Mother Is Watching

I love dark and gory thrillers, although I wouldn't call myself a 'horror reader'. But when I saw that Canadian author Karma Brown, who has written in several different genres, was taking on the horror genre, I entered and won a GoodReads giveaway for an advanced copy.

The Gist: Tilly is a 39-year-old mother and art conservator who is asked to restore "The Mother", one of a quartet of well-known paintings by a female artist who was also a surgeon. Tilly soon discovers, after years of trying, that she's pregnant and that's when things start to get eerie.

This story has a Margaret Atwood-esque vibe with its dystopian setting where women of childbearing age don't have full control over their own bodies. Due to an epidemic, the government has stepped in and has influence over women's reproductive rights, rewarding those who keep having children, while denying women perks who choose not to have kids.

The story balances between the horror aspect as Tilly works to restore the sinister painting as well as her experience as the government asserts more and more pressure on her to ensure this pregnancy is successful. This was an interesting combo (its themes would make a great book club selection), but at times, it felt like the women's reproductive theme overshadowed the slow-building sinister tension.  

I enjoyed this book which I would call 'horror light'. There are some gruesome scenes that made my skin crawl, but as a self-proclaimed 'wuss', I creeped out but not as scared as I had expected.

This was a good first 'kick at the horror can' for Brown who brings an eerie vibe, supernatural elements and a truly chilling cover while also giving readers topics that will instigate great discussion. 

Disclaimer: I won a trade paperback copy of this book from a GoodReads giveaway.

My Rating: 3.5 stars

Author: Karma Brown

Genre: Horror, Canadian

Type and Source: Trade paperback from GoodReads giveaway

Publisher: Simon and Schuster Canada

First Published: March 17, 2026

Read: March 5-9, 2026

Book Description from GoodReads: An internationally bestselling author’s chilling horror debut in which an art conservator’s obsession with a mysterious painting spirals into a nightmarish descent, where the line between reality and the supernatural shatters, threatening both her sanity and her life.

Mathilde “Tilly” Crewson, a thirty-nine-year-old mother and art conservator, is tasked with restoring The Mother. The painting, believed to be the work of a female surgeon-turned-artist after a personal tragedy, is the rumored fourth piece in a collection of only three known works. But this newly discovered painting, scarred by fire, holds more than meets the eye.

Soon after receiving the painting, Tilly discovers she’s unexpectedly pregnant. But almost immediately, strange, inexplicable things begin to terrifying insect swarms, eerie visits from her long-deceased mother, and sinister whispers that invade her mind. As these malevolent forces intensify, Tilly comes to a harrowing the only way to sever the perilous bond she shares with the painting is to destroy it. But The Mother has plans of her own—and they’re darker than Tilly could ever imagine…