Emma Rosenblum has carved out a delicious niche in contemporary fiction, and with Mean Moms, she delivers her most wickedly entertaining installment yet. Following the success of Bad Summer People and Very Bad Company, Rosenblum returns to familiar territory—the playground of Manhattan’s ultra-wealthy—but this time trades the Hamptons for the even more cutthroat world of elite private school politics. The result is a deliriously fun psychological thriller that manages to be both deeply silly and surprisingly insightful about the performative nature of modern motherhood.
A Glittering Web of Deception
Set against the backdrop of Atherton Academy, Manhattan’s most prestigious private school, Mean Moms follows the intertwined lives of three wealthy mothers whose carefully curated worlds begin to unravel with the arrival of Sofia Perez, a stunning newcomer from Miami. Belle Redness, the anxious perfectionist launching her own fashion line; Frost Trevor, a former “It Girl” struggling with her marriage and artistic ambitions; and Morgan Chary, the perpetually cheerful wife of a tech mogul, form the core trio whose friendship becomes the epicenter of escalating chaos.
Rosenblum’s genius lies in her ability to make these seemingly privileged and pampered women surprisingly relatable. Belle’s desperate need for approval, Frost’s midlife crisis masked by expensive wine and therapy speak, and Morgan’s sinister cheerfulness all ring with uncomfortable authenticity. When mysterious accidents begin plaguing the group—a hit-and-run e-scooter incident, poisoned desserts, leaked private emails—the paranoia that follows feels both absurd and genuinely unsettling.
The Art of Contemporary Satire
What sets Mean Moms apart from typical domestic thrillers is Rosenblum’s razor-sharp satirical voice. Her background as a magazine editor shines through in her pitch-perfect observations about New York’s social hierarchy. The WhatsApp group chats that pepper the narrative are masterpieces of passive-aggressive communication, capturing the peculiar blend of competitiveness and camaraderie that defines modern parent culture.
Rosenblum has an uncanny ability to skewer her characters while somehow making them sympathetic. Belle’s obsession with launching “The Dress” (a caftan that causes allergic reactions in everyone who wears it) could have been purely ridiculous, but Rosenblum infuses it with genuine pathos about women trying to find identity beyond motherhood. Similarly, Frost’s affair with Morgan’s husband Art becomes less about simple adultery and more about the desperation of feeling invisible in your own life.
The author’s portrayal of wealth is particularly astute. These aren’t the cartoonishly evil rich people often found in beach reads. Instead, they’re recognizably human individuals whose money amplifies both their virtues and their neuroses. Their problems may be first-world, but their emotional struggles feel genuine—even when they’re hiring private detectives to investigate each other.
Characters That Surprise and Disturb
The real triumph of Mean Moms is its character development, particularly in the reveal of who the true antagonist is. Without spoiling the delicious twists, Rosenblum manages to subvert reader expectations while delivering a conclusion that feels both shocking and inevitable. The relationship between mothers and daughters becomes a central theme, explored through multiple generations with varying degrees of dysfunction.
Sofia Perez emerges as perhaps the most complex character. Initially presented as the exotic outsider disrupting the established order, she evolves into something far more interesting—a woman trying to rebuild her life after divorce while navigating the impossible social codes of Manhattan motherhood. Her ultimate revelation as a travel agent desperately trying to build a client base is both anticlimactic and brilliantly subversive of thriller expectations.
Dr. Broker, the school’s headmaster, provides an appropriately sleazy foil to the women’s schemes. His kinky relationship with one of the mothers feels less gratuitous than it might in other hands, serving instead as a symbol of the corruption that pervades even institutions meant to nurture children.
Where the Formula Shows Its Limits
While Mean Moms succeeds as entertainment, it occasionally suffers from the constraints of its own premise. Rosenblum’s commitment to making every character fundamentally awful sometimes undermines the emotional stakes. When nearly everyone is scheming, lying, or manipulating, it becomes difficult to invest deeply in anyone’s fate.
