Three sisters bound by their circumstances, not blood, grow together suffering the abuse of their psyco foster mother. Their circumstances make their bond stronger, so much so to still be extra close when adults. They are called back to the town they escaped from, for an investigation on bones found under the house they grew up in. This meant to be, short trip, makes their lives spiral, and all the new secrets, information, and stories come to life derailing the lives they had lived so far.

This book was good, and it was my second read by Sally Hepworth. The story opens with a woman talking to a psychiatrist but no indication who this woman is. The chapters go back and forth between the sister, the unidentified woman, and the past and present. Because of this, I found it hard to get into the story at the beginning, but as the story advanced, it pulled me in. The strength these girls had to survive this together, because the only thing going on for them was being sisters.

Miss Fairchild is desperate for money after her husband's passing and starts to foster kids. But she abuses them after losing interest in them, finding new kids to foster, over and over again.

I enjoyed the twist and turns, I was surprised by the ending but really loved that each sister, in the end, got to have the life they always yearn for.

Darling Girls kept me hooked throughout the whole book. Sally Hepworth is one of my favorites to read because she gives a great back story and depth to all of her characters. I loved learning each of the sister's quirks and how they came to be that way, even if it was because of their sad pasts. To quote Phil (Jessica- a main character/one of the three sister's husband) "It's like a sick, tragic bookclub." It is as if Sally Hepworth described her own books, and had the character say it cheerfully- which is how I pick up her books even though I'm in for a crazy, sometimes sad ride. The content matter was heavy (definitely a lot of trigger warnings in this book) but Jessica, Norah, and Alicia were all so likeable as children and adults that it gave me hope for a happy outcome (no spoilers on whether or not it happened).
On more than one occasion, a twist came along that I didn't see coming.

The ending was something I didn't see coming, and while I enjoyed it, it leaves me with some questions about one of the main characters- who up until then I thought I had a good understanding of. Maybe this was the point?

I definitely reccomend Darling Girls for its twists, awesome 3 main characters, and interesting plot.

Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for my first ever ARC in exchange for an honest review. It was interesting to see a book in its unfinished stage, typos and all!

Sally Hepworth has been an auto-buy author of mine for years now, and I was beyond thrilled to have the opportunity to read an advanced copy of Darling Girls. The book follows three girls, Jessica, Norah, and Alicia as they recount their upbringing in a foster home that definitely was not what it appeared to be.

This honestly may be my favorite of all of her books. It is written in Hepworth's usual voice, rich with detail that make the characters likeable and unlikeable in all of the best ways, and of course, has the twists that we have come to expect from her stories. I cannot wait to purchase a hardcopy of this to add to my shelf as a new favorite!

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

Jessica, Norah and Alicia are sisters in every sense of the word; they protect each other, defend each other and love each other but they are not blood. They met as children at the Wild Meadows, a foster home ran by Miss Fairchild. While the name implies an idyllic place to grow up but the girls were mentally abused by Miss Fairchild who toyed with their emotions and used their deepest fears against them. The girls bonded as the punishments became more severe, which only enraged Miss Fairchild more. She started bringing babies in as respite foster children forcing the teens to skip school and care for the child until it vanished back into the system. 25 Years later the women are called back to Wild Meadows after a body is discovered beneath the house. The women, especially Norah, are the prime suspects. But who's bones are they? And who was the killer?

I am a fan of Sally Hepworth's previous work and this does not disappoint. The domestic mystery is told from the POV of the 3 main characters with both present and past storylines. I enjoyed the back and forth but was more captivated by the past. Hepworth is great about slowly unveiling the story and keeping your guessing until the very end but keeping a fast and engaging pace throughout. The characters are enjoyable, albeit scarred by their childhoods. I liked the way she wrote the different women and how they each grapple with traumas of their past. Their bond is wonderful to see. The ending had some holes for me and I struggle with the girls not being aware of certain tells in each other. I highly recommend this novel for domestic suspense fans. Please be aware some of the topics could be triggering: child abuse, overdose etc.

Darling Girls is twisted, yet compelling. It was difficult to get through the descriptions of abuse, but the plot is well-executed. At least it comes with a happy ending!

This is my favorite of Hepworth’s books - I think the build up of the story into the backstory was done exceptionally well and it was easy to flesh out the three distinct personalities. A few clever twists even shocked me and I think the ending was twisty without being too overdone.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was able to read this book via NetGalley as an ARC. I enjoyed the story and don't want to give any spoilers. I think the story flowed well with the complicated characters that this story involved. The book enlightened me to the plot of children that end up in foster care. I also have read other books written by Sally Hepworth and I enjoy reading what she writes.

I thought reading a nice family book for Christmas would be nice
😂😂😂😂😂
This is but isn't . I mean I should have known by the author there was going to be some heavy DRAMA but damn Sally 😳
&& That ending !!
Her last book The Soulmate was good but this was WAY better ! Definitely recommend 🖤

Once again character development was on point . Personally I connected more with Norah but I think I loved everyone outside of Miss Fairchild .
Couch , Thong, & Converse were also huge favorites . ❤️❤️

Thank you #NetGalley for an amazing Arc

Thank you to NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of Darling Girl’s.

