All the Other Mothers Hate Me by Sarah Harman

 

⭐ ALL THE OTHER MOTHERS HATE ME — 4/5 Stars

A Satirical Mystery Thriller That’s Equal Parts Unhinged Mom Energy and Dark Humor Delight

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⚠️ Trigger Warnings

• Bullying

• Sexual harassment

• Sexual assault

• Child abuse

• Child sexual abuse

• Suicide

• Animal cruelty

• Violence (including graphic moments)

• Substance use

• Mental illness

• Infidelity

• Death

Whew. Heavy topics… but delivered with the most chaotic, darkly funny tone imaginable.

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🌟 Spoiler-Free Review

Well… this was a ride.

I picked up All the Other Mothers Hate Me purely because of the title. As a mom myself—who absolutely feels blessed every day—I do occasionally look around and wonder if maybe, just maybe, the moms who look exhausted, whose kids are screaming, who seem like they haven’t had a full night of sleep since 2009… maybe they hate me? 😂

So yes, I grabbed this book FAST.

The vibe is dark humor meets satirical mystery, and our narrator, Florence, is…
well…
unhinged, petty, insecure, immature, questionable as a mother, and yet weirdly compelling. She’s a mess, and she knows she’s a mess, and we have no choice but to watch her make more messes.

The mystery? Surprisingly solid.
The humor? Sharp and self-deprecating.
The cast? Unlikeable in a fun way.
The pacing? Fast and twisty.

Some parts—especially the Mr. Foster subplot—felt a bit tacked on, but the story overall is entertaining, high-energy, and FULL of flaws in the best way. For a debut, this is impressive.

4 out of 5 stars. Highly readable chaos.

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🚨 SPOILER WARNING — Full Recap Below

From here on out, EVERYTHING is spoiled.
Proceed like Florence breaking into a crime scene: boldly, with questionable judgment.

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📖 FULL SPOILER SUMMARY — The Entire Plot (Start to Finish)

🧊 Meet Florence Grimes: Disaster Mom™

Florence is a washed-up former pop star whose life is a combination of:

• bad decisions

• worse decisions

• balloon arch side hustle

• and a lot of delusion

Her 10-year-old son Dylan is… quirky. Passionate about the environment. Friend to turtles. Occasionally violent. Totally misunderstood.

Or… is he?

🏫 Alfie Risby Goes Missing

Florence drops Dylan off at St. Angeles, where bullying is a team sport. That same day, Alfie—Dylan’s classmate—vanishes on a school field trip.

Dylan was his bird-watching partner, but claims they got separated.
Uh-oh.

When Florence finds Alfie’s backpack under Dylan’s bed, she panics and burns the evidence like a totally normal mom would.

👯‍♀️ Enter Jenny Choi: The Competent One

Jenny, an American lawyer, befriends Florence and quickly realizes Florence is:

• dramatic

• messy

• allergic to thinking before acting
  …but maybe onto something.

Together they start investigating Alfie’s disappearance.

🔍 Clues, Suspects, and Shenanigans

They chase down:

• Mr. Sexton (teacher accused of groping Alfie)

• Ian (Alfie’s secret half-brother, DJ, probable nepo-baby)

• Ms. Schulz (school admin, full of secrets)

• Rollo Risby (Alfie’s rich, cheating father)

Florence, being the absolute worst detective ever, decides to frame Mr. Sexton for kidnapping because she thinks it will protect Dylan.

And guess what?
It works.
Mr. Sexton gets arrested.

Florence feels guilty… for like 10 minutes.

😬 Dylan Might Be Sneaking Out at Night??

Side note: Dylan keeps appearing in weird places at weird times. Is he innocent? Dangerous? Sleepwalking? Eco-terrorist?? We… don’t know yet.

💔 Betrayals!

Jenny starts sleeping with Adam (Florence’s neighbor/police officer).
Florence loses her mind over it.
Tempers flare.
Names are called.
Storming occurs.

And THEN—a woman arrives claiming Adam’s girlfriend Marta has vanished, and Adam lied about everything.

🕳 The Truth About Marta

Florence and Jenny discover:

• Marta was having an affair with Rollo Risby

• Adam found out

• Marta disappeared the same day

And Adam’s “she moved back to Poland” story?
Yeah. Fake.

😱 Florence Gets Kidnapped (Kind Of)

After yet another night of bad choices, Florence wakes up to find Dylan missing and a threatening note telling her to go to Cornwall.

She calls Jenny.
Jenny drives.
Chaos follows.

🏚 The Cornwall Showdown

At Adam’s creepy Cornwall house:

• Adam did NOT take Dylan. Dylan went to school.

• Adam DID kidnap Alfie.

• Adam killed Marta.

• Adam wants ransom money to disappear.

• Adam wants Florence to negotiate for him.

Florence pretends to go along with it but instead rescues Alfie.

Adam attacks.
Jenny arrives.
Jenny shoots Adam with his own gun like a hero in mom jeans.

🏥 Florence’s Coma + Clean-Up

Florence wakes up a week later. She’s injured but alive.

Jenny made Adam’s death look like a suicide.

The Risby family rewards Florence with £5 million.
Florence gives £4 million to Mr. Sexton out of guilt (fair).
She plans to use the rest to buy Adam’s half of the duplex.

Things seem… almost normal.

💥 THE FINAL TWIST

Florence sees a news report about an eco-terrorist nail bomb attack.

It’s…
her neighbor, Mr. Foster.

Which means…

Dylan has been sneaking out at night to join him.
Her sweet, weird, nature-loving son is now… a baby eco-terrorist.

And Florence?
She decides to keep quiet and protect him.

Because nothing screams motherhood like “my child is committing crimes but I support his passions.”

THE END.

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📝 My Final Thoughts (Spoilers Included)

The satire hits.

The mystery works.

The humor is sharp.

The characters are hot garbage in the most entertaining way.

A wild debut.

4/5 stars.

I’d absolutely read this author again.

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📚 If You Liked All the Other Mothers Hate Me, Try:

(Always include authors — future-proofing your site!)

✨ The Push — Ashley Audrain
✨ Everyone Here Is Lying — Shari Lapena
✨ The Other Black Girl — Zakiya Dalila Harris
✨ How to Kill Your Family — Bella Mackie
✨ Greenwich Park — Katherine Faulkner
✨ The School for Good Mothers — Jessamine Chan