In Her Own Backyard
by Ashley Hanna-Morgan
Thriller
Date Published: March 26, 2026
Publisher: Acorn Publishing
Every street holds a secret . . .
New to the neighborhood and reeling from the traumatic birth of her second
child, Marlowe Moore is barely holding it together. Battling postpartum
depression and anxiety, she’s desperate for stability.
But when she learns that a woman who once lived in her family’s new home
vanished without a trace, Marlowe becomes obsessed. As strange things happen
and neighborly smiles feel like veiled threats, Marlowe can’t shake the
feeling that someone is hiding something.
She spirals further into paranoia, fixated on the abandoned case and
determined to seek justice. But how can a woman who feels lost find a missing
person?
Juggling the demands of her beloved family and her harrowing mental illness,
Marlowe doesn’t realize she is caught in a cat-and-mouse game that could
cost her everything … including her life.
My Review - 4 of 5 stars -
Quite an interesting story. Marlowe suffered from postpartum depression with her newborn. This is largely her journey through this condition, but to help, she became engrossed in the disappearance of the previous owner's rental tenant. While dealing with her varied emotions, she began snooping and brought danger to her door. With all the clues that she and her mama's group, along with old friends of the missing Aria, the murderer was exposed and captured. I had an inkling as to who it was earlier on but enjoyed the story as it unraveled.
About the Author
Ashley Hanna-Morgan is a licensed clinical social worker (LCSW) certified in
perinatal mental health (PMH-C). In addition to her work as a psychotherapist,
she writes about mental health to advocate for change and inspire hope. In 2016, she wrote The Afterglow,
a mindfulness and cognitive behavioral therapy curriculum that supports parents with postpartum
depression and anxiety. In 2017, she published I Gave Birth to My Heart, a
collection of poems about the secret anguishes and innumerable joys of
reinventing oneself after postpartum depression.
When she isn’t counseling clients or volunteering with Postpartum
Support International, Ashley loves to experiment in the kitchen and spend as
much time outside as possible in San Diego, where she resides with her family. In Her Own Backyard is her first novel.
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