The Wrong Mother Audiobook By Sophie Hannah cover art

The Wrong Mother

A Novel

 Preview
LIMITED TIME OFFER

3 months free
Try for $0.00
Offer ends July 31, 2025 at 11:59PM PT.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 3 months. Cancel anytime.

The Wrong Mother

By: Sophie Hannah
Narrated by: Elizabeth Sastre
Try for $0.00

$0.00/mo. after 3 months. Offer ends July 31, 2025 at 11:59PM PT. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $20.25

Buy for $20.25

Confirm purchase
Pay using card ending in
Switch payment method
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use, License, and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.
Cancel

Sally Thorning is watching the news with her husband when she hears an unexpected name: Mark Bretherick. It’s a name she shouldn’t know, but last year Sally treated herself to a secret vacation—away from her hectic family life—and met a man. After their brief affair, the two planned to never meet again. But now, Mark’s wife and daughter are dead—and the safety of Sally’s own family is in doubt.

Sophie Hannah established herself as a new master of psychological suspense with her previous novel, Little Face. Now, with accomplished prose and a plot guaranteed to keep listeners guessing, The Wrong Mother is Hannah’s most captivating work yet.

©2010 Sophie Hannah (P)2010 Penguin Crime Thrillers Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Mystery Psychological Suspense Thriller & Suspense Marriage Crime Thriller

Critic reviews

"Shockingly (and refreshingly) blunt riffs about the violent emotions of motherhood and the familial yearnings of men, along with chilling and darkly funny revelations about lust and loyalty, make this novel one of the season's most absorbing reads." (O, The Oprah Magazine)

"Gripping... It's like watching a nightmare come to life." (Tana French, New York Times best-selling author of In the Woods)

"Paced like a ticking time bomb with flawlessly distinct characterization, this is a fiercly fresh and un-put-downable read." (Publishers Weekly [starred review])
All stars
Most relevant  
Another enjoyable story told by Sophie Hannah! I really like the narrator as well. I believe she has narrated other books by this author.

Another Great Sophie Hannah!!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Wow. Just finished this book...and let me say, the negatives notwithstanding, I read it pretty steadily all the way through. The pros: excellent writing, excellent narration, excellent pacing. The cons: *I disliked the main protaganist, Sally, from the beginning; none of her decisions/actions, from start to finish (the last one almost made me abandon the book) were logical or comprehensible, and therefore I disliked her. *There were 3 five-year-old girls involved, all of whom were extremely precocious, manipulative and unlikable, (has anyone read that old book "The Bad Seed"?) and it made me wonder what the author's experience with children has been -I've known lots of 5 year old girls, and only one met that criteria and she was much less accomplished). *It started to drag a littlle towards the end, like the author was spinning out the story to get the right number of words.
Overall: very readable, and kept me tuned in right to the end, so it deserves 4 stars.

Loved and hated

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
intriguing. Enjoyed the mystery of 'who-done-it'. Great story line. Kept me guessing. A good 'read'.

Britsh Baffling

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

What made the experience of listening to The Wrong Mother the most enjoyable?

That it was so very, very well-written and the suspense kept going and building until the very end. I read lots of British mysteries and this one kept me guessing throughout. Great detail and dialogue.

What other book might you compare The Wrong Mother to and why?

Perhaps a P.D. James or a Reginald Hill, but it is unique book and difficult to make a comparison accurately.

What does Elizabeth Sastre bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

She is a brilliant narrator. I have already downloaded the next in the series. By the way, can you please get ALL of Hannah's novels? Three is not enough.

If you could rename The Wrong Mother, what would you call it?

the Dirty Secrets of Motherhood

Any additional comments?

As with any good mystery, the characters were believable and with human frailties. I look forward to more of Simon and crew. The British really know how to write a perfect mystery. I can't get enough.

A cannot stop listening read

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Always enjoy the psychological drama of her books. Great narrator. Not a fast paced mystery but if twisted psychological mysteries are your thing you should enjoy it.

love Sophie Hannah

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
good narrator. good pace.

I like books that are psychological suspense but don't only focus on police procedural details. this style reminds me a bit of Liane Moriarty. fast paced

the style reminds me a bit of Liane Moriarty.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
The book started off with imagination grabbing interest. The plot really caught my interest. My problem was with the transitions. I found it difficult to know which character was speaking. If some editing could have been used to let the listener know who was speaking it would have helped me. I wish some of the characters had been more developed. I had to use my imagination to fill in some gaps. Maybe that is what the author intended, but it was distracting. The ending did wrap most things up, but was a paragraph or two of to much information for me. The narrator did a great job and was pleasant to listen to. I am null on a recommendation for this book. Please vote and let me know if this review helped.

The Wrong Mother and a Confused Lisitener

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Good story, but became confusing at times when listening rather than reading (cannot flip back a few pages to remind yourself who is who)

A little confusing at times

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I hated all the mothers because I never felt like them But it was a good story

Wrong mother

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I was distracted by the complete English"ness" of this book... It was OK, but not great. It didn't keep my interest well.

A LITTLE TOO "ENGLISH"

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews