Other People's Children: A Novel

Written by Jeff Hoffmann

Narrated by Michael David Axtell, Amanda Dolan, Madeleine Maby and 3 more

An “engrossing debut” (Laura Dave, New York Times bestselling author of The Last Thing He Told Me) novel about a couple whose baby dreams of adoption push them to do the unthinkable when their baby’s birth family steps into the picture.

How far would you go to save your family?

As soon as Gail and John Durbin bring home their adopted baby Maya, she becomes the glue that mends their fractured marriage.

But the Durbin’s social worker, Paige, can’t find the teenage birth mother to sign the consent forms. By law, Carli has seventy-two hours to change her mind. Without her signature, the adoption will unravel.

Carli is desperate to pursue her dreams, so giving her baby a life with the Durbins’ seems like the right choice—until her own mother throws down an ultimatum. Soon Carli realizes how few choices she has.

As the hours tick by, Paige knows that the Durbins’ marriage won’t survive the loss of Maya, but everyone’s life is shattered when they—and baby Maya—disappear without a trace.

Filled with heartrending turns, Other People’s Children is a “heartbreakingly dark, suspenseful exploration of the boundaries two women push to have a child” (Cara Wall, bestselling author of The Dearly Beloved) that you’ll find impossible to put down.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
• Release date: Apr 6, 2021
• ISBN: 9781797118994

Jeff Hoffmann

Jeff Hoffmann was born and raised in St. Louis and received an MFA in fiction from Columbia College Chicago. Hoffmann’s writing has appeared in Barely South Review, The Sun, Harpur Palate, The Roanoke Review, Booth, and Lunch Ticket. He is the winner of The Madison Review’s 2018 Chris O’Malley Prize for Fiction and a finalist for The Missouri Review’s 2019 Jeffrey E. Smith Editors Prize. He lives in Elmhurst, Illinois, with his wife and two children.

Reviews for Other People's Children

[Tee · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This was absolutely fantastic. No notes. Everything was perfect. What a story. Make it a movie

[Nicole Marie · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Loved this book. Such a great read. I would recommend it as a good summer beach book.

[Meagan P Von Reuter · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

There is not one likable character in this book. It starts off really great with lots of potential- takes kind of a dramatic twist which okay, this is a novel after all. But then it goes off the rails and it’s hard to believe it’s the same author. Unless you like being annoyed or hate-listening, skip this one.

[Rebecca Tedstone-Sims · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I almost couldn’t finish this book because it was so good and very emotive.