The Perfect Mother by Caroline Mitchell
Genre: Psychological thriller
Read: 12th March 2020
Purchase: Amazon
(publication date: 14th January 2020)
★★★ 3 stars
I wasn't sure what to expect from THE PERFECT MOTHER but it wasn't the range of emotions I felt when reading it. I wanted to like the book but all I could feel was a hopelessness and depression for Roz that bordered on extreme discomfort...not to mention the blinding rage for Sheridan. It is the first time I can recall ever wanting to toss the book because of the disturbance I felt reading it. And the fear of entering that claustrophobic setting again. Sheridan made my skin crawl and I just couldn't be in the same room or on the same page as her.
The story begins in Ireland with Roz Foley who is 24, broke and pregnant after a one night stand that should never have happened. Although she confides in her best friend Dympna about her pregnancy, she cannot reveal who the father is as it would surely destroy their friendship, of that she is certain. And yet, she knows that she is in no position to be able to provide for a child either.
Roz wants what's best for her baby and knowing she is unable to provide that, sets about finding the perfect parents for her child. So she opens a profile on an internet adoption site called Miracle Moms and begins her search for an adoptive couple. The website offers discreet and all expenses paid adoptions. I don't know about Roz, but that name alone was just too cheesy for my liking...and really, could anything be so bad that she could see no way than to basically sell her baby (and her soul) online to complete strangers? But...needs must.
Sheridan and Daniel are a celebrity power couple living in New York. Sheridan has grown up in the limelight and on screen since the age of 6 whilst Daniel is a British ex-pat Hollywood heart throb chasing that perfect starring role of his dreams. Sheridan must now live in the shadow of Daniel's success and she doesn't always like it. But one thing she does love is Daniel and she will do anything to keep him. The past few years have not been kind to the couple with inflammatory articles a constant thorn in Sheridan's side and after all the bad press surrounding them, she is determined to increase their popularity again. And what better way than with another child? But this time she wants a girl.....and what Sheridan wants, Sheridan gets.
So she signs them up under a pseudonym on Miracle Moms and finds Roz. As soon as Sheridan sees her, she knows she is perfect!
Roz can't believe a "Diamond Couple" are interested in her baby. This status means they are rich where money is no object, and of course, having come from nothing herself, Roz equates money to being the best for her child. She couldn't be more wrong!
Things progress quickly and Roz is flown first class to New York to meet the couple and not even the fact her ticket was one-way threw up a red flag! But no amount of pleading from Dympna could sway her to reconsider, who was understandably wary and concerned for her friend. Upon arrival in New York, she is delivered to her swanky hotel and hardly has time to get comfortable before she is whisked away to meet the prospective parents. But she will only learn of their real identities once she has signed the non-disclosure agreement swearing her to secrecy. It's all very cloak and dagger but Roz barely bats an eye...and I have to wonder, is it jet lag or is she really that naive?
The moment Roz enters the couple's apartment her fate is sealed and she is more than happy to comply. After all, Sheridan is the epitome of warmth and friendliness - what more could she possibly hope for? And yet still she thinks nothing of the fact that Sheridan has already organised for her belongings to be collected from the hotel and deposited in the basement flat that is to be her home until the baby is born. But what she doesn't expect is that this is where she will remain for the foreseeable future ...alone...with no internet, no mobile phone, no contact with the outside world unless Sheridan says so. She will not share the main house with the couple and her presence is to remain a secret. Because Sheridan is going to pass the baby off as her own...complete with the whole pregnant look of a false "bump" to fool the public.
As soon as Roz learns this, she begins to wonder where she will factor in this once it is all over? Has she just made the worst decision of her life? Are they safe? Or has she just put herself and her baby in danger?
To say I hated Sheridan is an understatement. She made my skin crawl and just spending any time with her left me unsettled. She is heartless, manipulative, calculating and incredibly cold. Her prime concern is for her and Daniel to maintain their status as a celebrity power couple, and she will stop at nothing to see it stays that way. Daniel remained in the background for the most part, taking on the role as the caring kind protector...completely oblivious to his wife's sadistic proclivities. It was hard to resist his charms and his kindness in the wake of one of Sheridan's outbursts. Roz felt sure she could get Daniel onside...and help her escape.
As naive as she is, I feel compassion for Roz. She is a vulnerable young woman in a strange city in a different country under the care of complete strangers...when all she wants to do is to do the right thing for her baby. Locked in a basement with no way out and no way of summoning help, it is easy to feel that same hopelessness that Roz feels. How can she get word to anyone when the only people she has any contact with are Sheridan, Daniel or their staff who either don't speak English or are bound by obligation to their employers that their jobs are not worth risking? If only she had her phone to send that single code word that would alert Dympna that she is in trouble and needs immediate assistance...but George took hers the day she moved in and Sheridan found the secret phone hidden in her luggage. Roz was completely and utterly alone.
The ending was a bit of a surprise. Dympna and her father actively investigated Roz's disappearance in Ireland before chasing their lead to New York and yet they played no part in her discovery. I felt that was a little wasted subplot that could been used better. Still, the revelation as to the father of Roz's baby was a surprise I had guessed very early on. The little clues I picked up along the way made that an easy puzzle to piece together.
A taut and tense psychological thriller, THE PERFECT MOTHER is not an easy read, in my opinion. I found it difficult to get through with the sheer narcissism and psychopathy Sheridan continually displayed. To be in the same room with her, on the same page, was unsettling...and I felt a level of disturbance after being in her presence. I can't really say it was an enjoyable read...because for me, it really wasn't.
An interesting premise, I have read better than THE PERFECT MOTHER with the same or similar concepts (one by Lisa Jewell and another by Alex Lake) but it is still a nail-biting read despite my reservations.
This is my second read by Caroline Mitchell, having enjoyed "The Secret Child" previously. I don't write an author off based on one book as I could love one and not another. So I look forward to discovering more by her in the future.
I would like to thank #CarolineMitchell, #NetGalley and #AmazonPublishingUK for an ARC of #ThePerfectMother in exchange for an honest review.
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