Good Me Bad Me

Product Information

It's rare to come across a book you can't stop thinking about, talking about and pushing it into the hands of everyone you know.

She so desperately wants to fit into this new family but their daughter has no intention of making life easy for her, especially at school.

The question looms as to whether the psychological damage this young girl has endured for years, can be repaired, or will the urge to commit the sins of her mother take hold?

The story’s told from the POV of Milly, the abused fifteen year old daughter of a serial killer mom.Very cleverly, the author kept me in suspense and constantly changing my mind over which path she would take. The questioning she undergoes in court is astonishingly brought home how a child brought up with overbearing, mind turning parents can have an effect on your psychological mind when she is listening out behind a screen for just the breathing sounds of her mother. There were times that I thought the believability envelope was being pushed a bit far, but I was totally wrapped up in the story and able to overlook most of it. I have a feeling that this is one book that’ll spark debate and it is ripe for wide-ranging, and heated, book group discussions.

While the mother of the house, Saskia, was clearly damaged and should never have been placed in charge of the care of a troubled teenager. Here, Milly is a whiny cold fish (did I actually say that about a poor kid whose mom is a serial killer? I can appreciate how hard it would have been to get inside the head of such a troubled young girl but Land’s characterisation should be commended for its authenticity.She worked as a child and adolescent mental health nurse in the UK and Australia for more than 10 years. As her mother’s trial looms, with Milly as the star witness, Milly starts to wonder how much of her is nature, how much of her is nurture, and whether she is doomed to turn out like her mother after all. I do think regardless it will be a popular book and a great one for book clubs due to the great discussion that could be generated! I would like to thank NetGalley and Penguin UK - Michael Joseph for my e-copy in exchange for an honest review. Message to the author: If you are reading my review, and I have upset you in any way with my comments, I am really sorry, it was not my intention.

Not only does Land tackle a very controversial subject matter, she also delves into other quite difficult territory. Annie too, has suffered terribly at the hands of her mother, but at the age of fifteen, she decides to inform the police of her mother's crimes.With doctor patient confidentiality, I just can’t get my head around a teenage girl opening up to her psychologist who also happens to be her foster dad. These parts are the hardest to read--at times, I had to put the book down and just walk away as the dark, brutal images got under my skin. It’s the second ‘evil mother novel’ I’ve read recently (the other being the wonderful Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine), and of the two Good Me, Bad Me definitely wins the most chilling mother award. Debut author Ali Land has a fantastic way of writing, with her short, clipped and concise sentences - this only goes to prove less is more! In her head, Milly talks to her murderous psycho mother, and it’s clear that although mom scares the shit out of her, Milly also loves her.