out a restraining order against her. Then, ten months after the accident, Isaac goes missing and it is feared that a serial killer who was targeting teenage boys has taken him.

The narrative alternates between the point-of-view of Amber and Jules. Neither woman is very likable, but both are broken and dealing with unspeakable tragedy and horror. Jules is legally mentally unstable. Amber blames Jules and is desperately trying to find her son as she refuses to believe a serial killer has him, no matter what evidence is there. The police are involved.

The start of the novel will absolutely grab your attention and keep you reading. Then the plot begins to go downhill as the drama dries up or seems to be repeating itself. Jules is talking to police forensic psychiatrist over chapters and it is tedious. There is foreshadowing that she knows something, but after a few chapters of this, you don't care. Amber is blaming Jules and continually telling the police to investigate her while all current clues seem to point to Isaac being taken by a serial killer.

Then, toward the end we abruptly come to some actual progress, new revelations, and several shocking twists. (Some of which have been done so much better by another author, but no spoilers here.) All progress in the case and new information is saved for the end where numerous facts, ideas, and actions are all thrown at you all at once. You have to suspend disbelief that all of this is happening/discovered at one time. It would have been a much better novel with some clues leading to the ending or perhaps have Isaac narrate a few chapters earlier. The denouement is simply too over-the-top.

Disclosure: My review copy was courtesy of Thomas & Mercer via NetGalley.
http://www.shetreadssoftly.com/2022/12/off-deep-end.html ( )