I received this ebook from Netgalley in exchange for my honest opinion and review. I loved the premise of this book. The idea of foster children escaping from an abusive household sparked my interest. I never would have guessed the outcome and I loved the little twists and turns throughout the book. I’d definitely recommend this book to anyone that likes a good thriller

3.5 stars. This was a quick and enjoyable read. The story centers around three women who became bonded as sisters when they spent time together in the same foster home as children. News breaks that a body has been found under this home, bringing them back to confront their past.

While there are a few twists and surprises right up until the end, a lot of this story focuses on the mistreatment of children by their foster parent and how that experience has impacted their lives as adults. I did overall find this to be a compelling, if difficult read, and really liked the three main characters. For me, it did feel a bit different from Hepworth’s previous books and so maybe didn’t quite align with my expectations.

Thank you to St Martin’s Press and NetGalley for providing the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I really enjoyed this book. I will say this has some trigger warnings in it. I felt like the story was new/unique and perspective of the foster system. I liked the different perspectives but sometimes would have to check the chapter to see who the narrator was. I loved the twist of who was actually speaking to Dr. Warren and where that took place. I think it would be suited better has it own chapter vs. being added onto the end of Jessica’s sections.

There was ALOT of spelling errors on the kindle app version of this book.

I loved this book! Three foster sisters have to return to the town where their traumatic childhood in foster care unfolded after police discover the bones of a child beneath the house where they were fostered. The characters in this book were so well written. The foster mother, Miss Fairchild has a creepy Stepford Wife vibe but when her veneer cracks it is scary. My favorite thing about this book though is the strength of the found family bond that the sisters have. All three of the girls manifest their childhood traumas in different ways, but they are always supportive of each other even though gaslighting has made them doubt events. I have read a few of Hepworth's books and enjoyed them all, but this one has been my favorite.
Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for an advance copy of this book for review purposes.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for a digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. TW: child abuse and neglect and narcissism. This book was captivating and hard to put down. Part mystery, part thriller. The characters were well-constructed and believable. I struggled reading about the abuse and neglect of the children in Miss Fairchild's care. I was able to pick up on some of the smaller twists before they were revealed, but the major twists totally took me by surprise. I would recommend Darling Girls to fans of Sally Hepworth's other books.

I want to thank Net Galley for my preview of Darling Girls. I have read, and enjoyed, several of Sally Hepworth’s novels. To summarize, the setting is Australia and 3 young girls end up in a foster home which seems perfect from the outside. It is not giving much away to say that the illusion of a perfect home quickly resolves into something less. The novel is set in two different times, first when the girls are young and in foster care and then when they are adults. We see how each of the three has coped and is still coping with the effects of their time in care. Suddenly their lives are thrown into a tizzy with the discovery of bones under the foundation of their former foster home. How they deal with this is a large part of the book. What I did not care for was the heavy handed inclusion of an unknown (but obviously connected to the situation) person at psychiatric appointments. No spoilers here but it was fairly obvious who this mystery person was. I think the book would have been better without this side track. But, overall it was an enjoyable, if fairly predictable read.

Wow what a twisty thriller right up to the very end! It did have a lot of mistreatment of children, which was hard to read.
This left you guessing until the very end! Thank you for allowing me an advanced read of it!

What happens when a body is found under the foster house you grew up in? I really enjoyed reading this! The three sisters are very different and reading from each perspective made the story better. The flashbacks also helped flesh out the story so the reader could understand the mental & emotional abuse they endured. The twisty ending was fanstastic! I love books by Sally Hepworth, and this one did not disappoint in any way. Highly recommended.

I have a long list of arcs to read this year, some of which have already published. So what did I do? I read a book publishing in April of 2024 instead!

I couldn’t help it. Sally Hepworth writes such bingeable books and Darling Girls was no exception. I didn’t want to stop reading to reapply sunscreen or seek out more shade.

This domestic suspense had me at the edge of my seat wondering how it would all wrap up. It was like a car wreck I couldn’t turn away from as the psychological scars left behind on 3 foster children became apparent when they returned to the foster home where it all began. I think this may be my favorite book of hers.

We received an advanced copy of this book via NetGalley! The release date is April 23, 2024.

You guys knoooow I love my girl Sally Hepworth, but I also take pride in being an honest book reviewer 🫡 and unfortunately this book didn’t hit the mark for me. I’ve sat on this review for a while thinking maybe I was in a funk when I read it or something. Nope, just not a fan lol I don’t think it was a bad book at all, It was just not the story for me… and that’s okay!!

Jessica, Norah, and Alicia were foster children at Wild Meadows under Ms. Fairchilds care. Years later, body remains are found under the house at Wild Meadows which catapults Jessica, Norah, and Alicia into an investigation that they don’t really want to be a part of. They’ve all worked so hard to leave the past in the past, but they must reopen the door to all the painful truths in order to get to the bottom of this case.

I found the main characters to be kind of unlikeable. I also thought the topic of child abuse and neglect was tough to read about. The book did leave me wanting to know more about Ms. Fairchild and the ending was pretty twisty.

All in all, there are way better Sally Hepworth books out there, this one just wasn’t my fave! Excited for her future books, as always ❤️

3 ⭐️

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC. It started off strong, which I personally love. I love books that hook me from the start. This is a story of children who have gone through so much, children who despite all the abuse and confusion they may have gone through, only ever wants to be loved and adored. I also am amazed with how in the ending contradicted everything that happened. This is a masterpiece!!! Everyone go read it now pls.

