A SUSPENSE MAGAZINE BEST BOOK OF 2020August Norman returns with the second thrilling Caitlin Bergman novel, perfect for fans of Julia Keller, Tess Gerritsen, and Michael Koryta.Caitlin went in search of her mother…but what she found may set the world on fire.Caitlin Bergman’s mother is dead. That’s what the award-winning journalist has told everyone for the past forty years. Easier to lie than … has told everyone for the past forty years. Easier to lie than explain how Maya abandoned her only daughter before dropping off the map forever.
But when a rural sheriff invites Caitlin to the woods of coastal Oregon to identify her mother’s remains, Caitlin drops everything to face the woman she’s spent a lifetime hating. Unfortunately, the body–abandoned on the land of a reclusive cult, the Daughters of God–was left faceless. Instead, Caitlin finds the diary of a woman obsessed with the end of the world, one that hints the cult’s spiritual leader knows the identity of Caitlin’s real father. She’s not the only one looking for clues in her mother’s writing. Johnny Larsen, a violent white supremacist whose family runs the county, thinks the Daughters of God kidnapped his teen-aged daughter–and will do anything to get her back.
At the top of a hill, an army of women wait for the end of days. In the town below, the Larsens plot to purify their county. Caught in the middle, Caitlin must decide which is more important–learning the truth about her past, or saving Mama Maya’s chosen daughters from the end of the world.
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A gritty, intense, fast-paced, riveting, artful melding of stunning psychological thrills and nail-biting suspense. An edgy mystery full of dark secrets, shocking plot twists and pulse-pounding, palpable tension. A superbly-written, unputdownable addition to the Caitlin Bergman thriller series!
*I received a complimentary ARC of this book in order to read and provide a voluntary, unbiased and honest review, should I choose to do so.
Great characters and a very deep plot make this book highly recommended. This second work by this author is a real winner. Five stars! #netgalley
This is book 2 in the series and I highly recommend you read them in order to fully grasp who the main character is. Really enjoyed this second book and the story. Well-written and paced. Read from start to finish in one day. I look forward to the next in the series.
Thank you #netgalley and #crookedlanebooks for the eARC.
Sins of the Mother is smart, scrappy, and not afraid to punch you in the gut — just like its fierce heroine.
The story makes you feel claustrophobic despite being transported to the mountain wilderness of coastal Oregon, where take-no-nonsense journalist Caitlin Bergman faces down white supremacists and a cult waiting for the end of the world. But at the heart of this exceptional thriller are the complex relationships Bergman — one of fiction’s fiercest new heroines — must examine if she hopes to make it back to L.A. alive.
Norman provides an action-packed, emotional thrill ride that’ll leave you breathlessly waiting for the next Caitlin Bergman novel.
If you enjoy Robert Dugoni’s Tracy Crosswhite series, especially My Sister’s Grave, you’ll love Caitlin Bergman and Sins of the Mother.
4.5/5
After spending some more time thinking about Sins of the Mother by August Norman, I have decided to bring my rating up from a 4/5 to a 4.5/5. I did this same thing after a reread of book 1 to this series, Come and Get Me, and it clearly goes to show that Norman’s writing really sticks with you. I knew after that first book that I would read everything he writes, and even though it took me a minute, I am so glad I finally read this one. It has a major cult aspect which is always hit or miss for me, but I loved the way it was done in this novel. I was completely engaged in the story, and I loved getting to know our main character Caitlin even better. Caitlin has got to be one of my favorite characters now, and she is just that strong heroine that I need in a novel. I love how this installment focused a lot on her mom and it ended up being a pretty wild ride.
And the audiobook!! The audio is narrated by Natasha Soudek and was actually a different narrator from the first book, and I have to say I was pretty disappointed in the switch. She was fine for Caitlin, but I HATED her accent for the British character. I think it might be the worst one I have ever heard besides my own, and I kinda hope she doesn’t narrate the following books if there are more. I would suggest reading it since the audiobook wasn’t that great in my opinion. However, I loved the cast of characters in Sins of the Mother, and I really liked the different viewpoints as well. I also enjoyed the pacing of this novel, and Norman’s writing really pulls you in and doesn’t let you go. Everything about this cult he created was utterly fascinating and terrifying, and if you are a fan of cults at all (fictional or real), this is gonna be a book you want to read. I still recommend starting with the first book because that is the kind of person I am, and I think it is a good idea anyway, so you have more of Caitlin’s backstory. I really hope this series continues with Norman’s next book, and I can’t wait to see what he comes up with next!
Thank you to NetGalley for my advanced review copy. All opinions and thoughts are my own.
The best mystery that I’ve read this year!
Sins of the Mother grabbed my attention and wouldn’t let go.
I connected with the characters on multiple levels.
