Thank you for an advanced copy of Darling Girls audio sent via email.

I love Sally Hepworth’s writing style. It’s something so wonderful to see in a suspense or thriller. She gives the perfect amount of details, storyline, clues, and it all comes together beautifully.

The audio of this book is done very well. I liked the readers voice, tone, pitch & had a good time listening to the book rather than reading it personally.

I will be recommending this audio to others after completing.

I am a Sally Hepworth fan so I was thrilled to receive an ARC of Darling Girls. Thank you Netgalley & Macmillan Audio! I have really mixed feelings about Darling Girls. I found parts of it very disturbing with regard to the child abuse and manipulation, but at the same time I kept reading it and cruised through this one very quickly. I spent most of the book not liking it but decided to add a star to my rating due to the surprise ending. Looking forward to more from Sally Hepworth in the future though!

Sally Hepworth never fails to impress me with her writing. I was immediately drawn into this because she did such a good job of developing the characters. Each character was so interesting and distinct and had a journey I wanted to follow. I loved the relationships between the sisters and watching their story play out and justice be served was wonderful. The scenes with the therapist really shocked me at the end and that final twist really threw me for a loop. Miss Fairchild was a twisted woman but it was very entertaining watching her get what was coming to her. There wasn't a dull moment in this book and it was full of intrigue. Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for this advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

AHH! I loved this one. Such a page turner of a mystery, I could not get enough. Jessica, Norah, and Alicia have been afforded a wonderful life by their foster mother. Now, all these years later, a body turns up on the the property of their childhood home. Now the mystery begins, whodunnit? Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for a copy of this book for an honest review.

My first read of this author. Definitely a page turner. I was shocked by some of the twists. I'll be watching for new releases from Hepworth in the future.

This was a terrific slow burn suspense/ thriller! I really enjoyed the audiobook version of Darling Girls- the narration was excellent. The character development and dual timelines were well executed and kept me hanging on every word. I was truly shocked by the twist at the end of the book. I would definitely recommend this audiobook to any lover of mystery, thriller, and suspense books.

Thanks for netgalley and the publishers for the early copies of darling girls by sally hepworth! Sally is an auto buy other for me, I love the way she develops her characters and I love how she always leaves it to the very last second to reveal something wild about the plot.

Darling Girls might just be my new Sally Hepworth favorite. Let’s call it a close second to The Good Sister (I’m not sure anyone will ever dethrone Fern). Darling Girls is a fast-paced read with multiple points of view and dual timelines. I found the story and characters easy to follow and differentiate between. Hepworth does a great job of making each sister's voice distinct. The twists and turns were great. Some I predicted, others I did not. I highly recommend this novel for lovers of suspense, thriller and mystery.

I started with the ebook and finished with the audiobook. Both were done well. The narrator, Jessica Clarke, does a fantastic job.

Special thanks to Macmillan Audio and St. Martin’s Press for the audiobook and ARC via NetGalley.

This story made me cry tears of sadness and tears of joy. This is a heart-wrenching tale of loss, lies, secrets, and manipulation. Everyone has a story but only one person knows the truth. What really happened at Wild Meadows that has contributed to what the young girls of long ago have become? I was gripped by each girl’s story of their time with the malevolent Miss Fairchild. Once they are again brought together by tragedy, secrets are revealed, and lives are changed forever. The incidents of abuse were difficult to read and extremely disturbing. There were times throughout the story when I was unsettled and other times when I was rejoicing. This is a story of triumph, survival, and sisterly bonds that withstand unspeakable trauma. It’s compelling, heartbreaking with an ending that shook me to my core. The narrators soothing voice brought intensity when needed while also showing emotion. Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for my audiobook.

