Intensely readable. I love all of Sally Hepworth's work and this was no exception. The story was heartwarming, intriguing, and clever. My one critique of the book is the sheer number of awful stories of foster carers - it felt stigmatized and very generalized. Hepworth writes a sweet acknowledgement to carers in the back but I wish it was front and center. The ending was also kind of weird and like Hepworth's editor asked her to add an unnecessary twist element. I will still wait for the authors next book with bated breath.

Darling Girls is a story about foster care gone very wrong. The relationships between the sisters help readers to connect to what each must feel as a sister is mistreated by their “mom”. Readers will understand their feelings and how valuable the bond they share is the the survival of each one. The ending leaves you in wonder in the best of ways

OMG.....This book held my attention from beginning to end. I highly recommend this page turner.......

Jessica, Norah and Alicia consider themselves sisters, not by birth, but by choice. Growing up in foster care, in the home of Ms. Fairchild, others consider them lucky. The girls have a different story to tell.

Still haunted by the past and struggling to forget their childhood at Wild Meadows, one phone call changes everything. The girls are forced to revisit the past and their traumatic lives under the care of Ms. Fairchild. With the discovery of skeletal remains where the home once stood, what really happened in their childhood home, and who is really knows the truth? How do the traumatic events of ones past, pave the path of the future? How important is it for a child to feel loved and wanted?

From past to present, being told from Jessica, Norah and Alicia's point of view, this book takes you on a roller coaster of a read. Just when I thought I had things figured out, there came another plot twist.

Testing the bonds of sisterhood, the desire to know the truth, and the will to overcome the past, this book will keep you up all night, racing to discover what happens next. It has been my favorite read of the year so far.

A BIG thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press and Sally Hepworth for one amazing read.

This story is of 3 foster children, Jessica, Alicia, and Norah. It is about their sisterhood and how they stick together during tough times of their life as foster children of Ms. Fairchild. It goes back in the timeline and talks about what they went through then and now when they are pulled back to their childhood home where there were bones found of a child. They are some twists along the way. All in all not bad read.

The writing was fine but with the overused elements of dual timelines, mixed POVs and using dialogue to move the story forward, this one wasn’t for me. This is a personal preference and I’m sure many people who don’t mind these stylistic choices will enjoy it.

This book is a page turner! I realized within the first few chapters that I would not want to put it down! It’s been a while since I’ve read a Sally Hepworth book and I now want to pick up a few more.
Three adult sisters who are former foster children are dragged back to where they were fostered and have to share old memories of that time. It was not a pleasant experience for them. Their foster mother is involved which makes things worse. And when you believe the story is over, think again!
Thank you Netgalley for the digital ARC. I really enjoyed it!

This book was not exactly what I expected. Marketed as a thriller, it's more of a crime-forward novel with huge TW for child abuse. It felt like a vast majority of the book was about the abuse three girls underwent in the hands of the foster family system, with a crime that has now come to light in their adult years (bones discovered under their old foster home). There were some surprises and plot twists toward the end of the book, but none of it really kept me on edge like a true thriller. The sadness, abuse and gaslighting the girls endured while they were children takes front and center in the novel, as does the ramifications of that abuse in their adult years (tendencies to violence, detachment from relationships, substance abuse, etc.)

One pet peeve -- the number of times the girls referred to themselves at "sisters." I know they found family within their trio and decided they were like sisters but the mention of "my sisters", "your sister," etc., got super repetitive. We got the point.

In the end I'm sort of neutral on this book. It's not my favorite Sally Hepworth, and it does seem like a diversion to her other work. It won't be the right book for everyone, especially if they are sensitive around issues of child abuse.

Darling Girls had a different vibe than the other Sally Hepworth books that I've read but I was hooked from the beginning. The day I started this book, I was in a bad mood and chose to read it from my Netgalley shelf because I know that Sally never let's me down and I needed something to escape into. The stories of Jessica, Norah, and Alicia will tug at your heartstrings as well as enrage you because of the things they went through at the hands of their foster mother, Miss Fairchild. I liked the addition of the patient in the psychiatrists office. I thought it added intrigue and nuisance to the story. I will say that I was utterly surprised by the ending but I love that it made so much sense. Darling Girls has moved up in rank to my number two spot for Sally's books. The Good Sister remains at number one but the story of Darling Girls will remain with me for a long time and honestly has me thinking about foster care more than ever.

Sally Hepworth has done it again!! Another hard to put down book that is both thought and emotion provoking. As with her other books is is well written, thought out, gripping, and twisted, moving and just down right shocking! I enjoyed this book so much and thank you so much to the publisher, author, and Netgalley for the opportunity to read it early.

