My favorite Sally Hepworth book to date! I was hooked from the very beginning and with all of the perspective and timeline changes, I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. If you're new to Sally Hepworth's books, I definitely recommend this one as a starting place! If you're familiar with her books, I think you're going to love this one! The narrator was great and I enjoyed both the digital and audio copies!

Rating: 4.5 stars (rounded up to 5!)
Synopsis: Gabe, Pippa and their two daughters live on the coast, in a beautiful house near the edge of a cliff that has become a popular place for people to end their lives. Recently, Gabe has become known for calmly talking people away from the ledge, but one night, he doesn't. Pippa later finds out that Gabe knew the victim and she starts to question whether the woman jumped or whether she was pushed. And so begins a story of marriage, betrayal and secrets about people who were once thought to be each other's soulmates.

I finished this one is less than 48 hours and I have a feeling it'll make my list of top thrillers for this year. It'll be out on Tuesday so grab a copy! Thank you NetGalley and MacMillan audio for my early copy!

This is my first book by this author.

The story was captivating and was able to grab my attention immediately. It was a heartbreaking story that unraveled a little at a time. The ending left me breathless.

The narrator was engaging and helped the story flow.

Thank you netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read and review this title. All opinions are my own.

Thank you Netgalley for my ARC. Giving this 3.5 stars rounded up. I enjoyed this story. It kept my attention and definitely didn't see all the twists.

This is another case in which the narrator made the experience so much less enjoyable. I wonder if the narrator has ever met a child after hearing this. No matter.

The story starts off interesting. I liked other novels by this same author. Instead, it goes completely off the rails and is just an exercise in dumb and weak women being so happy a man looked at them that they overlook literally every red flag…or pink flag…or flag.

I am so tired of the use of omniscient dead person POV to explain what is happening because the POV of the characters is practically idiotic.

The knowledge of mental illness is practically nil…to the point of being offensive. I’m giving a 2 star review just for the premise. The lack of payoff keeps it from going above that.

As usual, Sally Hepworth killed it with this one which strung me along until the very last line. Her intricate descriptions, attention to detail and elaborate plot unravelings were phenomenal!

I enjoyed this book. Talk about family secrets! I love the way Sally tells a story. And the ending was rather rewarding.

Read this book if you understand insecurities, have a strong devotion to your family, and sometimes walk through the world with rose tinted glasses.

When Gabe and Pippa bought their house on the cliff they thought it was the perfect home. When they realized the cliff was also a known suicide spot, Gabe becomes a local hero when he starts coaxing individuals away from the edge and saving their lives. Then a woman actually jumps and Gabe and Pippa's world is completely changed. Gabe is instantly in shock that he has lost someone after so many successes but what comes as even more terrifying is the victim is the wife of Gabe's former boss. While Pippa thought that Gabe had escaped the corporate world filled with ponzi schemes and lies, they are quickly pushed back into the world of deciet.

This book had not only a great pace but I loved the narration between Pippa and the victim on the ledge. You are able to get a great snapshot into areas that Pippa is blind to but you also don't get all the information allowing you to try to solve the puzzle yourself. Both Gabe and Pippa's character developments were unique and not ones I found myself comparing to other books. I also found the family dynamic very refreshing to read. The ending was very unexpected to me and definitely gave me a surprised thriller feeling.

This book is out April 4th so get your copy! Thank you to Sally Hepworth, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley for this audio ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Goodreads review link: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5415642906

This may have just become my favorite Sally Hepworth novel. With multiple POVs and a back-and-forth timeline, I became so invested in both Pippa's and Amanda's stories. As the novel unfolded I found my opinions changing on who I thought was guilty of what and what I thought really happened. I was not prepared for the ending!

Thank you @MacMillan.Audio for the #gifted ALC of THE SOULMATE.

I think that domestic thrillers are just not for me because I thought this book was just fine, and I seem to be in the minority.

I find the repeated narrative of a woman striving to be The Perfect Wife & Mother ™ to just be exhausting and it really just needs to go away.

