This was certainly an interesting read. It wasn't my normal go-to based on the blurb but I was intrigued. I did enjoy reading it as it was well written, and wasn't obvious. The storyline was good and kept me guessing. Would I read another by this author? If the blurb was interesting enough then yes.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book. Sadly it was not for me, it is not very often | give up on a book, but I did with this one. I found it to have too many characters & I just struggled to get 'into it'. Am sure others will enjoy the tale, just wasn't to my taste

I was drawn to this book by the blurb describing it as appealing to fans of Motherland and Catastrophe as it’s not usually the type of book I’d usually read.

Admittedly it took me a while to get into after engaging opening chapters, there was a bit of a lull and I probably enjoyed the sub plots more than the main story overall. However the mix of school gate politics, secrets , gossip and a murder investigation help my interest. I enjoyed the writing, nice mix of humour and lightness amidst the darker themes and unlikeable characters. I’d definitely read more from this author.

The primary school gate - a place where the real education starts after the children have left for the day. It's not easy to combine mystery and tension with a genuinely light touch but with It Could Never Happen Here, Eithne Shorthall manages both with style. An entertaining read with a beautifully drawn setting.

I really liked Beverley Franklin, single-minded determination and all! Beverley is the director of the Glass Lake school musical and is determined for nothing to go wrong, but then scandals erupt, one potentially involving her own twelve-year-old daughter. In the meantime, the community is dealing with the aftermath of an accident involving the patriarch of the local Whitehead family, whose sons Arlo and Woody have to live with the mess. Good concept, but some curiously un-involving sections and a lot of attention to detail meant that it lagged in places. I loved Beverley's stoner artist mum though, who becomes a confidante to her elder daughter Ella Belle - nice to see an older female character who 'hasn't got the memo that all women have to be thin'!

Playground politics is an interesting premise, one that most parents and teaches can relate to, either through involvement or witness. At times very funny and silly, but at times desperate and uneasy. There’s some tough topics in this that might make some uncomfortable.

I did prefer the scenes post-body-being-found rather than the preamble politics, but it was all enjoyable all the same. A unique mishmash of lighthearted fiction and thriller.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for an ARC in return for an honest review.

I really enjoyed It Could Never Happen Here, although did find it took me a while to get into it. Definitely reminded me of the BBC sitcom Motherland, with Beverley Franklin (one of the lead characters) being quite similar to Amanda in Motherland.

Whilst I didn't relate that much to the Mums and the tensions and relationships between them (not being a parent myself), I did find the mystery element intriguing, along with somewhat random sub-plots such as Porcupine the cat who goes missing.

Not necessarily my usual read, but enjoyable, amusing and a page-turner as the plot developed.

It Could Never Happen Here by Eithne Shortall

A mysterious death during preparations for the Glass Lake Primary School production of the Wizard of Oz comes with shocking revelations for a West Cork community.

Ooohh this is a DELICIOUS tale of petty rivalries between school parents, the Lakers, whose sharp elbows mean they get what they want for their own children. Fascinating characters, not always likeable but very relatable (we've all met them!) and small town politics combine in this story and ultimately the mystery of the body in the river is solved. Wonderful - kept me turning the pages in one huge reading gulp! Very highly recommended.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book.

This was such a good read. I'm sure others will say it's very like "Big Little Lies" by Liane Moriarty so if you enjoyed that, you'll love this. I found myself so engrossed in the characters that I looked forward to reading it to see what they were up to. Every character is different, no-one comes across as generic and all will probably remind you of someone you know. There are a couple of different strands to the story and piecing it all together works very well - it's tense and engaging but at the same time very moving in parts. I can't wait to be able to recommend this to people.

Absolutely loved this read! To begin with I enjoyed this book and it made me smile. Matching the different characters with people I actually knew who behaved like that but then the story took a direction that I didn't see coming which then made me love the plot.
It was a believable plot and flowed along nicely, I thought at times I had guessed what was coming next but I was so wrong. Which was refreshing and made it even more enjoyable.
A good read and I would enjoy reading it again.

