I will read anything Sally Hepworth writes and I was really excited to receive an eARC of Darling Girls! I was sucked into her novel from the very beginning and thoroughly enjoyed the twists and turns on this crazy and haunting ride. The ending was completely shocking and utterly satisfying.

I look forward to Sally Hepworth's next novel!

Darling Girls (ARC)
Sally Hepworth
4.25⭐️

Pub Date: 4/23/2024

This was such an unsettling read. Unsettling in a sense that it was so well written, it relayed the emotions and the setting of the plot. I was so invested in the story but the plot affected me so much that it was hard to read. Ms. Fairchild was so bothersome, her whole demeanor and interactions with the girls were total psycho! The 3 foster children grew up to be so traumatized that they continued to have issues until adulthood, causing their lives to just fall apart. The plot itself, the dead body underneath the house, was interesting. I will admit though that the middle part was slow and I wish it was written in a faster pace. But overall, it was so good anyway that it wasn't hard to keep going. It was hard to tell who did what because all the characters had reasons to harm someone at some point in their lives. There were so many lies and secrets from everyone, so many factors were in play. I almost felt sorry for the culprit until I read the last chapter. Overall, this was a pretty enjoyable read!

An interesting novel of 3 foster girls sent to live a single foster mother who was nothing short of a tyrant/monster. They were constantly mistreated and if they disobeyed her they were severely punished. The best part of the book for me was how these three girls bonded almost like sisters and protected each other. As adults they are forced to return to help uncover a mystery when a child’s body is found buried under the house. I found the ending quite confusing and didn’t see the relevance to the story as a whole.

Three sisters are being questioned after the police find bones of a child under their foster home. Who is the child? Who had killed her? You may guess but you'll never guess that ending!!

While this novel started out a bit slow in parts It does pick up and I was so floored by the end it made the book for me. You need to read this novel!

There is nothing I love more than a crazy character doing outrageous things. Miss Fairchild is no exception. I was fascinated every time she came into the chapter. Absolutely smashing. She looks like a sweet foster mom but is she?

Thanks to NetGalley and publisher for this arc.

Great mystery/thriller I really liked everything about it but I especially liked Miss Fairchilds part. The characters were well developed and so was the setting of Wild Meadows. The epilogues were satisfying. I really don't have a complaint.

Could not out this down. Although I have to say I stay clear away from any thrillers involving children, I made the choice based on a friends review to go ahead with this. I appreciated that the author was not overly graphic or disturbing given the context.

While being a little tough to read because of the intense topics, once again Sally Hepworth has written a winning thriller. The descriptions of life for foster children grips you. Every time you think you had some answers you were surprised. The last page was probably the most surprising of all. Readers should really enjoy this one.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an early readers copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

Sally Hepworth has crafted a magnificent tale that had twist and turns to the end. I will be looking for more novels from her.

Oh, this was TWISTY! I absolutely loved the characterization of our main girls - they're so different, but you can really see how the shared trauma of their childhood impacted them into their adult years. It's very interesting to see how each of them deals with that trauma -- stemming from the same horrible person, but dealt with in a completely unique way for each of them.

I love stories with complicated / toxic / abusive mothers because I can absolutely relate, and seeing some of the narcissistic behaviors in this one really hit home -- so convincing and well written. I found myself empathizing with certain characters, despite that I should know better, and kicked myself by the time the last few pages came around, haha.

Overall, very good & atmospheric! Loved the main characters, loved the before & after timeline, loved the writing. My second book from Sally Hepworth, and definitely not my last!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Whew! What a thriller this book was! I could not put this one down!

Jessica, Norah, and Alicia were raised by their foster mother, Miss Fairchild, in an idyllic looking home. Their life was anything but idyllic though. Now, as adults, they are forced to return back to the town where they spent their horrible childhood, after bones were discovered under the house.

This book was fast paced and very well written. Hepworth did a great job writing about very intense subjects. This is one of the best thrillers I’ve read in a while! I look forward to reading what’s next from Hepworth!


📘: Darling Girls by Sally Hepworth
🗓️: April 23, 2024

Thank you to NetGalley, Sally Hepworth , and St.Martin’s Press for this ARC!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

*Reviewed on NetGalley, Amazon, and Goodreads.

Sally Hepworth's Darling Girls is a gripping and emotionally charged novel that delves deep into the bonds of sisterhood and the shadows of a troubled past. The story follows three foster sisters—Jessica, Norah, and Alicia—who, years after leaving their foster home, are drawn back together by the discovery of human remains near the house where they grew up. This chilling revelation forces them to confront long-buried secrets and traumas.

Hepworth masterfully intertwines past and present narratives, gradually unveiling the dark history that binds these women. Her characters are well-developed and richly complex, each grappling with their own demons and insecurities. Jessica’s need for control, Norah’s rebellious spirit, and Alicia’s quiet resilience create a compelling trio whose dynamics are both heartwarming and heartbreaking.

The novel excels in building suspense, with Hepworth's deft pacing keeping readers on edge. The psychological tension is palpable, and the twists are both surprising and satisfying. The author's exploration of themes such as trust, loyalty, and the impact of childhood experiences on adult life is thought-provoking and poignant.

