The concept of the story told through Millie and the idea of her mother's murderous tendencies coming though in Millie was excellent and from start to finish I loved this book and never wanted to put it down. The prosecutors know that Milly doesn’t want to testify, but it’s the only way to get justice for the victims. With some unexpected moments I really recommend Good Me, Bad Me to other readers who like this style of book and especially if you have a book club. I’ve decided it just scrapes 3 stars, as I was able to read the book to the end, and I wouldn’t say I didn’t enjoy it at all, it just wasn’t what I was expecting and turned out not to be the book for me.

There are credible details of court procedures and social workers though, and enough ‘realism’ to make me go along with the situation. Milly’s mother, a female serial killer, whose voice is always running in Milly’s mind, planting seeds of doubt, is absolutely chilling.

Sentence structure is awkward at times with Milly describing proceedings-- "shifted in his chair, he did--” like a sort of mini-Yoda. As a result of this arrest, Milly (formerly known as Annie) moves in with a foster family to prepare for the upcoming trial and to attempt a new life without her Mom. She features briefly in the court episodes of the novel but Land chooses to focus on her daughter’s story instead. She was living alone with her mother when the boys were murdered and disposed of inside the house, all of whom were children of women from the refuge where Milly’s mother worked.

A therapist household sounds ideal but there was more going on here, making this a less than healthy environment for a troubled young girl. You are never sure if Milly is a reliable narrator, especially because she straight up admits she struggles with being good and bad. Annie's name is changed to Milly to help protect her and Milly is trying hard to not let the bad overtake the good within her, she doesn't want to be like her mother. For instance, I could never figure out how Milly's mom was able to continue killing without getting caught.Whenever I read anything that predicts a book is predicted to be the next biggest novel of the year, I tend to not raise my expectations too much. The outcome of the trial and the way in which her new home life works out don’t come as a massive surprise but I’d still recommend reading Good Me, Bad Me for Annie/Millie’s voice and her thoughts and behaviour as a survivor, the mental gymnastics she has to play in her new life with all the fresh challenges that brings, and the promising new author behind it all that is Ali Land. And like most humans, she presents her good side to the world, so is she showing the reader only her good side? She so desperately wants to fit into this new family but their daughter has no intention of making life easy for her, especially at school. And if it's just a story, only fiction, then how do we explain the lack of compassion that is growing everyday as more people read this crap and watch this?

Just when I thought the psychological thriller genre couldn’t come up with anything entirely new, debut novelist Ali Land puts a new spin on a style of book I couldn’t get enough of.Chilling, creepy and with a growing sense of unease this book really ticks all the boxes and was utterly compelling. The fact is, she was unable to help any of the children, and the last murder was just too much for Annie to bear, because she was very close to the victim. The foundation of this story is built on Milly starting her shiny new life at the age of 15, having just turned in her mother for the atrocious crimes. As her mother’s trial looms, with Milly as the star witness, Milly starts to wonder how much of her is nature, how much of her is nurture, and whether she is doomed to turn out like her mother after all. It raises so many questions, asks so much of your understanding of justice, asks for your acceptance (or at least for understanding) of why people do what they do.

While her mother is awaiting her trial Annie is placed in a foster family, where she get’s a new sister and a new name.I think the first half of the book was a little slower than the second half, hence the 4 star review. I felt a lot of sympathy for her not only with her upbringing but also with the school bullies and the fact that she felt that she was so alone. To protect Annie, authorities decide to place her in a foster home and give her a new identity, ‘Milly’. Milly is an unreliable narrator par excellence, withholding information and her real emotions from both her foster father/counsellor, the art teacher who encourages her, the girl she befriends, the cruel Phoebe and just about everyone around her – as well as the reader, we come to realise as Milly dispenses just enough of the truth to tease and mislead.