No one does domestic suspense like Sally Hepworth! As children, Alicia, Jessica, and Norah all found themselves at Wild Meadows as the foster children of Miss. Fairchild. Miss Fairchild is terrifying! The woman's cruelty paired with her unpredictability and the fact that she was doing these things to children made me so afraid for the sisters. The girls take a chance and are able to escape Miss Fairchild and they never look back. As adults, the women are called back to Wild Meadows by the police after the mansion is demolished and bones are found underneath the house. Who do the bones belong to, and how did they get there? This book was equal parts heartbreaking, healing, and hilarious. Thank you to Norah and her IBS service dogs for adding a little levity to the story! I highly recommend this and all of Sally Hepworth's other books.

4 stars.*

I'm a big Sally Hepworth fan. She writes compelling, authentic characters. Her women, in particular, are believable and multi-faceted.

Darling Girls tells the story of 3 girls raised in foster care by a woman with serious mental issues. They suffer various forms of abuse and stay because they want to remain together. The book goes back and forth in time from when each of them arrives in the care of Miss Fairchild, to the present day, when the remains of a child are found on the property where they lived. The investigation brings each of the girls (now women) face to face with their childhood issues, and the current manifestation of their traumas.

The twist is awesome. I did not see it coming. Highly recommended.

*with thanks to NetGalley for the digital ARC in exchange for this honest review.

I think I've read all of this author's books and they never fail to entertain. This one was no exception. I loved the creepy foster mother and the details of all the madness that took place. I especially liked how the author tied it all together. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this book!!! I could not put it down. With alternating POV between the girls, this was a true page turner. And the ending…. WOW. Highly recommend!!!

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for this advanced copy.

Sally Hepworth is just one of my favorite authors and once again she delivers! This was a heartbreaking book and some parts hard to read. I love books with different POV’s and normally do not like books that go from past to present, but this was written brilliantly. The whole book wrapped up very nicely in the end….THEN THE LAST CHAPTER!!!!!!! I never saw it coming and my mind is blown. Domestic thrillers are my favorite and this certainly did not disappoint!

The ending saved it for me, I almost thought it was way too predictable, but then…

A dual timeline, multiple POV psychological thriller was very well written. I have to say I was convinced it was the easiest mystery to figure out and boy was I way off. Once again, Sally kills it.

This was a great read and really kept me invested. Favorite part hands down was the sister relationship between Alicia, Norah and Jessica, I love how they weren’t biologically related and yet meshed so well together and so clearly loved each other, their entire journey was so endearing and I also loved how different each of them were. Alicia was probably my personal favorite because of her storyline with Meera, gay rights! And I adored her ending, it was perfect for her. (Loved Norah as well) Also I definitely guessed who did what re: the murder but the journey to find out how exactly it all went down was fun regardless. Miss Fairchild was truly the devil incarnate and everything about her pissed me off, great villain though. Overall really enjoyed this and would definitely read another book by this author!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishing company for the arc.

This was such a wild ride! I absolutely flew through it and was glued to the pages the entire time.

This is a story about three girls who grew up in a foster home with an abusive foster parent. It’s a very dark premise, but it’s handled with care, and despite the things that occur being shocking, the relationships developed between the three girls are amazing.

This was paced very well. The POVs are split between all 3 girls in both the past and the present. This had the potential to seem disjointed since there were so many things going on at once, but it worked and resulted in a really engaging and interesting time. The reveals were sprinkled in exactly when they needed to be, and there were twists I did NOT see coming!


I definitely look forward to reading more by this author and would recommend this book.

Thank you for giving me the chance at an early copy of this book! I am a fan of Sally Hepworth, and she keeps me a fan with this story of three girls in the foster system who become so connected that they go through things they shouldn't just to stick together. We follow these girls into adult hood to have to revisit their horrible childhood. They have to come face to face with their horrible foster mother, someone they never wanted to ever see again. This book had me waiting to know the end. Sally always has a great twist, and she doesn't disappoint.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and author for the ARC.

This was super entertaining if not a bit over the top but it kept me reading! I always find Hepworth’s books fun to read and this was no exception.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read this book!

This was my first book by Sally Hepworth, and I will for sure be picking up more of her books. I love the twists and turns, the characters, the entire plotline. Everytime I thought I had it figured out, there'd be a little twist that would completely throw me off. And I never felt like the twists were out of left field, they always felt authentic to me. I flew through this book, and it was just what I needed to get out of my current reading slump.

