The Stepdaughter – Book Review

It’s a normal afternoon when I walk out the patio doors of our kitchen to check on Mia, my stepdaughter, who is swimming in our backyard pool. But she’s gone. My heart stops when I see the back gate is open, her pink, fluffy towel lying folded on a chair. I was just feet away. Why didn’t I hear her scream? Who took our little girl?

My husband can’t understand how I could have let his daughter disappear. And when the police come asking questions, I wish I could wind back time to that normal afternoon when I was cooking lasagna for my family, Mia’s favorite. I can tell the officers don’t believe me: they’ve cast me as the evil stepmother.

I just wish I could understand the messages I’ve found from my husband on Mia’s phone: I’m so sorry, I still love you. And why his wedding ring is found at the bottom of the pool after Mia disappeared. He never told me it was missing. What else is he hiding?

But the detective keeps asking me where I was during those ten minutes when Mia vanished. And I can’t tell her my secret. From the way she’s looking at me, I know she thinks I did something to my stepdaughter. Mia and I haven’t always been that close and sometimes she drives me nuts, just like any normal teenager, but I would never hurt her.

I just need you to believe me.

A twisty novel packed with unputdownable suspense about the power and damage of secrets we hide. Perfect for anyone who was totally hooked by The Mother-in-Law, Kerry Fisher and Big Little Lies.

No. of pages :- 302 pages

Date published:- will be published on September 2nd 2020

Genre:- Thriller

Georgina Cross is the suspense author of The Stepdaughter (September 2020) and Book 2 (January 2021) with Bookouture. And Book 3 with Ballantine, Penguin Random House (late 2021).

She is represented by Rachel Beck with Liza Dawson Associates with her suspense fiction appealing to readers of The Good Girl by Mary Kubica, The Marriage Lie by Kimberly Belle, The Mother-in-Law by Sally Hepworth, and Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty.

Georgina has been writing since she was a child. Notebooks & floppy discs filled with stories: adventures growing up in New Orleans and tales from Malaysia & England where her family lives. After graduating from Louisiana State University, she enjoyed a career in marketing & communications and founded Susie’s Wish non-profit which sends patients with life threatening illnesses to the beach. She spends time with her husband and their combined family of four sons watching plenty of scary movies and basketball tournaments.

Author website: http://www.Georgina-Cross-Author.com
Twitter: @GCrossAuthor
Facebook: GeorginaCrossAuthor
Instagram: GeorginaCrossAuthor

Thank You Netgalley and Bookouture for this book in exchange for my honest opinion about the book!

Vanessa Tanner seems to be living in a perfect glamorous life in Huntsville and her stepdaughter, Mia Tanner is a talented swimmer with hopes of joining into Olympics. Then one day, Mia goes disappearing while swimming at the backyard of the house and at the same time, their neighbor’s house, Julia Campbell’s house goes on fire. All eyes point to Vanessa as people blame for Mia’s disappearance and Detective Angela, who is in charge of Mia’s disappearance suspects Vanessa. But Vanessa, despite not really getting along with Mia and trying very hard to become a good mother to her insists that she has nothing to do with Mia’s disappearance…

The story is so good that I finished this book in one go! A real roller coaster ride type of thriller, quiet fast paced with so many twists and turns in each chapter that will send your mind reeling. The story itself is realistic, particularly the stepmother-stepdaughter relationship between Vanessa and Mia. I was so hooked into the story that I didn’t even know that I finished the book that fast! This is the first time I am reading from this author and is probably her debut book so I must say, she really did a good job with this book! The book is well written, fast paced and did a good job of making the reader getting engaged into the story!

Overall, I really enjoyed reading this book–a fast paced thriller with unexpected twists and turns you will not see coming. Quiet unputdownable that will make as a reader to want to read more. Looking forward to read more books by this author! Worth five stars!

If this book interests you, you can pre-order your copy now on Amazon! This book will be released on 2nd September 2020.