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The Perfect Child

Written by: Lucinda Berry
Narrated by: Christine Williams,Erin Bennett,Dan John Miller
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Publisher's Summary

A Washington Post and Amazon Charts bestseller.

A page-turning debut of suspense about a young couple desperate to have a child of their own—and the unsettling consequences of getting what they always wanted.

Christopher and Hannah are a happily married surgeon and nurse with picture-perfect lives. All that’s missing is a child. When Janie, an abandoned six-year-old, turns up at their hospital, Christopher forms an instant connection with her, and he convinces Hannah they should take her home as their own.

But Janie is no ordinary child, and her damaged psyche proves to be more than her new parents were expecting. Janie is fiercely devoted to Christopher, but she acts out in increasingly disturbing ways, directing all her rage at Hannah. Unable to bond with Janie, Hannah is drowning under the pressure, and Christopher refuses to see Janie’s true nature.

Hannah knows that Janie is manipulating Christopher and isolating him from her, despite Hannah’s attempts to bring them all together. But as Janie’s behavior threatens to tear Christopher and Hannah apart, the truth behind Janie’s past may be enough to push them all over the edge.

©2019 Heather Berry. (P)2018 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.

What the critics say

"A mesmerizing, unbearably tense thriller that will have you looking over your shoulder and sleeping with one eye open. This creepy, serpentine tale explores the darkest corners of parenthood and the profoundly unsettling lengths one will go to to keep a family together—no matter the consequences. Electrifying and atmospheric, this dark gem of a novel is one I couldn’t put down.”—Heather Gudenkauf, New York Times bestselling author

“A deep, dark, and dangerously addictive read. All-absorbing to the very end!”—Minka Kent, Washington Post bestselling author

What listeners say about The Perfect Child

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Highs and lows

Oh my goodness! How did this book ever get its title? So many times, like never before, my hand automatically went over my mouth because I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. I listened to the last 4,5 hours in one sitting because I couldn’t turn it off. However, when the ending came, it had me as surprised as the rest of the book. 😢

Halfway through, I went and pre-ordered her next novel. Best new author whom I’ve read in a very long time!

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is there a part 2!

the story was interesting but the ending makes no sense. I don't think I recommend.

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wow! what a read

i downloaded this audiobook as it was on as a daily deal so i didnt expect too much. but wow what a story. being a child psychologist this was right up my alley. i have been wanting a book that i cam just get lost in and havent found one in a while.

this was so gripping and had my attention the whole way through! like others have said, i HATED the dads character. i am also extremely disappointed at the ending. its been set up like there will be a sequel but cannot find anything to say that there will be one. so many loose ties. but i still think its worth 5 stars.

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WHAT A STORYYYY!!!!!

omg! this book kept me il all night. I just had to keep listening! great character development, it really felt like this could happen or has happened to someone. in parts i almost felt like the writer was writing from experience or a real life situation they were aware of. amazing book!

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Wow... just wow...

Although the author succeeded in making me feel so miserable and disturbed, I just couldn't stop listening.

People complain about the ending, but I feel like it suits the rest of the story pretty well, leaving you feeling horrified and hating the whole situation that the characters had to go through.

Overall, great job. Will definitely read more of her books

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Riveting!

I thoroughly compelling story. I like the way it was told by three different people.

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🙄

Ugh I thought this was going to be more of a suspense thriller but it was more like a lifetime special!

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    3 out of 5 stars
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Meh…

I was expecting more. The story was fine, I stayed entertain. I thought the ending would leave me shook, but not really. If there is a second book, I won’t be reading it. Sorry!

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Enjoyable

The book was enjoyable, it was somewhat predictable. I was disappointed in the ending, I felt like there was more but the author was just done. Maybe there will be a book 2? Or maybe we are supposed to be feeling like things aren’t finished, because how could they be? What would be an actual ‘satisfying’ ending? Just a thought.

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Is there a second book?

The ending is abrupt. I was more shocked that it seemed to end mid sentence than anything else. ?

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  • shelley
  • 2019-03-02

You can see it coming... but how bad is it?