Sally Hepworth is a must read author for me and this book didn't disappoint.. a thriller that discusses the bonds of the families we make, as well as shines a light on abuse within the foster care system. This book, told with multiple points of view, was creepy and hard to to put down. As always, Hemsworth keeps the reader on their toes as they try and figure out what is going to happen next. Thank you netgalley for this arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book was absolutely amazing. I could not stop reading it. After the soul mate that was just ok for me, this one totally took me over the edge. Does sharing the same blood make you family? Not for the three girls of the manor they were fostered in. The girls forged a bond like no other while surviving the torture and torment of their evil foster mother. Told from each girls perspective as well as an unknown perspective who is speaking to a psychiatrist. A body is later found buried underneath the manor. Who's body is it and how did it get there? I look forward to reading more of Sally's books.

Wasn't sure what to expect, but in the end I really enjoyed this book. Through the books there were a few parts I did not initially follow, but the author brought it all together at the end. Well told and engaging story.

Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher (St. Martin’s Press) for the ARC! All opinions are my own.

Sally Hepworth has certainly made a name for herself in the thriller genre. Her non-linear story telling is masterful and the ending is something I actually didn’t see coming. Read this one in one night, it was so good I could not put it down. Characters were real to me and had plausible and different reactions to trauma, which adds to the personal connection you feel to them.

I also read her last book and authors can fall into the a slump after a certain number of books but this is definitely better than The Soulmate and will stick with me for awhile. Makes me want to read some of her older books as well. I also appreciate the clear research that was done into the foster system that makes it feel more grounded in reality than if counter examples weren’t given.

My only qualm is that I would’ve liked some analysis of DNA testing/explanation there to have given another layer to the book. Leaving that vague so as not to give any of the twists away. But that’s the only thing that was missing.

If you like a thriller, would definitely recommend picking this up as soon as it comes out. Looking forward to more from her!! :)

“Darling Girls” is yet another superb Sally Hepworth thriller, this time involving a former foster home/house of horrors and its survivors. Twenty-five after escaping the woman who psychologically tortured them as pre-teens, but maintaining a strong bond as foster sisters, Jessica, Norah and Alicia are called back to the small town of their youth. It’s where “Wild Meadows”, the home they were in, has been torn down to build a McDonalds, but human remains were found in the excavation.

The story has 4 POVs: the three women (all dealing with some sort of current personal crisis that’s possibly related to their trauma in foster care) and another person talking to a psychiatrist. It’s also a dual timeline of now and then and it neatly unfolds to reveal a story of a broken system as well a murder mystery. I was mesmerized, as usual, by how intricately Hepworth constructs her characters. You can’t help rooting for the adults who are still healing from painful childhoods and it was great to see how their shared stories kept them together for years. As the author describes them: “sisters from different wombs.” Hepworth delivers a great tale again (complete with a jaw-dropping twist at the very end). 5 stars!

Cuteness alert (in an otherwise bleak setting): Norah’s three dogs, Couch, Converse, and Thong, are all named after the first thing they ate/destroyed when she adopted them.

Literary Pet Peeve Checklist:
Green Eyes (only 2% of the real world, yet it seems like 90% of all fictional females): NO Amy’s blue eyes are a plot point, but no green ones.
Horticultural Faux Pas (plants out of season or growing zones, like daffodils in autumn or bougainvillea in Alaska): NO No horticultural references at all.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for a free advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review!

sally hepworth knows how to write the scariest, creepiest and skin crawling thrillers!! this time, it’s involving an abusive foster family relationship and boy the gaslighting was so extreme!! I wanted to throw myself into that house to save the kiddos 🥹

I loved learning about the dual POVs of all three foster sisters, between jessica and norah and alicia and their ways of coping that were definitely ✨ trauma unhealthy ✨ and how each of them were so different but here for each other thick and thin

it was a fast-paced heart-pounding story from start to finish, leaving out key details until the very end to fool you all 🤯 and that last chapter? had me screaming

the plot itself could have used some reshaping to avoid repetition, especially in dialogue - but I couldn’t put it down regardless

I think this may be my new favorite sally hepworth novel!! I can’t wait for the world to read this one!

a huge thank you to netgalley and st martins press for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!

rating: 3.5 stars
wine pairing: new zealand sauvignon blanc

Darling Girls is a story of girls brought together by the foster system and forged a family of their own. A story of how abuse can make or break you. A gripping, suspenseful, and believable story, full of twist and turns. And I especially love how the best twist was saved for the very end.
Thank Netgalley and the publishers for the ARC.
#Netgalley #Darlinggirls

Pub date; 4-23-24

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC. This book leaves breadcrumbs throughout and makes you want to keep reading. I liked all the POVs!

Thanks to St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this title prior to publication. I have read many of Hepworth's backlist, so I was excited to get this review copy. Alicia, Jessica, and Norah were "sisters" - fellow foster kids staying in the same home run by Miss Fairchild. Now adults each with their own issues, they get called by the police when a body is discovered buried at the farmhouse. Told in a nonlinear timeline, we hear from multiple viewpoints as the propulsive mystery tumbles to a startling conclusion. This was exactly the book I needed on the plane as I returned from vacation. Hepworth's research into trauma is extremely evident (sometimes to the point of research dumps), and she made me care for the main characters. I appreciated an accurate portrayal of adoption/foster care/trauma/abuse in a page-turning story, and the twists are classic Hepworth.