The Soulmate was an interesting book overall, can’t say I’ve read anything with this same premise. A woman commits suicide/goes over a cliff to jumpstart the story (see what I did there haha) & then the rest of the story navigates what led up to it & what actually happened. The characters were meh, especially Pippa (Gabe’s wife) she was so dumbbbb. Part of her just grossed me out as far as how she felt about her husband. Her reasons for staying with him & turning a blind eye to things he did, when in ‘real life’ she should have split with the kids as soon as she saw these signs of the type of man he was….in my opinion. Is it bad that my favorite character was the dead woman??😜 And her husband Max I suppose, while he was supposed to be kind of a ‘bad guy’ in this I liked his character somewhat…definitely more than Pippa & Gabe, ha. It wasn’t a bad book but I didn’t ever feel really invested in it or the characters. There were some unexpected little twisty tidbits we find out later but the end just wasn’t very climactic. The whole book actually was lacking in excitement. I also thought some things in it were kind of ridiculous like how the spot in front of their home was a suicide spot & Gabe was some town savior. Or some of the explanations as to why he was acting the way he was I found myself rolling my eyes or asking the author “really?!”. OH!! And the dead woman, her character is either some ghost or angel. What?! The way her point of view was written out it was clear she was caught in the afterlife of some sort which I’m not a huge fan of normally, but I liked her character & her pov so it worked for this book. Generally speaking I’m not a fan of ghost/angel (supernatural anything) when I’m reading.
—With the exception of The Sundown Motel because that book is amazing🤷‍♀️🖤—
This isn’t a super exciting domestic thriller by any means but the entire story is complete & full of story to where the reader doesn’t get bored, especially since Hepworth wrote a couple different points of view while also having their pov’s alternate past & present. I think this is now my third book by Hepworth. By now I feel it’s safe to say her writing is reliable, she’s absolutely a great writer! I enjoyed it but it won’t stick out in my mind as being a must read.

Thank you to NetGalley & the publisher St Martin’s for the ARC!

The Soulmate is full of twists and turns and written in Sally Hepworth’s classic heartbreaking and fast paced style. The before and after timeline kept me on my toes, and anticipating the ending.

THE SOULMATE
BY: SALLY HEPWORTH

This was for most of the novel a four star reading experience, that I enjoyed until the conclusion. I do think that with its very spare chapters it seemed much shorter than its 336 pages. As I was reading, my thoughts were that this was quick to read and it held my attention from the first sentence until the last one. I really don't know how I feel about the big reveal at this psychological thriller's ending. Perhaps, to be fair to Sally Hepworth, I should revisit reading the ending again. I have read all of Sally Hepworth's former novels and I think that this one is my favorite. The reason being is that I was enjoying how I was never bored or thought that the pacing was slow. In fact, I thought that it moved along quite rapidly with her writing device of keeping the chapters to a minimum with cliffhangers that made me want to keep turning the pages finishing this in one sitting. Also, letting the story and mystery unfold between only two main characters simplified and made this novel proceed both easily and seamlessly.

Another writing device that this Author used was keeping to two points of view with the presentation of a (Now) and (Then) sequence for Pippa, and a (Before) and (After) for Amanda. This may seem confusing, but I promise you that it wasn't for me. Pippa and Amanda are the two wives whose points of view the reader is introduced to in the very beginning.

The action starts right off in the very first line, while Pippa and her husband Gabe are finishing up a family dinner. Pippa is washing the dishes and as she is looking out the window, she says, "Call the police." She sees out the window a figure very close to the edge of their property cliffs side rocky drop off that is both a popular spot for wonderful views, and a spot where people have come to end their lives. She explains that her husband Gabe is the one that everyone would run to in a moment of crisis. In Pippa and Gabe's short time living next to an area that's known for its spectacular view of the Sea. It has also become a popular place for people to choose to jump to their deaths. Gabe has talked many people out of from jumping off the cliff to commit suicide. The police in their small town automatically assume from receiving a phone call from Pippa Gerard, that someone is getting ready to jump, and Gabe is the one who calmly talks to them, and has an impact on their impulsive decision to jump. He is successful in getting them to change their minds by his charismatic nature. At the very least, he gets them to reconsider jumping, until the police arrive.


