I find the trope of the burnt out woman overplayed. Women always seem to be portrayed as slightly fraying at the edges because finding the balance between being a "good" mom and homemaker gets lost in being a stellar employee. However, the way this story not only faces that element, but blows it away is well done.
I love how Nicole Trope tells a story. She always has such well thought out and insightful characters. The first half was a tad slow, but that was the climb. When things switch, you're left in a free fall and don't know if a net can catch you.
With brilliant twists and an ending that will leave you speechless, this is the start to what is sure to be a delicious series. #KatyApproved.

Not A Good Enough Mother : Nicole Trope

Nicole Trope never ceases to amaze me with her brilliant plots! The story was well written with an original plot and unexpected twists!

Mother, wife and working full time, Ava Green is struggling then Grace Morton walks in like a breath of fresh air. Ava has no clue who Grace really is.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Apologies for the late review! I thought I had sent it.
What can I say Nicola Trope is a new author to me and can't wait to read more. This book didn't disappoint, great story right up my street full of twists and turns, brilliant writing! Looking forward to reading her next one.

Not a Good Enough Mother
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
Author: Nicole Trope

I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley and Bookouture and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased.

Synopsis: Have you ever looked at those mothers who seem to be perfect – with sweet little children, a full-time job, a beautiful home – and thought: am I not good enough? Ava has. She’s desperate to become just like them. That’s exactly why I’m here… ‘Don’t worry, I’m here to help!’ I say with a big smile. I can see the relief in Ava Green’s face. She has two beautiful children, a charming husband and a high-flying job. But there is so much stress in the lines around her eyes. She worries she isn’t good enough. I understand.

Before she knows it, I’ve cleaned the kitchen and offered to babysit her two little girls. It’s not why she hired me, but I like to go above and beyond. I’m just glad she didn’t check my application too carefully. Because even before we met, I made sure I knew everything about Ava and her lovely little family…

Her husband never helps out. He takes phone calls at strange times. He’s hiding something – and Ava is close to breaking point. Those poor children. But everything will be okay. I have plans for Ava. She just has to trust me…

My Thoughts: Previously published under The Assistant. This is the first book in the Grace Morton series. Trope crafts the perfect thriller that is compelling, gripping and captivating. Ava Green is a new mother that is struggling to balance motherhood and working full time, coupled with a lazy husband who offers no help at all and does not take her seriously. Grace Morton walks into Ava’s life at the right time and immediately shines as an assistant, and soon Ava has no idea how she will function at work without Grace. Grace has an agenda and chose Ava for a reason, she knows everything there is to know about Ava, including the family secrets. Was it pure coincidence that Grace met Ava at the right time? Or was there a more devious plan in place for Ava’s family?

This one is a little bit of slow burn. Grace is maintains order in chaos, decisive, and appears to be the perfect assistant. Ava is a mother, has a successful, yet demanding career, and a husband, Finn, who does not contribute financially or emotionally to the household. There is harmony between Grace and Ava and they begin to form a friendship. When Grace needs a place to stay for a week while her place is being tented, Ava offers her garage flat. The characters were well developed and fleshed out with depth, were secretive, mysterious, and intriguing. The author’s writing style was complex, multifaceted, twisty, suspenseful, and kept me on the edge of my seat for the duration of the ride.

The author does a fantastic job at building up the character backstories. She is amazing at building these characters through deceit and being flawed, and her ability to pit them against one another. You hate the characters so much that you love them, if that makes sense. She delivers the convoluted and complex plot through twisty layers. Then the explosive ending is so fantastical that I am still thinking about it four months after I read the book (sorry my review is a bit delayed, it was rough last quarter of 2024).

Trope does it again with a masterfully crafted psychological thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat while being clever, disturbing, and twisty. With some aspects of unpredictably coming out of left field, this one will keep you wanting to devour it in one sitting. Trope kept me on a rollercoaster of emotions throughout this book. Trope has been one of my favorite thriller authors for sometime and she does not disappoint with this one. I highly recommend picking up (or borrowing from your library) today.

