Tag Archives: Death of a Mother

This page lists books that contain trigger warnings for the depiction of death of a mother.

See also Grief & loss depiction.

When I Was Ten by Fiona Cummins

Everyone remembered Sara and Shannon Carter, the little blonde haired sisters. Their Dad was the local GP and they lived in the beautiful house on the hill. Their best friend, Brinley Booth, lived next door. They would do anything for each other but everything shifted on that fateful day when Dr Richard Carter and his wife Pamela were stabbed fourteen times with a pair of scissors in what has become the most talked about double murder of the modern age. The girls were aged ten and twelve at the time. One, nicknam… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Physical & verbal child abuse in a foster care system, including forced starvation
  • Blood & gore depiction
  • Murder of a mother & father by stabbing with scissors

Barbie Dreamscape by Alex Aster

Barbie’s life is perfect. She lives in a pink-hued paradise called Heartland where everything is in order and everyone has a role to play, thanks to the mysterious and all-powerful beings who will soon assign her a Fate at graduation from the enchanted Swancrest Academy. She’s worked hard to earn a good one. Her years of endless studying and acing every challenge are about to pay off. But when the unthinkable happens and Barbie is left Fateless—the first in Heartland’s history—her carefully ordered world shatters. Sh… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Death of a mother recounted
  • Near-drowning incident
  • Building collapse
  • Animal attack (magical bird)

Us Dark Few by Alexis Patton

Khalani is a Prisoner. Takeshi is a Guard. Both are slaves to the Underground. Khalani Kanes has never stood on the surface of the earth. In the underground city of Apollo, faith and dreams are as absent as the sun. She longed to visit Genesis, the infamous Domed City and the final place where humanity lives aboveground. But when Khalani is given a life sentence and thrown into prison for a theft she didn’t commit, those wishes shatter into oblivion. In Braderhelm Prison, murderers are neighbors, ruthless and cold-blooded guards live to punish, and every second is a battle… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Sexual assault & attempted rape, thwarted by the perpetrator being beaten to death & having his eyes plucked out
  • Physical child abuse & domestic violence recounted, resulting in the love interest murdering his step-father in revenge for murdering his mother
  • Suicidal ideation (protagonist, on-page)
  • Alcohol consumption & mentions of smoking
  • Decapitation mentioned
  • Murder of a mother & father recounted (protagonist)
  • Physical assault & death in ‘fight pits’
  • Mass shooting mentioned
  • Imprisonment (theme), including inhumane treatment of prisoners through electrocution, starvation, and being worked to death
  • Nuclear fallout & terrorism recounted (post-apocalyptic world, set 300 years after the events)

A Mixture of Mischief by Anna Meriano

Leo Logroño may have discovered the true nature of her magical abilities, but her education in how to use them in her family’s magical bakery has only just begun. And that isn’t the only bit of trouble in her life: her family’s baking heirlooms have begun to go missing, and a new bakery called Honeybees has opened across the street, threatening to run Amor y Azúcar right out of business. With two of her sisters on a special spirit-hunting spring-break trip with her tía Paloma, and with Mamá busy guarding the bakery to keep away any more bad luck, Leo must work with her best… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Grief & loss depiction
  • Death of a mother from cancer recounted
  • Kidnapping

A Sprinkle of Spirits by Anna Meriano

Leonora Logroño has finally been introduced to her family’s bakery bruja magic—but that doesn’t mean everything is all sugar and spice. Her special power hasn’t shown up yet, her family still won’t let her perform her own spells, and they now act rude every time Caroline comes by to help Leo with her magic training. She knows that the family magic should be kept secret, but Caroline is her best friend, and she’s been feeling lonely ever since her mom passed away. Why should Leo have to choose between being a good bruja and a good friend? In the midst… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Grief & loss depiction
  • Death of a mother from cancer recounted

A Dash of Trouble by Anna Meriano

Leonora Logroño’s family owns the most beloved bakery in Rose Hill, Texas, spending their days conjuring delicious cookies and cakes for any occasion. And no occasion is more important than the annual Dia de los Muertos festival. Leo hopes that this might be the year that she gets to help prepare for the big celebration—but, once again, she is told she’s too young. Sneaking out of school and down to the bakery, she discovers that her mother, aunt, and four older sisters have in fact been keeping a big secret: they’re brujas—witches of Mexican ancestry—who pour a little bit of… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Grief & loss depiction
  • Death of a mother from cancer
  • Bullying

The Girls in the Cabin by Caleb Stephens

This camping trip is Chris’s last chance to repair his relationship with his daughters, Kayla and Emma. Nothing’s been the same since they lost their mom. But things go wrong as soon as they get to the mountains. When they make camp, nine-year-old Emma runs off into the woods. By the time they find her, there’s a snowstorm rolling in. And Emma’s leg is badly broken. They need to find shelter, fast. They think they’re safe when they come across an old farmstead. The woman inside welcomes them in from the howling blizzard and straps up Emma’s leg. They settle down for.. Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Miscarriage recounted
  • Injury sustained in a fall (broken leg)
  • Secondary character with a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)
  • Death of a mother from cancer
  • Blizzard

Spectacular Things by Beck Dorey-Stein

Mia and Cricket have always been close. The gifted daughters of a young single mother, the “Lowe girls” are well-known in the small Maine town they call home. Each sister has a role to fill: The responsible and academically minded Mia assumes the position of caregiver far too young, while Cricket, a bouncing ball of energy and talent, seems born for soccer stardom. But the cost of achieving athletic greatness comes at a steep price. As Mia and Cricket grow up, they must grapple with the legacy of their mother’s secret past while navigating their own precarious… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Pregnancy mentioned
  • Traumatic childbirth resulting in chronic kidney disease and a need for a transplant
  • Secondary character with Type-1 Diabetes
  • Death of a mother

The Rebel Girls of Rome by Jordyn Taylor

NOW: Grieving the loss of her mother, college student Lilah is hoping to reconnect with her ever-distant grandfather who refuses to talk about his past. When a fellow student in Italy brings a long-lost family heirloom to her attention, Lilah travels to Rome with her grandfather in the hopes of unlocking his history as a survivor of the Holocaust once and for all. But as they get closer to the truth—and the possibility of healing through new connections—she begins to realize that some secrets may be too painful to unbury… THEN: It’s 1943, and nineteen-year-old Bruna and… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Period-typical antisemitism & Nazism
  • Intergenerational trauma & survivor’s guilt
  • Grief & loss depiction
  • Death of a mother
  • World War Two & the Holocaust (on-page)

A Grim and Sunken Vow by Ashley Shuttleworth

The die is cast. The era of Spring is over. Riadne’s bloody coup on the Summer Solstice changed Arlo’s life forever. In one fell swoop and a fool’s bargain, she lost both her family and free will to the newly crowned High Queen. Now, with Arlo forced to use her powers as Luck’s Hollow Star to help summon the rest of the seven deadly sins, Riadne stands closer than ever to achieving her dark goals. And Arlo isn’t the only one trapped in a frightening new role. Her ex-Fury girlfriend, Nausicaä, is determined to do whatever it takes to stay by Arlo’s side, even if that means becoming… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Child trafficking
  • Child abuse & neglect
  • Depression
  • Suicide recounted (off-page) & suicidal ideation mentioned
  • Self-harm
  • Blood & gore depiction
  • Grief & loss depiction
  • Death of a sister, mother & father
  • Murder & torture
  • Arson