As Pippa watches out the window, viewing a woman either jumping or getting pushed off the edge of their property's cliff side home by Gabe, she doesn't think that he would be capable of pushing someone off. It is not clear to Pippa whether Gabe was successful at holding off this jumper or if he pushed her somehow by accident. It is not a spoiler to reveal that Amanda is the one that we are to learn early on is the one, either to have willfully jumped or got pushed by Gabriel off the rocky cliff. Amanda is the wife of Max who used to be Gabe's employer. Max is a very wealthy businessman and he and Amanda have no children of their own. When Gabe and Pippa bought this property Gabe was true to his word at quickly erecting a fence to keep their two four year old daughters away from danger, by wandering over to the border of their property, where this steep drop from the cliffs edge exists.

Gabriel and Pippa have two four year old daughters who are referred to as Irish twins, since they look alike, and are both approximately the same age. They seem the idyllic family with Pippa, who is their main source of income working as a Will and Estate attorney. Gabriel is a stay at home father who seems to be very good at parenting their two daughters.

Amanda is presented in the state of her (Before) chapters describing her life being married to Max. Max is a successful business owner who at one time employed Gabriel. Her (After) chapters have her in a holding pattern witnessing everyone involved in the detectives investigation that they at first rule as a suicide. The (After) chapters which again, encompass her death in her jump or/push/or fall from the rocky cliff is up to the reader to wonder which happened throughout this excellent psychological thriller. The two choices are whether or not to suspend belief that Amanda is witnessing the aftermath of her death or to enjoy these in between states of a holding pattern that Amanda inhabits.

The more that I read, the more complex life was between the two families. Naturally, it keeps Sally Hepworth's new novel called, "The Soulmate," introducing new layers of learning about secrets kept between the main characters spouses of one another. Which of the two couples involved are truly each other's soulmate? Could Amanda's death have been prevented? Do you believe in the state of hovering in limbo after death until you know that the pertinent facts are revealed of your life? Do we get a chance to get things about our lives that are mysteries after our demise revealed so that we can rest in peace and move on? Why on earth would Gabe push Amanda off the rocky drop of a cliff? He is the local hero that just had an article printed in the newsletter of how many lives he has saved celebrating his success at diverting would be jumpers.

I really could not believe how much I enjoyed this latest offering by Sally Hepworth. The area that this takes place in this novel is a wealthy seaport community a couple of hours from Melbourne, Australia. I started this one early in the morning and silly me thought at first it took place where my Aunt lives in Melbourne, Florida. Then it dawned on me the Author is Sally Hepworth, of course it has to be Australia. If you decide to read this I hope that you find it as enjoyable as I did. I will continue to read this Author as I can witness her growth in her fifth novel, that I have been fortunate to have been granted early access to.

Publication Date: April 4, 2023

Thank you to Net Galley, Sally Hepworth and St. Martin's Press for providing me with my ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

#TheSoulmate #SallyHepworth #NetGalley #StMartinsPress

For one, it was solely a marriage of convenience and status. For the other, it was true love and passion beyond compare.

Both are part of a terrible test, but who exactly? How far exactly would you be willing to go to protect your family?

Sally Hepworth's Soulmate is her latest Mystery/Thriller that will leave you hanging on to the edge of your seat for dear life.

Gabe, Pippa Gerard, and their two little girls, Asha, and Freya, have just purchased their dream house. The young family has decided to start everything fresh in their marriage, including buying their dream home.

The couple settled in Melbourne and chose an idyllic house in a sleepy coastal town with their house overlooking the cliffside.

However, the house has something sinister that is unknown to them. The cliff that they have a view of is known as "THE DROP."

The "Drop" name is given because this is where people who want to end their lives go.

Gabe, however, has become somewhat of a local hero. Thanks to his heroics, he has been able to talk six people from jumping to their deaths.

Then one night, while Pippa is washing the dishes, she sees a woman out on the cliffs. Gabe tells her to call the police while he rushes out to save the woman.

Before Pippa knows what happened, the woman is gone.

Looking at Gabe outside, she notices that his arms are not in the proper position to have tried to catch the woman.

They are in a place to have pushed the woman. Pippa is questioning herself as to what she saw. Why were Gabe's arms outstretched and his palms facing out?

When the police arrive, Pippa feigns as if she did not see anything and blatantly lies to the police.

The woman’s death is ruled a suicide, but something still does not feel right to Pippa.

When the anonymous emails arrived, snippets of people's thoughts just before they died on the "Drop" started coming.

Pippa is even more suspicious about what "really" is going on. Is Gabe behind this? The closer she finds the truth, the closer she is to find the "SHOCK OF HER LIFE."

Hepworth's varying forms of two different timelines are flawlessly executed. Pippa and Gabe are telling the first timeline, which represents the present. Amanda (the dead woman) and Max are telling the second timeline, which represents the past.

