Like Mother, Like Daughter Summary, Characters and Themes | Kimberly McCreight

“Like Mother, Like Daughter” by Kimberly McCreight is a gripping psychological thriller that delves into the complex and often strained relationship between a mother and her daughter. 

When Cleo returns home to find her mother, Kat, missing and a bloody shoe left behind, she is thrust into a mystery that forces her to unravel her mother’s hidden life. As Cleo uncovers buried secrets about Kat’s past, including her high-stakes career as a corporate lawyer and fixer, she must confront dangerous forces that could threaten both their lives. This emotional suspense novel explores love, secrets, and sacrifice within a family.

Summary

The novel Like Mother, Like Daughter by Kimberly McCreight centers around the complex and often tumultuous relationship between Cleo and her mother, Katrina (Kat), as they navigate a web of secrets, lies, and dangerous situations.

Cleo, a college student at NYU, receives a call to return home to her childhood brownstone in Brooklyn for dinner with her mother, Kat. Despite their strained relationship, Cleo knows her mother well enough to recognize the unbreakable bond they share. 

However, when Cleo arrives at the house, she is shocked to find the room eerily quiet, with no sign of her mother. What she does find is Kat’s bloody shoe and remnants of a burnt dinner. Frantic and confused, Cleo calls her father and begins searching for her mother, fearing the worst.

Kat, a powerful and successful corporate lawyer, is more than just a high-powered professional—she is also the firm’s “fixer,” a role that requires her to manage and cover up scandals, often involving dangerous and shady characters. 

Although Cleo knows little about this side of her mother, she gradually discovers that Kat’s marriage is falling apart, her job is more perilous than she realized, and her past might have entangled her in a situation far beyond her control. 

Kat has made a career out of handling crises, but now it seems as if she may have encountered one scandal she can’t fix, which could expose her to dangerous enemies.

The novel alternates between two timelines: one where Cleo is desperately searching for Kat and uncovering troubling truths about her mother’s past, and another that takes place eight days before Kat’s disappearance. 

The second timeline follows events leading up to the current crisis and delves into Kat’s life, including her involvement in a high-profile case involving a pharmaceutical company and its controversial drug reactions. Kat’s ex-husband, Aidan, is revealed to have a desperate need for money to fund a film project, which may have led him to act violently. 

Additionally, Cleo’s troubled ex-boyfriend, Kyle, who has connections to the drug-dealing world, also emerges as a possible threat, suggesting that Cleo’s past could come back to haunt her and her mother.

Throughout the novel, Cleo’s perspective offers insight into her relationship with her overprotective mother and her rebellious tendencies. 

As Cleo digs deeper into her mother’s life, she begins to realize that she never truly understood the depth of Kat’s sacrifices and the complexity of her mother’s world. Kat, on the other hand, often reflects on the challenges of motherhood, particularly the emotional toll of balancing her professional career and her devotion to her daughter. 

The novel also explores the blurred lines between what mothers and daughters owe each other, and the extent to which secrets and lies can erode trust.

As Cleo works to unravel the mystery of her mother’s disappearance, the novel builds towards a suspenseful conclusion, with Cleo confronting difficult truths about both her mother and herself. 

The story reveals the powerful love between mother and daughter, while also questioning the lengths to which they will go to protect each other from the dangerous forces in their lives.

The author, Kimberly McCreight, effectively combines psychological thrills with an emotional exploration of familial relationships. The novel is both a gripping legal thriller and a poignant commentary on the complexities of motherhood, making it a compelling read for fans of domestic thrillers and legal dramas.

Characters

Cleo

Cleo is the main protagonist of Like Mother, Like Daughter and a college student at NYU. She is grappling with deep emotional struggles and the strained relationship she has with her mother, Kat.

Cleo’s character is defined by her rebellious nature, emotional instability, and tendency to make reckless decisions. Her troubled behavior, including unsafe romantic entanglements and her volatile relationship with her mother, sets the stage for much of the novel’s conflict.

