Mothers Are Complicated
Fictional mothers for Mother's Day
Are all mothers complicated? I’m willing to say yes. Mothers are complex beings.
Complex: consisting of many different and connected parts.
“Bad” or “good” doesn’t begin to do justice to the many interconnecting parts of these humans. Fictional mothers are not real, but they allow us to ask real questions about motherhood. Within a story, we can wonder, empathize, visit others’ lives, investigate, witness, or be mirrored. Sometimes a story is more available and safe for these purposes than “real life.” These mother characters come in all different packages and genres, ready for the reader to engage.
Below you will find a handful of complicated mothers. This is a small slice of stories. A longer list of titles crowdsourced from the Substack notes network is linked at the bottom. But of course, please share your favorite complicated mother stories in the comments.
Happy Complex People Day! That might take some time to catch on.
Mothers solve crime
Of course, mothers have the skills to solve crimes. The skills one acquires in motherhood can be utilized in many directions, and solving mysteries is no different.
Mother-Daughter Murder Night* by Nina Simon
It’s Elementary* by Elise Bryant
Mothers find motherhood in unexpected ways
Doing right by a child doesn’t always look like what is expected.
You Were Always Mine* by Christine Pride and
.( has a new thriller coming this summer that is all about complicated motherhood, Everyone is Lying to You*)
Mothers are gone
Sometimes the absence of a mother carves the story as much as their presence.
The Dutch House* by Ann Patchett
Martyr!* by Kaveh Akbar
Mothers deal with dead bodies
The constant of motherhood is that every day brings something new. And maybe that’s a dead body.
Finlay Donovan is Killing It* by Elle Cosimano
Mothers over time
With a longer lens, the big picture of motherhood has many layers to explore.
This is a Love Story* by Jessica Soffer
Sandwich* by
Mothers try to do the right thing
We all want to do it right, and following the research can seem like the way to do it.
Wellness* by Nathan Hill
Mothers are sisters
Families are just as complicated as mothers. Both stories are shaped by mothers lost and sisters following divergent paths, but still connected.
Long Bright River* by Liz Moore
Saints for All Occasions* by J. Courtney Sullivan
And mothers are so much more…
I did some crowdsourcing on the Substack Notes network and asked for book recommendations that capture complicated mothers. I’ve not yet read all these titles, but the list tells you that your library or local bookstore is just full of interesting mothers to meet.
For the list of 40! books with complicated mothers, including the above titles, you can look here. The collection is on bookshop.org for your viewing, it’s a nice visual representation. This way you can add some titles to your TBR or library requests. If you choose to purchase any of the books through the links on the website, I get a small commission, which is a nice way to support the newsletter.
Share your own favorite books about complex mothers.
I recently read Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson. Historical Fiction but believable and what strength in the women in one family.
My mom’s untreated mental illness caused her and my sisters and I to miss out on so much. We did well despite our Mother but I wonder sometimes what if.