First, thanks to netgalley and the publisher's for an advanced reader copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and unlike a lot of books these days there wasn't too much or too little written from beginning to end. Sometimes when books alternate between past and present it can get a little confusing but not so with Darling Girls and not even when they alternated between past and present with three different narrators. This story was about three young girls who were all placed in foster care for very different reasons, who all end up being fostered at a place called Wild Meadows. Their foster mother was a nightmare for a myriad of reasons but when they finally left there, they left as sisters and stayed close as sisters into adulthood. As adults they are called to help with an investigation of Wild Meadows after bones are found buried under the house and the book is essentially about the investigation while also revealing what happened to them there as children. I didn't guess the twist however I don't know if I'd truly call it much of a twist. Overall I'd say this book is worth reading and would recommend it to anyone who likes mysteries, domestic suspense or family dramas.

"Darling Girls" by Sally Hepworth takes readers on a journey through the lives of three women—Alicia, Jessica, and Norah—who share a unique bond built during their time in foster care. The narrative unfolds as the discovery of buried bones beneath their childhood foster home brings them back to the past, forcing them to confront Miss Fairchild, their unpredictable foster mother.
The novel delves into the complexities of the foster care system with a look at the lasting impact it can have on the lives of those who endure. I found this to be more of an emotional and psychological rather than a suspenseful story. I thoroughly enjoyed the narrative supporting the bond that these women built stemming from their challenging circumstances.
The portrayal of Miss Fairchild as a formidable and unpredictable authority figure adds a layer of tension to the narrative. The discovery of bones beneath the farmhouse becomes a catalyst for revisiting the shared past, unearthing buried memories, and questioning the relationship with their foster mother.
One of the novel's strengths was related to the information on the foster care experience, its inconsistent rules and unreliable authority figures. The characters' reluctance to revisit helped to create even more empathy for their past.
"Darling Girls" did not fit what I consider a suspenseful thriller, but it did provoke thought. The book serves as a reminder that shared experiences can create lifelong bonds and connections.
Readers who enjoyed The Soulmate, The People We Keep and Before We Were Yours will likely enjoy this book.

ARC Review-Darling Girls by Sally Hepworth
Publication date: April 23, 2024

Sally Hepworth is one of my favorite psychological thriller writers. Her stories get more complex and frightening with each new book. Darling Girls is a shocking tale of three women who survived their foster mother and become “sisters” through their shared experiences. Flash forward to the future and these 30-something year old women find themselves pulled back into the horrors they survived. They are called to help the Australian police solve the mystery of the bones found under their foster mother’s house.

Jessica Lovat- professional home organizer, Norah Anderson-self-employed grifter, and Alicia Connelly-child welfare worker have barely survived the worst of their teenage years. They have the psychologic battle scars to show for their trauma. Each woman carries her own baggage that impacts her day to day life and relationships.

Holly Fairchild (the foster mother) is probably the most disturbing of villains because you find yourself empathizing with her life and loses. It almost feels like her actions could be slightly pardoned because of her own teenage trauma. Her therapist, Dr Warren, is little help to Fairchild as she shares her own experiences.

The four women are forced together again and the outcome of this encounter threats the futures of them all.

The shocking ending will sit you straight up in your chair with a violent rush.

Four Stars!
This book is available 4/23/24

I was lucky to read this advanced copy from the publisher in exchanged for a fair and honest review.

Another fun, fast and suspenseful read from Sally Hepworth! If you're a fan already, I think you'll love this one too. If not, this would be a great one to be your first. I loved that I didn't know what really happened until the very end...and I love a good twist in the last chapter/epilogue!

From the outside, Alicia, Jessica and Norah might seem like ordinary women you'd meet on the street any day of the week. Sure, Jessica has a little OCD and Norah has some anger issues. And Alicia has low self-esteem that manifests itself in surprising ways. But these three have a bond that no one can fully understand. It's a bond that takes them back decades, to when they were girls, and they lived on a farm with a foster mother named Miss Fairchild. Miss Fairchild had rules. Miss Fairchild could be unpredictable. And Miss Fairchild was never, ever to be crossed.

Sally Hepworth does it again with a story that will make you cry while keeping you on your toes. The story flips between their child and adult hood as it weaves a story of abuse, betrayal, and bonds that cannot be broken. This is my 5th or 6th book by this author and this is in my top 3 by her.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Sally Hepworth for this digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I haven't read many books by this author. I seriously need to go back and read through the others.

