Normal Women, the new novel by Motherthing author Ainslie Hogarth, is the story of Dani, a stay-at-home mom struggling to come to terms with her new role. Her lack of independent income leaves her feeling vulnerable, and her fears about her husband dying lead her into an obsession with the mysterious Temple, a business with a shady reputation and a staff of women who seem enviably confident and empowered.

Normal Women feels more like a novel of ideas than of plot. As Dani slowly descends into paranoia, she comes into contact with a host of female characters who are all trying to find and maintain a sense of independence and purpose in a world dominated by men. Prostitutes, momfluencers, entrepreneurs and of course, the Normal Women of the title - Dani's mom friends, seemingly content with their husbands and cosy families. I really enjoyed the first 3/4 or so of this book, a slow burn in which Dani's world-view becomes increasingly warped, and there's a sense that the story is heading somewhere very dark indeed. But after an unexpected plot development, the story started to lose its grip on me, and I was ultimately left puzzled by the final twist. I'm not sure if I was supposed to take it at face value, or if it was meant to leave a lingering sense of something 'off', potentially a bit unreal.

Overall, though, I found this an enjoyable, thought-provoking and entertaining read. The satire, in particular, is excellent. I can't compare it to Motherthing because I haven't read that one yet, but based on how much I liked Normal Women, I'm definitely looking forward to giving it a try.

Thank you the Netgalley and the publishers for the ARC

2.5

I was interesting in this novel because of the mystery element however this was only a minor part of it.

I found the first 40% quite strong and was wondering where it would go. However, The ending was so unrealistic that it made it all feel sort of ridiculous.

I thoroughly enjoyed this. I'm a big fan of domestic women going insane stories and it didn't disappoint at all. It wasn't as perfect as Motherthing, which I read earlier this year, but if you enjoyed that, you'll definitely enjoy this.