Twists and turns will keep your attention through this book. A very different perspective on things and definitely worth a read!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an advance copy of this publication in return for an unbiased review.
Interesting debut from Ali Land and one that certainly had me hooked from the early stages of the book.
The story revolves around a teenager in care and fostered with a family who have a daughter of the same age.
MIllie's birth mother is a serial killer and the book builds up to the trial.
Expect the unexpected and the odd twist or two along the way.

I've heard a lot about this book and seen it in the shops a lot when I go to the books section, usually hearing it being compared to The Girl on the Train or Gone Girl. I had an e-book copy of this book from Penguin UK and my husband had the paperback version. He read it before me and couldn't really get into the book and wanted me to have a go at reading the book to see what my opinion would be because he knows I've read books of a similar genre.

The main character is Annie, now called Milly and living with a foster family. The book is narrated as if she is talking to her mother all the time which my husband didn't really like. Early in the book, we learn that Annie/Milly went to the police and exposed her mothers crimes and that is why she is now living with a foster family as her mother will have to stand trial for the murders she has committed.

Her new life with her foster family isn't very easy; Mike, the father is the psychiatrist who is helping Milly with her problems and getting her ready to give evidence in the trial against her mother; Saskia, the mother isn't liked very much by her own daughter and seems to keep her distance from Milly; and Phoebe, the daughter clearly doesn't like Milly and begins bullying her at school with her group of friends.

Throughout the book, we follow Annie/Milly as her mothers trial is getting closer and her confusion between betrayal and love for her mother. I found the book really easy to get into and found myself already halfway through the book within a few hours. She is told not to let others know her old identity for fear of what will happen, but we can see that she is desperate for her own friends and comfort.

The ending wasn't as I thought it would end but with links to The Girl on the Train and Gone Girl, I think that was to be expected. The book is very well written and you won't want to put it down so I can see why it is a best seller! Give this book a go if you like a good thriller!

Why is it that whenever a book seems to be love/hate I always get stuck in the middle?

Good Me Bad Me had such a strong character voice. Milly was unforgettable. It's obvious from the start that she's undergone something terrible. She's gone to the police and told them about what's been going on at home. Now in a foster home, she's struggling to move on and the voices in her head and pulling her in all sorts of directions.

Milly's complex relationship with Phoebe was chilling to read about. The tension between them kept building until their actions became completely unpredictable and that's what kept me reading.

BUT (yes, this thriller didn't blow me away) the ending was predictable and there was literally no tension in the unravelling of what happened in Milly's past. I was confused. Were we or were we not supposed to know? Her relationship with her foster parents was also bizarre, especially Saskia. Saskia' personal issues were hinted at but never fully uncovered and they seemed completely pointless. Like in Pretty Little Liars when they start a sub-plot thread but forget about it. Likewise, Milly makes friends with a girl in her area and it's almost entirely pointless. Their interactions hardly move the story forward at all and some instances, like the phone swap, felt painfully forced.

I'm still glad I read Good Me Bad Me and now I can see both sides of the debate! If you love character-led thrillers and strong voices, this is one I'd recommend for you.

Physcological, unputdownable thriller! I went from feeling empathy for the main character Milly to slightly scared of her! Really fast paced story although maybe a little predictable. However, a really enjoyable read.

Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Star Rating: 5/5 stars

This book has already been released in the UK, but I was very kindly given an e-book copy through Netgalley and Simon & Schuster in exchange for an honest review.

Since the release of pioneering psychological thrillers such as ‘Gone Girl’ or ‘The Girl on the Train’, almost every single new release has been gifted with the tag line that they stand in the same league as those works of fiction. More often than not, the tag line is simply used because they’re in the same genre, the text inside doesn’t even come close to resonating the chill that these previous novels gave its reader. Thankfully, ‘Good Me Bad Me’ is one novel completely deserving of that particular tag line.

In terms of sheer messed-up-ness, this book is on par with Gone Girl. Its twists and turns, lain over the evil nature of teenagers and the ongoing voice in the back of Milly’s head throughout the book is enough to make you want to devour this book, which is exactly what I did.

