ARC Review: Such a Good Mom by Julia Spiro

Such a Good Mom
Author: Julia Spiro
Publication: Minotaur Books (April 29, 2025)

Description: Bestselling author Julia Spiro's Such a Good Mom is a brilliant standalone mystery that's the perfect beach read. In the heat of summer, a murder on Martha's Vineyard rocks one new mom to the core, leaving her to search for answers.

With a healthy newborn baby, a devoted husband, a successful career, and a busy life on Martha’s Vineyard, Brynn Nelson should be the happiest she’s ever been. But Brynn is struggling. Her husband, Ross, grows more distant by the day, and the challenges and exhaustion of postpartum make Brynn feel like she’s slowly losing pieces of herself to motherhood. Pieces that she might never get back.

But it’s summer on the Vineyard, a beacon for wealthy visitors, and a place so beautiful that it seems immune to tragedy and crime. Except for locals, like Brynn, who know all too well that tragedy can strike at any point. And this time, it hits close to home when a friend of the family is found washed ashore. Dead. And Brynn’s already hectic life is turned upside down when Ross is arrested for the crime.

My Thoughts: This was a mystery where postpartum depression was the main character. Brynn Nelson has recently had a baby. She is struggling with managing her emotions and everything else. She keeps trying to tell herself that everything is fine - just fine. Neither she nor her friends believe that is true. 

When her husband Ross is accused of murdering a young college student who works on the island, Brynn feels even more stress. She wants to believe that her husband is innocent of the crime except she is so angry at him because of her depression that she is finding it hard. It doesn't help that her in-laws seem to have written him off.

Still, Brynn begins to look into the case and finds some glaring holes in it and some possible suspects really close to home. 

I learned more than I ever needed to know about postpartum depression and life on Martha's Vineyard while reading this story. The mystery almost took a distant second place. I also had some issues with the timing of the story. The first 90% of the story seemed to take place over just a couple of days. The last 10% neatly wrapped everything up and, by the end, more than a year had passed. 

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.