This book was heart breaking, but beautifully written. Definitely check trigger warnings before reading. I did not see the final twist coming!

Sally Hepworth fans will be very happy with her latest book, Darling Girls! While the first half moved a bit slow and became repetitive for my taste, once past the 50% mark I was eager to find out what happened next, and the twists and turns continued to the very last chapter.

Content warning for descriptions of child abuse

4.5 stars

Sally Hepworth proves once again that she is a master at writing women characters. Not fairy tale women, but the vulnerable, broken, strong and determined women that walk amongst us every day.
Jessica, Alicia and Norah are called by the police to return to the foster home they lived in as children. Also called was Miss Fairchild, at whose hands they were abused physically and emotionally. The question the police have is whose bones have been found when the old house was being razed ?
We are taken back through the memories of the three girls. The horrible experiences they endured and the love they shared that bonds them as "sisters" by choice. We meet the other children who are passed through Miss. Fairchild's house of horrors. There are plenty of twists as their stories unfold, but the biggest one is left until the end.

My thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I don't think I have read a Sally Hepworth book I haven't liked and Darling Girls is no exception. Darling Girls follows three foster girls who come together after being placed with the same foster mother. However, the girls are forced to come back together when, decades later, a body is found under their idyllic farmhouse foster home. Darling Girls is a classic case of not everything is always as it seems. 4 solid stars!!

Thanks to St. Martin's Press & NetGalley for the ARC!

I devoured this book in one day. It’s been awhile since that has happened and I thoroughly enjoyed this thriller. It has a slow burn with multiple narrators, each chapter is a different characters point of view with a reference to the past. I found myself trying to guess the ending and the author threw me for a loop at the end in a good way. Solid 4 stars for me!

Ooooh this book completely changed my feelings towards Sally Hepworth. First I read by her was the Soulmate and I just didn’t love it.. but Darling Girls was such a fun read.

POVs: for this story, I loved reading the multiple povs and now v then timelines! It fit perfectly with the plot of multiple girls having different feelings and stories tied to their foster home. I was SO lost on who was talking to the psychiatrist until the very end, hopefully I wasn’t the only one lol. Once that clicked, I freaked out. Loved it

Characters: each character had perfect personality traits and stories to match. Again, it was fun seeing through their eyes. I might have even liked a Zara pov????

Plot: I personally love reading stories about foster homes/adoption because it’s not something I know much about so I loved this. There were some times that felt redundant or confused me (mainly bc I didn’t know who tf was talking to Dr Warren) but overall I think it flowed really well and the different timelines were perfect for adding to the plot. The ending was great and very sally Hepworth with the last minute twist. I wish it was a bit darker..is that effed up? If you want a chill thriller/mystery, this is a good one

Will be posting a full YouTube review and bookclub questions closer to the USA release date!

Thank you to Sally Hepworth, st martins press and net galley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for a review!

This started off so strongly for me, I thought it would end up being 4 if not 5 stars. The writing was easily digestible, and I like the three POVs and the mysterious 4th one. However, it fell flat for me around the first 'twist' about halfway through. It felt like an odd direction to take the story, and I was waiting for the plot to get darker, but it really didn't. I want to be shocked when I read a thriller, and this one just did not shock me. I would still recommend it for a standard slump=buster or to someone who wants to read a thriller but does not want gore or a ton a violence. The ending just left me unsatisfied, and seemed to wrap up a little too nicely.

Just wow!!! I have only read one other book from this author which I also enjoyed, but this is a new favorite from Sally Hepworth. From the beginning I was hooked especially with the cases of the sisters and their foster mom, but then the 50% mark came and I was not expecting that twist. The ending also had me shook.
This book also has great commentary about life growing up in foster care, the effects trauma can have on you, and the bond of a chosen family.
I highly recommend this book to those who like character driven stories with some crazy twists. Giving this 5 stars 🌟.
Thank you to Netgalley, St. Martin's Publishing Group, and Sally Hepworth for the eARC of this book!!

THE TWISTS! Sally Hepworth knows how to write domestic thrillers! This book was suspenseful and unique. The characters were raw and honest. Great read! I can’t wait to read Sally Hepworth’s backlog now!

I had never heard of Sally Hepworth prior to reading this ARC. I thought the description sounded interesting.

I am SO GLAD I stumbled upon this title.

Three girls are raised at a foster home by Miss Fairchild, a single woman. The absolutely unhinged abuse they incur leads to an insane series of events as the book bounces back and forth between their adulthood and childhood.

The twist in this book was so far beyond what I could have imagined.

This is easily the best book I read in all of 2023. A true psychological thriller, Sally Hepworth is now on my list of authors to track!

Sally Hepworth has always been a favorite author of mine, and this book did not disappoint. I loved the each character, and they all had their own voices. Hearing about the things that these sisters experienced in foster care was intense and sad, but the way that the story progresses was unique and unexpected. Overall, I would recommend this book based on the twists alone.

As a fan of Sally Hepworth, I am very grateful to read her newest novel early. Similar to her other domestic thrillers, Darling Girls tells the story of three foster sisters being raised by an unstable and abusive foster mom. I enjoyed as the story unraveled through the eyes of the sisters in present and past times. One of my favs by Hepworth.