Meet Florence Grimes, thirtysomething ex-singer from girl band Girl's Night, sister of Brooke, mother to 10 year old Dylan, and chaos personified. Disaster, thy name is Florence.
A couple of chapters in, it was plain to see why all the other mother's hated her. I wasn't feeling too enamored myself.
For all her faults, and there are many, Florence does love her son, although her parenting skills leave much to be desired. When she suspects that Dylan may know more about the disappearance of one of his classmates than he's let on, Florence decides to investigate, with the help of new friend Jenny.
This was quite a fun read. Yes, I know there's a missing child and other criminal activities, but it's hard not to laugh at some of Florence's hare brained schemes, and the situations she finds herself in.
FYI: By the end of the book I was starting to like Florence. 🐢
Thanks to 4th Estate Books and Netgalley for the digital ARC.

Despite a fairly high-octane plot (and not a highly believable one throughout), this was a fun and propulsive read. The main character is annoying and endearing in equal measure and the friendship between her and her accomplice is really underwritten but this was an easy and entertaining novel and perfect for when I was on holiday. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

I really enjoyed this book! Read it in one sitting. Definitely will be keeping an eye out for more books from this author.
Thank you!

Wow I LOVED this book! Best book I've read in a while and definitely the best book of 2025 so far.
Florence the story's main protagonist is super likable and even though she is flawed, very relatable in terms of her love for her child and the lengths she will go to to keep him safe.
The story of Florence making friends with Jenny and attempting to solve the kidnapping were brilliant. Love their friendship and how it changed both of their lives. Just a wonderful, wonderful story.

I struggled with this. The main character isn't likeable and wasn't nice to read. The chaos of her life was a little too chaotic and I found the writing a bit jumpy

This is hilarious. Harman has such an acute understanding of what she's trying to do with this story, right down to the so-called 'unlikeability' of her protagonist, Florence, and the parameters of her chosen genre that it could - possibly should(?) - come across as cookie-cutter, yet it doesn't. It's fresh and funny and dynamic. A wonderful new voice.

Florence was in a girl band but now her life is a mess. She is a single Mum to 10 year old Dylan, whose father pays for him to go to an expensive private school. Florence doesn’t fit in and is pretty much ostracised by the other mothers. Dylan finds it hard to get on with his peers. When one of the other children, Archie, goes missing on a school trip, suspicion falls on Dylan. Florence needs to find Archie to protect Dylan. Florence is a great character, she is completely chaotic and makes some very questionable decisions but she will do anything to save her son. This was a great read, a thriller but also very funny.
Thanks to NetGalley, 4th Estate and William Collins for the review access.

3.5⭐️. This book is definitely different to any I’ve read before. Not particularly because of the plot but because Florence, our FMC, is an unlikely lead. She’s a 31 year old American ex-pop star, living in the UK as a single mum with a 10 year old boy who attends a posh public school in London. Flo makes a point of being different from the other mums (younger, laissez-faire attitude) while also being resentful of it. A lot of her actions are very self-centred and she is not that likeable a person. For example, when talking about her neighbour, she says:

“Adam may not be my boyfriend, but he is my backup plan. His attention, his favors, his loyalties - those belong to me. I rely on them.”

This does lead to some outlandish, funny moments but also some frustrations brought about by her ‘woe is me’ attitude. For that reason, it probably wasn’t until the mystery/investigation element started that I found myself more engaged with the book.

Dylan, Flo’s son, is the one light in her life and when a boy in his class goes missing and Dylan becomes the prime suspect, she decides to investigate. She recruits a new mum (Jenny) and I liked their dynamic because Jenny challenged Flo in a way that made her (at least partially) self-reflect. That being said, if you’re expecting Flo to experience massive character growth and become a new and better person, then you might be waiting a while!

All in all, a fun and quick read with some good drama at the end but not a new favourite.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the e-arc of this book.