Darling Girls is a fast-paced, quick read. One I finished in a day. I just had to see where this was going, and where it ended. Definitely not disappointed.

I don't typically enjoy any sort of domestic suspense, but I was riveted by Darling Girls. One of those stories that just happens along at the right time.

This is a good one for fans of this genre. It releases April 23, 2024 so make sure to keep an eye out and snatch it once it's out in the wild.

I sincerely appreciate St. Martin's Press for the review copy. All opinions expressed are my own.

I enjoyed this suspenseful read by Sally Hepworth. The plot was one that will keep you guessing until the very end of the book. There were characters that were likable and some that were unlikable. I thought that there was a good balance with that as well. Overall I thought this was a good read that I enjoyed!

Jessica, Norah and Alicia are sisters, not by blood, but by what they have experienced together and been through together. When their past is brought back to life by the cops telling them that there had been bones found where their foster home had once been, the girls stick together as always. Is the truth finally going to be uncovered or is something else going on with their past?

Jessica went to live with Mrs. Fairchild when she was 5 years old and was definitely a favorite until a new baby came along in the house. That didn't happen for several years though so Jessica was the favorite for awhile. Jessica always wanted to please Mrs. Fairchild and make her proud. She got jealous if Mrs. Fairchild spent too much time with another foster child or found favor in what they were doing. When Norah and Alicia came to the home with Jessica, there wasn't much competition from them but when the actual babies came, Jessica felt like she was loosing her mum to them all the time.

Jessica, Norah and Alicia went to school together and did all the cleaning together. They were pretty much all each other had besides Mrs. Fairchild. When the babies would come along and Mrs. Fairchild would tire of them, the girls had to figure out how to take care of them. They were responsible for doing everything for the babies. They even missed school to take turns taking care of the babies. Their social worker never seemed to come around to check on thing and when he did, they were made to put on a good front for him. When the girls finally got the nerve to tell the principal at their school what had been going on, there was doubt that the girls were telling the truth. Had the girls made it all up or pretended that other babies had come to the house to live? Is there any evidence that they were even there?

You will enjoy the ride that Sally Hepworth takes you on with Jessica, Norah and Alicia. Are things really what they seem to be? Can you believe everything that you are told? You will find the answers to these questions and more when you dive into this story. It will keep you guessing!

I voluntarily read and reviewed this book and all opinions are my own. Thanks to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book. I really enjoyed it.

The stars of this book were Jessica, Alicia, and Norah. They were in foster care at Wild Meadows with an abusive foster mother, Miss Fairchild. In order to survive, the girls formed a sisterhood that continued into their adult years. Norah was the one with the temper and she was always in trouble. Jessica ended up abusing pills that she stole from her clients. And Alicia became a social worker for foster children.

There was a narrative in the book with a psychiatrist, a Doctor Warren. It wasn't clear who his patient was until the end of the book. That narrative really threw me off. There were also a couple of other parts that I wasn't able to easily track.

When the girls were adults, they were called by the police to come in for questioning. They had found the remains of a small child buried under the Wild Meadows house. Miss Fairchild had taken in a little girl by the name of Amy and had abused her in the swimming pool. The girls went to the police to report the abuse. When the police got to the house, Amy was nowhere to be found and all traces of her had been erased. So when the women heard about the remains, they thought it was Amy. They later learned they'd been wrong.

Jessica had had a special bond with Miss Fairchild. She was the first to be taken in by her. Their bond was codependent. But when the other girls came, Miss Fairchild took her attention away from Jessica which sent her into a tailspin. In all honesty, Miss Fairchild didn't care for the girls, even though Jessica went out of her way to make her happy. She started taking in infants, and when she tired of them she forced the girls to care for them. She had this insatiable need to be loved and the foster children weren't doing it for her.

So this book was all about this abusive foster mother and all the horrible ways in which she preyed on her foster children. I thought the author did a pretty good job developing the characters, but the story was slightly disconnected. Overall, the story was not bad. I gave the book four stars.

Wow! My second book by Sally Hepworth certainly did not disappoint. (Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to read this before the publishing date!)
The main characters are 3 foster children who tell their story of being mistreated by their “evil foster mother”, Miss Fairchild. When bones are discovered in their old foster home the girls, who are now grown women, are sure Miss Fairchild is behind it but are unsure who the bones belong to. I couldn’t stop reading so that I could find out! I loved both past and present points of view and the ending just tied everything together so nicely. There’s definitely a nice twist that every thriller needs. Highly recommend this book!