Getting through those recommendations at lightening speed? Never fear. We have a whole new selection for you to get stuck into. This week, we’re diving into a gripping tale of suspense and crime, an Australian story bringing new meaning to belonging and identity, and Netflix’s latest popular series, Maid– if you haven’t watched it yet make sure it’s on your list for this weekend.
Thanks to our partner, Scribd for supporting this feature.
LISTEN: Dog Rose Dirt by Jen Williams
One of Britain’s most prolific serial killers has been locked in Belmarsh Prison for over two decades. But former journalist, Heather Jones is about to confront some devastating truths as she returns to her childhood home after her mother’s sudden and strange death.
She finds out that her mother had written dozens of letters to the killer while he was in prison.
When a body is found decorated with flowers, just like his victims, the serial killer is the only person alive who can help. After years of silence, he will speak only to the daughter of the woman whom he had corresponded with over letters.
This is going to keep you up at night!
Listen to it here, on Scribd.
READ: Believe in Me by Lucy Neave
Sarah is a pretty normal teenager growing up in the 1970s. That is, until she is forced to leave her home in upstate New York to join a missionary in Idaho. When she suddenly finds herself pregnant, she is once again shipped someone else – this time, to Sydney, with her distant relatives. There, she finds shelter in a home for unmarried mothers.
Decades later, her daughter retraces her mother’s journey across the world, learning some uncomfortable truths about the woman who raised her under unimaginable hardships.
This is Neave’s second novel, and it’s a sensational look at the relationship between mothers and their children across three generations. This is a story that questions what we can ever truly know of our mother’s lives, before they became mothers.
Read it here, on Scribd.
READ: The Lost Daughter by Elena Ferrante
At 47, Leda is divorced and taking a sea-side holiday. She is an English Professor, looking back on a life of child-rearing and motherhood. Her two adult daughters are now living in Canada with their father.
One day during her summer holiday, Leda meets Nina, a young mother and her daughter, Lenuccia who is in love with a doll that eventually goes missing.
This is Ferrante at her best — describing the sorrow of competing desires for women who want a life of their own while also having a family.
We’re looking forward to the upcoming adaptation by Maggie Gyllenhaal starring Olivia Colman and Dakota Johnson!
Read it here, on Scribd.
WATCH: Maid (Netflix) 10 Episodes
If you’re hanging around folks who keep a close eye on the latest show releases, you’ll no doubt have heard about Maid; Netflix’s latest offering.
It’s based on Stephanie Land’s 2019 New York Times bestselling memoir, Maid: Hard Work, Low Pay and a Mother’s Will to Survive, which chronicles her life as a single parent living off food coupons and moving from homeless shelters to other temporary housing.
In the first episode, 23-year-old Alex (played by Margaret Qualley, daughter of Andie MacDowell) escapes her violent partner and takes off in the middle of the night with her two-year old daughter, Maddy. We watch her struggle to make ends meet without support or money. She finds a cleaning job, but cannot find the immediate financial resources to keep her and her child safe.
This series, with ten episodes, has been critically acclaimed worldwide as a necessary depiction of the real lives of many women often unseen in the public eye.
Watch it on Netflix today.
