All She Wants by Kelli Hawkins is about a woman who wants a family… a woman who is desperate for a family. I mean ostensibly she wants a baby, but she really wants the whole kit and caboodle. A family. As someone who went through fertility treatment in my early 40s (as a single woman) I could relate to some of Lindsay’s obsessiveness and the daydreams of a long-expected child.

I could similarly relate to how much it smarted to see others with children, taking it for granted and seemingly rubbing it in my face – though of course they weren’t. The pill nonetheless was bitter.
All She Wants
by Kelli Hawkins
Published by HarperCollins - AU
on 02/03/2022
Source: Harper Collins
Genres: Psychological Thriller
ISBN: 1460759249
Pages: 320

Goodreads

Lindsay just wants to be a mother. And when she discovers her partner is leaving her for another woman, her dreams are left in tatters. He was her last chance at a family ... or was he?

Then she meets Jack, they fall hard for each other, and suddenly everything seems perfect. But why is his sister Natalie so strangely protective of him, yet eager to pass the responsibility to Lindsay? Who are these siblings, why did they really leave the UK, and what terrifying secrets lie in their past?

And does Lindsay really want to know?

This unfolds in two timeframes. In the present from Lindsay and Natalie’s points of view and in the past through the eyes of a young boy.

I’m assuming the link is meant to be obvious but the intrigue of course is around how the siblings we meet in the past become those we meet in the present.

I read and reviewed Hawkins previous book (Other People’s Houses), that gave us a front-row seat to the deterioration in someone’s mental health. The author handled it gently though and here, it features again – though a number of lenses and with sensitivity.

Hawkins keeps us guessing for much of the book and its strength is very much in the twists on offer. I often comment on books that would make good bookclub reads because there’s much fodder for discussion and it’s certainly the case here.

The line between good / evil is blurred. We’re forced to wonder how much of later predicaments are the result of our upbringing and early years. Hawkins misdirects us a number of times. Things we think we know are incorrect and assumptions we make waaaay off-base.

All She Wants by Kelli Hawkins was published in Australia by Harper Collins and is now available.

I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher for review purposes.

* It wasn’t until I was writing this review that I wondered if Hawkins named it after the Roxette song, as ‘All (That) She Wants’ kept popping in my head as I typed out the title.