Review: Baby Teeth by Zoje Stage

Baby Teeth by Zoje Stage 

Release Date: July 17, 2018 

Publisher: St. Martin's Press 

Genre: Adult, Thriller & Mystery 

Source: ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

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Meet Hanna.

She’s the sweet-but-silent angel in the adoring eyes of her Daddy. He’s the only person who understands her, and all Hanna wants is to live happily ever after with him. But Mommy stands in her way, and she’ll try any trick she can think of to get rid of her. Ideally for good.

Meet Suzette.

She loves her daughter, really, but after years of expulsions and strained home schooling, her precarious health and sanity are weakening day by day. As Hanna’s tricks become increasingly sophisticated, and Suzette's husband remains blind to the failing family dynamics, Suzette starts to fear that there’s something seriously wrong, and that maybe home isn’t the best place for their baby girl after all.

From blazing new talent Zoje Stage, Baby Teeth is a story about a perfect-looking family, and a darling little girl who wants nothing more than to kill her mother.

Review:

Twisted.
Jaw-dropping. 
Unputdownable. 
Those are just some of the words that describe Zoje Stage's explosive debut. 

When Baby Teeth first appeared on my radar, I wasn't too sure about it. It sounded unique and interesting, but a book about a young girl wanting to kill her mother? It definitely wasn't my typical read. However, the other week I decided to read a chapter to get a feel for it. Luckily, that chapter turned into two, and before I knew it, it was 2 am and not only was I finished but also completely and utterly shook. That last scene? I reread it twice, because I couldn't believe my own eyes! 

Baby Teeth contains two POVs - Suzette's as well as Hannah's. Zoje did a fantastic job of bringing the two voices together. It was also incredibly worthwhile as well as eye-opening to see from both of their perspectives. The interesting thing here, however, is that I could never exactly pinpoint a villain.  Instead, Suzette and Hannah are both victims as well as instigators, in my opinion. In their minds, they both believe they are doing the "right" thing. Suzette is attempting to save her marriage, daughter, and health through her occasional tough-love yet mostly understandable actions while Hannah believes the only way to be happy is to get rid of her mother. While Hannah's reasoning is a bit more wild, I felt bad for the girl. Yes, she did some truly evil things in this book; however, at the end of the day, she was a little girl who needed help. The only problem was that no one seemed to know what that help should be. 

At its core, Baby Teeth is a game of cat-and-mouse. The majority of the book focuses on the back-and-forth between Hannah and Suzette, their constant need to one-up each other as well as win. I was always on the edge of my seat, dying to know what would happen next. Would Hannah finally succeed in killing her mother? Would Suzette find help that would work? Those were just some of the questions swirling around in my head. As the book progressed, things only became crazier. I couldn't believe some of what I was reading. Gosh, if I was Suzette, I would've been running from that house screaming. I also enjoyed the conflict Suzette's husband/Hannah's father brought to the table. In a way, he played a Switzerland type role. He refused to believe that his little angle could be so evil but he also couldn't believe his wife could be lying about such things. For the majority of the book, he tries to play the middle man, sometimes making things better but sometimes making them even worse... 

In addition to the conflict/dynamic between Hannah and Suzette, the book also includes Suzette's struggles with Crohn's disease. I appreciated the fact that Zoje included this and addressed the everyday issues that arise with the disease. Several people close to me have suffered from Chron's, and I thought Zoje did a fantastic job of giving it a realistic, honest feel. 

Overall, Baby Teeth by Zoje Stage is an edge-of-your-seat thriller. While I don't think this book will be for everyone, I think it will definitely find its audience within those craving a dark, mind-bending thriller. I look forward to reading more by Zoje in the future. 

4 stars!!