The Soulmate, Sally Hepworth (4/4/23)

I started reading Sally Hepworth's books with her 2019 release, The Mother in Law and then read and loved her 2022 release, The Younger Wife. Hepworth's most recent book releasing in April 2023, in my opinion, is her best one yet.

Pippa Gerard, a will and estate lawyer, and her husband Gabe live with their four year old daughters in a small coastal town of Portsea near Melbourne, Australia. The house seemed to be a good deal but comes with a significant flaw-- it is very near the Drop. The Drop consists of well-known tall cliffs that have become popular among those wishing to end their lives. In the year since the family has moved to the house, Gabe convinces seven people not to jump, before a woman appears at the Drop one evening. From her viewpoint inside the house, Pippa realizes this experience is different and it does not unfold exactly as Gabe suggests.
The story is told in layers after that and you learn everyone in this story has something to hide and no one is telling the whole truth. I grasped out loud twice in the last few chapters of the book so forcefully that my husband thought something was wrong. If you are looking for a mystery that will keep you turning the pages until the story resolves, but without the gruesome elements of some mysteries, this book is for you.

Thank you St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for an advanced review copy of The Soulmate. I rate this book 5 stars and I cannot wait to read the next Sally Hepworth book!

Wow! The author managed to make the book flow and keep my interest despite switching back-and-forth between multiple timelines and perspectives. I kept turning pages to see what was coming. I thought I had the twist figured out but I was wrong! If you like suspense and trying to figure out the mystery, you’ll like this book!

I was blown away by this book. The twists and turns kept me on the edge of my seat. I love a book that can bring me to tears and this one didn’t disappoint. I would absolutely recommend this book as a need to read book!

Thank you to to author and NetGalley for allowing me the opportunity to read and critique this book.

Fun, twisty, and compulsively readable! Sally Hepworth is a bit hit or miss for me, and although this wasn’t as successful as her last release for my personal tastes, it was still a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

Anyone looking for a quick weekend read that keeps you on your toes should pick this one up!

SALLY!!! OMGoodness you did it again. This is exactly why I love your books. This one keeps your attention right from the get go, the characters are so relatable and I found myself wanting to know more and keep reading! Marriage, cheating, same sex marriage, family and death is the perfect combination in the story, the women are strong, the kids are perfect and the men are tempting. The betrayal, secrets and twists are juicy & shocking. What a story and I can't wait until the next one!
Thank you Sally & NetGalley, I was honored to be one of the first to read this beauty.

I devoured this book in about a day and a half, I just sat on the couch and put off all responsibilities until I got to the bottom of what the truth was.

The SoulMate is explores many topics but the main tale is one about love. We get two character POVs - Pippa and Amanda and they unfold the story over two timelines - then, now (and after for Amanda). This is really a story about how much these women love their husbands and what they are willing to sacrifice for that love.

This is a great domestic suspense, with multiple twists that I did not see coming. At times I hated the characters, felt bad for them, felt heartbroken for them, and happy for them - that's what a wild thriller of a ride this book is.

I could not put this book down. I've recommended it to so many people and posted it on my IG. Page turner. Great twisty thriller.

Pub day: APRIL 4, 2023

This is my third book by Hepworth and in all three she does a great job of writing characters who are complex and multifaceted. However, this was my least favorite of the three I’ve read. I didn’t find myself needing to keep reading to find out what really happened. I also didn’t think a particular suicide made sense. It didn’t feel like it fit with the character we’d read about up until that moment . I like Hepworths other books a lot but this one feel quite short for me and lands around 2.5.

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martins Press for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 Stars

I don't remember how I started reading every book that comes out from author Sally Hepworth, as mysteries and thrillers are not my favorite genres. I only know that every time I'm offered the next one, I read it. They are usually quick reads and the writing style is easy. This one was no exception. It clocks in at just over 300 pages, yet it's one of those rare books that (for me) could actually be finished in a day. The pages just kept effortlessly turning.

This tale involves a young couple with two little daughters in a newly purchased cottage near a cliff dubbed "The Drop". It is famous for people committing suicide at this location. And her husband has become somewhat famous for talking prospective jumpers out of it. That is until this last time...

This was one of those books where the main "voices" narrated the story by reaching back and forth in time from the past to present day until its conclusion. I wasn't as invested in the story as with other previous books from this author and considered rating it 3 Stars for "Good", but was impressed with some big reveals at the end that tied up the story- for which I added on a point. As I review my ratings of Hepworth's previous books over the years, she's always gotten 4 and 5 Star ratings from me...so she continues to be on a roll with her excellence in writing.

Thank you to the publisher St. Martin's Press for providing an advance reader copy via NetGalley.

So many twists and turns! Just when I thought I had something figured out something else popped up and threw me off course! Sally Hepworth is one of my favorite thriller authors so I knew I would love this one!

