Maman by FE Birch

Today is my stop on the blog tour for Maman by FE Birch. I love the cover on this one! My thanks to Heather Fitt at Overview Media for the invitation and to the author for my review copy.

 

The Blurb

A twisted suspense novel

DS Joanna Armstrong, a top child protection detective, becomes the accused when one of her twin babies develops facial bruising - sending her into a spiralling post-natal psychosis.

Her life falls apart in an instant. Her team are torn, the doctors think she’s fabricating her illness, and even one of her own colleagues appears hell bent on destroying her.

Can Joanna clear her name when everything seems stacked against her? Can she break through all the prejudice before time runs out? Or is she really mad like they all say?

Maman is a gripping tale of family, loyalty, and integrity, but most of all, truth and justice.

My Review

Jo Armstrong's nightmare begins one afternoon when she suddenly finds herself filled with confusion and fear as she doesn't understand how she got where she is, what is happening or why her police colleagues in the child protection team are behaving the way they are towards her. And there will be a lot of time, pain and heartache before everything is resolved one way or another.

Jo's decline in mental health is well described, as is her confusion at all going on around her. We see her thoughts whirring about, all over the place and her self doubt, a hatred for herself, even. It's sometimes a hard read but often relatable for anyone who has struggled with their mental health to any degree. 

I loved Jim, Jo's husband. Equally confused by the events that have taken place and the situation in which he finds himself, he never once doubts Jo, and never stops fighting for things to be resolved. Also very likeable is social worker Effie (now there's a name that's a little familiar...!). She's warm, approachable and compassionate whilst remaining professional. She's wonderfully described and I could picture her perfectly. Jo's police colleagues, on the other hand, are anything but sympathetic and understanding, particularly DC Claire Bristow, who is pretty openly hostile towards Jo and Jim. Happily, I have no experience of anything like this in real life but I'd like to think (hope) there is a little more compassion is offered to families whilst the truth is being established - innocent until proven guilty and all that. 

Maman is a story about depression, grief and trauma, love, a fight for justice and a spotlight on hidden illnesses. It is tense throughout and an interesting read. 

The Author

FE Birch is an ex-cop from the North East but she’s not a Geordie. She is a prolific short story writer with a trail of pseudonyms and publications behind her. With a penchant for dark, deep and the disturbing, her crimes are rarely cosy. She has self-published two collections of competition winning short stories and her debut novel, She’s Not There was published early 2023 by Red Dragon. She is also published by Harper Collins (2013) with stories about being an undercover cop …

With a bendy EDS body, GSOH and a little bit of clumsiness, she wears many hats and loves wigs. Her friends call her Effie.