#BlogTour Only A Mother by Elisabeth Carpenter @LibbyCPT @orionbooks #review #blog #backablogger #bookreview

I’m delighted to be part of the blog tour for Only A Mother by Elizabeth Carpenter and I’m sharing my review today.

My Review:

Only A Mother is author Elizabeth Carpenter’s third book but it is the first one that I have read. I have heard a fair bit about her previous books, especially 99 Red Balloons which is a book on my tbr pile that I very much hope to read soon.

When I was given the opportunity to read Only A Mother I was quick to say yes, not only because of the author but also because the blurb sounded interesting. The idea that your child had committed an awful crime and was in prison isn’t a nice one, would you stand by them and visit them regularly, or would you step back from them, dissociating yourself from them and the crime that they have committed?

Erica stuck by her son, despite being made a social pariah and suffering regular abuse she stayed in her home that was a bus ride away from the prison that her son was kept in. She determinedly insisted that he was innocent, yet we also know that she has doubts, she knows that he lied to her but despite this, she insists that he would not be capable of hurting anyone.

Is she in denial? It certainly seems that she is and when Craig is finally released from prison she finds that her son is not the one who left her all those years ago, and for the first time she feels scared of him and starts to wonder just how well she knows her son.

When another girl goes missing everything explodes and the police are once again knocking at Erica’s door and she once again has to make the decision of whether to protect her son or face the possibility that he is not the person that she thought he was.

I really enjoyed Only A Mother, while it is quite a depressing read at times, there is also a lot of light and hope in the story. It certainly made me think about things and the people around me, and just how well do I know them?

This was a compelling read, if I wasn’t reading it then I was thinking about the book which is a sure sign of a great read.

I am sure that many people will enjoy Only A Mother by Elizabeth Carpenter, I know that I did and now I want to read her previous books even more than I did before.

Thank you to the publisher, Orion, for a copy of Only A Mother by Elizabeth Carpenter. I was under no obligation to review the book and all thoughts are my own.

Blurb:

ONLY A MOTHER . . .

Erica Wright hasn’t needed to scrub ‘MURDERER’ off her house in over a year. Life is almost quiet again. Then her son, Craig, is released from prison, and she knows the quiet is going to be broken.

COULD BELIEVE HIM

Erica has always believed Craig was innocent – despite the lies she told for him years ago – but when he arrives home, she notices the changes in him. She doesn’t recognise her son anymore.

COULD BURY THE TRUTH

So, when another girl goes missing, she starts to question everything. But how can a mother turn her back on her son? And, if she won’t, then how far will she go to protect him?

COULD FORGIVE WHAT HE HAS DONE

About The Author:

Elisabeth (Libby) Carpenter won a Northern Writers New Fiction Award (2016) and was longlisted for Yeovil Literary Prize (2015 & 2016) and MsLexia Women’s Novel award (2015).

Elisabeth lives in Preston, Lancashire with her family. She loves the north of England, setting most of her stories in the area – including the novel she is writing at the moment.

99 Red Balloons was Elisabeth’s debut novel.

Only A Mother by Elisabeth Carpenter is out now and is available from Amazon UK and Amazon US.