Another fantastic addictive domestic thriller.
As a parent this one gave me heart palpitations! Imagine hiring someone in your home to help with your children who you believe is trustworthy, but it turns out that person has a hidde and agenda and is not who they say they are... It's the stuff of nightmares for every parent.
That is the case for the main character in this book.

A gripping and addictive read with many twists and turns throughout.

A big thank you to netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

What a page turner!… Absolutely breathtaking … I can’t believe I read this book in one sitting , it was so gripping

The storytelling was masterful, with a mystery that unraveled in the most unexpected ways, another winner from Nicole Trope!!!

Not a Good Enough Mother by Nicole Trope is the first book in the beautifully written Grace Morton series and what a wonderful book this was and a perfect read sitting in the shade in your garden or on holiday. This book was excellent from start to finish and a great read.

I highly recommend Not a Good Enough Mother I loved it and Looking forward to book 2 within this new series.

Big Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for my ARC

Pulled me in at the very beginning and kept me guessing the whole way through. The plot twist was twisty and what I like in my thriller books. Looking forwards to the next book in the series.

Really enjoyed this tense and well-written story. Well developed characters and a twisty plot kept me turning the pages. Thanks to publisher and NetGalley for the chance to read this ARC.

I loved reading "Not a Good Enough Mother" and the book kept me intrigued and guessing the entire way to the end. I can't wait to read the next one in the series and to find out what happens next.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for gifting me a digital ARC of this psychological thriller by Nicole Trope. All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 4 stars!

Ava Green is struggling. At work, she lost her last assistant and is working way too much to make up for it. Plus, she's trying to get the top job in her company, competing with her rival. Things are no better at home, where her husband, Finn, takes care of the kids and works on his painting, but nothing that brings in any money. Then Grace walks into work for a job interview as Ava's assistant, and she seems like a dream come true. But is she?

As you would expect from a Nicole Trope novel, this one is twisty, everyone is keeping secrets, and you'll enjoy every minute! You can feel Ava's exasperation with her life and the relief when Grace swoops in to make every part easier. I never saw that final twist coming though! This is the first book about Grace - the next book, A Mother Always Knows, is set to be published in December and I'm anxious to read that one as well.

I love books by Nicole Trope, she is one of my go to authors and I have had this book waiting for far too long.

I quickly got into the story, enjoying unearthing clues as to Grace’s past, thinking I had got it sorted, to be led up a wrong path again.

Finding out about the childhoods of both Grace and Ava, I was totally enrapt waiting to see what would evolve. There is darkness and a strong sense of manipulation making this a pacy read. The characterisations were spot on, as were the descriptions bringing each setting to life. Two powerful women in business and how their lives fluctuate and circumstances change rapidly.

A great read and with an ending that I didn’t see coming, which I loved!

I really enjoyed this Rollercoaster ride of a psychological thriller! Ava, her new assistant Grace, and Ava's husband Finn are the main characters and I really enjoyed the character development. Such a fun thriller.

I am not sure why this was changed from the assistant - but as I love anything by Nicole Trope, I knew I would love it whatever the name.
Eva is a busy mum of 2 who works for a high powered business woman.
She interviews Grace for the job of her assistant and we already know that there is something suspicious about her motive.
As usual there were quite a few plot twists, which ended with a fabulous opportunity for book 2! Brilliant!

She knows everything about you...but can you trust her...?

What starts off as a slow burn domestic suspense turns into cliffhanger of an ending that makes me go "OK, I'm reading the next book NOW!" Not even I saw that final twist coming. And I see most of them. Throughout the entire book I thought I had it all figured out - after all, it seemed fairly cut and dried to me. Everything laid out, falling into place. It all made sense. And then came that explosive reveal. I'm impressed, Ms Trope. You had me fooled.

