The slow, subtle darkness at the core of this book starts as a trickle and grows to a flash flood, and not once does it stop feeling absolutely authentic. Josephine struggles to maintain the family’s impeccable façade, but when a violent incident leads to a visit from child protective services, the truth about the Hursts might finally be revealed. Koren Zailckas’s Mother Mother is disturbing in the best possible way: believably. Their father, Douglas, finds resolve in the bottom of a bottle-an addict craving his own chance to escape. Meanwhile, her brother, Will, recently diagnosed with Asperger's, shrinks further into a world of self-doubt.

Resentful of her sister’s newfound freedom, Violet turns to eastern philosophy, hallucinogenic drugs, and extreme fasting, eventually landing herself in a psych ward. But living in this matriarch’s determinedly cheerful, yet subtly controlling domain hasn’t been easy for her family, and when her oldest daughter, Rose, runs off with a mysterious boyfriend, Josephine tightens her grip, gradually turning her flawless home into a darker sort of prison. With two beautiful daughters, a brilliantly intelligent son, a tech-guru of a husband, and a historical landmark home, her life is picture perfect. Josephine Hurst has her family under control. Free 61, Koren Zailckas, author of the iconic memoir SMASHED: an electrifying debut novel about a family being torn apart by the woman who claims to love them most Koren Zailckas discusses “Mother, Mother” at the Boston Public Library, 700 Boylston St., 2 p.m. Zailckas, the author of two memoirs, Smashed and Fury, answered our questions about fiction writing, reading, and. We are so dependent on moms when we are little.” Last week, Bustle reviewed Koren Kailckas engaging debut novel Mother, Mother. “I did want to explore this dark side of mothering.

As a culture, we are much more interested in the moment of reading these dark stories of female behavior,” Zailckas said. “It’s the golden age of women’s psychological fiction. The Syracuse University graduate admits she gravitates to weighty topics, but she said the time is right to discuss these difficult issues. The family is the Hursts the setting, the Hudson Valley north of New York City. By showing just a hint of the confusion and terror that anyone who has been raised by a personality disorder person, just to know you are not alone (can be a relief),” Zailckas said. In Zailckas’ ( Fury: A Memoir, 2010, etc.) debut novel, an unhinged matriarch drives a family into destruction.

“I’ve always liked the idea that stories should disturb the comfortable and comfort the disturbed. William, the youngest, does his best to keep the family happy. Rose, the oldest, has left home, Violet, the middle child, acts out through alcohol and drug abuse. She suffers from narcissistic personality disorder, making her emotionally inaccessible to her children, with painful consequences. Josephine Hurst, the fictional parent at the center of the novel, is no warm and fuzzy mother.

Mother, Mother by Koren Zailckas