Loved this book and devoured it quickly, mainly because the lead character is so charming, in spite of her flaws. As an ex-girl band member. Florence has a far from perfect life, but she is cobbling it together for the sake of her 10 year old son. Until she suspects her son may be responsible for the disappearance of an annoying classmate. She ups the ante in her efforts to uncover the crime and clear her son, at all costs.

So fresh and funny and full of quirky crazy moments. Suspend disbelief and enjoy the romping ride of a book.

Florence, an American failed ex-girlband member and single mother living in London, becomes embroiled in the disappearance of one of the children at her son's school. She is selfish and flawed, but also a fun character who is largely self-aware and essentially driven by her unflinching love for her son. An entertaining, light-hearted, page turner.

All The Other Mothers Hate Me grabs attention with its snappy title, and you'll find the same wit and energy carry through to the narrative. Florence is an unapologetically unlikeable protagonist, but the way she shamelessly embrace her flaws makes her both a compelling and entertaining narrator.

So it's a shame the plot doesn’t do her any favors. The mystery is flimsy and far-fetched, relying heavily on coincidence and sheer dumb luck. Florence's chaotic energy too often spirals into blind panic, which seems like a convenient way to obscure the story’s lack of depth. Her obliviousness to obvious clues makes the final twist feel more predictable than shocking.

While the humor can be cutting, All The Other Mothers Hate Me is never quite as clever as it aspires to be. But with a great cover and snappy marketing campaign, I imagine we'll be seeing it all over bookstores come Spring.

It begins as a normal school day, with Florence getting ready to drop off her son Dylan to school and is also avoiding conversations with the other mothers. She doesn’t like them probably just as much as they’re not too keen on her. Dylan is going on a field trip today, so he doesn’t want to be late, and he isn’t but only just. So Florence goes about her day getting an outfit together for her important meeting later which she hopes will be the re ignition of her pop career. Florence used to be in a girl group and dropped out dramatically, but that’s another story. So whilst out at the shops, she gets a load of notifications on the school group chat to hurry back to school, it is an emergency but nobody knows what’s happening. She hails a taxi and hurries back to the school. Once there she finds a literal roadblock of people. Parents media and apparently the police are on their way. So she barges her way in and finds Dylan in a toilet. She is stopped at the door but bypasses the teacher and makes her way home, with her son. Once there, she receives numerous calls where she finds out that Alfie, Dylan‘s nemesis at school, has gone missing on the school trip and Dylan was meant to be his partner during the trip. But it’s obvious that the teachers didn’t do the field trip 101, where you count heads going onto the coach because they didn’t realise Alfie was missing until they got back to school.

After finding Alfie‘s backpack in Dylan’s bedroom, Florence tries to go to the centre where the children went on their day trip to dump the bag. But she ends up taking it home after getting arrested and decide to team up with one of the other mums, who she called to pick her up at the police station, to try and solve the crime of what happened to Dylan.

It’s a long book necessarily so and Florence the protagonist seems to be a bit of a fruit cake. She’s very out there in her own head getting herself into all sorts when it wasn’t necessary. The book is well written though and I would recommend it as a light read.

All The Other Mothers Hate Me follows Florence who is a single mother to her son Dylan, age 10. She was in a girlband when she was younger but since then she’s just a broke American woman living in London. Dylan’s rival at school is Alfie and he ends up going missing on a school trip. Dylan is the number one suspect and Florence has to get her act together. The only unfortunate thing is that Alfie’s backpack is under Dylan’s bed.

This had a strong start but I did start to lose interest. I think I would have loved this if this was a different kind of story. I can’t say I loved the detective turn this took especially because I guessed what had happened to Alfie. That said this was enjoyable and I’m giving it 3 stars. I would recommend this to fans of mysteries but also fans of literary fiction that follows women who are a mess.

I couldn't put it down! A well-paced novel that kept me reading way past my bedtime.
Florence was in a girl band, but was kicked out before they got famous; now she wants to revive the career she almost had. But a 10 year old boy has gone missing on a school trip, and Dylan, her son, was the last person to see him alive. What lengths will Florence go to to protect her son?
Florence teams up with Jenny, an insurance lawyer and American looking to make a connection with someone who reminds her of home.
Florence is not exactly a likeable main character but you can't help rooting for her. She's the very definition of a 'hot mess'. There are plenty of twists and turns and red herrings, it kept me guessing until the end.

