This upper class family appears to have their act all together but there is a lot going on with each member of this family. Dr. Stephen Aston is engaged to woman as young as his daughters but he needs to divorce his current wife with dementia. Rachel and Tully both have some serious secrets in their personal life and now they have to welcome their father's new bride. And, his new bride, Heather, also have a secret past that might threaten her current relationship.
The Younger Wife began with a good suspense feel to it. Someone has been murdered but the question is, who did it? Then the author takes us back to the pasts of all the family members in order for us to understand how they ended up with someone dead. I have to admit, there were many parts that kept me interested. I loved the build. I really did. Each character was seriously flawed and the storyline with the mother's dementia had me glued. But when I got to the ending, there were still unresolved issues that left me somewhat unfulfilled. I get that in life there are many things that are not answered and things we might never know, but when it comes to a story, I do think it could have been wrapped up tightly. However, most of the main storylines with the daughters were wrapped up. I found it great but I think if there weren't some loose strings at the end, it would have made it more satisfying.
I would still read more from this author. I think her premise and ideas are creative and I have read another book from her before.
Thank you #Netgalley for this read.

I mean..come on..it’s Sally Hepworth, need I say more? the writing was incredible and the plot was something that you could find comfortable as you get lost into the darkness of it all. A perfect rainy day read.

You can always trust Sally Hepworth to provide a solid domestic suspense story, bringing in all the faults and flaws of otherwise ordinary people. The Younger Wife centers on the Ashton family, patriarch Stephen, his daughters Rachel and Natalie, his ex-wife Pam, and his new soon-to-be bride Heather. Sounds pretty straight-forward, right? Except Pam has advanced dementia, Rachel is struggling with an eating disorder that reflects a childhood trauma, Natalie, or Tully as the family calls her, is in jeopardy of being picked up by the police, and Heather is basically the same age as Stephen's daughters. Oh, and maybe Stephen's smooth facade is hiding darker secrets.

This book has a lot going on in it. I had seen early reviews with negative comments about the ending in the ARC that had been changed in the final copy, so I waited for a finished copy before providing a review. And this ending was satisfying. However, I was not enamored of the portrayal of the women in this story. The abuse that two of the characters experienced was strongly downplayed, and portrayed as something that they questioned, "did this really happen to me? I must be imaging in it". Additionally, the heavy reliance on mental health issues as plot points and twists made me uncomfortable. As a mental health professional, I am always disappointed when mental health diagnoses are bantered around as plot points, and not dealt with in a respectful manner. To have women dealing with sexual and physical abuse, kleptomania, addictions concerns, and dementia, but have the men being portrayed as perfect, virile and filled with confidence was upsetting

Thank you to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for providing an eARC in exchange for my honest review. 2.75 stars rounded up.

I am such a huge fan of Sally Hepworth, and this book did not disappoint. Hepworth always delivers great character development, a fast pace plot, and unexpected twists. I did not see the ending coming at all! I loved it and highly recommend to anyone who is a Sally Hepworth fan!

This thriller follows the story of Steven Aston as he marries his new younger second wife. His adult daughters are not thrilled with the arrangement and his ex-wife, who had dimentia, is still in the picture. The book starts with the wedding, and it's clear that something ominous occurred and the book weaves between the wedding and the events leading up to it. It's a quick-paced, entertaining, read. 3.5 stars. Thanks to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the ARC

This book had so much potential. Upon reading the synopsis, I was immediately intrigued. A good family drama, with some secrets, mystery and thrills, sounds right up my alley. Unfortunately, for me, this book fell flat.

The story follows 2 sisters, Tully and Rachel. Their father, Stephen, has taken up with a woman who is younger than the both of them and they have just announced they are engaged to be married. Tully and Rachel find many problems with this, but at the top of the list is the fact that he is still married to their mother, Pam. Pam is sadly suffering from dementia and is living in a care facility. As the story progresses, secrets begin to unravel, accusations begin to form and everyone is seeking to uncover the truth.

I had several issues with this book. First and foremost, the fact that all of the women in this story are portrayed as crazy and delusional women who have in essence fabricated and overreacted to everything. It was a bit over the top for me. Aside from the main plot line, each woman had their own issues (drinking, kleptomaniac, etc.), while all the male characters were devoid of any. The characters were hard to connect with and I felt myself having to push myself to continue to read on at times. This was also marketed as a thriller, and I did not find this to be so. The ending was extremely underwhelming and disappointing. All in all, a miss for me.

Thank you to NetGalley + St. Martin’s Press for the ARC in exchange for my personal review.

I’ve loved all ofSally Hepworth’s books that I’ve read so far and was excited to read this one. I enjoyed it and finished it in two days. It was a little more predictable than some of her others but I still enjoyed it.

I love a book with twisty family secrets. This was enjoyable and I would read more from Sally Hepworth.

I thought I knew how it's going to end or at least where it was going but that ending!