I will say I did enjoy both the narrators of the audiobook and if you do read this one, would recommend trying this format.

I’ll go into more of why I didn’t like this one below but beware of spoilers!

THE SOULMATE comes out on April 4, 2023.

SPOILERS BELOW

One of the things that I just could not get over was the fact that all of Pippa’s family knew Gabe was bipolar and unstable and yet never voiced this concern (despite moving from Melbourne to be near them) until the incident on the cliff with Amanda. Like really?! You have kids with this man and your family is like oh we’ll follow you but we must not ever speak about how we’re worried?! And then the reveal that his ADHD is actually bipolar disorder is supposed to be a big twist near the end but Pippa, the main MC, knows this the whole time and doesn’t think it might have something to do with the cliff incident?

Also, we really need to move away from the trope that people with mental disorders are murderous. There are so many people who live with bipolar disorder and are not running around murdering people. This is a harmful narrative.

I originally gave this one 3 stars but I think I’ve now talked myself into a 2 star rating.

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5438136433
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/CqawtJ9rwC3/

Sally is the QUEEN of domestic thrillers and I honesty think this is my favorite book by her. I love the way the drama starts right from the start and the twists are revealed all the way until the end. I loved the multiple points of view especially Amanda.

Great narrator!

This is a good who "dunnit" and why book. I figured there may be an affair or a hidden story behind the lady at the cliff but I never would have thought that all were connected in the way that they really were. I would recommend that all who like an "easy read" get this book or at the very least check it out from the library.

Oh Sally, you have done it again!

Your writing wiggles it’s way into my head and encapsulates my heart. Perfectly written from the hook of the first chapter, to the suspense that keeps building, and THEN when the ending twist happens here I am shedding tears over these characters over a few lines you masterfully crafted!

This is a great one yall! I will remember this book for a long time coming!

Thank you @macmillianaudio for my gifted alc.

Sally Hepworth always delivers a heart stopping domestic thriller. This time it centers around a perfect couple, Gabe and Peppa. They have the perfect marriage—madly in love after years of marriage, great kids, a great home and completely trust each other. That is until Gabe witnesses the suspicious suicide of Amanda as she falls to her death from the cliff outside of their home. The story is told alternating narration from both Amanda and Pippa. The seemingly perfect marriage begins to fall apart as dangerous connections and secrets connect them.

This story definitely had some unexpected twists and surprises, It was a solid thriller that slowed a little toward the end and left me a little flat. Don’t get me wrong I still enjoyed it but the pacing seemed a bit off. This will not stop me from reading more from Hepworth she tells a good story.

3.5 ⭐️

Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I gave this book 4.5 stars on Goodreads. As I mentioned before, I went into this with high expectations. I read, reviewed, and loved Sally's book, The Good Sister, last year so I was thrilled when I was sent a copy of The Soulmate. I have been in a bit of a reading slump recently and this was just the book that I needed to get myself out of it. I would say that this was a more medium-paced thriller. It wasn't agonizingly slow, by any means, but it also wasn't a 'finish in a day' read for me. I thought the concept was interesting and I love anything with a multiple Point of View/dual timeline and this book had all of the above.

I did think that the ending was a bit too polished for me. The story wrapped up nicely, but I almost would've preferred a more ambiguous ending. That is so strange for me to say because I usually hate ambiguity but I think it would have been cool here. Maybe I'm just being picky. For my readers who need concrete answers, this would be perfect for you!

I listened to the audiobook because that is what I was sent. Sometimes narrators with accents are hit or miss for me. Usually a hit when they are authentic and usually a miss when they aren't (I'm looking at you, Where the Crawdads Sing). The Soulmate is narrated by a woman with an Australian accent and it was phenomenal. Even if you struggle with accents, I would urge you to try one of Sally's audiobooks. The narrator's inflection lended itself to the story and kept me engaged throughout.

Overall, this was a very worthwhile read! Due to the adult nature of this book's themes, situations, and dialogue, I would recommend for readers 17+. If you are a thriller lover but this premise doesn't grab you, I would still suggest that you give one of Sally Hepworth's other works a chance! I think you will be glad that you did. If you like morally gray characters, dual timelines, and a some unforeseeable twists---this would be a great option for you!

