Loved the woven in Instagram posts throughout the chapters, they were nearly as addictive as Instagram itself.
Dark, twisty and interesting.

One of those books that makes you immediately want to delete all your social media! Mother’s Helper is a gripping psychological thriller that surprised me with just how dark the story was under the surface! It’s twisty plot and thoroughly unlikeable characters kept me glued to the pages for hours. Julia Crouch knows how to build a tense and shocking storyline and there are lots of revelations to keep you on your toes.

3.5 stars rounded up to 4

Wanted: full-time, live-in help for expectant mother. Must be organised, friendly and willing to do anything.

Rachel is determined to be the perfect mother. She has a birth plan, with a playlist and a bag ready by the door. She has chosen a lovely light cream paint for the nursery, and in wide-eyed, innocent Abbie she's found the perfect person to help her baby. Because every mother needs a bit of help, don't they?

Rachel is a well known influencer with lots of fans and followers. Abbie is her biggest fan. Both women have secrets. Rachel wants to be the perfect mother and Abbie do anything to help Rachel. But does she?

This book will mess a bit with your mind. Just when you think you know where the story is going, it veers off in a different direction. There is something sinister going on between Rachel and Abbie. I was never sure which one I could trust. I was pulled into this intriguing story from the first few pages. This story shows why you should never reveal too much about yourself while you're online.

I would like to thank #NetGalley #Bookouture and the author #JuliaCrouch for my ARC of #MothersHelper in exchange for an honest review.

A solid read.
Not sure you are suppose to like the characters and I sure didn't. Twists near the end made it worth while to read but did start off slow for me.

Thanks to the author thr publisher and NetGalley for an early release of this book.

This is an accomplished, twisted psychological thriller about the dangers and obsessions of the social media lifestyle.

The narratives of both main protagonists were well portrayed and cleverly interlinked, as well as intermittent points of views of other lesser characters.

I couldn't warm to either of the two leading personalities, although due to the nature and direction of the story, we probably aren't meant to. This, however did make it more difficult for me to completely enjoy the story, as I find personally it helps if I connect with and support the main protagonist.

The social media element of the book was well done, Instagram posts being interspersed throughout the story.

I found one particular bird element quite uncomfortable and wasn't sure what this added to the plot.

Overall, this was a story well told, but not one of my favourites. I would however read another book by Julia Crouch.

Thanks to publishers Bookouture and Net Galley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I could not put this psychological thriller down! This drew me in with two great main characters, and I loved trying to figure out which one was more dangerous as layers of the story were revealed. The fact that one of the characters is a successful and popular social media lifestyle influencer made this extra relevant and juicy.

Rachel, a picture perfect influencer hires Abbie, an awkward young woman, to move into her home as a fully time nanny for her baby. Neither of the two women is exactly what she claims to be. This one was an entertaining fast-paced read. At first, not much made it stand out from all of the other thrillers I've read about social media stars, but by the end I was absolutely holding my breath as the plot twisted and turned.

The title, “Queen of Domestic Noir” hasn’t been bestowed on Crouch without reason.

Don’t let the seemingly ordinary narrative in the first third lull you into a relaxed state! Fasten your seatbelts as there’s major ‘deconstruction’, rubbernecking and mouth gaping ahead!

Every mother needs a bit of help, don’t they? Abbie diligently follows Rachel on Instagram and is excited when Rachel hires her as a nanny. Abbie appears innocent and bright-eyed. Rachel appears to have it all. Neither is #authentic.

It was a good reminder to see the Instagram influencer lifestyle played out so that readers can see the dangers of revealing too much online. The narrative is dovetailed with Instagram posts, which although irritating at times, help to inform readers and give them a better understanding of the motivation of the person posting on social media. Something to keep in mind is that if someone has to tell you it’s “authentic,” it’s most likely just a ploy to maintain appearances of an ideal lifestyle. Keep your eye on the number of ‘likes’ as the plot progresses.

Unreliable narrators, secrets, moral turpitude, and a cleverly orchestrated plot highlight the manipulation of social media and leave carnage in their wake.

This twisted tale of obsession offers readers a unique, front-row view into the trappings of social media.

Publishes October 12, 2021.