This book follows Milly, a teenage girl whose mother is arrested and convicted of murdering nine individual children at their home, as well as physically, sexually and emotionally abusing her daughter too. She is placed in a foster home under the watchful eye of psychologist Mike, his drugged out wife Saskia, and their jealous, wicked teenage daughter Phoebe, who sets out to make Milly’s life a living hell.

I’m going to go out on a limb and say that this might be one of my favourite books this year, as well as perhaps one of the best thriller’s I’ve ever read. And I have read a lot of thrillers. From the very first page, it grabs you by the collar and demands that you envelop yourself in this messed up world where nothing is quite as it seems. Ali Land manages to keep the suspense high until the very last page, keeping secrets close to her chest until it’s a strangely poignant time to reveal them.

It’s twisted and sinister and often times difficult to read, but all that seems to do is make you want to read more and more, to discover what might be lurking on the next page. For me, it definitely brought back some harrowing memories of being at school and being bullied, particularly when you were never sure when the next strike was going to come and how many secrets you kept from others that they didn’t know. It was in those times that I really connected with Milly as a character.

This book was absolutely amazing and I ate it up in two or three sittings. It makes the perfect read for this October when you’re looking for something a bit creepy or a bit sinister to read over the Halloween season. Thoroughly recommend to any lover or connoisseur of the psychological thriller.

The idea of the book was great, the book not so much. The plot made me think about the Jasper Dent's series by Barry Lyga, and that wasn't so bad because I really liked that series and so I was really curious about this Land's book. And the premises were good: we have Milly, who turns her mother in because she's a serial killer and she's gotten enough.
The author was good with Milly's feeling. I think she did her research because I can't complain about how Milly is feeling, it seems so real, and so difficult. I mean, she grew up with a serial killer, and she was a victim, too, and a forced accomplice in some of her mother's dealings, so she's feeling guilty, she's suffering, and she's also scared. She's scared because she misses her mum, and she is scared by this feeling too, and she's scared because she fears to be like her, like the monster that gave her life, and death too.
And there is not just Milly's past here, but also her present (and her future). She's waiting for her mother's trial, she's scared by it (obviously) and in the meantime, she is with foster parents and she has to adapt to a completely new life, that's not so easy or so perfect as could appear from afar: her new family is not the perfect family, the mother and the daughter doesn't get along too well, the mother is a drug's addicted and she has a lover, and the daughter, Milly's step-sister? foster sister? almost sister? I don't know which one is the right one, is the queen bitch at school. And she's a real monster.

Needless to say, Phoebe, the step/foster/almost sister hates Milly with a vengeance, and she goes way beyond herself to make sure that school for Milly is a living hell. And that's the thing that most disturbed me.

I mean: Milly is a really controversial character, is an unreliable narrator and her voice is strong, she spoke with short sentences, she always makes a point, and for all the book she is constantly involved in continue conversations with her mother in her own head. She heard her voice sometimes, and the voice urges her to do the bad when she is trying so hard to make the good. It's a dark story, with a really peculiar character, so maybe this book is not for everybody, yes, but it has a lot of potentialities, a lot of "what if" that are there, just waiting to happen, and the narration is compelling, it really is, and it's fast-paced, even if the book is sort of slow. I know it doesn't make a lot of sense, but it doesn't happen much, so it's slow in this sense, but the reading, Milly's voice, urges you to go on, to turn page after page to see what would happen next, so it's fast-paced, too.

But the core of this book, the main part, it's not about a child who was grown by a serial killer, neither a child who was victim and accomplice of a criminal, neither a new potential serial killer (or serial killers' hunter or whatever!), neither something related. The core of this book is to speak about how much cruelty, meanness, and nastiness you can find in high school. The serial killer parts didn't bother me as much as the high school parts! Those were really terrifying! And I found that these parts are the most central, maybe because they are the parts with more space in the narration, and that they overshadow all the rest. For me, this was a disappointment, because we have a lot of potentialities (hey, her mum is a serial killer!) and in the end, the author points hers and our attention on the less interesting and the less original point. It's a shame.

And I was expecting soooo much more from the ending! So, yeah, this book was disappointing in many and different ways. But it was not a bad reading, I enjoy the reading, if "enjoy" is the right words for this kind of book. It's a fast-paced reading, and a dark, controversial, disturbing book, maybe not for the faint of heart, that's for sure, but it's not bad. It's just that this one could have been way way better!