Definitely a difficult read and a few triggers but overall it was wonderfully written and i enjoyed it the whole way through

Whoa, this book was a tough read. So many triggers and a scary depiction of a foster home and intervention from child services gone very wrong. Still, this was a compelling read from the start and certainly kept me invested and flipping pages!

(*It was a 5 star for me until the ending. I read a VERY early copy with lots of typos and still needing edits. Wondering if it will change at all in the finished copy)

Wow this book was so good it took me no time to read it. I'm a huge fan of this author and I recommend going into this book knowing as little as possible. I can't wait to read what she comes with next.

Great book!!!!!!!!! Had never heard of this author, will be searching for more. Brilliant!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I was recommended this book from a friend and was able to read it early through NetGalley. This was a fast read and I was intrigued the whole time. I kept telling myself “just one more chapter” but I couldn’t put it down. The characters are all questionable and it keeps you guessing until the end..and then still throws another twist at you. Highly recommend and I will be reading more of Sally Hepworth!

Holy Sheets! This is a twisty story where the ending is wowza. Jessica, Norah and Alicia are foster sisters who meet while being raised by Miss Fairchild at Wild Meadows. Their upbringing is harsh but the sisters stick together. When new children arrive, the sisters take on the responsibility of caring for them after Miss Fairchild gets tired, like a child loses interest in a new toy. However, when a toddler named Amy arrives, the sisters worry for her safety and finally report Miss Fairchild to the authorities. But when the authorities go to check on Amy, she has disappeared, did she really exist, or is this a game the sisters are playing? Fast forward years later, a body is discovered under the Wild Meadows home. Could this be Amy? Did Miss Fairchild kill her? Why didn’t anyone believe the sisters?

This is an engaging book, narrated by all the sisters, each chapter is a different sister told through both present day and flashbacks, along with a therapist session ongoing through the book. I so enjoyed this book, the perspective and how each sister dealt with the aftermath of the trauma they survived is well written and totally believable. I did enjoy the relationship of the sisters, even when frustrated with one another, they still stood by each other. I read this book very quickly as I wanted to know what happened. If you like a good mystery, sister bonding and stories about how family is more than just bloodlines, than this story is for you.

Three nonbiological sisters must face the woman who raised them in foster care and their pasts when human bones are found under the farm house in which they were raised. As the women confront their pasts together, they are each going through their own personal crises now.

The three sisters are each affected by their upbringing in different ways. I enjoyed being brought into their lives, being introduced to their very different personalities, and learning how the characters describe with their pasts from each of their points of view.

Sally Hepworth is a must-read author for me. I have enjoyed all her books. This one does not disappoint. Although, I would classify this as more of a mystery than a thriller, there is a great twist you do not see coming that will make your jaw drop.

Thank you, NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press, for the digital ARC in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed above are my own.

Sally Hepworth's latest novel is a masterpiece of storytelling. In it, she strikes a perfect balance between the characters' traumatic pasts and their charming personalities. The three characters she created are vulnerable yet smart, witty, and devoted, making them a joy to read. As you read Hepworth's captivating and thrilling story, you'll find yourself guessing at every turn. You'll predict some details along the way, but not enough to complete the entire picture, which makes for a thrilling read. What sets this novel apart is how well Hepworth writes her characters. Unlike other authors who come up with imaginative plots but fail to create well-rounded characters, Hepworth masterfully crafts both. This makes for an interesting story that is hard to put down. A very enjoyable four of five stars for me!

3.5 rounded down to 3 stars. The premise of this book was so incredible. This really kept my interest but sadly it didn’t end the way it would. It’s almost as if Sally Hepworth was steady climbing up a ladder and then right when about to make it all the way to the top, she climbed back down. The book just didn’t seem finished to me.

4.5 stars
I always love Sally Hepworth and this book didn't change those views!
This book was a book that kept me interested and curious as to what was going to happen and I didn't want to put it down.
I was hooked from the first page and often thought I figured out the mystery but was always wrong or at least partly wrong.
True to Hepworth's style the ending was a surprise that I wasn't at all expecting!
Be sure to read the author notes at the end, as they make the story all the better.

What a crazy, wild journey this was! Sally Hepworth always manages to write some of the best psychological thrillers & this one certainty didn’t fall short. I really loved the character development of Jessica, Norah, & Alicia. All of their stories were incredibly compelling & my heart truly ached for each of them. I thought I had the ending figured out but the last couple of pages were a major plot twist.

This one hits shelves April 23rd & is sure to be a huge hit!

Major TW before reading this: child & foster care abuse

Thank you to NetGalley for the arc of this one in exchange for my honest review!