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Sam Baker
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The Other Mothers' Club: A Novel Kindle Edition

by Samantha Baker (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.0 4.0 out of 5 stars 83 ratings
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“Brilliant….Stepmothers, stepfathers, stepchildren: all, I think, will find amusement and comfort in its pages.”
—Nigella Lawson

“I really, really loved it.”

—Marian Keyes

You can choose your family—but are you sure you want to? That’s the question Samantha Baker poses in The Other Mothers’ Club—a fresh, funny, and touching fictional look at stepmotherhood, an often-misrepresented aspect of female life. Join The Other Mothers’ Club and enjoy hours of supremely satisfying reading…even if you’re not a stepmother.

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  1. Print length
    434 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    William Morrow Paperbacks
  4. Publication date
    June 8, 2010
  5. File size
    2.5 MB
  6. Page Flip
    Enabled
  7. Word Wise
    Enabled
  8. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  9. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Soon after Eve, the heroine of this overbusy debut, plunges into stepmother territory, she realizes she's in over her head. She turns to best friend and single mother Clare for advice, and the help sessions soon mushroom into the Stepmothers' Support Group. Members include Clare's younger sister, Lily, who is dating an older man with a toddler; Melanie, who wants a family of her own and is recovering from a bad breakup with a man who didn't want kids; and Mandy, who is trying to juggle the blending of two families full of teenagers. Baker partially succeeds at polishing the image of the much-maligned stepmother, thanks to strong characters like Eve and Clare. But the glut of personalities at play between club members and their families and friends proves too much for Baker to handle, and as she loses the battle to develop even some of players central to the increasingly convoluted plot, contrived developments and uneven storytelling become ever more apparent.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review

“Sometimes, a book can be such a brilliant idea, you can’t believe no one has done it before: ‘The Stepmothers’ Support Group’ by Sam Baker is a page-turning case in point. Stepmothers, stepfathers, stepchildren: all, I think, will find amusement and comfort in its pages.”

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B003M68YPM
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ William Morrow Paperbacks; 1st edition (June 8, 2010)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ June 8, 2010
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 2.5 MB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 434 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.0 4.0 out of 5 stars 83 ratings

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Sam Baker

Sam Baker

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Customer reviews

4 out of 5 stars
83 global ratings

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Top reviews from the United States

  • puffcurls
    5.0 out of 5 stars A good book about and for stepmoms
    Reviewed in the United States on August 21, 2012
    Verified Purchase
    It is so hard to find good books for and about stepmoms, and I am happy to finally see one more added to the short list. Stepfamilies make up such a large part of our society, but there are few positive resources out there for stepmoms and stepfamilies. There are also very few books/films/images/representations of stepmoms and stepfamilies out there that are positive, or at least, no made evil. That is why this book is needed and refreshing.

    Other than that, it is a fun read and anyone can get into it too.
    One person found this helpful
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  • Lanine Bradley
    4.0 out of 5 stars Wicked stepmother?
    Reviewed in the United States on December 1, 2013
    Parenting is hard. Anyone who says something different is either delusional or lying. Parenting children to whom you don't have a biological connection is even harder. At least that's the main premise of Samantha Bakers The Other Mothers Club. Baker provides an interesting spin on the traditional Wicked Stepmother story. Rather than new woman as the interloper, she presents the stepmother as a woman placed in a never-ending difficult, cant-ever-do-anything-right situation where someone else always comes first.

    Its love at first sight when Eve Owen and widower Ian Newsome meet. Its not as though Eve didn't know that someone had come before her. If anything she knew more the average person considering she was interviewing Ian about his first wife, the one who had publicly chronicled her last days with cancer. Eve just hadn't understood how hard the shoes would be to fill.

    With three new children, one of whom wants nothing to do with her, and a new home in which her personal effects number in the single digits, Eve cant help but wonder if love will be enough. With a slow buildup, the book has enough heart to keep you entertained through the very end.

    -Lanine Bradley, posted on Sacramento Book Review
    One person found this helpful
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  • LH422
    3.0 out of 5 stars A Good Beach Read
    Reviewed in the United States on August 2, 2010
    This chick lit novel focuses on young women navigating the rocky terrain of stepmotherhood. At the center is Eve, a magazine editor who has fallen in love with a widower. Her new boyfriend comes complete with three children and a family home replete with relics of the deceased and seemingly saintly first wife, Caroline. Through her best friend Eve discovers that plenty of other women share her situation, her fears, and her problems. Five of them form a support group, and the book chronicles their meetings and individual histories.

    Generally, this is a well-written book, though the plot is quite predictable. It is unlikely that any reader will be surprised by the book's ending. I was quite sympathetic to Eve's plight, especially as I thought she was poorly treated, both by her best friend and her boyfriend, Ian. While Ian's devotion to his children is admirable, there is a crucial point in the story where his complete abrogation of responsibility to Eve was appalling. Likewise, Eve's best friend Clare is so bitter that she sometimes seems to be a caricature. Ultimately I'd classify this as summer beach reading. It's not deep, but it is well-written, and definitely one of the better books of its genre.
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  • anothercolleen
    5.0 out of 5 stars a perspective we rarely read about
    Reviewed in the United States on June 30, 2010
    I adored this book. I enjoyed reading a story from a perspective we rarely read about.