Despite her outward defiance, Cleo harbors a deep love for her mother. She is genuinely frightened when she uncovers signs that something has gone horribly wrong.

This complex mix of defiance and love gives Cleo a multifaceted personality. She is forced to confront her past actions and their consequences while trying to unravel the mystery surrounding her mother’s disappearance.

As Cleo dives deeper into Kat’s hidden life, she begins to understand her mother’s sacrifices. The novel forces her to reevaluate her own choices and life.

Kat (Katrina)

Kat, Cleo’s mother, is a key figure whose life is shrouded in secrecy and complexity. On the surface, Kat is a successful corporate lawyer with a seemingly perfect life—a high-powered career, a prestigious position at her firm, and a picture-perfect family.

However, Kat’s life is far from the idealized version Cleo has known. The novel gradually reveals that Kat is the firm’s “fixer,” tasked with managing delicate and dangerous situations that could ruin people’s lives.

Kat’s profession requires her to cover up scandals, often involving unethical or criminal behavior. This reveals a darker side to her otherwise polished exterior.

The novel also explores her vulnerabilities, particularly in her marriage to Aidan. His increasing financial desperation and violent tendencies put both Kat and Cleo in danger.

Kat’s struggle to keep her past and present hidden from Cleo speaks to the protective nature of her love for her daughter. But it also highlights the emotional cost of her role as both a mother and a professional.

As the narrative unfolds, Kat’s background—marked by a difficult upbringing in a group home—emerges. This provides context for her ability to handle crises and her motivations for keeping Cleo at arm’s length.

Aidan

Aidan, Kat’s ex-husband, plays a crucial role in the story, adding tension and complexity to the narrative. His character is initially portrayed as someone who has fallen from grace, struggling financially and emotionally.

Aidan’s need for money, particularly to fund a film project, seems to drive his actions. This includes his violent tendencies toward Kat and the family.

As Cleo unravels the mysteries surrounding her mother, she learns more about Aidan’s desperation. She discovers how his financial troubles may have led him to make dangerous choices, even potentially contributing to the series of events that led to Kat’s disappearance.

His character represents the fallout from failed relationships and the destructive nature of greed and desperation. Aidan offers a stark contrast to Kat’s composed and controlled demeanor.

Kyle

Kyle, Cleo’s troubled ex-boyfriend, brings an additional layer of danger and complexity to the narrative. His involvement with the drug-dealing world adds an element of risk and unpredictability.

Kyle’s character represents Cleo’s own struggles with her past mistakes and emotional vulnerabilities. His presence in the story further complicates Cleo’s search for answers, as she realizes that her own choices may have put her and her mother in harm’s way.

Kyle’s actions and motivations underscore the novel’s themes of risk, consequence, and the blurred lines between love and danger. These themes are particularly emphasized in the context of Cleo’s own emotional journey.

Themes

The Complex Mix of Love, Sacrifice, and Maternal Protection in the Face of Danger

One of the core themes in Like Mother, Like Daughter is the deep, sometimes paradoxical nature of the love between a mother and daughter. This love is characterized by both fierce devotion and profound misunderstandings.

Cleo’s relationship with her mother, Kat, is marked by a significant emotional distance, as Cleo feels rejected and suffocated by Kat’s overprotectiveness. Yet, as Cleo embarks on the journey to uncover her mother’s secret life, she begins to understand the depth of Kat’s sacrifices.

Kat’s desire to shield her daughter from the dangers of her own past and career reveals a love that goes beyond simple affection—it is a love defined by self-preservation and, at times, deception. The novel highlights how mothers, especially those who are forced into tough situations due to their own past experiences or professional lives, often make difficult choices in the name of protecting their children.

In contrast, Cleo’s search for the truth reveals how love can sometimes be expressed through control or silence rather than open communication, underscoring the tension that arises when both parties feel misunderstood despite their shared bond.

