BOOK REVIEW: The Beta Mum: Adventures in Alpha Land by Isabella Davidson

The Beta Mum: Adventures in Alpha Land is the newly-released debut novel by Isabella Davidson, popular blogger at Notting Hill Yummy Mummy (check out her recent blog tour to find out more about Isabella!) I was pretty excited about this book as soon as I heard about it. A new city, rivalry, anonymous blogging...it seemed like a promising debut!

When her husband lands a job opportunity that's hard to turn down, Sophie Bennett begins to prepare the family's big move from Toronto to London. Moving to a new city is hard enough, but heading to a new city halfway across the globe is even more difficult - especially when there's Sophie's four-year-old daughter Kaya's schooling to consider.

Luckily, Michael's contacts have landed them the services of a nursery consultant who manages to get Kaya a place at Cherry Blossoms, one of the most exclusive nurseries in Notting Hill. Sophie is sure that taking Kaya to her new school will provide the perfect opportunity to talk to the other mums and make new friends - but as it happens, she couldn't be more wrong.

The mums at Cherry Blossoms are not what Sophie expects; incredibly wealthy, beautiful (one is an actual supermodel) and just a bit judgmental, Sophie's first interactions with the 'Alpha Mums' doesn't exactly go down too well. Feeling self-conscious and out of her depth at the school gates of exclusivity she has not fully experienced before, Sophie vows to try again.

However, she soon becomes certain that she won't fit in with these high-maintenance mums who are always fighting for the top spot in the Alpha Mum roster. Rude, cliquey and fiercely competitive in everything they do, these 'yummy mummies' are desperate to outdo one another and take down anyone who gets in their way.

Lonely and homesick, Sophie takes out her frustration on a blog. Naming herself 'Beta Mum', she anonymously chronicles her day to day life at the school gates, noting some of the conversations and goings-on at some of the vast Cherry Blossoms events. Pretty soon Sophie is gaining followers from all around the world, who are stopping by to share their own amusing tales of school-run woes.

As the blog gains more attention - especially from one man who might just be married to one of the Alphas - Sophie becomes more content, making sure she documents her new life full of overachieving competitive mums for the world to read about. With her blog, people are finally listening to her, making her realise that she's not alone.

That is until one day, when she accidentally reveals the location of the London nursery, and it's only a matter of time before the Alpha's work out the mystery blogger's true identity...

I'm going to stop there in case I spoil any more, and I certainly don't want to do that because this book is downright brilliant. I was hooked from page one, and it didn't take me long to finish because I could hardly put it down. Isabella is funny, with sparkling wit, and her fun writing style shines through. I was rooting for Sophie since the very beginning of the novel.

I'm not a mum, and thus have never experienced the kind of behaviour Sophie has to endure at the nursery, however I have heard similar stories from others who have! It reminds me of high school, where classes were dominated by the typical cliques and bullies. Some people just never seem to grow up, often concealing their own problems and insecurities beneath a false layer of confidence, and I think Isabella has captured this brilliantly.

The Beta Mum: Adventures in Alpha Land is an absolutely wonderful, unputdownable debut.

Rating: 5/5

UNCOVERED PICKS: Five debut novels to read this summer!

Coming across debut authors is always fun and exciting, especially when you find a writer whose work you really connect with and you just can't wait for their next book. 2017 is seeing quite a lot of fab-looking debuts, and so here's a selection of five to look out for in May and June.

The Beta Mum, Adventures in Alpha Land by Isabella Davidson (Released in June)
When Sophie Bennett moves from a quiet sleepy suburb of Toronto to glitzy west London, she doesn’t know where she has landed: Venus or Mars. Her three-year-old daughter Kaya attends Cherry Blossoms, the most exclusive nursery in London, where Sophie finds herself adrift in a sea of Alpha Mums. These mothers are glamorous, gorgeous, competitive and super rich, especially Kelly, the blonde, beautiful and bitchy class rep. 

Struggling to fit in and feeling increasingly isolated, Sophie starts The Beta Mum, an anonymous blog describing her struggles with the Alpha Mums. But when her blog goes viral, she risks ruining everything for herself and her daughter. How long will it be until they discover her true identity? Is her marriage strong enough to survive one of her follower’s advances? And will she ever fit in with the Alpha Mums?

Girl In Between by Anna Daniels (Released in May)
Lucy Crighton has just moved in with some gregarious housemates called Brian and Denise ...who are her parents. She’s also the proud mother of Glenda, her beloved 10-year-old...kelpie. And she has absolutely no interest in the dashing son of her parents’ new next-door neighbour...well, maybe just a little...

As the girl in between relationships, careers and cities, Lucy is facing some awkward truths – like her mum’s obsession with Cher, her father’s unsolicited advice, and the probability there’s more cash on the floor of her parents’ car than in her own bank account.

Thank goodness for Lucy’s crazy-but-wonderful best friend, Rosie, who’s around to cushion reality with wild nights at the local Whipcrack Hotel, escapades in Japanese mud baths, and double dating under the Christmas lights in London. 

But will Lucy work out what she really wants to do in life – and who she wants to share it with 
Girl in Between is a warm, funny, charmingly Australian story about life at the crossroads. Featuring an endearing and irrepressible cast of characters, it will have you chuckling from start to finish.

Hot Mess by Lucy Vine (Released in May)
Hot Mess [n.] - someone attractive, who is often in disarray.

Ellie Knight is just like you. Her life isn't turning out the way she thought it would. Some people might say she's a hot mess but then who really has their s**t together anyway?

It's Valentine's Day and Ellie finds herself eating Nutella in the bar stockroom after a no-show date.
But single doesn't have to be the loneliest number, does it?

She goes back home to her flatshare and weird flatmates.

It's ok there's black mould everywhere, right?