The story centres on Ava who is harassed at home and equally harassed at work. She can't seem to find that work-home life balance since her previous assistant left. Everything seems to be falling apart on both fronts and hubby Finn does nothing to help, citing "inspiration" for his own work - painting. Which has yet to contribute to their mortgage or living expenses. And yet as soon as she walks in the door at the end of the day, she's greeted by chaos and her work days seems to be far from over.

And then in walks Grace Enright. Fresh, clear, controlled and keen to help put some order back into Ava's frazzled life. No sooner has she arrived than she has taken up the slack where Ava was flagging and organised everything from lists to appointments to fielding calls, turning her office into a smooth-running well-oiled machine. It isn't long before Ava wonders how she managed without Grace, and truth be told, she didn't. As was clear. Grace is perfect. She is clear, decisive and controlled in a crisis. Which is soon put to the test when things begin to take a swift dive, both personally and professionally.

The women form a friendship of sorts they didn't know needed. When Grace needs a place to stay for a week, Ava knows her garage flat is sitting empty and without a tenant (another bone of contention between her and Finn that she had asked him to sort) and offers it to Grace. But is that crossing the line between her personal and professional lives? Ava dismisses the thought as quickly as it entered her head knowing she needs Grace as much as the older woman needs her.

And then things start to take a downward turn at work. Ava is up for promotion but her colleague is vying for the same position and seems he will stop at nothing to get it. Their receptionist seems to spend all her time scrolling through her phone or batting her eyelashes and flashing her cleavage at her colleague and competition. While at home, Finn has grown distant and Ava begins to question what he is hiding. But her girls, the lights of her life, bring sunshine to her otherwise cloud-filled days, as exhausting as they are.

Suddenly it seems having Grace staying there is a blessing. Especially when she is on hand to take up the slack in the mornings as Ava juggles breakfast and getting the girls ready for school and herself for work. Finn is conspicuously absent, painting in his studio.

But did things start going downhill before or after Grace's arrival? Is that a coincidence or is she just imagining things? I mean, Ava's life was chaotic before but is her new assistant just fuelling the fire? Or is there something else at play?

I love Nicole Trope and devour every one of her addictive reads. I think it's about the 15th book of hers that I've read thus far. This one is more of a slow burn to begin with as the reader wonders which direction the story is going to take. And what role Grace really plays here. Despite its slow pace at the start, the story effortlessly flows between Ava and Grace's POVs complete with flashbacks to give us a better understanding to our characters, their strengths and their flaws.

When I began, I thought it would take a whole other direction that the one Ms Trope took us on. But I wasn't disappointed...definitely not after reading those final pages. Now I want to dive straight into the follow-up "A Mother Always Knows".

Overall, an entertaining and engaging read that will keep you turning the pages until that final explosive twist...it really was jaw-dropping in this case. Nicely played, Ms Trope. I can't wait to see what you deliver next.

I would like to thank #NicoleTrope, #Netgalley and #Bookouture for an ARC of #NotAGoodEnoughMother in exchange for an honest review.

This review appears on my blog at https://stinathebookaholic.blogspot.com/.

Nicole Trope is one of my favourite psychological thriller writers and this book was up there with the best.

Well written, with a great cast of characters, it is fast paced with enough twists and turns to keep you guessing to the shocking ending.

Previously published under the title of The Assistant I was pleased to see that this is book number one and I am really looking forward to book number two.

Highly recommended!

This was such a great read, I really enjoyed it. Such a great story with a fabulous twist that will leave you shocked. It will keep you on the edge of your seat.

I feel like I was trippin’ for a second with the book title, I received it as an ARC under The Assistant. Anywho this is a fast paced book and I was hooked from the start.

Ava is a working mom who has no help at home or at work. Her husband is lazy and doesn’t take her needs seriously. She’s struggling to balance her work load and household responsibilities. Grace walks into her life at the perfect time. Grace is the perfect assistant. Or is she?
I really enjoyed this one. I was surprised at the direction this book took. I can’t say my thoughts without ruining the surprises for everyone but I liked Grace’s character a lot more than I thought I would. I wish there was more of an ending for her. A fantastic read.