I was gifted this advance copy by Julia Crouch, Bookouture and NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review.

I have read books by Julia before and this one certainly didnt disappoint.

Rachel is a huge figure within the social media field with thousands of followers engrossed in her blog.
She is pregnant and advertising for a mothers help.
Abbie is one of rachels biggest fans and desperate to land this plum job. She is interviewed by Rachel and her closest friend Fran. On paper, and in interview, Abbie appears to be the ideal employee, experienced in this role with excellent references. However, Rachel also has an alternative agenda and wants to treat Abbie as a transformation project....a before and after...with a gruelling exercise and diet regime.

Abbie appears to become indispensable, keeping house and gradually convincing Rachel that she doesnt need such a workforce, slowly getting rid of those in other roles.

It soon becomes apparent that both women hold deep secrets that link them very much from the past. An action packed, fast paced ending with many twists and characters not portrayed as was first thought.

Highly recommend reading this thriller, which highlights the vulnerabilities these women experience due to past traumas.

Wow what a thrilling but brutal ride this book was!

Rachel is a well-known Instagram influencer however as she is getting older, she feels she is losing touch with her current Instagram demographic, so she decides to get pregnant to appeal to a different newer demographic of followers. However, with her busy lifestyle she, and her best friend, Fran decide she would like a little help with the end few months of her pregnancy and for the start of her newborn baby’s life. So, she advertises on her Instagram account for a “Mother’s Helper”. When Abbie turns up, she seems too good to be true, but Rachel feels with her calming stable influence she is perfect for the job. But who exactly is Abbie, why is this job so important to her and why does she want to cover up her past which Rachel knows nothing about?

Well, what a story! I would describe this book as gripping, tense and at times brutal! The story started quite light and fluffy but soon enough I detected an undercurrent of menace. By halfway through things were getting very sinister and by the last portion of the book I couldn’t believe what a psychopath one of the characters was and how awfully and brutally she behaved (I won’t name names to avoid spoiling the story). In fact, her behaviour was so truly shocking that I have never read a psychological thriller with a character as bad as this one. I did not see the twist at the end coming which is always a good thing. All in all, I really enjoyed this book and I loved learning about the Instagram influencer lifestyle. I highly recommend this book for fans of psychological thrillers, you wont be disappointed.

Thank you to NetGalley, Bookouture and Julia Crouch for my advanced reading copy. Due out 12th October 2021.

When you read a book by an author you already know, it's always a treat because you know more or less what you can expect. When the book you are about to start is by an author you don't know at all, it's makes it a bit more of a mystery and maybe a bit more of a challenge. Will you like the writing style? Will you like the format? But both are equally exiting.

This is my first book by this author, so I was extra curious. :)

When you are looking for a new employee, the first thing you want to know whether they are qualified enough to do the job. When it's for a live in job, there is more you are curious about. After all that person is going to be living in your home and even more important, they are going to take care of your most precious thing in the whole world: your baby.

You are looking for someone efficient, but also for someone you can bond with, someone a bit more like you...

It's true that you have to be careful for what you wish for...

I liked the book very much. It was great to see both main characters change so much. Change is good of course, as long as it makes you a better version of yourself...

The story is like a slow flowing river, but picks up speed the closer it comes to the waterfall...  5 stars

Thank you

An excellent psychological thriller. Rachel is an influencer whose vegan diet and fitness regime gain her thousand of Instagram followers. Abbie is one of them, and when Rachel falls pregnant and a role as her helper becomes available Abbie is desperate for the job. and she's not above lying to get it. But it soon becomes apparent that Rachel is as adept at lying as Abbie.

Lots of twists and turns as well as a cynical look at the world of influencers.