It feels weird to say that a book about the investigation into a missing 10 year old (where another 10 year old is the main suspect) was a bit of a light read for me after the multiple books about body horror I’ve read lately, but this book was a breath of fresh air. It follows a failed girl band member who doesn’t have much going on besides her 10 year old son, who is the aforementioned main suspect in his classmate’s disappearance. The story is fun, easy to read and funny. The main character is not very likeable in some respects, she’s not an especially responsible parent but she is a lot of fun. I really enjoyed this book.

All The Other Mothers Hate Me introduces readers to Florence Grimes, a thirty-one-year-old woman whose life is characterised by missed opportunities and a profound sense of dissatisfaction. After the ignominious end of her career in a girl band, Florence is left to navigate the challenges of single motherhood, surviving on minimal funds and struggling to find any sense of purpose—except for her son Dylan, the one bright spot in her otherwise dreary existence.

However, when Alfie Risby, the heir to a vast frozen-food empire and a persistent bully in Dylan’s class, goes missing during a school trip, the story takes an unexpected turn. Dylan quickly becomes the prime suspect, and Florence is forced to confront a situation that is impossible to walk away from. She must find Alfie and clear her son's name—while juggling the hostility of the other school mums and a creeping suspicion that Dylan may not be entirely blameless. Florence is forced to step up in a way she never has before, despite having no investigative experience or any real skills to handle such a situation.

This book is an easy, breezy read that doesn't require much mental exertion, which may appeal to readers looking for a light mystery with relatable characters. The story doesn’t delve too deeply into psychological complexities but instead provides an enjoyable, fast-paced narrative about a mother’s devotion to her son and her attempt to navigate the social minefield of school gate politics.

The charm of All The Other Mothers Hate Me lies in its likable and often relatable protagonist, Florence. While her flaws and insecurities are evident, it’s her determination to protect her son at all costs that makes her a compelling character. The real highlight, however, is Jenny, Florence’s quirky and loyal partner in crime. Jenny brings a refreshing energy to the story and provides much-needed comic relief, making her one of the standout characters of the book.

The mystery itself is decent, with a fair amount of intrigue and some twists that keep the pages turning. The resolution isn’t overly complex, but it serves the story well. While not a deeply thought-provoking read, the book succeeds in being a fun, entertaining escape.

If you're looking for a light-hearted mystery with a strong mother-son bond and a dash of humour, All The Other Mothers Hate Me is worth picking up. It’s the kind of story you can read in one sitting, and if you enjoy Florence’s antics, you’ll likely be eager to follow her on more adventures.

Read more at The Secret Book Review.

I have mixed feelings about this. I did enjoy it, but I found Flo really frustrating at points - even if I did feel for her, too. The resolution felt rushed as well. A decent read, but feel it could have been a better one.

* 3.5 stars

The start of this book definitely felt a bit slow, and I found it difficult to read about the main character Florence at first. Let's just say, there's definitely a reason why all the other mothers hate her. Despite being mostly unlikeable (in my opinion), you also can't help but keep reading grom her point of view.

The middle of the book was the slowest, but the last 100 pages or so were incredibly thrilling. Even having seen the "big bad guy" coming, I felt the ending was satisfying, as there was more to it than you would expect.

I also loved the very last chapter as we see what Dylan has most likely been up to, as he honestly was a bit suspicious throughout the book. Now we know why!

Overall this was fun and thrilling - exactly what one would expect from a book like this. I enjoyed it!

Thank you NetGalley for the free digital copy of this book.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book! The main character, Flo, isn’t particularly likeable but as the book progresses we do see her softer, kinder side. I felt it was a good pace of book abd it kept you wondering what would happen next.

Unfortunately not for me, a bit of a strange thriller with a very unlikable main character. DNF at 30%