Anne Heltzel

Possible Triggers: Rape, Imprisonment, Abuse, Loss of Body Parts
This is a very creepy story about the young survivors of a "mother-worshipping" cult, who grow up to be damaged and potentially dangerous adults. I wasn't at all surprised. I thought the description sounded like "my kind of story" but quickly learned that this book was more disturbing than necessary...even for me. We have the two main characters, Maeve and Andrea who were raised by a group called "the Mother Collective"...a fancy name for "cult". The cult was raided and disbanded after 8-year-old Maeve runs away and turns them in. Now we move forward, and adult Maeve is a talented editor, but lives a lonely, disconnected life, until a DNA test reunites her with Andrea once again. Andrea is the head of a tech and lifestyle company with a limitless fortune, and of course she wants nothing more than to spend time with Maeve, but they can't speak of their early years...that is strictly forbidden. Maeve begins to spend more and more time with Andrea and her husband at their isolated country home, and things begin to get weird. That’s all I’ll say about the plot. I will say that the story from here goes in a frightening direction, but I couldn't find any of it to be remotely credible. I think it's supposed to shock and disturb the reader, but it didn’t present enough insight into the characters or their situation to make any of it truly believable. I never did understand Andrea’s company and how she came to be so successful...but it does involve robot baby dolls, which in themselves were scary and weird. I read some really weird things and but this was just overload...even for me. I think the author was probably going for "terrifyingly and creepy", but missed the mark that would have held the reader's attention enough to find out what happened.… (mer)

Mommy Dearest



Have you ever gotten so excited by a book cover that you couldn’t wait to read it?
This cover is chef's kiss! It is so freaking creepy I could barely contain myself! Add the fact that I have over 70 porcelain dolls in my bedroom, this book was a beautiful combination for everything I love.

This book follows two cousins who are separated when they are younger and through a DNA test website are brought back into each other’s lives after over 20 years. What follows is some pretty creepy stuff.
This book gives you small glimpses into the cousin's past to show you basically why they are the way they are in the present. I felt the main character Maeve was so strong! I loved when she talked about why she didn't want to have children and embraced the fact that all women do not have to give birth to be valuable, or an asset to society. I think people are allowed to go on their own adventures. Maeve was only a child when she stood up to the "Mothers" who were basically in a cult-like entity where birthing more girls was their mission in life. So yea even with all her "issues" she kept that stuff together and knew what she wanted out of life. She is my favorite kind of protagonist. The way the story ended was nice and not what I was expecting. I really felt it was wrapped up with a creepy little bow at the end.

… (mer)