With a hangover from hell, she goes to the office job she thought she would have quit by now.
Doesn't everyone hate their job?

Maybe Ellie isn't following the *official life plan* but perfect is overrated. For fans of Fleabag and Girls, this is a fresh and funny coming-of-age story with a single-girl heroine that everyone will relate to - a modern Carrie Bradshaw meets Bridget Jones.

Love in Row 27 by Eithne Shortall (Released in June)
What happens when Cupid plays co-pilot?

Still reeling from a break-up, Cora Hendricks has given up on ever finding love. For herself, that is. To pass the time while working the Aer Lingus check-in desk at Heathrow, Cora begins to play cupid with high-flying singles.

Using only her intuition, the internet, and glamorous flight attendant accomplice Nancy, Row 27 becomes Cora's laboratory of love. Instead of being seated randomly, two unwitting passengers on each flight find themselves next to the person of their dreams - or not.

Cora swears Row 27 is just a bit of fun, but while she's busy making sparks fly at cruising altitude, the love she'd given up on for herself just might have landed right in front of her...

Mr Right-Swipe by Ricki Schultz (Released in June)
Rae Wallace would rather drown in a vat of pinot greezh and be eaten by her own beagle than make another trip down the aisle--even if it is her best friend's wedding. She's too busy molding the minds of first graders and polishing that ol' novel in the drawer to waste time on any man, unless it's Jason Segel.

But when her be-fris stage an intervention, Rae is forced to give in. After all, they've hatched a plan to help her find love the 21st century way: online. She's skeptical of this electronic chlamydia catcher, but she's out to prove she hasn't been too picky with men.

However, when a familiar fella's profile pops up--the dangerously hot substitute teacher from work (Nick)--Rae swipes herself right into a new problem...

GUEST POST: 10 Things You Need to Know about Isabella Davidson

Isabella Davidson’s debut novel, The Beta Mum, Adventures in Alpha-Land, published by Silverwood Press, is coming out on June 20th 2017! It's a fun tale of a Toronto mum who finds herself among London's elite mummy crowd...

When Sophie Bennett moves from a quiet, sleepy suburb of Toronto to glitzy west London, she doesn’t know where she has landed: Venus or Mars. Her three-year-old daughter Kaya attends Cherry Blossoms, the most exclusive nursery in London, where Sophie finds herself adrift in a sea of Alpha mums. These mothers are glamorous, gorgeous, competitive and super rich, especially Kelly, the blonde, beautiful and bitchy class rep.  

Struggling to fit in and feeling increasingly isolated, Sophie starts The Beta Mum, an anonymous blog describing her struggles with the Alpha mums. But when her blog goes viral, she risks ruining everything for herself and her daughter. How long will it be until they discover her true identity? Is her marriage strong enough  to survive one of her follower’s advances? And will she ever fit in with the Alpha mums?

Isabella is a former doctor who decided to write The Beta Mum after the success of her blog. Want to know more? Well, here Isabella shares ten things about her and her debut novel...

10 Things You Need To Know About Me And My Book: 

1. As cliché as it is, I’ve always wanted to write a book. The first time I realized it was when I was 10 years old and my English teacher read one of my short stories about a witch and said ‘maybe one day you’ll become a writer.’
2. I was better at Biology than English in school, so I became a doctor instead! But the dream was always there and after I stopped working as a doctor to raise my children, I started a humorous blog about living in west London, www.nottinghillyummymummy.com Through the blog, I was asked to write a feature for The Saturday Times newspaper and thought that perhaps I had enough talent to write a book. Rightly or wrongly! 
3. It took me two years to write the book but before then I had started about ten books without ever finishing them. No one told me quite how hard it was to write a book! The best thing I did to help me finish writing my book was to go on the Faber Academy Novel Writing Course. It helped with my motivation and provided so much support and feedback. 
4. Like they always say ‘write about what you know’ so that’s what I did. I am a mum living in west London, so that’s what I wrote about. I hear so many funny and interesting stories all the time and think ‘Oooh, I need to put that in my book!’ That’s where I get my inspiration from. From everyday conversations and events. 
5. The book is entirely fictional but based on some true events and experiences I have had or stories I have heard. The characters are all fictional and I am not the main character Sophie and the bitchy mum Kelly does not exist either. I did go to a play date once when the housekeeper thought I was there for an interview and started asking me questions about my childcare experience. It was rather mortifying! 
6. Not all west London mums are awful. I live in west London and I love it. Most of my friends are west London mums too, so there are plenty of lovely mums here. But no one wants to read about boring, nice, mums who are nice to everybody. There would not be a story. But there are so many interesting characters who live in and out of west London, it’s fascinating. 
7. I loved writing the bitchy mum’s character, Kelly. She is so awful and yet, I have heard people speaking like her in real life and I think that we should all be kinder to each other. So the moral of my story is: be kinder to each other.
8. It is not a serious book; it is meant to be entertaining, funny and a light, summer read. Anyone who is offended by it is taking it way too seriously. I hope my readers have fun with it and enjoy it! 
9. Writing is full of obstacles: the writing bit, then the getting-published bit and then the selling-and-marketing bit. It is a hard, long road! And I am still working on all three…
10. To any aspiring writers: my tutor once told me that it isn’t about how much talent you have, it’s about tenacity. Sitting down every day on that chair to write, word after word, and then throwing your first draft away and re-writing the book, and then editing, editing, editing. It’s not for the faint-hearted! But I am so proud that I finished it and that I am now able to share it with the world. And I hope everyone enjoys it!

Check out Isabella Davidson's blog, Notting Hill Yummy Mummy, and sign up for news! You can also take part a Goodreads Giveaway for a chance to win a copy of The Beta Mum  -Adventures in Alpha-Land.