Hepworth's Piece de resistance is told by the mark of a true "MASTER" at her craft.

Hepworth is an absolute wordsmith, word-building at its finest. The author has no extra flourishing to fill pages, so there is no word dumping.

Hepworth takes you on a race car ride with an inexperienced driver. There are dazzling twists, turns, and shocks you swear this car will crash.

But when it stops, you are like, "Damn! Is it over already?"

Truly one hell of a book, by one "MASTERFUL" writer!

5 Well deserving stars for the hairpin turns and the "WTF" factor alone.

Kudos to you, Ms. Hepworth.

You have joined my list of favorites.

Job "ABSOLUTELY, FRICKING, WELL DONE!!

Thank you, NetGalley/Sally Hepworth/St. Martin's Press/ For this amazing eARC for me to review. My opinions are strictly my own volition.

I thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to read The Soulmate early via NetGalley. This book was addictive and fast-paced.

As a long-time Sally Hepworth fan, I would say this book lived up to her reputation as being an author who builds suspense well and makes characters just twisted enough to be believable. This was also another strong book of her's as far as building intricate relationships among the characters.

The plot twists in the middle of the book did not catch me by surprise too much, however, the ending plot twist and extra curveballs were surprising and I loved them. The way the story lines connected together at the end was pretty genius and unpredictable. You could feel the story coming to something big, you just didn't know quite yet where it was going. I was satisfied by the ending!

This book definitely benefits from its short chapters- I had a hard time putting it down. I also loved the choice of the two female narrators with the past and present perspectives. At first I had to take a moment to sort out the characters and the timeframes, once I did, this book started really becoming fascinating for me.

I give this 4 out of 5 stars.

I finished The Soulmate in 1 day! This book is so much more than just a thriller. It was a story of family, marriage, mental health awareness, relationships and how assumption can go really wrong.

Gabe and Pippa are married and have beautiful daughters. They live in a house that sits on a cliff. That cliff is where people come to contemplate life and whether to keep living it. Gabe has an engaging disposition that seems to engage the people that visit the cliff and he manages to talk people into not jumping. Until the day the lady appears on the cliff. Who is the lady and what would make her come to the cliff? That is how this whole wonderous story starts. The rest of the book is a lesson in life, love and how mental illness can effect entire generations.

Amazing work. It has lots of twists, turns and jaw dropping moments!! Thank you to NetGalley, Sally Hepworth and St. Martin's Press for allowing me to read this for my honest opinion!

This book was fast paced and the story line kept my interest. I did not expect the ending, whatsoever. I loved the multiple POVs. It was suspenseful, full of mystery up until the very end, and very twisty.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I have not been the biggest fan of Sally Hepworth books in the past, they have just been middle of the road for me. Unfortunately, this one lands the same way. It had a promising premise, and a beautiful cover. Ultimately, I think that we have just seen so many other stories just like this one.

Thank you #Netgalley for the advanced copy!

Another great Sally Hepworth read! This time we follow Pippa and Amanda, two women, wives, whose lives cross paths ultimately in an unexpected manner. Pippa, her husband Gabe, and their two children moved into a coastal home against a cliff that is known for suicide. One night when they were in the kitchen, they noticed a woman at the cliff, Gabe quickly goes to investigate and ideally move her away from the cliff, but that is the night their lives changed. We then read flashbacks from both Pippa and Amanda and quickly discover their connections. Pippa struggles with supporting Gabe but also telling the truth to help others. We follow the two loves stories of Pippa and Gabe, Amanda and Max, learning what they both would do for love, or some may say soulmates.

Thank you Netgalley & St. Martin’s Press for an eARC of The Soulmate, publishing in April of 2023! I don’t always read books so early out from pub day, but Sally Hepworth is not only an auto-buy author for me but one of my favorite authors in general. I wouldn’t call this your typical “thriller” but it is so good nonetheless - an addictive story about marriage, betrayal and secrets that may push someone to the edge (literally and figuratively). This story kept me up into the very late hours of the night!

Gabe, Pippa and their girls live in a cottage on a cliff - An area that’s become a popular spot for people to end their lives. Gabe has come to the rescue of many potential jumpers. Until he doesn’t. Pippa finds out that her husband not only knew the victim, but what else may Gabe be lying about?