Looking forward to August Norman’s next book!
“Sins of the Mother” is the second Caitlin Bergman book, and I admit I was a little biased going in: I really enjoyed the first book, “Come and Get Me,” and I love Caitlin Bergman as a character. She’s tough, smart, flawed and funny: the sort of person I’d want to meet at a dive bar to start trouble.
“Sins” finds Caitlin learning that her estranged birth mother appears to have been found dead under mysterious circumstances, and she travels to Oregon to identify the body and investigate the situation. What she learns takes her down a rabbit hole filled with dodgy characters and conspiracies: white nationalists, missing teenagers and a bizarre doomsday cult hidden in the mountains, as well as secrets from her own past that she might have preferred staying secret. This fast-paced thriller reads like an action movie, raising stakes and tension without veering into absurdity, and Caitlin remains a sympathetic and believable character throughout. An excellent sophomore effort by August Norman.
When award-winning journalist Caitlin Bergman gets a request to drop everything and fly to Oregon to identify remains believed to be those of her mother, she’s unsure she wants to make the effort. After a lifetime of hating the woman, why bother? It won’t change anything. Or will it? When the investigator in Caitlin forces her to pack a bag and get on the plane, there’s no turning back. Maybe she’ll find the answers she’s been hoping for her entire life. Maybe even the name of her biological father. But what she finds in the rural coastal town is more than a little disturbing. The dead woman has no face. There’s no way for Caitlin to identify the physical body as her mother. But the contents of the woman’s diary—an obsessive diatribe on her end-of the-world beliefs—make it clear that Caitlin is the daughter of whoever penned the apocalyptic predictions. Beneath the façade of this quaint coastal village lies as many secrets as there are trees in the woods. Between the true-believer members of the Daughters of God cult and a sadistic white supremacist looking for revenge, Caitlin has her work cut out for her in trying to uncover her personal truth and save the world from the end-of days. “Sins of the Mother,” the second book in the Caitlin Bergman series, is a well-crafted, edge-of-your-seat thriller that will leave the reader eagerly awaiting book three. I received an advance reader’s copy for review purposes from NetGalley.
Caitlin tells everyone her mother is dead. Her mother actually abandoned her and hasn’t been seen since. When a sheriff contacts Caitlin believing he has found her remains, she travels to Oregon to find out what happened to her mother. Caitlin finds her mother’s diary and finds out a lot about the cult she was living in-the Daughters of God- and lots of other secrets. Johnny Larsen thinks the cult took his daughter and he will do anything in his power to get her back. This book has a lot going on and you must read quickly to find out what is happening! I truly felt for Caitlin as she is trying to piece together her mother’s life. I received an advanced readers copy and all opinions are my own.
Sins of the Mother was a action packed read, one that kept me turning the pages. I was surprised how much I actually ended up liking the book, for me it was a little slow in the beginning but once it picked up the pace then it pulled me in. I would definitely recommend this book to others.
I received a ARC from NetGalley and the publisher and was under no obligation to leave a favorable review, all opinions expressed here are my own.
This book was so good!! Give me a cult, a mystery, and a strong female lead, and I’m immediately hooked!
Sins of the Mother: A Caitlin Bergman Novel
August Norman
Crooked Lane Books (September 8, 2020)
http://www.crookedlanebooks.com
13-digit ISBN number 978-1643854366
List Price $26.99
Suanne Schafer
@gmail.com">suanneschafer.author@gmail.com
SuanneSchaferAuthor.com
August Norman continues the Caitlin Bergman series with book two, Sins of the Mother. If you’re a bit shy about picking up the second book in a series, excellent job developing Caitlin psyche further without getting bogged down referring back to book #1, Come and Get Me. Book #2 works well as a stand-alone novel.
Caitlin Bergman has told everyone that her mother is dead as, after giving Caitlin up for adoption, the woman dropped out of sight. When Caitlin receives word from a police department in Oregon that her mother has died, Caitlin travels to Oregon to identify the body. This turns out to be rather complicated as the tips of the corpse’s fingers have been amputated and all her teeth pulled. She gives a DNA sample to confirm the woman’s identity and while Caitlin awaits the final results, she uncovers a free-love cult, a small but politically powerful clan of white supremacists, the kidnapping of a teenager who’s the victim of parental sexual abuse, and a web of deceit that dates back many years and covers ground from LA to Oregon.
This story is written by a male from the first person female perspective, and Norman does a good job of doing so. Award-winning journalist Caitlin Bergman is tough, has a good sense of humor, laced with a bit of charm and humility. She’s beginning to learn that family is less about breeding and more about the people she surrounds herself with. The cult is well written and interesting, brining to mind the Jonestown Commune in Guyana with its mass suicide and the Branch Davidians.
I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for a fair review.