Such a Good Mom

By Julia Spiro
** Publication Date 29 April 2025 **
​4 stars
Families can be everything. And all too much. Julia Spiro tackles the family dynamic in this novel about a family business, secrets, and the woman trying to unravel it all. It’s a powerful reminder that everything is not always what it seems. 


Brynn married into the Nelson family. Way back when, she and their son Sawyer had a short romance during the summer before college. Once at college they went their separate ways. After all, Sawyer was Martha’s Vineyard royalty, and Brynn was from the other side of the tracks. 


When Brynn came back to the island later, she ran into Sawyer’s older brother Ross. A spark was kindled, and eventually, Ross and Brynn married. The Nelson family was thrilled, and welcomed Brynn as though she had always been one of their own. Especially when Brynn became a mom and made the Nelson’s grandparents.


Brynn, though, was not herself post-pregnancy. Unable to accept or ask for help, Brynn floundered. With Ross gone long hours, and Brynn alone with the baby Lucas, she began to become more angry and distanced from both Ross and Lucas. She begins to wonder things a new mother shouldn’t wonder. She begins to wish she’d never had a baby.


Then tragedy strikes the island when a young waitress is found dead, washed ashore. Worse, Ross becomes the only suspect in what is now a murder. Brynn is devastated and confused.  She believes in her heart that Ross is innocent, but as the evidence begins to mount, Brynn is not only questioning her fitness as a mother, but also her entire marriage.


Such a good mystery. Touches on so many things that a lot of us feel as new parents. The post-partum depression, way more than baby blues, has a way of distorting a new mom’s thinking and functioning. I loved that this was a focus of Brynn’s character and woven into the story so seamlessly. The mystery of the murder and Brynn’s desire to amateur sleuth her husband out of jail was touching. Crazy, but really good. 


Enjoyed this one very much. Great vacay or beach read.