She pulls me in for a hug, smelling like expensive perfume and cigarettes.
“Thank you. Thank you for everything,” I say.
It wasn’t just how she helped in the aftermath of Mom’s arrest, after all. She played a crucial role in helping Mom avoid detection all these years. She believed in her when many others would have chosen to look the other way.
“It was nothing,” she says.
Jamie and Mom walk along the shore, catching up on a lifetime spent apart. Every so often, Mom will throw her head back and laugh. Jamie will lean over, slapping her leg. It feels good to see them happy.
As promised, Evan arrives just as we are preparing to open gifts. He stands behind me, his hand on my shoulder. After Ava opens the last one, he leans in to kiss my cheek.
“Great party, Mom,” he whispers.
Carmen and Des help wrangle up the trash and consolidate the remaining food in Tupperware. Eventually, everyone scatters out across the sand, the children fruitlessly chasing birds and the adults having their own conversations. I watch the entire scene, feeling a warmth inside. Growing up, it never felt like I had a whole family. Someone was always missing, it seemed. Now I realize I have more support than most people, and I can share all that love with Ava.
Mom walks over, her arms crossed, and stands beside me.
“You know, it seems like I spent most of my life trying to avoid people,” Mom says. “I went about it the wrong way.”
“What do you mean?”
We don’t bring up the case often, or even her past. But when we do have a conversation about it, there is no longer that barrier there. We talk about our lives openly and honestly.
“For so long, I believed people were out to hurt each other. And all that is true. That’s why I made it my life’s mission to protect you.” She looks at Ava, then me. “But I forgot to appreciate the good in people. People like Jamie and Des. I never would have survived if it weren’t for them. And I wouldn’t be here today if Carmen hadn’t fought for me. They show me a different side to people. A better side.”
“You were lucky to have them,” I say, squeezing her hand. “And we’re lucky to have you.”
I’m aware our time together is limited. All our time is limited, whether you lose your life in an instant, like my father, or slowly to a disease, like my mother. It is why we have to make the most of the moments we have.
“Cake,” Ava says, stumbling toward us. She has been patient enough.
“I’ll cut three slices,” Mom says, holding her hand as we make our way back to the pavilion.
We sit and we eat. We enjoy the fantastic breeze and the beautiful view. We appreciate this moment together, which has always been, and will always be, enough.
If you were gripped by the twists and turns of Not My Mother, you’ll love What I Know. Della knows what monsters look like—even if no one is prepared to believe her. Order the tense and compelling psychological thriller here!
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What I Know
My brother was thirteen the first time he tried to kill me.
These days, Della is a loving wife, a dedicated teacher, a woman trying to do her best. She has put her past far behind her. But she hasn’t forgotten the lessons she learned.
It’s just a regular morning when Della welcomes Zoey to her English class. She treats her like any other new student: assigns her a desk, hands out the work. But then she meets Zoey’s cold, calculating eyes and freezes as terrifying memories threaten to overwhelm her.
Della knows what evil looks like when it hides behind a confident smile. Her own brother, the town’s darling, couldn’t keep his true nature hidden for ever. Della has been watching out for people like him ever since, determined to stop them before it’s too late.
When a student is viciously attacked and Della is sent a detailed account of the crime, she’s more convinced than ever that Zoey has darkness inside her.
But to make people believe her, she needs proof. Will she risk everything to get it? And without it, can she be sure she’s right?
Prepare to be hooked by this dark, gripping crime thriller, perfect for fans of Karin Slaughter, Gillian Flynn and Rachel Caine.
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Hear More from Miranda
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Books by Miranda Smith
Not My Mother
The One Before
What I Know
Some Days Are Dark
Available in audio
The One Before (Available in the UK and the US)
What I Know (Available in the UK and the US)
Some Days Are Dark (Available in the UK and the US)
A Letter from Miranda
Dear Reader,
Thank you for taking the time to read Not My Mother. If you liked it and want information about upcoming releases, sign up with the following link. Your email address will never be shared and you can unsubscribe at any time.
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What I love about the crime genre is the opportunity to take ordinary scenarios and explore them a step further, to a desperate and dangerous place. For this book, the scene of a woman being arrested at her granddaughter’s birthday party stuck out to me, and the rest of the story developed from there.
I was fascinated by each character’s determination to be a mother, whether it be Marion, a single mother by choice, or Amelia with her obsessive manipulation. I’d also like to mention that I’m a huge supporter of adoption, and I hope none of the themes in this fictional story suggest otherwise.
If you’d like to further discuss the novel, I’d love to connect! You can find me on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter or my website. If you enjoyed Not My Mother, I would be thrilled
