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Little Disasters

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Little Disasters

By: Sarah Vaughan
Narrated by: Sophie Roberts, Esther Wane, Elliot Fitzpatrick, Sarah Feathers
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About this listen

NOW A MAJOR TV SERIES STARRING DIANE KRUGER AND JO JOYNER

'Taut, clever, compelling and guaranteed to keep you on the edge of your seat…' Paula Hawkins, author of The Girl on the Train

You think you know her…
But look a little closer

She is a stay-at-home mother of three with boundless reserves of patience, energy and love. After being friends for a decade, this is how Liz sees Jess.

Then one moment changes everything.

Dark thoughts and carefully guarded secrets surface – and Liz is left questioning everything she thought she knew about her friend, and about herself.

From the bestselling author of Anatomy of a Scandal – a new thought-provoking novel exploring the complexity of motherhood and all that connects and disconnects us.

‘A deep dive into the dark side of motherhood. Highly recommended' Erin Kelly, author of He Said/She Said

‘Compelling, beautifully written, so perceptive and emotionally devastating. Like Anatomy of a Scandal, it feels like an important book as well as a brilliant read’ Lucy Foley, author of The Hunting Party

'Sarah Vaughan turns her pin-sharp attentions to the blame game that is early parenthood, raising the stakes to truly fearful levels. This tense, absorbing read will have parents – in fact, all readers – turning the pages deep into the night' Louise Candlish, author of Those People

'Little Disasters takes on another topical and emotive issue with the same skill and command Vaughan showed in Anatomy of a Scandal' Cara Hunter, author of All The Rage

‘An emotionally terrifying story. Sarah has impressively created characters whose pain and fear is all too real. I could not put this book down’ Heidi Perks, author of Now You See Her

‘Vaughan explores the darker impulses of motherhood - the fear, fury and despair; the frantic juggling, loss of control and exhaustion - and of course the overwhelming love. Refreshingly assured and punchy writing that is sure to hit a nerve’ Lucy Atkins, author of Magpie Lane

'A brilliant storyteller, Vaughan serves up every mother’s nightmare with consummate skill and a big heart. Clever. Totally compelling. Impossible to put down’ Eve Chase, author of Black Rabbit Hall

‘I loved it and didn’t want to put it down. So, so good on motherhood and friendship’ Laura Marshall, author of Friend Request

'I read this with a fascinated, mounting sense of horror because it could all be too true. Compulsive reading with an ending I didn’t see coming' Jane Corry, author of I Looked Away

'A true psychological thriller shows us, as all the best ones do, that the scariest place is not the dark alleyway but inside the pathways of our own minds. Compelling… and important’ Araminta Hall, author of Our Kind of Cruelty

©2020 Sarah Vaughan (P)2020 Simon & Schuster UK
Contemporary Fiction Genre Fiction Fiction

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All stars
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Anatomy of a scandal is one of the all-time favorites I love this author's style and her detail to character building. Her narrative is so crisp and concise and really helps to develop her characters who are always so real. This book was very different but equally good. It centers on Jess and Liz who met at anti-natal class and then developed a friendship over the years and babies. Everything starts to go wrong when Jess presents at A&E with a sick baby. What follows is a perfect depiction of the unravelling of a mother in the grips of depression and the lack of acknowledgment of her plight around her. The subject matter is handled very sensitively and as a listener, I had tremendous compassion for Jess. Like Scandal, this book will go onto my favorites.

Stunning outstanding listen

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I bought this book after reading the positive reviews (not noticing the negative ones) and also after loving Anatomy of a Scandal. I found the narration flat monotone and very slow so I upped the speed then found it too fast but better. However the minutiae of details and historical facts about different characters lives was for me utterly boring and also confusing as it swapped between characters and timelines almost to the point that I wanted to scream! Maybe that's how the main characters felt. Overall not a book for me. It has now gone back. But I appreciate that many listeners found it completely the opposite.

Found it tedious.

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This is a fast paced story of a group of yummy mummies and their other halves who meet at an NCT class. Naturally, in a book of this type, the characters have issues from their pasts which haunt them and the relationships between the group are not what they appear. This is a story of deceit and family secrets. Some of the characters are a bit obvious, for example the hard working but earnest career hospital doctor, the apparently perfect parent who is not quite what they seem and the intolerantly autocratic and bullying hospital consultant. This story comes together and is well paced and structured and will strike a chord with many people who have young children as it picks at the scab of many issues that will be uncomfortable for some.

Every parent's nightmare

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Good story but ruined by the dreary voice of Kate.
A very self righteous character.

Appalling narration

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Essential reading / listening for mothers - new or experienced - although if you're expecting your third child, you may do well to read something else!

It's certainly compulsive listening and makes a very strong case for understanding the terrible pressures on mothers, especially on those juggling work & motherhood, and those struggling (and failing) to cope with crying babies and sleep deprivation. The main story is about super-efficient Jess accused of hurting her non-stop crying baby, her third child. Betsy. We know of course that Jess didn't hurt her baby, but someone did. Betsy has a serious head injury and Jess has fallen apart after a traumatic birth experience, unable to soothe her demanding baby which makes her feel a freak-mother and a complete failure. Her friend Liz is a doctor (fortunately!) at the hospital where Betsy is taken and the story unravels the relationships between a group of women friends since ante-natal classes days which includes Jess and Liz.

It's good that it explores with sympathy and tender understanding the sufferings of women like Jess (and Liz's own mother it is later revealed) and it has an ultimately happy ending. Many readers will find it comforting and perhaps learn for the first time there are other mothers who are as worried and desperate as they are, and that there is a way through it all. This is all great, but it doesn't make for the best kind of fiction as the author's agenda is so obvious.

More text book than story

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I enjoyed the book and enjoyed the towards the end. I don't like the title of the book though as it doesn't, in my opinion, truly reflect what the book is about. I'd have called it something like - A dark secret.

Good book

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Really enjoyed this book. Narration was good and the book was gripping from start to finish.

Good read

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Loved Anatomy of a Scandal but this was very disappointing overall. Narration for Jess was particularly bad. Story wasn’t good enough. I did enjoy the character of Liz though.

Disappointing

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Wowsers...what a whirlwind. it was absolutely amazing. I loved it. So different from all the other - 5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ from me xx

one of the best books I've listened to in a long time

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Having read Anatomy of a Scandal (a brilliant story) I was tempted to try more from this author and Little Disasters is a great read too. So easy to be caught up in the story and narration is brillant. No spoilers here but just settle down and let yourself be drawn into a truly engaging story of friendship, love and betrayal. You will not be disappointed.

Loved it

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