The Invisible Yet Inescapable Consequences of Lying and Withholding the Truth from Loved Ones

Another prominent theme in the novel is the way lies and omissions build invisible walls between people, especially between family members. Kat’s decision to hide critical aspects of her life from Cleo—her troubled marriage, her dangerous role as a fixer, and her involvement in high-risk legal cases—sets in motion a chain of events that endangers them both.

The novel illustrates the emotional and psychological toll of such secrecy, as Cleo begins to realize that the mother she thought she knew is not the person she imagined. Kat’s lies, though motivated by love and the desire to protect her daughter, ultimately cause a rift that makes it nearly impossible for Cleo to understand the true scope of her mother’s sacrifices and burdens.

This theme also explores the collateral damage caused by keeping secrets, as Cleo’s investigation into her mother’s life uncovers not only her mother’s personal struggles but also the external dangers that threaten both of their lives. The tension between transparency and protection becomes a key point in understanding the precariousness of the mother-daughter relationship.

The Paradox of a Perfect Public Life Concealing a Chaotic, Dangerous Private Existence

The theme of duality is explored through Kat’s life, where her polished, successful public persona starkly contrasts with the dangerous and chaotic undercurrents of her private life. As a corporate lawyer, Kat is the epitome of success and composure.

Yet, as Cleo unravels the hidden truths about her mother’s life, she learns that Kat is far from the perfect woman she seemed to be. Her role as a “fixer” for her firm reveals a woman who deals with scandal and manipulation, hiding the ugliness of her profession from her family in the name of providing a stable life.

This duality between the outward appearance of a perfect life and the reality of internal conflict and danger underlines how society’s expectations of women, particularly mothers, create immense pressure to maintain an image of perfection. Kat’s hidden life challenges the idea that success is synonymous with happiness, showing that behind every seemingly flawless life, there can be a turbulent, complex reality that few are privy to.

How Family History Shapes Future Choices and Consequences

Another significant theme of the novel is the way in which family history, particularly past traumas, can shape the present and influence future choices. Kat’s early life in a dangerous group home left an indelible mark on her, teaching her to think fast, stay calm under pressure, and recognize threats.

These survival instincts, developed in childhood, are what enable her to become a successful fixer. However, her past also seems to loom over her future decisions, influencing her relationships, particularly with Cleo.

As Cleo learns more about her mother’s past, she begins to see how Kat’s decisions to protect her from certain truths were rooted in her own history of surviving in a dangerous, threatening world. Additionally, Cleo herself is drawn back into a dangerous relationship with her ex-boyfriend, Kyle, whose connections to the criminal underworld mirror the risky situations her mother had faced years earlier.

This parallel underscores the idea that the sins or experiences of the past are often repeated, whether consciously or unconsciously, by the next generation. It’s a warning that personal history, whether acknowledged or buried, has the power to shape our futures in ways we often cannot foresee.

The Moral Grayness of Justice and the High Cost of Protecting Others

Like Mother, Like Daughter also explores the theme of moral ambiguity, especially in relation to justice and the ethical implications of Kat’s job as a “fixer.” In her line of work, Kat routinely handles situations that involve bending or breaking the law to protect her clients or ensure that problems disappear.

The novel raises difficult questions about what it means to truly uphold justice when the lines between right and wrong are often blurred. While Kat’s actions are aimed at keeping her family safe and maintaining her career, they often come at a significant moral cost.

She is forced to make choices that compromise her own sense of ethics in order to protect others—choices that endanger not just herself but also those she loves. The theme examines the ethical tensions between doing what is legally right and what is perceived as just, showing that the cost of “fixing” problems can sometimes outweigh the benefits, leading to dangerous consequences that can harm everyone involved.

This theme invites readers to contemplate the nature of justice and the lengths one should go to protect the people they love, even at the risk of their own moral integrity.