What happens to this family - Pretty Bad!
Lucinda Berry is a psychologist who deals mostly with childhood trauma. My guess would be that her stories come from her cases. If this case is based on facts my heart goes out to the parents of this child.
This book takes parenting a foster child to an extreme. . Many new foster parents believe they are saviors to these children and the publisher's summary hints at the husband feeling this way. Add a new mother to two children. One is with an adopted child with sociopathic tendencies. She like to hurt other living things, urinate on the carpets and smear feces on the wall. The other child is a newborn who rarely sleeps. And let's not forget Mom's going through major postpartum depression.
This book goes from a timeline of events told from three different points of view to a hearing after incidents you won't find out until the end. This book certainly kept me interested and guessing.

The three narrators worked beautifully together.
If you found this review helpful please indicate so.
Thank You.

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  • Kathi Cann
  • 2019-07-09

Kathi

As a retired protective services worker, this book brought back some haunting memories. The story line was dead on and the characters believable. I saw one review that complained that there was not an acceptable ending. That’s because, just as in real life, there is no ending, acceptable or otherwise.

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  • Wayne
  • 2019-10-25

Incredible intensity!!

I did not enjoy THE PERFECT CHILD, but maybe it was not intended to be enjoyed. It is intense and I found it depressing. The premise of the novel is that children as young as 6 or 7 years can be sociopaths capable of per-meditated murder. Narration is stellar.

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  • Alesha
  • 2019-04-16

Spend the credit! Omg

I’ve read the comments about the ending but if you were following the story you understand the ending. I couldn’t stop listening. Fantastic!

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  • Elaine
  • 2019-06-26

Uhmm...

Okay... What was that awful ending? This book left me with more questions than it even answered. I am not super satisfied.

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  • Jenn
  • 2019-03-05

domestic drama version of “Baby Teeth” by Zoje Stage

This book is like a domestic drama version of “Baby Teeth” by Zoje Stage, which was more on the creepy, thriller side. This story held my interest the whole time, I expected a more dramatic push and pull with the husband and wife believing/not-believing, taking sides etc (there was quite a bit already but not like in other similar stories) so it definitely unfolded a little differently than I thought — not a bad thing at all, it just placed the book in a different genre than I initially anticipated.

On a side note, the story was very focused on “the system” of child services and social workers and there was too much blatant blame on them even though across the US they are so over worked and underpaid. The “system” is not the best but the social workers aren’t to blame and don’t get even close to the level of credit they deserve.

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  • Chilvr
  • 2019-04-11

Definitely kept me guessing until the very end !

Loved it! Original, well written and excellent narration. This story captivated me so I literally could not put it down! I rarely write reviews but I had to share as soon as I finished. Do not start this book unless you have plenty of time! I literally stood up until 6:00 a.m. to finish it despite the fact I am working today. Like this one since childhood. I listen to audio books everyday and was just starting to get a bit jaded by how similar so many of the stories I have been listening to. Then I listened to this story and I am excited to "read' again. I'm not going to say anymore because I don't want to give anything away, but I highly recommend this book even if this is not your typical genre as it was not mine.

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  • Helen
  • 2019-03-23

Clunk! This is how it ends?

The story, although improbable, mostly held my interest. I kind of wish Christopher began to have at least some doubts and chinks in his healthy denial system as time went on. The last quarter of the story sputtered and wheezed and finally died an unhappy death on the finale.

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  • Sara C
  • 2020-11-14

How can it ends like that?

How can such an engaging, awesome book, one that caught me from the FIRST SECOND end with nothing. It’s like the writer just decided to stop. You find out nothing at all about what happens to all the characters. How could a publisher allow this unless there was a sequel ? I could cry right now bc I loved every second until the abrupt ending. So disappointed.

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  • Pam
  • 2020-03-06

Just awful.

What a waste of a credit and hours of my time. Most ridiculous story I’ve listened to in a long time. Nothing more than an excuse to lecture us on the woes of the social services system. Completely unbelievable storyline with terrible writing. So much wrong with this book, I have absolutely no idea how it has so many great reviews. Have these people ever listened to a legitimately good book?

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