I loved this book! Jessica Clark did an amazing job narrating this book I couldn’t stop listening. The story of foster sisters Alicia, Jessica and Norah have been told they were lucky to be placed with Mrs. Fairchild at large estate. The girls soon learn that things aren’t as they appear and they begin to lean on each other to survive.
I loved all the twists this book had to offer I was guessing at the outcome until the very end. A wonderful who done it told from each sisters perspective now and in the past.
This was my first Sally Hepworth book and I couldn’t listen to it fast enough. A must listen

I adore Sally Hepworth! She is one of my auto-read authors. This one was great, and I enjoyed switching between the past and present timelines. I can’t wait to see what she comes up with next!

(So Sorry I posted all my reviews prior to pub date and forgot to come here - not like me, again so sorry)

...

So I’ve read a few Sally Hepworth books now and have come to expect a certain level of mindfuckery which she absolutely delivers here in Daring Girls.

Switching between the present and the past we learn the story of three foster sisters who experienced gaslighting and abuse from their foster mother. While everything seems normal at first in both timelines we quickly start to uncover what happened and what has led the sisters to be….. Well… How they are now.

It’s very easy to root for all three sisters too. Having the little epilogue helped a lot as far as the resolutions of their coping mechanisms. I also love the names of Norah’s dogs 😂

It’s a bit hard to read at times between the gaslighting and child abuse. With the tension so high it’s absolutely impossible to put down because in both timelines I was worried about the sisters and then the current mystery! Who’s body was under the house? She managed to put enough humor and lighter moments in to give us a breather thankfully.

Keeping it interesting right up until the last sentence, Hepworth throws constant wrenches in our opinion of things. I was thinking that it was a perfect five star thriller *riiight* up until the last paragraph when she went over my suspension of disbelief in fiction. I won’t say why because y’all have to read to find out but I want to know what everyone thinks when you read it.

In the audio, once I got used to Jessica Clarke’s Australian accent I enjoyed it quite a bit. I think I’d have liked reading this one more because with so many characters and names it’s hard to keep track on audio, although Clarke kept the voices different enough that it wasn’t hard. I would listen to more by her!

Overall I definitely recommend this one for fans of psychological thrillers as long as you can handle some graphic descriptions of child abuse and things that the foster kids had happen to them in prior homes.

https://onereadingnurse.com/2024/04/12/alc-review-darling-girls-by-sally-hepworth/

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4/5 stars. Hepworth is an auto-read author for me, and I enjoyed this book as much as her others! I particularly enjoyed the bond the sisters had. I wished there had been more about the foster mom, and that the end had tied up in a more satisfying way. But overall this was a good one!

An ideal wine mom mystery, Darling Girls is a stress-free reading experience with broad appeal; even with its narrative touching upon subject matters such as domestic violence or drug abuse, it is always through the gentrified lens of glossy entertainment, rather than depicting the frank, ugly reality.

The 'thrills' are mostly derived from information being intentionally withheld, rather than action taking place in its plot (characters did very little other than conversing among each others in different environments), but overall I was entertained by most of its maneuvers (except for one instance where a concealed identity was pretty obvious early on), and the fiery personalities / bonding of the three sisters (which really came to life via its audiobook). The pivotal villain was unfortunately cartoonish and garishly depicted, lacking any compelling nuances (which, could be an intentional choice to lessen the true brutality of their action).

Darling Girls is a fine choice if you're seeking a surface level thrill, with sensationalized melodrama that is involving without graphic violence or gore on page. Even though personally speaking this is overall too low-stake and action-less for my usual preference, the short chapters and lively narration elevates the experience overall.

Echoes of the Past

The story of three young girls, all end up at the foster farm ran by Miss Fairchild. It appeared to be the ideal place on a farm where they could grow up. Unfortunately, things were not as they appeared as Jessica, Norah and Alicia were soon to discover.
They learned that Miss Fairchild had rules and she must always be obeyed or dire consequences would occur.

They could handle the three of them and they became like sisters. Then the babies started coming and everything changed. They found that they could no longer endure the existence at the farm under miss Fairchild and they broke away.

They never saw her again until the notice came in the mail for all of them to gather once more at the farm. It appears that bones were found buried at the farm and they were all being questioned as witnesses…so why did it feel like they were suspects.