While Darling Girls is an absorbing read, it does leave a few questions unanswered. Certain aspects of the foster mother's character and motivations could have been explored more deeply, and the resolution, though satisfying, feels slightly abrupt. Additionally, some secondary characters could have been fleshed out more to add further depth to the story.

Despite these minor shortcomings, Darling Girls is a compelling and emotionally resonant novel that showcases Sally Hepworth's talent for blending psychological drama with heartfelt storytelling. It’s a powerful exploration of sisterhood and survival that will stay with readers long after the final page.

Enjoyed this one! Definitely suggest checking the trigger warnings because there are parts of this story that are hard to read. The multi-povs were well done and didn’t confuse me. The storyline kept me wanting to read more and I felt like I flew through this! Definitely recommend if you like twisty reads!

Holy heck, I love Sally Hepworth!
Not only was this a great thriller, but it was loosely based on Australia's foster care system. It's very interesting and very sad to see that the system fails even there.
One thing I love about Sally Hepworth is her twists. You think you've gotten to the twist, and it's good. Then bam! You get hit with the real twist!
This book did not disappoint.
I was feeling bad for Miss Fairchild,but then at the end. BAM! nope!
I really liked the characters in this book! It was interesting to see the different results of the trauma the girls dealt with. They all had different issues that stemmed from the trauma. I was glad that they at least got a happy ending. Alicia's ending was my favorite.
I just really liked everything about this book tbh. This will definitely stay in my head for a while!
I highly recommend this book!

The main characters instantly drew me in and had me intrigued from the beginning! Overall it was a very suspenseful quick read.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy in exchange for my honest review

📚 book review 📚 Thank you to @stmartinspress & @macmillan.audio for the review copy!

I am not a huge thriller reader, but I am a huge Sally Hepworth fan. I loved her last two books, and generally like more domestic thriller/mysteries that are a little more character driven and less edge-of-your-seat-thriller.

Darling Girls was no different. The story is told in dual timelines - with three foster sisters visiting their former foster home as adults, and their past in the house as children.

For being a book centered around childhood trauma and abuse, I felt like the repercussions could have been developed more deeply. I think I’m used to seeing more of a healing journey around issues like this, instead of the book kind of throwing its hands up in the air like “trauma will be trauma”. Therapy can be very effective, and it feels like a cheap gimmick to not explore that more.

That aside, I thought it was a lot of fun. The stakes felt very low, but that didn’t bother me. It was a quick read!

This was my first Sally Hepworth novel, and definitely won’t be my last. This was a weirdly twisted story. It wasn’t much of a thriller, but I still really needed to know what happened to the foster girls while they lived with Miss Fairchild. Alicia, Jessica and Norah remained as close as blood sisters after their experiences living with Miss Fairchild. When, years later, there’s a body found on the property, the girls return to get answers. As we uncover parts of each girl’s history, including Miss Fairchild’s, we learn a lot about what happened in that house. The twist at the end was quite unexpected.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for my gifted copies of this book.

Sally Hepworth knows absolutely how to write a thriller that will make your head spin and fall in love with every character and this one was no different! Holy shit I loved this one so much!!
If you love a book about sisterhood and girls sticking together this is for sure the book for you. Jessica, Alicia, and Norah were all orphans taken to a girls home to live with Miss Fairchild and as you can imagine, Miss Fairchild is not the woman she appears to be. The three girls band together and have a bond that is truly unbreakable. Passing from current day to their turbulent childhood, you get to learn more and more about where these girls came from. Until in current day, a skeleton is found on the property where they once lived. Who is this mystery person and what happened to them??

Overall, the ending lost me a bit with how fast it all came together but overall it was another HUGE win for Sally Hepworth and I can’t recommend this one enough. If you are looking for a book club pick, this would be so fun! I kind of wished I saved it for my book club because there were so many different personalities and decisions shown in this book that would have made it fun to discuss!


Thank you so much to St. Martin’s Press and Netgalley for the early copy of this book! (That I still can’t manage to post on time.)

Everything Sally Hepworth writes turns to gold for me, and Darling Girls does not disappoint. The main characters instantly draw you in and I couldn't put this book down! I appreciated the character narration being told from differing perspectives and time periods, plus the twists will keep you guessing until the end!

Sally Hepworth hits it out of the park again with "My Darling Girls." She has become one of my favorite suspense writers with her unique stories, complex plots and authentic characters. Darling Girls tackles children in foster care and paints a vivid, and at times, hard to read picture of three girls in placement. Having worked in child protection, I found the stories of abuse and neglect experienced by the girls to be all too real. The girls form a bond, a sister relationship that helps them survive the emotional and physical torment perpetrated by Holy Fairchild, their foster parent. Years later, human bones are discovered under the foster home. As law enforcement investigates, the gorls, now young women deal with the fallout and reckoning of their past. The suspense was riveting as the story moved toward an ending I never saw coming.. Thanks to Sally Hepworth. Netgalley and publishers for the opportunity to read and review this excellent novel.

The clever plot of Darling Girls kept me turning pages, while the characters surprised and intrigued me. I loved everything about this novel and devoured it in one sitting.