The Mistake By M. J. Arlidge and Lisa Hall

‘The Mistake’ is the latest book by writing duo M. J. Arlidge and Lisa Hall.

Pete never wanted another child. Before baby Erin was born, they were happy. If Natalie hadn’t got pregnant, he would never have done what he did. Natalie knows things have been difficult since the surprise arrival of Erin. Life with Pete and their two other children – Emily and Zadie – has been balancing on a knife-edge. Now their home is full of guests at a party Natalie didn’t want to throw – and she’s about to reach breaking point.
But so is her family. Because everyone has a secret that they’ve been hiding and when Erin suddenly disappears everyone becomes a suspect. Surely no one here would want to harm their baby? But after the events of the party there are plenty of people who would want to hurt Natalie. Including her husband…

To be honest, when started reading this book I wasn’t sure if I could read it as the beginning is quite traumatic and sad but I powered on, and in the end I found myself gripped by this story.

The story is seen through the narrative of couple Natalie and Pete, whose lives have been turned upside down by an unexpected pregnancy. When Erin enters their lives, she’s a difficult little baby that Natalie strugggles to connect with thus making a divide between her and Pete as she also struggles with her emotions. The story focues heavily on the stress of a new baby, the new emotions and stresses that come with it, as Pete and Natalie drift apart and the older daughters become almost invisible. Natalie becomes resentful of others especially her best friend Eve, who’s really connect with Erin.

As the story progresses, we see people struggling with secrets and lies and when every parents nightmare comes to life, with little Erin going missing. There are a lot of suspicous characters that could have commited the crime and these people reallly keep the reader on their toes as they try to solve the crime.

A story that is reflective of the real pressures of a new baby and the struggles they create, ‘The Mistake’ is a domestic, psychlogical thriller where everyone is a suspect and I found myself racing to the end page to find the culprit!

You can buy ‘The Mistake’ from Amazon and is available to buy from good bookshops.