The book’s structure, divided into seasonal chapters with exclamation-point titles (“A Bouquet of Newly Sharpened Pencils!” “The Bugs Are Back!”), works well to maintain momentum but can feel gimmicky. Some of the coincidences strain credibility, even within the heightened reality Rosenblum creates.
The mystery elements, while cleverly plotted, occasionally take a backseat to the social commentary. Readers expecting a tightly wound psychological thriller may find themselves more engaged by the group chat dynamics than the actual danger the characters face. The tone sometimes veers uncomfortably between dark comedy and genuine menace, not quite committing fully to either register.
A Mirror to Modern Motherhood
Despite its flaws, Mean Moms succeeds brilliantly as social commentary. Rosenblum captures something essential about the performative nature of contemporary parenting, particularly among the privileged classes. The constant documentation of family life, the competitive volunteering, the strategic friendships—all ring painfully true.
The book’s exploration of mother-daughter relationships proves particularly compelling. The revelation about Gertrude Chary’s true nature provides a chilling commentary on how cruelty can be passed down through generations, even when parents think they’re protecting their children from their own darkness.
Rosenblum also deserves credit for her unflinching portrayal of female friendship. These women genuinely care about each other, even as they spy, manipulate, and betray. Their relationships feel authentic in their complexity—simultaneously supportive and toxic, intimate and performative.
Technical Craft and Narrative Innovation
Rosenblum’s prose is crisp and engaging, with a particular gift for dialogue that reveals character while advancing plot. Her use of modern communication methods—texts, WhatsApp chats, emails—feels organic rather than gimmicky, adding authenticity to the contemporary setting.
The pacing is generally strong, though the middle section occasionally sags under the weight of setup. The final act, particularly Sofia’s public exposure of Morgan’s schemes, provides a satisfying payoff that justifies the buildup. The epilogue, showing the aftermath and how the characters have moved on, adds welcome closure while hinting at the cyclical nature of such toxic dynamics.
Comparing the Mean Girls Literary Landscape
Mean Moms sits comfortably alongside other recent entries in the “wealthy women behaving badly” subgenre. Readers who enjoyed Curtis Sittenfeld’s Show Don’t Tell, Lauren Weisberger’s When Life Gives You Lululemons, or Chandler Baker’s Cutting Teeth will find much to appreciate here.
However, Rosenblum’s work distinguishes itself through its commitment to genuine psychological insight. While books like Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty explore similar themes of motherhood and secrets, Rosenblum’s focus on the performative aspects of privilege feels particularly timely. Her characters aren’t just wealthy; they’re desperate to be seen as effortlessly perfect, a pressure that ultimately destroys them.
The Verdict: Delicious Despite Its Flaws
Mean Moms represents Rosenblum at her most confident and entertaining. While it may not achieve the literary depth of more serious domestic thrillers, it succeeds brilliantly at what it sets out to do: provide a scathing, funny, and ultimately insightful look at modern motherhood among the Manhattan elite.
The book’s greatest strength lies in its refusal to let anyone off the hook. These women may be victims of circumstance, but they’re also active participants in their own destruction. Rosenblum doesn’t ask us to like them, just to recognize them—and perhaps to recognize ourselves in their worst impulses.
For readers seeking a beach read with bite, Mean Moms delivers in spades. It’s gossipy without being mindless, satirical without being cruel, and suspenseful without sacrificing character development. Most importantly, it’s genuinely fun to read, which is perhaps the highest compliment one can pay to any work of entertainment fiction.
Recommended Reading for Mean Moms Fans
If you enjoyed Mean Moms, consider these similar titles:
- Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty – The gold standard for suburban psychological thrillers with multiple perspectives
- The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid – For more glamorous women with dark secrets
- Such a Pretty Girl by Laura Wiess – A darker exploration of toxic female relationships
- The Woman in the Window by A.J. Finn – For unreliable narrators and psychological manipulation
- Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng – Class dynamics and motherhood explored through small-town drama
Emma Rosenblum has once again proven herself the master of high-society satire with genuine psychological depth. Mean Moms may not revolutionize the thriller genre, but it certainly perfects it, delivering exactly the kind of addictive, intelligent entertainment that makes you question everyone at your next school pickup.