I actually read the ebook version of this and reviewed it. In my review, I wrote that I wished I had listened to it on audiobook because I thought that would have made it even better. I was so right! The narrators fit perfectly with the voices of the story!

3.5 stars, rounded up
This is the story about Penny, who is arrested at the beginning of the book. She's covered in blood, holding a knife, and her birth mother is lying dead at her feet. It's an open and shut case, or is it? Penny suffers from DID (Dissociative Identity Disorder) and is remanded to criminal mental hospital while she awaits trial. Her adoptive mother, Grace, believes that Penny is innocent and sets out to prove it.

In general, I cannot stand books that use DID as an explanation for committing murder. I feel like it's usually lazy writing--can't figure out who to blame? Just blame it on another personality. This book, on the other hand, actually handles the diagnosis in a believable and thoughtful way. Whether you believe that DID is a true diagnosis or not, this book gives both sides and provides some astute observations about it.

Now to the actual story. I alternated between the audio book and the print copy, and both provided a great experience. I will give a bit of an edge to the audio book because the chapters are narrated mostly by January LaVoy (love her narration!) and occasionally switches to Dan Bittner, who gives Jack's (Penny's brother) first person point of view. When I was reading on the page, it wasn't always clear when we were switching to Jack's POV and I had to go back and start some chapters over once I figured it out.

When everything came together it was kind of an "a-ha" moment. It's not difficult to figure out, but it does come as a surprise nonetheless. I liked how the author tied things together in the end and explained clues that were left along the way. I really didn't like Grace as a main character. Some of the things she does are annoying, hysterical, and reckless and didn't seem realistic, thus my grade down a half star.

Overall I did like this mystery/thriller and recommend it. It was a very fast read/listen for me, if you like audio books this one is a winner in that format.

I voluntarily reviewed both the audio and print versions of this book. All opinions are my own.

Woohoo! What a fun thrill ride. I loved "The Perfect Daughter" by D.J. Palmer. I loved the fast pacing. The mental health aspects. The legal side. The family drama. I was rooting for our protagonist, Grace, and her daughter, Penny, who has Dissociative Identity Disorder. I learned so much about multiple personalities, especially how they happen and why certain identities protect the person who experiences trauma. The storyline, the characters, the drama, the ending ... it was all unexpected. This is a unique crime mystery and I highly recommend it!

I listened to the audiobook in one day. It was addictive! Dan Bittner and January LaVoy do a remarkable job narrating. Especially LaVoy. She had such a challenge to create voices and personas for all of Penny’s personalities and she KILLS IT. No pun intended. I was enthralled with their storytelling. Hurry. Go download this audio. It’s terrific!

Special thanks to St. Martin's Press and Macmillan Audio for an advanced listener copy, via NetGalley. This is my honest review.

5/5 ⭐
A huge thanks to Net galley for exchange this book for a honest review
Okay so this was amazing!!
Definitely I'd you can listen to this one on audio. It adds to distinguish the difference between Penny's alters.
I had no clue where this book was going but holy hell I loved every minute of it.

Audiobook narrated by Dan Bittner and January LaVoy. They did a good job, easy to understand.

“I hold a beast, a celestial being and a maniac inside of me. It’s up to you which one you meet.” -Karl Wiggins

This mystery-thriller, crime-suspense had a lot going for it. The “#metoo” movement, murder, multiple personality disorder and broken families. It started out really good and then it just died like a boat motor in the middle of a lake. It wasn’t moving. It would drift a little and then stop. I couldn’t get a good understanding of the family dynamics. I didn’t even like the family. I wondered why we had to know anything about the psychiatrist. Wasn’t there enough going on? I just wasn’t invested. And I really wanted more. I hope this is helpful.
I’m voluntarily leaving my review.
Happy Reading.

The narrators did an amazing job reading this one, with different voices for the characters it really added to my enjoyment and atmospheric setting of the book. It also gave you a sense of the characters personality by the different voices which was very well done.

I was immediately sucked until this novel. I was so interested in the main character who has dissociative identity disorder (DID). Can you imagine being found in a park when you are a young child? Well that's exactly what happened to Isabella. Isabella would then be adopted by the woman that found her in the park and rasied into a loving family and renamed Penny. Seems like the saving grace for a child, but now Penny is being accused of murder, in fact she was found covered in blood beside her birth mother's body. The crazy part is Penny has no recollection of this night, and now they need to prove Penny's DID. If that isn't crazy enough for you, wait for even more twists and turns that happen when Penny and her alters are being interviewed. Then the most shocking twist of all in an ending that I didn't see coming at all.

Review:

Okay, I’ll be honest. I was very very skeptical going into this. I like DJ Palmer as an author, please don’t get me wrong. However, I was worried when DID (Dissociative Identity Disorder) was mentioned, it’d be the cliché of DID and not the real information regarding DID. I thought it was done well with enough information to help debunk what we usually see in entertainment media. I think Mitch’s conversations with Grace really explained some of the best misconceptions about DID.

The Perfect Daughter had me guessing every single chapter. What is happening? What’s the deal with Jack and Ryan? Which personality are we getting now? What really happened to Rachel? This was a mother freaking wild ride. I am still at that, “WHAT?!” reveal. It made perfect sense and yet, I had no idea it was about to smack me in the face.. with a belt buckle 😏 😂

The narration was wonderful! I loved how the female reader choose different fluctuations to decipher which alter was being used before Grace or Mitch even had to tell us which it was. Isabella was probably the creepiest, and really amplified how I felt about this book. It was so uncomfortable hearing her on the stand that after reading it and listening to it, the listening really set it apart.

I feel as though with each DJ Palmer book I read, they get better and better. It’s always a wild ride with an absolute over the top shebang of a reveal. I really enjoyed The Perfect Daughter and am so happy it hits shelves today, 04/20. Thank you Sf. Martin’s press for the gifted copy!