Scan barcode
A review by shannonjumpreads
A Good Mother by Lara Bazelon
3.0
A Good Mother, a debut legal thriller from Lara Bazelon, kicks off with an intriguing 911 transcript that opens the door to murder and sets a solid pace right from the start.
From there, we dive into the first-degree murder trial of the defendant, Luz Rivera Hollis. The legalese and courtroom proceedings throughout this book were really great and seemingly well researched (at least from my lack-luster legal perspective). They were captivating and engaging.
But I think I kind of hated everything else about this book.
We have two defense attorneys, Abby and Will, who both navigate through life with little to no morals, not to mention a very sexist, pompous and—somehow—newly appointed federal judge, who is the worst character of them all—a complete narcissist with a God complex to the highest possible degree. I hated him and wanted to punch him square in the face.
The defendant on trial, Luz (a 19-year-old new mom), is accused of stabbing and killing her Army husband (is it self-defense or pre-meditated murder?) who had a severe drinking problem that often left him angry and abusive. To make matters worse, he couldn’t seem to stay away from his (dare I say it?) very trashy ex-girlfriend.
Not once throughout this book did I like this woman (Luz) or feel the least bit sorry for her…just, not a fan of her at all. She’s the defendant and I shouldn’t necessarily like her anyway—I should question her and doubt her sincerity, right? But still—I felt like I was going to, or at least was supposed to, care about her eventually, but I just didn’t. Aside from the love she had for her daughter, there was literally nothing likable about her.
This entire book is riddled with sexism, racism and mom-shaming (I mean, sure, the title kind of tells us there will be a good mom/bad mom situation here, so you expect a bit of this, but the story doesn’t take it where you might expect). New mom and defense attorney, Abby—who is beyond unlikable for plenty of reasons unrelated to her parenting—is highly criticized for going back to work only 6 weeks post-partum. She’s told repeatedly that what she’s doing (going back to work) is wrong (never mind that she’s the breadwinner in the family) and that a mom should simply stay at home with their baby.
Once that cat comes out of the bag we simply beat the dead horse with it the entire rest of the book. The mom-shaming theme is prevalent all throughout and again, not for reasons you’d think.
I’m over it, next argument, counselor...
Then there’s the whole issue of Abby’s “empowering” act to try and get the a-hole judge to recuse himself from the case. Umm—no. Just no.
Next gripe: every single one of the main characters, in one way or another, cheats on their spouse/significant other. WHAT. THE. F. Umm...really? Was every character in this book cut from the same dirty cloth? There was no depth—just the same or similar actions & cliché backstories for each character.
Then there’s Abby’s gay BFF/coworker, Jonathan, whom I actually really liked at first. Until the two of them do nothing but throw stereotypical insults at each other during an argument that—surprise—is about Abby’s lack of maternal anything. Okay, thanks. Ruined that storyline for me, too. Next!
It felt like the author was trying too hard to use irony as a way to initiate shock-value, and highlight all the negative stereotypes that riddle our nation in order to drive the point home with this story, but it was just...complete overkill and seemed to derail the whole book for me. If this story took place in an earlier decade, maybe I’d feel differently but the book is set in the early 2000s and it just made it all feel so forced to me. Don’t get me wrong—I’m well aware that this stuff exists today—but I kept having to double-check the timeline and confirm that I was really reading a story that was set in the 2000s.
It just didn’t work for me.
Now, here is—perhaps—the most shocking twist of it all (non-spoiler)...somehow, some way, in spite of alllll this...I was so invested in this story. Despite wanting to DNF it several times, I couldn’t walk away from it. I had to know the outcome of this case, as much as I despised every single character and everything they did—I kept reading until the end.
I really wanted to love this book, I’m so bummed that I didn’t and I don’t think I’ve ever grappled so much while writing a book review. This is one that I would’ve normally moved on from without reviewing or even rating, but I just had too much to say...my rating swayed several times, and I’m settling on 3 stars because like I said, I couldn’t stop reading it. Who knows, maybe I was meant to feel this way in the end? Hmm…
“I am so sick of you, of all of you, and your 1950s misogyny.” —Abby
I hear ya, Abby. I hear ya.
