DO NOT START THIS UNTIL YOU CLEAR YOUR SCHEDULES AS YOU WILL NOT BE ABLE TO PUT IT DOWN!!!!…
Victoria is an amazing author!

A thrilling ride of a read! The Mother's Phone Call is a tense and compulsive read with so many secrets that are metered out until the final conclusion which is another big twist. Very well done and an exciting read!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for this ARC!

Title: The Mother’s Phone Call
Author: Victoria Jenkins
Genre: Psychological/Thriller
Publisher: Bookouture
Pub Date: January 16, 2025
My Rating: 4.4 Stars
Pages: 265

Story starts when Eve and Chris Harris are hosting a neighborhood party to celebrate their 20th Anniversary.
Jo and Eve have been best friends since Jo and Rob Clarke moved into the house across the street. Jo and Rob have two children a son Toby now eighteen and a daughter Alice. Eve and Chris also have two children a daughter Freida and son Dylan. Their children are friends and are also at the party. However after the party Freya is found dead and Toby is found standing over her, in shock. It appears Toby killed her.

Story certainly kept me curious and turning pages.
Whodunit was a surprise.
I am sure this story is going to make interesting book club discussions.

The Mother’s Phone Call Want to thank NetGalley and Bookouture for this early e-Galley.
Publishing Release Date scheduled for January 16, 2025.

I read this in a couple of hours on part of my commute I just couldn't put it down, I was gripped. Fast paced and full of tension i was on the edge of my seat for most of the book

This is a solid domestic thriller that I read in a day, it's THAT good! Just what would you do if your son claimed to have killed someone? All is not what it seems in this novel and its fill of secrets and lies. The twists are good and grab you when you don't expect it!

Big thanks to Bookouture for a copy on Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
The Mother’s Phone Call is domestic drama slash thriller with a fair amount of tension and suspense.
Every parents worst nightmare is getting a call from their child saying “Hello, I need help….. I killed someone”
Two close knit families who live opposite each other clash as a tragedy makes for family vs family.
Jo gets a distressing phone call from her son, Toby.
Did Toby kill the neighbours daughter, Freya from across the street…..
The evidence points in his direction but it soon becomes apparent that all is not what it seems….
Is Toby guilty?
Who is lying?
And who is telling the truth….
With secrets and lies in abundance, an engaging plot and a list of scheming suspects, this story evolves sharply.
Layers of deceit and toxic characters which makes for a very creative tale.
An enjoyable read from this favoured author.

This is a dramatic read and one that makes you wonder what, as a mother, you would do in the same situation..

Tom is suspected stabbing his neighbour and his mother has a dilemma.

This is a wow wow wow book and I loved it. It is tense, filled with suspense with many shocks..

It had me gripped and I loved it.

Victoria Jenkins, The Mother's Phone Call, Bookouture, January 2025.
Thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to read this advanced copy.

The Mother's Phone Call: A Familiar Domestic Thriller
Lies, deceit, adultery, murder. Victoria Jenkins’ The Mother’s Phone Call is a classic domestic thriller that delivers a predictable yet suspenseful read. While the novel boasts a cast of intriguing characters, the rapid introduction of many within the first chapter can be slightly overwhelming.

This was my first read of Victoria Jenkins so, I had no preconceived expectations. The plot, though familiar, is well-paced and keeps the reader engaged. However, the lack of surprising twists, especially in the latter half, may disappoint those seeking a truly shocking revelation. Despite this, the book's exploration of complex family dynamics and the psychological impact of betrayal is compelling.

For fans of domestic thrillers who enjoy a straightforward plot and well-developed characters, The Mother’s Phone Call is a solid choice.

Victoria Jenkins, The Mother's Phone Call, Bookouture, January 2025.

Thank you, NetGalley, for providing me with this uncorrected proof for review.

One of my problems with coming to grips with this book was being unable to see the young people, Alice, Toby, and Freya as normally functioning 18-year-olds. They all came across as 14- or 15-year-olds, living lives dependent on their parents’ emotional support in an exceedingly small world. That this world was to be shattered gave Victoria Jenkins an opportunity to depict them maturing as young adults. However, they remain essentially unchanged, and Jo, Alice and Toby’s mother, continues to see herself as the necessary recipient of her twins’ confidences and guardian of their behaviour. She has also made herself the person who has assumed the right to judge Toby’s actions that precipitate the phone call. A phone call that makes an accusation that is not easy to undo.

As the truth, or each character’s version of the truth emerge, and suspicions escalate, what has seemed to be an almost ideal life of wealth in a salubrious suburban cul-de-sac, is destroyed. It is not only Toby who is to be judged, his family become a focus of police, neighbour, and social media attention. None of this is kind or forgiving. None of it looks further than the superficial, perhaps reflecting the lives that have been challenged by the phone call and its aftermath. For these lives are without ballast, and always have been. The most superficial character of all, Eve, Jo’s neighbour, and friend from when they moved into houses opposite each other is crucial in the unfolding of events. The women’s husbands, Rob and Chris, and Freya’s older brother, Dylan also have a role to play in the twists and turns of this psychological thriller.