Thank you to #NetGalley, Macmillan Audio and Sally Hepworth for the opportunity to read an advance copy of The Soulmate, to be published April 5, 2023. This domestic thriller was about relationships, mental illness and family issues. It was a Sally Hepworth original and was a perfect audio to listen to. The two narrators were quite good and carried the story along well. #NetGalley. #MacmillanAudio. #SallyHepworth

Hello, and welcome to my review of The Soulmate by Sally Hepworth. After checking other reviews for this one on GoodReads, I am absolutely an outlier with my thinking, so you may not want to base your opinion solely on mine!

Things I liked: A thriller set on a cliff, which has become a popular suicide jumping location; you can't really get more atmospheric than that! A small twist early on, which led to two different narrators; although I had no issues with either perspective, I preferred Pippa more. I found one side of the mental illness representation done very well. The characters were unique and lived by their own set of rules.

Things I didn't like: I guessed the main twist very early on, and basically, that's what happened. There was a lot going on, but it was also a really boring thriller. There was an additional mental illness aspect that I didn't think was handled particularly well. I didn't really like one of the characters, although they ended up coming across well by the end of the book. I wasn't thrilled at all, nor did I find this book especially mysterious; I wasn't really intrigued by any aspect of this one.

Things I liked (2.0): The cover is really pretty! I enjoyed how the book was written; I liked the female perspective when the plot itself involved more of the men - this added an interesting spin. The audiobook was voiced by two different narrators with distinct voices, making it really easy to remember which point of view you were reading.

That's it. I really don't have a lot to say about this book.

Thank you NetGalley, St. Martin's Press and Macmillan Audio for the complimentary copies to read, listen to and review.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an audio copy to listen to in exchange for an honest review.

I love a good drama and suspense. This one was fantastic- pretty believable with great character development. I really appreciate how the author writes characters that are 'perfect' on fist glimpse but slowly teases out their imperfections. I also really love the multiple time lines and points of view.

Very suspenseful with plenty of twists and turns, it's a story of family and deep, dark secrets. It kept me guessing and I did not figure out the ending. I really liked the Australian accents and the way the narrator did the many character voices in the novel.

“𝙊𝙣𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙄’𝙫𝙚 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙖𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙥𝙮 𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨 𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙮 𝙙𝙤𝙣’𝙩 𝙖𝙡𝙬𝙖𝙮𝙨 𝙡𝙤𝙤𝙠 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙬𝙖𝙮 𝙮𝙤𝙪’𝙙 𝙚𝙭𝙥𝙚𝙘𝙩.”

I am always delighted by this author’s domestic thrillers! Loved the short chapters and the absolutely shocking twist!

Sally Hepworth always delivers a great suspense novel. The dual timelines and dual narrators made this book hard to put down. Gabe and Pippa live with their two young daughters in a home near a cliff that is known to be a dangerous jumping point. Gabe becomes known as the man who can talk people down from the cliff but soon we see cracks in Pippa and Gabe’s marriage.

Amanda and Max are the second couple in this story and I became very invested in their relationship with Pippa and Gabe. As the two couples’ stories played out, I was truly shocked by the many clever twists and turns served up by the author. Another intelligent and compelling domestic suspense from Sally Hepworth!

(𝘐 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘦𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘢 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘺 𝘤𝘰𝘱𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘶𝘥𝘪𝘰𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘔𝘢𝘤𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘢𝘯 𝘈𝘶𝘥𝘪𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘕𝘦𝘵𝘎𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘺. 𝘈𝘭𝘭 𝘰𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘮𝘺 𝘰𝘸𝘯.)

Sally hepworth never disappoints in true fashion this was a deliciously twisty heartbreaking psychological thriller that I could not put down. Somehow Sally keeps coming back with better and better work and I just don't know how she comes up with it. I read this as both in audiobook and an earc. The narrator was absolutely fantastic her voice was engaging and kept you wanting to listen for hours completely bingable