Gabe and Pippa, along with their two children, move to a cliff side house and have a seemingly perfect life.. Max and Amanda are a wealthy married couple, no children, with everything they could ever want... on the outside. But, on the inside there are lies, betrayals, and many secrets hidden. Is love enough to conquer? Just how far are you willing to go for your ‘soulmate’?

Sally Hepworth does it again. I loved this book. The short chapters pulled me in quickly. The chapters go between two people and before and after the initial event. It was easy to keep track of what was going on and when. Some issues were discussed such as mental health and done very well. Great book!

I really liked The Soulmate by Sally Hepworth! The chapters alternate between a few POVs and timelines. The chapters were also super short and most were cliffhangers which made this a fun read. There’s some tricky mental health stuff so just be aware of that but there’s also a pretty cool business storyline that I wasn’t expecting but enjoyed. I love how Sally Hepworth explores the cracks in relationships, marriages, and families. Excellent read! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Thank you @netgalley @stmartinspress for the early copy in exchange for a review.

Sally does it again!!

I love Sally’s writing and she become an auto-buy and auto-read author. She has a way of creating rich characters while creatively weaving in and out of POV’s and timelines.

The Soulmate is an unputtdownable domestic thriller. It boasts a married couple and who seemingly has it all including frenetic chemistry. Along with another married couple with greater resources and a relationship that is less passionate yet fiercely loyal. The two converge in unexpected entanglements.

I read this in a day and literally gasped at the end.

Instant 5 stars!

Two storylines.
Multiple points of view.
Twisty plot, lots of descriptive detail.
Cleverly plotted conclusion that I definitely wasn't expecting.
Great weekend read.

This was my first Sally Hepworth book and it did not disappoint. Dual POV, past and present. It takes you through the lives of two soulmate couples. When an accident happens outside of one of the couples properties, they all try to uncover the truth. If you want a fast-paced thriller with an ending that you didn’t expect, pick this one up!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this advance reader copy. All opinions are my own.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an e-ARC copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Another great, suspenseful novel by Sally Hepworth!

In this story we meet Gabe and Pippa and their 2 girls. They move to a gorgeous home, on a cliff, but it's in a spot where people have come to end their lives by jumping off. Gabe has been successful in talking people out jumping....until one night, a woman who they both know, comes to the cliff.

As Pippa watches in horror the events unfold, the woman jumps - and she can't be sure that her husband didn't push her over the edge.

Full of twists and turns you don't see coming, I highly recommend this book!

Oh how I loved this book! I simply devoured it, reading rapidly, telling myself just one more chapter, and then of course not being able to stop. I had to know how it all would end! Sally Hepworth unwound this story masterfully; twists at every turn. This is the first domestic thriller I have read in a long time that I couldn't figure out the twists until Ms. Hepworth wanted me to. Bravo!

3.5 raised to 4 stars

Audiobooks make it possible for me to cook, drive, clean the house, and do a myriad of other things while enjoying a story. One thing I have discovered, though, is that I have far more tolerance for a slow audiobook than when I actually read a book.

In this case, the narration was very good and most of the story moved along. Pippa and Gabe live in a beautiful seaside home that is located on a cliff. What they didn’t realize when they moved there is that their cliffside location was infamous for jumpers wanting to commit suicide.

Gabe is a stay-at-home dad who has been able to talk several out of jumping. One particular jumper appears when his wife, Pippa, a lawyer, is home. In this case, the jumper does end up going off the cliff and dying, but had Pippa glimpsed her husband reaching for the lady or pushing?

The point of view uniquely goes back and forth between Amanda, the jumper, and Pippa. That may not feel necessarily unusual, but the viewpoints go before and after the jump occurs. So that means at times the perspective is from the dead jumper.

My Concerns
To a large degree thriller and suspense didn’t apply. Plus the flow of the story felt slightly off.

Final Thoughts
The narration and the story had no trouble holding my interest until the middle, where it felt a bit repetitive and slowed it down.

This is still a thumbs-up. However, one of my favorite books by this author is The Good Sister.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for providing me with an ALC.

Many thanks to the publish and NetGalley for the advanced copy of the new book by one of my all time favorite writers, Sally Hepworth!

Ms. Hepworth sure knows how to write a domestic thriller that keeps you on the edge of your seat!

Well developed and fascinating characters, short chapters and twists every 20 pages kept me glued to this. Her writing, as usual, was superb, and I ate up every little drop of hints along the way.

This is getting 4 stars instead of 5 just because the final twist at the end wasn’t my favorite. This lands at the number 2 spot of Hepworth novels for me, just below The Other Sister.

Pippa and her family live at a beautiful home with a cliff in the backyard. The cliff is where people go to jump off to commit suicide. The newest person to jump is Amanda. However there is an problem, Pippa and her husband know Amanda.
A great mystery and I really enjoyed it.
Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC and to the publisher St. Martin's Press.