For me, The Mother’s Phone Call was a disappointment. The characters have little to redeem them. Their ultimate responses to resolution of the crime seemed to throw an unrealistic cover over the other problems that were exposed. Most importantly, the moral dilemmas faced by Jo and Eve in the decisions they made about their sons would have been a really absorbing debate, but this was given little attention. I was left feeling that this novel provided an interesting enough beach read but wanted more.

An excellent family drama which held my interest throughout.

Lots of lies, twists and turns throughout this story makes it a great read.

Thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture for this ARC which I can thoroughly recommend.

Gripping the phone, my hands tremble with fear. I look at my son and wonder how my darling blue-eyed boy could have done this. But as my eyes focus down on the body, I know what I must do. I know it will destroy our lives forever. 'Hello? I need help. It’s my child. He’s killed someone.! Good book! This book had great suspense, murder, mystery, intriguing, heartbreaking, and some wild twists! The story was very interesting! I definitely recommend reading this one! Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for sharing this book with me!

A tense and gripping thriller that keeps you turning the pages. Full of shocking twists and turns. A great read!

The Mother's Phone Call is a fast paced domestic thriller. Two families, each with teenage children, have grown up together. More like one family than two - but that all changes.

Jo gets a call from her son demanding she comes to him. She finds her in shock - with the neighbour's daughter lying dead at his feet. She calls the police, but did Toby really stab Freya?

Despite apparently compelling evidence it becomes clear that we haven't got the full picture. And all of the main characters have secrets, with several lying to cover up. WIll the truth be uncovered?

This is a short and compelling novel. The pace varies a little, but the revelations and clues come thick and fast as various characters appear to be implemented. But just how far will a parent go to protect their child?

How far would you go to protect your child?

This book was fast paced and emotional, tense and thrilling! Well written and very enjoyable. Show sing the true test parents go to to protect their own!

Jo and Eve are neighbors and friends whose children have grown up together. One night Jo’s son is found over eve’s daughter’s body. Toby is arrested. Toby insists he’s innocent and he loved her. Who is to blame? What really happened? What other secrets are these families hiding? Was middle of the road for me.

Oh my, I honestly hope I will never get this kind of phone call from my child! Of course a mother will do the right thing, but is doing the right thing always a good thing? It might be the beginning of the end of the life as you know it at the moment. The little things that went on before are suddenly so futile comparing to what is in front of you now, but you have to make that call, don't you?

You will do whatever to protect your child,so you make the call...

You know the truth will always come out and help those who are honest, so you make the call...

You were best friends with only the street separating you. Now it feels like there is an ocean between you...

This is a story about friendship, lies and cheating ending in the worst possible way.

I loved this story filled with emotions and I never expected this person to be the culprit. Great book. 5 stars

Thank you

Eve and Jo became friends when Jo moved into the house across the street. Their children are friends and grew up as close as cousins.
Then Eve's daughter, Freya is found dead with Jo's son Toby standing over her, in shock. Jo has no choice but to call the police to report her son for murder.

Gosh!! What a fantastic, fast paced, emotional read this is! I literally could not put it down and read it in one sitting.
Tense, heartbreaking and suspenseful, you won't regret reading this book.
There is nothing quite like a mother's love.

I recommend this and award it 5/5 stars.

Thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for the ARC.

This is a story about how far you would go to save your child.
The story revolves around two family's that have been friends for many years.
Well written characters and a read that is full of twists.
Having read everything by this author i found this a good but not her best book in my opinion. There was just a bit to much of looking back to when the children were little and i found some parts a little repetitive.
My thanks to netgalley and the publisher for my copy.

Thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for this Advanced Reader’s Copy of The Mother’s Phone Call by Victoria Jenkins due to be published January 16, 2025.

Gripping the phone, Jo’s hands tremble with fear. She looks at her son, Toby, and knows what she must do even though she knows it will destroy her family’s lives forever. 'Hello? I need help. It’s my child. He’s killed someone.' She should be able to keep her children safe. But what she sees in front of her cannot be denied. No one else is here. Her son is guilty. How far will she go to protect him?
I had previously read The Open Marriage by Victoria Jenkins and enjoyed it and was looking forward to this one.
Told in alternating people from several days before and leading up to the murder, you get everyone’s viewpoint in regards to what happened before and what happens after. There were lots of twists, turns, and secrets – the key to a good psychological thriller that had me guessing until the very end – a page turner!

#NetGalley #VictoriaJenkins #Bookouture #TheMothersPhoneCall

I love Victoria Jenkins books. She is a fine storyteller. They are quick reads and they always have an interesting plot twist. This is a great book to read while sitting by the fire sipping on hot cocoa. Enjoy.