I loved that the three girls formed an unbreakable bound during a difficult time in their childhood. They continue to be there for each other as they go on to lead diverse lives. Sally Hepworth does an excellent job of building the story, continuously adding hints at what was really going on in the past. As the reader you are forced to question who is telling the truth and what actually happened, the twists just keep coming.

All I can say is WOW! Hepworth does it again! This was a dark, twisted thriller. I absolutely devoured this book!

The workings of a twisted mind taking care of foster kids and the traumas they dealt with under her care. Fast forward to their adult lives and a shocking discovery is found under their foster home.
This book has you guessing to the end, and the ending with shock you!
Highly recommend!

Another Sally Hepworth novel that did not disappoint! I devoured this book in just a couple of days. I love when a novel has shorter chapters especially a thriller. It makes it so easy to just keep reading until you realize you’ve reached the end and didn’t even know it. Also, the twist in this one had me baffled, did not see it coming. If you are a fan of Sally Hepworth and/or thrillers, do yourself a favor and pick this book up you won’t regret it.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for a copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

Sally Hepworth is quickly becoming a favorite author of mine. Her books are so easy to read and keep my attention with the way she weaves mystery with human connection is masterful. Darling Girls was no exception here, I needed to know what happened to these girls and what Ms. Fairchild had going on. Found siblings, tragic childhoods and now a child's body is found where these girls spent their childhood? A recipe for an un-put-downable read!

Wow this book was so good!!! The things these girls went through at Wild Meadows was just so sad and absolutely crazy! There was a then and now time line and then there is perspectives from each of the girls and someone unknown in a therapy session. This book wasn’t fast paced like a thriller but the drama and the secrets kept me wanting to absolutely devour this book, cause I gotta know what is going on here and whose dead body was it under the house! There are parts where you don’t know if they are telling the truth or lying, there was so much going on and I ate it all up! That being said make sure you check your trigger warnings before going into this one cause I do feel like this one is darker heavier read from Sally Hepworth.

Darling Girls is a thrilling, disturbing story of a foster mother, Miss Fairchild, who raises her foster children on a sprawling country property in Australia. The story has multiple points of views and alternating timelines between past and present. The past describes the foster daughters' traumatic experiences under Miss Fairchild's care, while the present describes an investigation into bones - likely a baby's - found buried on the property and the investigation into whose bones they belonged to, and what happened.

While the ending was somewhat unsurprising, there were still some unexpected twists and turns to the story. I give this one five stars for being a quick, addictive read, something I always look for when I read a thriller. This was my first time reading a Sally Hepworth novel and I look forward to exploring her other books.

Read if you like...
📚 Domestic and psychiatric thrillers
👥️ Multiple POVs
🗓 Dual timelines

🙏Thank you Netgalley and St Martin's Press for a gifted advanced electronic copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

⚠️ Potential Trigger Warnings (may not be an exhaustive list): foster care system, graphic child neglect/abuse, sexual assault, homicide.

I really enjoy Sally Hepworth's writing. She does a great job of creating intensifying suspense while also providing good character development, and she keeps getting better and better. The end was a bit out of nowhere and I think there are a few holes in the conclusion, but it was such an enjoyable read overall that I didn't mind too much.

Sally Hepworth does it again! A psychological thriller that has kept me flipping pages and trying to figure out the truth amidst so many secrets. In Darling Girls, Hepworth takes on the lasting legacy of abuse of foster children as they are growing up in a flawed system. These three "sisters" have faced some challenges and found strength from each other. I think the thing I appreciate most about Hepworth's writing is her ability to bring characters to the page that are so perfectly imperfect. Jessica, Norah and Alicia have lived through very difficult times, and still manage to put one foot in front of the other, despite the secrets they have all had to harbor. My only complaint for this book would be the ending, which felt a bit rushed and tidy in comparison to the remainder of the story.

Many thanks to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for providing me with an advanced eARC in exchange for my honest thoughts.

Sally Hepworth has become one of my favorite authors of thrillers as of late. The first third of the book was a little on the slow side for me setting up the backstory of the girls’ childhoods vs. where they were as adults, but the plot itself was interesting and I enjoyed the journey this novel took me on. The ending wasn’t nearly as twisty as I was hoping for, but satisfying none the less. All in all, I rated this one 4 out of 5 stars. Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and Sally Hepworth for this digital ARC.