Loved this creepy and surprisingly moving book! Will be covering on my YouTube channel. Also really enjoyed the audiobook.

http://stephnoelpeterson.blogspot.com/2017/10/good-me-bad-me.html

Milly has been abused for most of her life when she eventually goes to the police and escapes her mother, she ends up with a foster family that are warm and loving apart from their daughter. Told from Milly’s point of view this book is deeply disturbing but a fantastic page turner.

I really enjoyed this book. It kept me ill at ease the whole way through wanting to sympathise with Milly/Annie but with the under-current that something was not quite adding up. Very cleverly laid out. A definite page-turner.
My only gripe was that after a long build up to the 'finale' it all felt over quite quickly, a little too quickly on reflection.
However, no other complaints from me a solid 4 stars ****.
Thank you.

To be a teenager in the current day must be hard with all the technology and social media about. To be a teenager with the above and to have a serial killer mum must be unbearable. This book was so dark and left me not wanting it to end. Highly recommended.

Well written but slightly predictable. Milly's mother is a child serial killer. The story covers the build up to the mother's trial. Ali Land gives sufficient detail of the crimes to give the reader an indication of the horror without dwelling on graphic detail. Even so, the book is not comfortable reading.

The story draws you in and the writing keeps you there.

It is a dark story with glimpses of light which don't last for long. Great writing and good storytelling.

"The playground
That's what you called it
Where the games were evil, and there was only ever one winner. When it wasn't my turn, you made me watch. A peephole in the wall."
"Forgive me when I tell you it was me.
It was me that told."
Annie's mother is a serial killer.
Annie now has a new name and a new family but she is afraid of finding out who and what she might be! A really suspenseful

Good Me Bad Me by Ali Land has been compared to The Girl on the Train and Gone Girl, two huge psychological thrillers that keep you hooked throughout and rightly so. This book was amazing.

After the first few chapters i knew I would race through it. Do not start the book if you have anything else planned for the day as it is almost impossible to put down.

At the core of the book is the long debated question of what is more powerful nature or nurture?
It delves into the mind of 15 year old Annie whose mother is a killer. Annie starts a new life with a new family and the new name Milly. She is being prepared for the trial of her mother. But the the focus is not solely on the trial, it focuses on Milly as she tries to make sense of her situation. She not only has to try to make sense of the experiences that she had while living with her mother, but she also has to deal with the awful but rather common realities of being the target of bullies in school. This book really shows the good and bad parts of being human through its beautifully developed characters who you come to love or hate.

Throughout you question whether Milly is truly the innocent in this story or whether she is just putting on a act for everyone around her. Is it in her to be evil like her mother?

It is dark, gritty and engrossing and I will highly recommend this title to everyone who will listen.

A deep and dark read about a chilling story. A tricky and sensitive story well told.

I thought it was really well paced. Twists and plot points were developed well and uncovered at a rate that kept me hooked whilst not overwhelming me.

A really great debut novel and one I'll be talking about for a while.

I will be looking out for further books by Land.

Thanks to NetGalley, Michael Joseph and Ali Land for my free copy in exchange for an honest review.

one of the best psychological thrillers around



What a read, totally gripping . Hooked me in from the first page. Just make sure you don't miss this, one of the best psychological thrillers around.

This book is fascinating, brilliantly written, frightening and relatable.

The feelings of attachment the protagonist feels towards her abuser are taboo but very accurate. Reading the book was uncomfortable for me at times but only because it was so good.

While it is above all, a gripping, dark thriller, it also sparks an affinity with readers who have been abused who feel like freaks because of the torn and traumatically confusing feelings abuse can leave you with.

I loved the voyeuristic prose. It was always obvious that the narrator was talking to her mother throughout the book and it never broke style or felt disingenuous at all.

I got similar feelings reading this as I did from Forbidden by Tabitha Suzuma, though I found the latter a little more devastating. This book makes you question and explore the space between black and white, right and wrong and makes you focus on the cause instead of the resulting actions. It's creepy and brilliant that the climax of this book didn't shock me but rather made me sympathise with and root for the "psychopath."

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy in exchange for my honest review.

I was really intrigued by this book at first. It is such a powerful story but I could not get into it.
It is well written and talks about a difficult subject, it just was not one for me.