School dramas really do show up the worst in people and how they can behave when their children are involved. We like to think we wouldn’t behave like that but there is always some truth in it.

I enjoyed the book and would read more by this author.

I chose this because it's being billed as perfect for fans of Motherland which is currently one of my fav TV shows. And it is - just like the show it's an honest and amusing depiction of life as a modern-day mother. For example, one mum says she's glad her son doesn't want to be in the school play because "he's got zero stage presence....He's the only one of my boys I ever left at the supermarket." Or the headteacher who seeking a confession from the children says "I have all day", meaning "forty minutes before the final bell went and she was legally required to send them home."

I particularly liked Christine though whose cat has been stolen but children are told "He was a kitten but now he's a cat and he's decided to move out". She later gets her kids to mark down Mrs Rodger's movements in a notebook before forcing one of them to help her break into said neighbour's house to get the cat back. This I might add is elderly but wily Mrs Rodgers who always remembers "to hunch herself forward - fragility her greatest weapon." I guess humorous parenting is not enough on its own and you still need a storyline but the murder mystery element seemed an odd and unexpected choice, especially the triggering way it panned out. But, just a minor down point in an otherwise brilliantly funny, entertaining and relatable book - and one I'd totally recommend (especially for fans of Motherland).

If you like Lianne Moriarty then this is the book for you. It’s an absolute page-turner as we follow the lives of the families of Glass Lake school. There’s plenty of pushy mums around the school production, desperate to secure the best roles for their offspring and willing to go to any lengths to secure it. There is also the hangover from a terrible accident that happened in the town the previous year.
Lots of twists and turns, some of which are easy to spot and some which come out of the blue. Definitely worth reading.

This is the first book I have read by this author. I love the writing style, so engrossing and compelling to keep on reading, so much so that I read it in one day.
The characters are people you will recognise from either being a parent or your own school days.
The twists in the story keep coming right up until the last page.

Thoroughly enjoyable book about schoolyard politics, families with secrets, scandal, tragedy, brilliantly written and you really feel for the characters especially Arlo and Ella. Beverley Franklin is how controlling mothers can be especially when her daughter is caught up in scandal. and how far they will go to protect her reputation at the school.

A fantastic book. Well paced. I was fully drawn in and loved the characterisations. There is a subtle humour running through it, just enough to lift what is a dark plot and make it easier to contemplate. To write such a book during a pandemic whilst mothering a tiny baby is outstanding.

This book is spot on about parental attitudes to primary schools, and is observant and witty whilst still being sensitive and intriguing. I laughed out loud at some of the characters, who were very relatable. The mystery centres around a tragic car accident, a vilified family and a secret love story, all tainted by small- minded prejudices and gossip. All strands come together in the end in a feel- good way without being sugary and sentimental. A one-sitting read for me!

I found it slightly hard to get stuck into this book- I kept losing track of who was who, especially the group of vipers/mums in the Glass Lake parents association! The story had an edge of darkness to it and if you’d asked me in the middle of reading it I couldn’t have told you for sure if I liked the book or not, and yet by the end, with the twists and turns and as the characters defensive layers gradually got peeled away, I absolutely did. It’s always a good sign when you’re thinking of the characters and story line at random moments after you’ve finished the book and I have done with this. It made me think, and it added variety to my usual choice of books- so give it a try!

A fabulous story where so many characters can be related to any school gates and yet some massive twists thrown in making you doubt all assumptions!

This was almost painful to read in exactly the way it should be. It's an extreme version of exactly how I picture school WhatsApp groups and gossip at the gates to be. Some of these characters are deeply unlikable and totally convinced they're doing the right thing by their kids. Full of gossip, schoolyard politics and even a dead body. I didn't feel like it was quite for me but I can imagine the right readers will get a real kick out of it.