Each character is so imperfect that things keep being revealed. Especially the ex-wife who is suffering from Alzheimer's her story reveals very interesting details. Her comments were very curious. 

I'm totally enthralled and was reading it on my whole way down to Anaheim from the 

Bay Area. I'm now wondering if they were gaslighting eachother or if I was gaslit lol. 

Rating ⭐⭐⭐💫

Thank you stmartinspress and netgalley for the e-ARC for my honest and voluntary review.

Sally Hepworth writes some of my favorite books this was another book that I flew through in a day. Great story and made for great conversation. Definitely will recommend to everyone I know.

Really enjoyed it! An addictive, compulsive read with very likeable characters and an interesting story that combines many issues

Sally Hepworth does it again.

What a great slow burn domestic thriller.
The chapters ended in such a way that made me want to pick the book back up and keep reading, plus I’m just a fan of short chapters to begin with anyway.

The story starts with the wedding day of 60-year old Steven who is marrying a woman the same age as his two daughters. Something happens at the wedding, someone gets hurt and we don’t know who or how…and then the story starts to unfold.

I found it to be very intriguing. Each character had their own backstory and their own issues going on, so they all felt fully developed to me, and I always love a story where the female characters are pinned against each other no matter the conflict at hand, but maybe the females banning together here ending up being a bad thing…(if you know you know)

My one issue was the ending, and it wasn’t that it wasn’t written well. I’m just being selfish where I wanted more of a bang. More of an impact. Needed more of an answering than an open end. It actually left me feeling…sad? So maybe it did it’s job after all.


Anyway, definitely recommend this book. Wish I could do half stars, it would be 4.5 stars for but rated it 4 here. Thank you NetGalley for my the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

If you think you've read every angle on dysfunctional family, you obviously haven't read -- or listen to -- Sally Hepworth's "The Younger Wife." What a fascinating read! I don't want to give away the plot. It's so tangled and interwoven as grown-up children Tully and Rachel try to cope with their dad's upcoming second marriage. Mother Pam is in a nursing home, her mind slipping more each day as dementia takes hold. Dad Stephen Aston wants to marry his interior designer Heather even though he's not divorced yet.

As the story unfolds, each character has their own story, their own perspective on the past and the present. The quirky and colorful characters are sad, funny and complicated -- all at the same time. Past affairs, crimes and violence can't remain secret for long as each character begins to face past -- and present -- circumstances. Food addiction, shoplifting, overspending, alcoholism, domestic violence -- all have a place in this emotional novel.

Its presentation as an audiobook with a British narrator is a plus, adding flavor to the nuances and subtleties of a dry English sense of humor. Some say the novel has no true ending, that too much is left to interpretation. What I say is that it imitates life. Aren't all, families, even imaginary ones like the Ashtons, a matter of perspective?

Sally Hepworth has such a way with words. I found myself fully engrossed with this family and their lives. I loved the character building and getting to know each of them through all their issues and what made them tick. I loved the twist in this one and the strength of this women. I typically feel that her writing is more literary fiction and character driven but i always feel so connected to the characters that i can’t help but turn the pages.

This covers an array or triggers but so delicately. I was able to get ahold of the finished version with the updated ending and I’m glad the ending was changed.

I love Sally Hepworth books, domestic suspense at its best. Her books are subtle, making you think about what is going on. Always drama bubbling beneath the surface until it’s revealed in the end.

This drew me in from the beginning…a wedding scene, not very happy bridesmaids, an ex wife with Alzheimer’s and then a bloody mess! The author delves into the messy life of the Aston family. Stephen, successful heart surgeon that everyone loves and admires. Daughters Tully and Rachel, hiding secrets of their own and trying to figure things out. Pamela, the older wife, can only remember snippets of her past life, and those around her aren’t sure she remembers those correctly. The younger wife, Heather, is she what everyone believes she is or just looking for love and to be loved?

Story unravels slowly, but it kept my attention. I must admit I was disappointed with the ending…left me hanging and shaking my head. Not at all the ending I usually expect from Ms. Hepworth. Then, thanks to social media, I learned of an alternate ending to my early ARC. That was a game changer for me. By adding one paragraph, the book became what I expected and hoped for. If I hadn’t accidentally found this out, my rating would have been different.

Thanks to Ms. Hepworth, St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for this ARC. Opinion is mine alone.

Last year I read The Good Sister by Sally Hepworth and I was blown away by her addictive writing style and twisty domestic suspense and I couldn’t wait to read her newest book, The Younger Wife. With that being said, unfortunately, The Younger Wife did not live up for me.

The story idea is intriguing and the first few chapters did hook me, but as the story progressed there was just TOO much going on. Each character had major issues and most of it was not explored deeply enough for me. I did really enjoy Heather’s character ARC the most and wish there would have been more of her and less of Tully.

