I've now read both of Aimee Molloy's novels (this one and Goodnight Beautiful) and I feel similarly about each of them. I enjoy her prose and the relationships between her characters, but the actual plots of her books are just ok. The Perfect Mother had some compelling aspects. I enjoyed seeing how each mom reacts to the kidnapping and how it affects them over time. However, we never really get to know Winnie. Though the story revolves around her missing baby, we barely get any sense of who she is. We only know her through the other characters' observations (and they themselves don't even know much about her). Winnie's behavior is also just confusing and left mostly unexplained.

This book had so many side plots and detailed backstories that had little, if anything, to do with the main story. It felt like Molloy wanted to pack in as many ideas as possible. I'd rather she invested more energy into the main plot. All that being said, The Perfect Mother kept me entertained and engaged.