    Eve falls in love with Ian, a widower, but is unprepared to cope with the challenges of living with his three children. She turns to her best friend Claire, a single mother with a teenager. Claire has Eve speak with her sister, Lily who is seeing someone with a young daughter. Next thing you know, the Stepmothers Support Group is formed and two additional members are added. The women met at Starbucks to discuss the challenges that they are facing being a stepmother. Eve struggles to get Ian's oldest daughter Hannah to like her, or at the very least, not hate her. She is also coping with living in a house where another woman still has a very large presence. Claire struggles when her ex, Will, appears wanting to met the daughter he abandoned some 14 years ago. The other women have their own stories, but the plot revolving the characters of Eve and Claire was most defined.

    Even though Baker's book is about the challenges facing mothers/stepmothers, at its core it is really about women and friendship. You don't need to be a stepmother or mom to appreciate this book. I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a good summer read.
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  • A. Allyson
    4.0 out of 5 stars Finally, good fiction for stepmoms
    Reviewed in the United States on June 8, 2011
    It was really nice to read a full stepmom-experience story. There were multiple simultaneous stories from other women in stepmom situations, and the comparison was pretty dead on. If you're a stepmom yourself, you'll disagree with and have your own take on everything, but that doesn't make the story any lesser. Every stepmom's experience is different, and the best thing about this book being fiction is it means that it's not telling you *how* to be a stepmom. It's more like a story-led discussion on what it's like. It was great to be involved in a story that I specifically related to, knowing that it wasn't real or an advice book. There should be a lot more like this book coming, as blended families make up half of families now. There's a huge increase in stepparent and stepmom non-fiction books, so hopefully this book will spur some more fiction.
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Top reviews from other countries

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  • D. Jones
    5.0 out of 5 stars The stepmothers' support group
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 25, 2011
    Verified Purchase
    This story is about how five women bond and support one another during the trials and tribulations of their experiences as step mothers, potential step mothers and as a single parent.

    The book focuses primarily on Eve, her relationship with Ian and his three children. As the couple decide to progress their relationship things don't always go smoothly for Eve.

    Eve has always relied on her long-time friend, Clare a single mother, for help and support. However, when Clare needs a shoulder to cry Eve isn't always there to reciprocate. Luckily the other ladies in the support group, Lily, Melanie and Mandy are there to lend an ear at their monthly coffee, chat and support evenings.

    Anyone who has become a step mother will undoubtedly recognise many of the issues and problems that Sam Baker raises in the book. From the adoration so easily given by the youngest child to the resentment, antagonism and outright rude behaviour from Hannah, Ian's 12 year old daughter. Sam tackles these issues sensitively and really hones in on the tensions and difficulties that can be created in what was an otherwise strong relationship between two adults.

    I did feel that Eve often came over as unsympathetic towards Hannah and her needs. Although never having been in that situation myself maybe her reactions to Hannah and her tantrums were justified.

    I thought that Clare was an amazing character and I thoroughly enjoyed reading her story. My heart went out to her when Will, who rejected her as a teenager after finding out about her pregnancy, suddenly appeared back in her life.

    I felt that the author did a great job of weaving the different women's stories into and out of each other, allowing some overlap but for the most part keeping them clearly separate.

    Overall I loved this book. It was engaging, easy to read and it made me grateful that I have never had to tread carefully through the minefield that can face many step mothers.
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  • Lesezeichen
    3.0 out of 5 stars Gute Idee, mittelmässige Ausarbeitung
    Reviewed in Germany on January 7, 2011
    Verified Purchase
    Das nicht immer einfache Schicksal der Stiefmütter unserer Zeit literarisch anzupacken ist ja keine schlechte Idee, zumal die immer neuen und sich verändernden Familienkonstellationen eben diese Rolle zunehmend häufig hervorbringen, dies aber überzeugend auszuarbeiten ist etwas schwieriger und gelingt der Autorin nur bedingt. Im "Club der Stiefmütter" treffen sich nun also allerlei Frauen verschiedener Altersgruppen und mit unterschiedlichem sozialen Hintergrund und klagen sich gemeinsam ihr Leid. Das wirkt zum Teil etwas konstruiert und zusammengesucht. Auch sind die einzelnen Untergeschichten nicht immer stimmig und hin und wieder recht klischeehaft.
    Insgesamt handelt es sich doch eher um Frauenliteratur mittlerer Qualität mit mässigem Unterhaltungswert.
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  • lhasalover
    3.0 out of 5 stars Nice easy read
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 14, 2016
    Verified Purchase
    As a stepmother i was hoping for some enlightenment! I'm not sure thats what I got but nevertheless a lovely book, easy to read and absorbing. I love the idea of the support group, i wish i was in one!
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  • Tess
    5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent read.
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 9, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    It's a great story that kept me absorbed from beginning to end. Well written and well-worth the effort reading. Totally recommend it.
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  • Kimberly Sims
    5.0 out of 5 stars For stepmothers everywhere!
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 17, 2013
    Verified Purchase
    Very good chic/choc lit style read, with good, believable characters - it's a great read or stepmothers everywhere - and possibly older stepchildren. The story covers the lives of several characters intertwined - and how they come together to compare notes and give support. Nicely written and the books motors along at a good pace; certainly, in my experience, I could relate to a lot of it; I think most stepmothers would find a lot of it resonates with them in many ways.
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