Title: Pretty Baby
Author: Mary Kubica
Published: July 2015, MIRA
Format: ARC Paperback, 384 pages
Source: Publisher
A chance
encounter sparks an unrelenting web of lies in this stunning new
psychological thriller from national bestselling author Mary KubicaShe
sees the teenage girl on the train platform, standing in the pouring
rain, clutching an infant in her arms. She boards a train and is whisked
away. But she can’t get the girl out of her head…Heidi Wood
has always been a charitable woman: she works for a nonprofit, takes in
stray cats. Still, her husband and daughter are horrified when Heidi
returns home one day with a young woman named Willow and her
four-month-old baby in tow. Disheveled and apparently homeless, this
girl could be a criminal—or worse. But despite her family’s objections,
Heidi invites Willow and the baby to take refuge in their home.Heidi
spends the next few days helping Willow get back on her feet, but as
clues into Willow’s past begin to surface, Heidi is forced to decide how
far she’s willing to go to help a stranger. What starts as an act of
kindness quickly spirals into a story far more twisted than anyone could
have anticipated.
My thoughts: This was one of the books I was most excited to get at BEA this year and I was thrilled to not only get it, but to be able to chat with Mary a few times while there! I had met her at last year’s BEA when she was there with her debut book, The Good Girl, which I absolutely loved, and knew that this book was going to be another hit – and boy was it ever!
This is a book that you will keep you on the edge of your seat, but is definitely not predictable in any way. It’s filled with rich, interesting characters that you get caught up with, and having the chapters alternate from their points of view allows us to really get to know all that is going on and really get into their heads. Heidi and Chris’s chapters are told in the story’s present time while Willow’s chapters, while they occur after the fact, delve into the past. We learn the backgrounds of each, filling in holes that we might not have gotten had the story not been told this way.
Pretty Baby is a chilling psychological thriller in it’s purest form. These characters are all more complex than meets the eye. Heidi, the do-gooder extraordinaire, becomes obsessed with the teen girl on a train platform holding a baby. Once she brings them home, we find out little by little that there are other motivations behind her just wanting to help Willow and the baby. Willow is certainly a mystery and very slowly we start to see what really happened to her and who she really is. But, there is always that question lingering as to whether she’s innocent or up to no good. Is she a reliable narrator or not?
This is the type of book that will hook you as it slowly reveals all the layers and secrets that hold everything together. Between the characters and the storyline, I have a feeling it’s one that I won’t be forgetting anytime soon. Mary Kubica has written two phenomenal books and is now one of my must-read authors…you don’t want to miss her books!
This is an author I've really been wanting to try and this newest book sounds fascinating! I'm glad you enjoyed this one and I'll definitely have to look for it. Thanks for sharing!
So looking forward to reading this one. And I also need to read the previous book, The Good Girl. It a funny thing that I did read a book by the name of The Good Girl recently, but it was by another author. Mary Kubica is on my list.
This sounds fantastic. I've been hearing good things about it. Very good review!
This sounds like a good psychological thriller. The Good Girl had kinda caught my eye too, I may have to try one of these.