I was hooked from the very beginning of this one, and relished in the past/present timelines and alternating POVs. Hepworth does a great job in this book with the topics of mental health, without making an entire character’s being and personality revolved around their diagnosis. With each chapter, I had no idea what to expect and felt like I was peeling back the layers of the onion of these characters and their lives. As always, I love her writing style and this is a total page-turner that suspense, twisty and dramatic story lovers will not want to miss.

Once again, Sally Hepworth does not disappoint! This is on my list of top favorite books. It was fast paced and a twist I did not see coming.. loved the way she wrote in two voices, then and now, UN-PUT-DOWNABLE! Put this book at the top of your list of must reads by Sally Hepworth.

Okay, I think I'm going to be one of the few who feels the way I do about this book. It was good and the way the author writes had me intrigued throughout the book. Getting past and present of Pippa and another past and present of someone else (I don't want to spoil). I just felt like this was a very meh book. The twist wasn't crazy, it was honestly a huge let down and the ending was not my favorite. It didn't feel like a thriller to me... and I couldn't connect to any of the characters.

I honestly felt sad more than anything because of what had happened and how the author wrote the ending. I know a lot of people are giving this 5 stars and I'm glad! I honestly think it's just a me thing, but it just didn't feel like a thriller at all.

Sally's best book so far! The book had me guessing even though I knew what was coming and always good to have a real woman heroin... It just goes to prove that you can't hide and the people around you know you best!

This book had me hooked from the first chapter. It shifts between the past and present and is told in multiple POV. I found it to be an easy read and finished it in 24 hours!

This book does talk about mental health issues such as ADHD, PPD, and bipolar disorder. Sally Hepworth does a great job talking about both Gabe and Pippa’s mental health. She does it in a way that is tasteful without making the characters whole personality revolve around it.

I really enjoyed the book and how things came together in the end. I would absolutely love another book from Gabe’s point of view.

WOW! Another 5 star page turner from Sally Hepworth. Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my unbiased review.

Gabe and Pippa live a seemingly normal life in a lovely home in a quiet coastal town. Their home is very near the Cliffs, where many people have completed suicide. Once Gabe and Pippa move in, they are able to see if there is anyone standing on the cliff, and Gabe has made it his mission to go out there and talk them off the edge. Gabe has saved seven lives since they’ve lived there, but it’s the eighth person here that Gabe was unable to save. A person that Gabe knew, and makes Pippa question her own memory about what she saw that night, and question everything she knows about her marriage.

This book was full of twists, and some are done so well and are very nonchalant. Hepworth makes it seem as normal as simply locking the front door and continues on with the story, making you go back to reread and ensure it is what you thought you read. This novel is full of marriage, love, mental illness, and murder which all combined makes this one of the best novels I have read in a long time.

This was so good! I loved the writing style, all different pov’s throughout and the twists just never stopped! This is definitely one you cannot put down. Once you get involved into the story of Pippa and Gabe you keep wanting more!

Thank you NetGalley, publisher and author for my ARC!

Sally Hepworth does it again! I really loved this novel and the familial relationships it explored. Such a great twist at the end! Overall a 5/5 from me!

Total page turner you should go into blind. The main points to know are it deals with the good and bad of marriage, mental health and secrets. Otherwise just enjoy the ride. I was definitely worried I wouldn’t like the ending but I was left pretty satisfied. As well folks who like domestic thrillers will love this. That that like to pick apart thrillers and find holes may not but this is my fave Hepworth after the Good Sister. Well done!

I was happy to get this ARC from Net Galley. I really like this author. This book was really good. A lot of things that I expected were not what they seemed so I really enjoyed that about the book. The author keeps throwing in little surprises.

The book is about two marriages and how they intertwine. It's also a book about work and family life. One person dies and the truth is slowly revealed along with some other surprises. It shifts back and forth in time with each chapter. Very well done. I would recommend this to a friend.

4.25/4.5 ⭐️
The Soulmate by Sally Hepworth is due to be released April 2023. The story is set in Australia and follows the marriage of Gabe and Pippa . Apart from the couple going through many hardships throughout their marriage consisting of infidelity, murder , and mental illness the couple also has just moved into a home that faces tall cliffs which have become a popular destination for those contemplating suicide .

Gabe soon becomes the local hero after he is known for dissuading those that have come to the cliff to end their lives . However everything takes a complete turn when a woman comes to the cliff and doesn’t make it out alive .

The story was a great fast paced read .
The short chapters alternated between characters and different timelines (the then & after) which enhanced the story. The author does an excellent job at interweaving themes of fidelity, mental illness, revenge, trust, and love.
Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for this advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review.