With Love from the Inside
With Love from the Inside by Angela Pisel
Print and e-book, 320 pages
Published: August 9th 2016 by G.P. Putnam's Sons
Angela Pisel’s poignant debut explores the complex relationship between a mother and a daughter, and their quest to discover the truth and whether or not love can prevail—even from behind bars.
Grace Bradshaw knows the exact minute she will die. On death row for murdering her infant son, her last breath will be taken on February 15 at 12:01 a.m. Eleven years, five months, and twenty-seven days separate her from the last time she heard her precious daughter’s voice and the final moment she’d heard anyone call her Mom. Out of appeals, she can focus on only one thing—reconnecting with her daughter and making sure she knows the truth.
Secrets lurk behind Sophie Logan’s big house and even bigger bank account. Every day when she kisses her husband good-bye, she worries her fabricated life is about to come crumbling down. No one knows the unforgivable things her mother did to tear her family apart—not her husband, who is a prominent plastic surgeon, or her “synthetic” friends who live in her upscale neighborhood.
Grace’s looming execution date forces Sophie to revisit the traumatic events that haunted her childhood. When she returns to her hometown, she discovers new evidence about her baby brother William’s death seventeen years ago—proof that might set her mother free but shatter her marriage forever.
Sophie must quickly decide if her mother is the monster the prosecutor made her out to be or the loving mother she remembers—the one who painted her toenails glittery pink and plastered Post-it notes with inspiring quotes (“100 percent failure rate if you don't try”) all over Sophie’s bathroom mirror—before their time runs out.
My thoughts about With Love from the Inside ~~
First line—'The police took 'normal' away from me the moment they came rushing into William's hospital room. They dragged me from his crib while my helpless baby lay hooked up in his crib, struggling to breathe, needing his mother. I have been to doctor after doctor, but no one would listen to me when I tried to tell them something wasn't right.'
This book grabbed me from the very first chapter and I found myself not wanting to put it down. I was torn between the life Grace was living now, life on death row with other murderers and the life she lead before, as a loving wife and mother. How can this be the same person? Is she really the monster that everyone says she is?
And then there is Sophie, Grace's daughter. She is leading a secret life, so ashamed of the mother who she thought loved her. No one can know that her mom is a baby killer, not even her husband. With Love From the Inside was a story that quickly captured my attention and I devoured it. I can't wait to read more from Angela Pisel.
Thank you to First to Read for a copy of With Love from the Inside in exchange for my honest opinion.
About the Author
I decided to write my first novel after my obsession with TV trials led me to research women on death row. I didn’t find what I thought I’d find—how people end up where they end up continues to mesmerize me.
I was born in the Midwest, but have set up homes across the country after marrying my love who happened to be an Army physician. We have chosen to call North Carolina home.
The word I hear the most and adore more than any other is “MOM.” I have four kids who have the extraordinary gift of making me giggle, sniffle, cover my ears, and melt my heart all while attempting to get through our evening meal. I wouldn’t change a thing.
