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melaniesreads's review
4.0
The main subject of this book is surrogacy, an area most people know happens but probably don’t realise how unregulated it is.
Charlotte, having grown up in a home full of sadness, watching her mothers despair after multiple miscarriages and stillbirths decides she wants to help an older couple have a baby.
Enter Brenda and Malcolm who seem too good to be true. HELLO ALARM BELLS!!! You know the saying “The road to Hell is paved with good intentions ” well this sums this book up perfectly.
Charlotte and her husband are in financial trouble, add this to her fraught relationship with her mother and it leads to rash decisions.
Once the twins are handed over, made more difficult because Charlotte is the biological mother, the cheque bounces and the couple go missing. Here the story really intensifies as you become involved in the hunt.
This is a fast juicy thriller with great characterisation (creepy Malcolm, naive Charlotte and downtrodden Brenda) and would make a great book club read as there are so many thought provoking issues. All in all this is a very accomplished debut.
Charlotte, having grown up in a home full of sadness, watching her mothers despair after multiple miscarriages and stillbirths decides she wants to help an older couple have a baby.
Enter Brenda and Malcolm who seem too good to be true. HELLO ALARM BELLS!!! You know the saying “The road to Hell is paved with good intentions ” well this sums this book up perfectly.
Charlotte and her husband are in financial trouble, add this to her fraught relationship with her mother and it leads to rash decisions.
Once the twins are handed over, made more difficult because Charlotte is the biological mother, the cheque bounces and the couple go missing. Here the story really intensifies as you become involved in the hunt.
This is a fast juicy thriller with great characterisation (creepy Malcolm, naive Charlotte and downtrodden Brenda) and would make a great book club read as there are so many thought provoking issues. All in all this is a very accomplished debut.
sarahs_bookish_life's review
5.0
Surrogacy is something that has always fascinated me. Someone carrying a baby for nine months to hand it over to someone else. I enjoyed getting to know Charlotte and the reasons to why she wanted to help someone. I was a bit dubious about her husband though to start with as money seemed to be the major factor, which again I could understand the reasons why they needed it, but to start with he did come across as being more money orientated. As I got to know him better though, I could see how much they both loved each other and he has his wife’s and own daughter’s best interests to heart.
Malcolm and Brenda at first appearances seem to be a loving couple who are desperate for a baby of their own. No wonder Charlotte chose them to be the ones to help. The further into the story we get, as with Charlotte, I had certain niggles as to whether they really can be taken at face value.
The story line addresses the issues that can arise with surrogacy. Legally there isn’t much support for either side and people really are taking a leap of faith. I found it all really interesting as a lot of the laws I had no clue of myself and was interesting to see peoples opinions when it comes to this subject matter.
Someone Else’s Baby is a compulsive read that I couldn’t read quick enough. There was an urgency to know exactly why Malcolm and Brenda had disappeared and I felt at times in as much turmoil as Charlotte in wanting to know the truth and when it comes, well nothing prepared me for it. A tense and gripping read that I was unable to put down.
My thanks to NetGalley and Hera Books for an advanced readers copy of this book. All opinions are my own and not biased in anyway.
Malcolm and Brenda at first appearances seem to be a loving couple who are desperate for a baby of their own. No wonder Charlotte chose them to be the ones to help. The further into the story we get, as with Charlotte, I had certain niggles as to whether they really can be taken at face value.
The story line addresses the issues that can arise with surrogacy. Legally there isn’t much support for either side and people really are taking a leap of faith. I found it all really interesting as a lot of the laws I had no clue of myself and was interesting to see peoples opinions when it comes to this subject matter.
Someone Else’s Baby is a compulsive read that I couldn’t read quick enough. There was an urgency to know exactly why Malcolm and Brenda had disappeared and I felt at times in as much turmoil as Charlotte in wanting to know the truth and when it comes, well nothing prepared me for it. A tense and gripping read that I was unable to put down.
My thanks to NetGalley and Hera Books for an advanced readers copy of this book. All opinions are my own and not biased in anyway.
taejai's review
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
panicatthebookstore's review
5.0
Okay, so first off, I'm going to post a trigger warning. This book focuses a lot on baby loss; miscarriages, still births, infertility and surrogacy. As someone who has had to deal with the loss of babies, some of this was a little upsetting.
However... I loved this book. I loved the synopsis, I loved how twisty it got and I loved how much it had me guessing til the end. I did correctly guess one of the little twists but everything else had my mind racing.
I believe this is the authors debut and I highly recommend it. I can't wait to read more.
However... I loved this book. I loved the synopsis, I loved how twisty it got and I loved how much it had me guessing til the end. I did correctly guess one of the little twists but everything else had my mind racing.
I believe this is the authors debut and I highly recommend it. I can't wait to read more.
nietzschesghost's review
4.0
I have read quite a few books of late that use the theme of surrogacy as the main aspect of the plot but none in the psychological thriller genre. In this compelling and thought-provoking debut, author Ms Speechley builds a story with a potent mix of mystery, emotion and food for thought, which makes it stand out in a crowded marketplace of identikit thrillers. It follows Charlotte who decides to selflessly become the surrogate to provide a child to a couple who have longed for a family for a long time. However, she fails to properly consider the possible complications and implications associated with such a situation. This begins a rollercoaster ride of emotion and I found myself living every second with Charlotte in particular. It's a painfully honest read and rare for that exact reason.
Speechley explores themes of motherhood, longing, love, loss and mental health in a respectful and compassionate way whilst also weaving it amongst other plot elements to create a well written, honest and affecting read. Her characters are complex, human and relatable and the story is both believable and heartbreaking. It's been a while since I encountered this level of raw emotion in a thriller and it makes for a fully rounded tale which will appeal to both women's fiction/chick-lit readers and those who primarily enjoy crime/mysteries and/or thrillers. This is a superb debut and what I liked the most was that it was a book with a lot of substance to it; this was certainly a welcome change to the usual throwaway stories which are a dime a dozen. Many thanks to Hera Books for an ARC.
Speechley explores themes of motherhood, longing, love, loss and mental health in a respectful and compassionate way whilst also weaving it amongst other plot elements to create a well written, honest and affecting read. Her characters are complex, human and relatable and the story is both believable and heartbreaking. It's been a while since I encountered this level of raw emotion in a thriller and it makes for a fully rounded tale which will appeal to both women's fiction/chick-lit readers and those who primarily enjoy crime/mysteries and/or thrillers. This is a superb debut and what I liked the most was that it was a book with a lot of substance to it; this was certainly a welcome change to the usual throwaway stories which are a dime a dozen. Many thanks to Hera Books for an ARC.
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