Anytime child abuse is involved it’s a tough read but I really enjoyed this book. I felt so bad for the girls in this story and anyone who had to go through the foster care system. I thought I knew how this was going to end but was I wrong.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for allowing me to read this ARC in return for my voluntary and honest review

An incredible book with wonderful characters and a beautiful setting. It will keep you guessing until the end.

Compelling story with relatable characters. The three girls were all somewhat flawed people, which made them even more relatable. The story held me in suspense until the end.

I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I like how Hepworth writes a psychological thriller but adds some humor to it. The character of Nora with an H was especially amusing. True, her humor came because she was a train wreck.

This story moved a bit slower than some of the author’s other works. I did like the characters and their developments and there was a major twist. I think if you like the author’s other works, you will enjoy this one.

My head is spinning aftet ending this book.

Darling Girls follows three woman Jessica, Nora, and Alisha thru their lives living in foster care with Mrs. Fairchild. After a body is found under the house they lived in as children the girls must return to the town and Foster mother they fled. This book jumps timelines back and forth between not only characters but also past and present.

I'll admit it was an interesting story, however it was extremely complicated to keep up with. I still have questions. The ending felt hurried and lacked the proper flow to explain what happened.

Thank you Netgalley for a ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Absolutely YES!!!! I loved the multiple POVs and timelines. The ending is fabulous!
Highly recommend!

Thank you for the opportunity to read and review the newest title from Sally Hepworth!

Like all of Sally’s books I thoroughly enjoyed the ride! The characters were so diverse and complicated and the end left me appalled and disgusted (over what surprise is revealed).

I finished Darling Girls and I really liked it.

Three girls who have a close knit relationship with each other but not with their foster mother Ms. Fairchild.

Jessica- very organized, well put together was the closest to Ms Fairchild. She literally gave her everything she had. And Jessica just wanted to be loved and have a mother. Unfortunately, Jessica learned the hard way with her.

Norah-dangerous, unpredictable and she could care less about anything. She always had her sisters backs and I think Ms. Fairchild hated her the worse.

Alicia-hardworking, most sympathetic she just tried to do her time and get back with her Grammy.

All in all these characters grew on me. I loved the developing first chapters and loved the ending. The middle was interesting. So did Ms Fairchild just call Zara that because she wanted an Amy? Because she knew what she was doing the whole book. She knew she had killed Amy. The whole “made up story” got me good. Until realizing that Ms Fairchild was just a privileged entitled brat that couldn’t stand being second.

This wasn't my favorite Hepworth novel. Part of that is just my personal preference. I don't enjoy stories where foster children are abused by their foster parent. Not that I think many people actually enjoy those situations, but I have a visceral dislike for that kind of story. So, part of my problem with this book is all on me and I should've read the synopsis and known not to bother picking the book up.

But I think there are other issues besides a subject matter that I don't like. I just didn't find it to be all that thrilling. There weren't any instances when my heart started racing or I was worried for the characters. I also thought there should've been more twists. The only (somewhat) surprising thing takes place on the last couple of pages. (And even that isn't really surprising when you consider the other awful things this character has done.) The rest of the story was a lot of child abuse and grown women not being able to get their lives together. I think other books I've read by the author were much stronger.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an Arc of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

Jessica, Norah and Alicia are three foster sisters suddenly suspects when a body is discovered on the land they grew up on. Everyone thinks they were raised by the loving, doting and caring Miss Fairchild, but only they know the truth.

Darling Girls is twisty and distressing, exactly how I expect my domestic thrillers. Each girl is deeply disturbed with her own issues, but together they have a sister bond that can’t be broken. Creepy throughout but the ending was incredibly satisfying!

It’s hard to say I enjoyed a book like this one because it tackles the sad subject matter of child abuse but this was an emotional and riveting read. Darling Girls tugged at my heartstrings and while much of it made me angry, I could not put the book down. This is a story about the bonds between sisters, the family that you choose, inner strength and resilience. In the midst of all this there is somewhat of a mystery and the author kept me guessing until the final page.

I liked all three central characters, Jessica, Norah, and Alicia. Author Sally Hepworth really brings them to life in these pages. Each of these women went through so much as children and now a adults they still struggle with their demons but they have each other to lean on. Alicia is a social worker helping foster kids, Jessica runs her own home organizing business and Nora is still finding her way in life

This is my second book by this author, I read The Soulmate last year. I’d definitely read more of her work.