Her One Regret by Donna Freitas: A feminist thriller that dares to question motherhood

Motherhood is supposed to be the pinnacle of womanhood. At least, that’s what society keeps telling us. But what happens when a woman doesn’t want to be a mother? Or worse—what if she becomes a mother and regrets it? Donna Freitas takes on this taboo head-on in Her One Regret, a feminist thriller that is both riveting and deeply necessary.

The story begins with Lucy Mendoza, a successful Rhode Island real estate agent who vanishes, leaving her baby behind in a grocery store parking lot. It’s the kind of headline that grips national attention and instantly frames her as a monster in the public eye. But Lucy’s best friend Michelle knows something the rest of the world doesn’t: Lucy once confessed that she regretted becoming a mother, so much so that she had fantasized about faking her own kidnapping.

That premise alone is explosive, but Freitas doesn’t stop there. She dives into the messy, complicated realities of motherhood—the parts no one wants to admit, the parts that polite society tries to silence.

Some books are just entertainment, while others have something vital to say. This one does both. It’s what I would call a VERY IMPORTANT BOOK, one I would go out of my way to recommend.

Julia’s story, woven alongside Lucy’s disappearance, shines a harsh light on how hard motherhood can be, especially when a woman is essentially parenting alone even with a husband in the picture. Let’s talk about Marcus, Julia’s husband. When Julia decides to stop breastfeeding, he shames her, acts like she’s the worst mother on earth, as if her body exists solely to keep producing milk for his child. Never mind that Julia never wanted to breed with him in the first place—her first thought after finding out she was pregnant was abortion. But Marcus was thrilled, and she couldn’t bring herself to disappoint him.

This is what women live through every day. We’re coerced into pregnancies we never wanted because our partners want children, and then once the baby arrives, those same men leave us to do all the work while they gallivant around town. Society expects women to smile, love every second, and keep sacrificing.

Honestly? More women should start leaving their husbands and handing over full custody. Men abandon kids all the time and are still considered “good dads” if they show up once a month. Meanwhile, mothers are chained to responsibility and guilt. If the father wanted the child so badly, why is the mother always the one forced to give up her life? It’s long past time for men to start stepping up.

One of the strengths of Her One Regret is how it shows multiple experiences of motherhood. Michelle, Lucy’s best friend, always dreamed of becoming a mom, and she revels in that role. But her life isn’t easy either—her husband isn’t exactly a supportive partner. Even when motherhood is wanted, women often find themselves raising children without the help they deserve.

What Freitas captures so well is that it’s not an all-or-nothing equation. A woman can love her child fiercely and still regret becoming a mother. That doesn’t make her a monster; it makes her human.

Freitas clearly did her homework, drawing on research to give weight to these stories. The novel underscores two urgent truths:

• Women must be allowed to make choices about motherhood without shame, coercion, or judgment.
• Our culture desperately needs to redefine fatherhood—not as “helping out,” but as full responsibility. Children deserve more than every-other-weekend parenting.

As I read, another thought struck me. While everyone debated whether Lucy had been kidnapped or had run away, I couldn’t help but wonder: had anyone considered ICE? Lucy is an immigrant. ICE has a history of ripping mothers from their children in the most callous ways possible. Isn’t snatching a woman from a parking lot and leaving her infant alone exactly the kind of thing they’d do? If that had been the ending, it would have made the book all the more chilling—and timely. (Although off topic, so maybe not!)

Her One Regret isn’t just a thriller that will keep you turning pages. It’s a cultural reckoning, one that drags a forbidden truth into the light: some women regret motherhood, and society has given them no room to say so without condemnation. This novel is brave, unflinching, and necessary. Read it for the suspense. Read it for the truth. But above all, read it because this is a conversation we need to have.

An advance reader copy of this book (ARC) was provided to me by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Related Content

• A writer without children (The Plot Doctor by Donna Freitas)
• Donna Freitas: Exploring social consequences in fiction (Writer’s Digest)
• What if…? with novelist Donna Freitas (We Are Childfree)
• Novelist Donna Freitas on identifying the “Why” of your book (Journal Sixty6)

Now available in print and on Kindle!

Now that Jack has been forced to reflect on everything he has to lose, he resolves to do better. He’s determined to spend more time at home with his family and repair the relationships that have suffered over the years while he’s been so focused on work. But as Callie’s behavior becomes increasingly bizarre, Jack realizes he has a lot more room to improve than he realized – and it might be too late to save his daughter after all.

For fans of We Need to Talk About Kevin, The Push, and Baby Teeth.