Mother’s Helper, by Julia Crouch, took me on a wild ride. First - the book explores social media - the good, the fake, and the ugly. I didn’t realize that was the main focus from the summary. We follow two main characters - Rachel, an Instagrammer, and Abbie, a huge fan of Rachel's feed. Neither main character is a reliable narrator - Rachel has a perfect IG life, but also some secrets, and Abbie has her own secrets (to be honest, Abbie reminded me of Annie from Misery at times [that’s a compliment]). This book was a thriller, no doubt, but I found some of the secrets hinted at for so long during the book (“The Event,” for instance) that when the secrets were revealed, it was relief, not a gasping revelation. Sometimes, too, the narrative seemed to drag, though the ending quarter of the book made up for that as that was action packed and a fast enjoyable read, with a number of enjoyable twists that formed a solid resolution. I did appreciate the overall idea of “perceived reality vs real reality” and always have to remind myself that what is shown on social media is manipulated (for the most part) to show what the person posting the photo wants you to see - not always the hard truth. A good fast read, and a solid 3.5 stars, rounded up to 4.

I received this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Very creepy thriller book, the wide- eyed, over- enthusiastic valley girl, and the manipulative, scheming social media star- who's the lamb, and who's the butcher?

Once Abbie's first visit to her father took place, I was hooked, eager to find out what will happen in the second half of the book.

And as a last note, I can't believe Rachel kept the dog, despite the dog biting two people, that's the wildest part of the book to me.

Firstly, thank you Netgalley & Bookoture for giving me an arc of this amazing book to read.

This book was amazing. i went into this book not knowing what it was about and im so happy that i enjoyed thi.

This was a really quick read for me. also probably because i could not put this down. it was so addictive.

I really love books with short chapters and this was def it. amazing..

i enjoy reading about morally grey characters and this book had 2.. TWO.. ah such fun.

Honestly, through out, i was having trouble figuring put who i was more afraid of. Abs? RR? Such a rushhhhh...

the hidden messages in this book really gave me goosebumps. Social media is honestly terrifying. nothins is ever as it seems.

And those Instagram post before every chapter???? i def loved that. Yall ever realised how from millions of likes, RR slowly only received barely a few thousand likes towards the end.

oh, so gooood.. tq tq tq for this book. i had so much fun reading this one.

A new author for me, well written with good characters. Overall I enjoyed the book and the characters but it didn't keep me on the edge of my seat and I did lose a bit of interest towards the middle of the book but I felt the storyline picked up.

Thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture for allowing me to read this book.

Who Can Be Trusted…?
Who can be trusted in this slow burn suspense with a very dark edge? Set amidst a social media blur, a backdrop with huge potential for dark deeds, we meet Rachel. Rachel is deterred to be THE perfect mother. But is she? And then we meet Abbie. Abbie who is the picture of innocence. But is she? With a creeping sense of tension and twists and turns aplenty this soon becomes a compelling read.

A roller-coaster ride and a terrifying one at that, is what I would like to describe this book as.

When popular social media influencer and soon-to-be mom Rachel Rodrigues puts out an ad for a mother's helper, she finds the perfect candidate in Abbie James, a 26-year old seemingly quiet, but competent young woman with glowing references. While Rachel plans to use the eager-to-please Abbie for a makeover project that would help boost the 'likes' on her Instagram page, it soon becomes evident that Abbie isn't all that naive either. Both women have a hidden past and it waits to be seen whose darkness turns sinister first.

I really wasn't prepared to be bowled over by this book, but this is me raving about it. The author slowly draws us in by introducing the two main characters - Rachel, who pretends to be authentic on camera, but is as fake as they come and Abbie who is as shady as hell, right from the get go. The first half of the book lulls you into a false sense of boredom where the focus is more on Rachel's Instagram pages and the dynamics between the two women. By about 60%, the tone of the narrative changes and I was reading at breakneck speed as the suspense was unbearable. After a heart-thumping climax, the ending was quite satisfactory.

I am thrilled that this was a female-oriented plot with no men in the picture to save the day (even though the ladies in question were batshit crazy). It also highlights the fake and disturbing aspects of too much social media influence.

Overall, a gripping read; the action-packed climax was nerve-wracking. Thanks to Bookouture and Netgalley for providing a digital copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

This book had a very slow start. Halfway through I questioned whether it was a thriller. Finally it picked up and I found the twists and wanted to know the ending. Not my favorite but I still will read Julia Crouch in the future.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC.

I tried several times to read this one but is just not my cup of tea. I decided to DNF at 40%. I thought it was one of thrillers that keep you gkued to it but instead is all about the life of an influencer with her secrets and her recent employes help who also has secrets. Nothing really happens.