I think the biggest issue I had was with the ending. I am all for an open ending that is not black & white and leaves some room for interpretation, but I feel like it has to be done well. In my opinion, the ending in The Younger Wife was not done very well because it was a little underwhelming and even a little confusing.

What The Younger Wife did have going for it was short chapters, characters that you love to hate, and a really good audiobook experience! I do plan to read more of her books in the future though!

Read if you like:
-Books set in Austraila
-Domestic suspense
-Family drama
-Ending that is open to interpretation

Thank you so much @stmartinspress and @netgalley for the gifted copies and @macmillan.audio for the ALC!

I love Sally Hepworth's books and this one did not disappoint! The way she details a dysfunctional family that leaves you uncertain as to who or what to believe, the various points of view, and the delightful feeling of satisfaction knowing just read an amazing book all make this story one you don't want to miss. The narrators did a fantastic job on the audiobook and I couldn't stop listening. Make sure you have a nice chunk of time when starting this one!

This is the kind of book that will keep you hooked. Hepworth manages to keep you wanting to read as the story unfolds just so you get to the end. There is also a solid slow burn which I love. All in all another good one by Hepworth.

Sally Hepworth is giving two books for the price of one with The Younger Wife. It starts as a domestic drama and builds into a real Suspense.
The book showcases the many messed up ways women hold on to trauma. Rachel, Tully, and Heather are all fully fleshed characters and each perspective is great reading.
I enjoyed the comic relief of Rachel and Darcy's romance. I would read a whole novel just about the two!
With A fun twist into a vague ending, this read can be downed into one sitting. 4.5 stars

I finished an ARC of this book yesterday and to be honest, I’m still trying to process how I feel about it. While this was a good story overall and Sally Hepworth is no doubt a talented writer (I’ve read other books she’s written and liked them all well enough), I will be honest in saying that I wasn’t particularly enamored with this one after I finished it. For one, I didn’t like the ending, and two, the way some of the female characters in the story were portrayed (especially in relation to the male characters) bothered me more than I expected. Also, plot-wise, there was way too much ambiguity throughout the story in my opinion (yes, I know this is a thriller and in a sense, some ambiguity is expected, but still…) — this annoyed me a bit because I felt like I had to suspend disbelief way too many times (especially with Tully’s and Heather’s story arcs) — not only that though, some parts of the story actually didn’t make sense, (including the ending). When I finished reading this book, my first reaction was to scratch my head and try to parse what exactly I had just read. My second reaction was an urge to go back and re-download the ARC because I thought, perhaps, I was missing a few pages at the end somewhere, because the ending of the book frustrated me. My third reaction was a curiosity to read through reviews to see 1) what other readers’ reactions were, and 2) whether I was the only one who didn’t really “get” the story. And this is where my entire reading experience with this book veered off into something I had never encountered before.

As I was reading reviews, I came across various comments that mentioned about the finished copy of the book actually having a very different ending from the ARC version. Given that I wasn’t keen on the story’s ending (in the version I had read), I was curious, so naturally, I hunted down a finished copy of the book so I could read the “new” ending. As it turns out, it wasn’t just the ending that changed — majority of the last chapter (the one right before the epilogue) had changed as well. Now of course, I’ve read enough ARCs to understand that changes between the advance and finished copies are common…but the thing is, these changes were actually QUITE significant— to the point that it took the story in an ENTIRELY different direction. In fact, in my opinion, it wouldn’t be a stretch to say that those changes, even though only to the last chapter and the epilogue (at least I think that was it, as I didn’t re-read the entire book), turned this into a completely different story from what I had originally read.

While I have to admit that the changes did make the entire story more believable (not to mention the parts that didn’t make sense earlier actually made sense now), the overall experience itself (reading the ARC, then finding out that the finished copy had significant changes and subsequently having to hunt down a finished copy to read the changes) unfortunately left a bad taste in my mouth. In a way, I felt cheated, but more upsetting was that I felt like I had wasted my time reading an ARC when I could’ve just read the finished copy (this is exacerbated by the fact that I already don’t have much time to read due to work and life obligations, plus I have a mile-high TBR that I’m trying to get through). Perhaps I’m overreacting and I wouldn’t fault anyone for saying that, but for a reader like me, who views the reading experience as being just as important as the contents of the book being read, this type of thing affects me more than it probably should.

Having said all that, I decided to rate this one based on my initial reaction to it, which is that I thought the premise had a lot of potential and Rachel’s story arc especially kept me engaged and absorbed in the story, but overall the way things went down with the plot, (and the ending) left much to be desired. So I ended up rating this 3 stars based on the ARC (of course, if I had read only the finished copy in its entirety, my rating would most likely be different).

Lastly, I will say that I am very obviously the outlier with this one so definitely check out other reviews as well. And if you do decide to pick this one up, might be better off reading the finished copy rather than an ARC, as it will likely impact the way you react to the story.

Received ARC from St. Martin’s Press via NetGalley.