Sigh.
Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin - Trade Publishing (US & Canada) - Hanover Square Press for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review.
From there, we dive into the first-degree murder trial of the defendant, Luz Rivera Hollis. The legalese and courtroom proceedings throughout this book were really great and seemingly well researched (at least from my lack-luster legal perspective). They were captivating and engaging.
But I think I kind of hated everything else about this book.
We have two defense attorneys, Abby and Will, who both navigate through life with little to no morals, not to mention a very sexist, pompous and—somehow—newly appointed federal judge, who is the worst character of them all—a complete narcissist with a God complex to the highest possible degree. I hated him and wanted to punch him square in the face.
The defendant on trial, Luz (a 19-year-old new mom), is accused of stabbing and killing her Army husband (is it self-defense or pre-meditated murder?) who had a severe drinking problem that often left him angry and abusive. To make matters worse, he couldn’t seem to stay away from his (dare I say it?) very trashy ex-girlfriend.
Not once throughout this book did I like this woman (Luz) or feel the least bit sorry for her…just, not a fan of her at all. She’s the defendant and I shouldn’t necessarily like her anyway—I should question her and doubt her sincerity, right? But still—I felt like I was going to, or at least was supposed to, care about her eventually, but I just didn’t. Aside from the love she had for her daughter, there was literally nothing likable about her.
This entire book is riddled with sexism, racism and mom-shaming (I mean, sure, the title kind of tells us there will be a good mom/bad mom situation here, so you expect a bit of this, but the story doesn’t take it where you might expect). New mom and defense attorney, Abby—who is beyond unlikable for plenty of reasons unrelated to her parenting—is highly criticized for going back to work only 6 weeks post-partum. She’s told repeatedly that what she’s doing (going back to work) is wrong (never mind that she’s the breadwinner in the family) and that a mom should simply stay at home with their baby.
Once that cat comes out of the bag we simply beat the dead horse with it the entire rest of the book. The mom-shaming theme is prevalent all throughout and again, not for reasons you’d think.
I’m over it, next argument, counselor...
Then there’s the whole issue of Abby’s “empowering” act to try and get the a-hole judge to recuse himself from the case. Umm—no. Just no.
Next gripe: every single one of the main characters, in one way or another, cheats on their spouse/significant other. WHAT. THE. F. Umm...really? Was every character in this book cut from the same dirty cloth? There was no depth—just the same or similar actions & cliché backstories for each character.
Then there’s Abby’s gay BFF/coworker, Jonathan, whom I actually really liked at first. Until the two of them do nothing but throw stereotypical insults at each other during an argument that—surprise—is about Abby’s lack of maternal anything. Okay, thanks. Ruined that storyline for me, too. Next!
It felt like the author was trying too hard to use irony as a way to initiate shock-value, and highlight all the negative stereotypes that riddle our nation in order to drive the point home with this story, but it was just...complete overkill and seemed to derail the whole book for me. If this story took place in an earlier decade, maybe I’d feel differently but the book is set in the early 2000s and it just made it all feel so forced to me. Don’t get me wrong—I’m well aware that this stuff exists today—but I kept having to double-check the timeline and confirm that I was really reading a story that was set in the 2000s.
It just didn’t work for me.
Now, here is—perhaps—the most shocking twist of it all (non-spoiler)...somehow, some way, in spite of alllll this...I was so invested in this story. Despite wanting to DNF it several times, I couldn’t walk away from it. I had to know the outcome of this case, as much as I despised every single character and everything they did—I kept reading until the end.
I really wanted to love this book, I’m so bummed that I didn’t and I don’t think I’ve ever grappled so much while writing a book review. This is one that I would’ve normally moved on from without reviewing or even rating, but I just had too much to say...my rating swayed several times, and I’m settling on 3 stars because like I said, I couldn’t stop reading it. Who knows, maybe I was meant to feel this way in the end? Hmm…
“I am so sick of you, of all of you, and your 1950s misogyny.” —Abby
I hear ya, Abby. I hear ya.
Sigh.
Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin - Trade Publishing (US & Canada) - Hanover Square Press for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review.