They needed to find out the mystery of the bones before they were implicated in the murder.
A story of abuse, mystery and lasting consequences of what they witnessed at the farm as they were foster children there. It left an impression on them, each one in a different way but all were affected by it.

I listened to the audio book. The narrator had a pleasant voice and was easily understood. She did a good job on the narration.

A tragic mystery that will keep you reading.

Thanks to Sally Hepworth for writing a great story, to Jessica Clarke for a great narration, to Macmillan audio for publishing it and to NetGalley for providing me a copy to listen to and review

Sally Hepworth never disappoints! I enjoyed the dual the timeline and the twist at the end was *chefs kiss*! The character development was well written and I found myself invested in their well being from the very beginning. The narcissistic personality portrayed by Miss Fairchild made her so unlikeable I felt like Sally Hepworth had to have encountered a person just like this in real life. Loved every second of this story!

This was such a good read. Twists on top of twists. And oh man what an ending!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the E-ARC. And to Macmillan Audio for the ALC.

All thoughts and opinions are honest and my own.

Sally Hepworth captivates audiences again, this time with a thriller centering on a group of youth who suffered greatly at the hands of their adoptive mother. This might feel like a trope that's been overdone, but the ending is unexpected which gives fresh life to this storyline.

Jessica, Norah and Alicia are foster sisters that grew up under the care of Miss Fairchild. On the outside, it looked as if they were beyond lucky to have such a loving and caring home. However, behind closed doors, Miss Fairchild had rules and expectations that were extreme and outside the realm of normal. The girls managed to escape Miss Fairchild and ventured into adulthood without her.

Years later, they are called back to town due to a body being found under the home that was once Mrs. Fairchild's. They are forced to relive and remember parts of their past- are they witnesses, suspects, or are one of them the murderers? Who is under the home?

This psychological thriller by Sally Hepworth has once again knocked me off my feet at all of the twists and turns! You will be constantly wondering and guessing!

Thank you to the author Sally Hepworth, publishers St. Martin's Press, and NetGalley for an advance digital copy of DARLING GIRLS. All views are mine.

Slowly, Miss Fairchild became Jessica's entire universe. Jessica became intimately attuned to her moods. She knew how to please her, charm her, how to soothe her. She knew when it was a good time to ask for something, and when to accept that all was lost.

I actually really loved this book about girls no one wants who have to come together and take care of matters themselves. This was a redemption read for me, as I didn't get along well with the last book I read from this author. Honestly, I couldn't have picked a better one. Wonderful, loathsome characters whom I both despised and couldn't get enough of. They are also complex enough to have good impact on the plot, so I was surprised a few times. The ending killed me in the best way. Only a few minor quibbles for this book. Will I read Hepworth's next book? Yes, yes I will!

After all, if crime novels are anything to go by, the only person more likely to commit murder than a foster child, is a woman who is childless by choice.

Three (or more) things I loved:

1. The concept is excellent and creepy, and the character introductions definitely hooked me!

2. This text lends well to an audiobook, and the narrator does an excellent job.

3. This power play tug-of-war between the character's is excellent. Exemplary psych thriller fare. I'm finding this story hard to walk away from!

Three (or less) things I didn't love:

This section isn't only for criticisms. It's merely for items that I felt something for other than "love" or some interpretation thereof.

1. The metaphors are cliched, heavy, and bad: Her wrath, when it came, was like a runaway train....

2. I rarely say this, but I wish the denouement had been longer! The climax works, but I was left with too many questions at the end of the book. Especially about Jessica, whose character trajectory is wonderfully complex.

Rating: 🧒🏽👶🏻👱‍♀️🙍🏻‍♀️🧑‍🦲 /5 foster kids
Recommend? Yes!
Finished: May 10, 2024
Format: Digital arc, Kindle, audiobook, NetGalley
Read this book if you like:
🤐 dysfunctional family stories
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 family stories, family drama
👭🏽 young girl friendships
💇‍♀️ girl's coming of age
🤫 family secrets