”Aren’t you a darling girl?” Mum would say as she stood over the bassinet, gazing at her. “How I love you, darling girl.” It made me sick.

Darling Girls was my 5th read from Hepworth and my favorite thus far. Hepworth can write thrillers like no other! This novel is told from multiple points of view- Jessica, Norah, and Alicia, all foster children in the 90’s as well as an account from a Dr. Warren, psychologist. You aren’t sure whom is communicating with Dr. Warren until the end of the story which adds to the suspense. The book is also told in the present day but flashes back to the girls time at Wild Meadows- both time frames essential to the plot.

Darling Girls is a domestic thriller done right. I highly recommend picking it up for your next 5 star read!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC!

This was such a wild ride. I really liked the sisters and the story was cool although the plot twist at the end was lacking for me unfortunately. Overall I really liked it and I liked the narrator too

Thank you to McMillan Audio, Netgalley and the author Sally Hepworth for allowing me to listen to this audiobook for an honest review. This domestic thriller about three foster sisters had me hooked from the beginning. There were so many twists and turns throughout the book, super suspenseful, and the ending was amazing! I really enjoyed these sister's bond and relationship, and the storyline was very intriguing. This was my first Sally Hepworth book and definitely won't be my last. (Review posted on Goodreads)

Thank you Netgalley for an ARC audio of one of my favorite authors! Sally Hepworth's books are always suspenseful and interesting and her newest is no different. It's a story about three foster children who grew up in the same house together (Wild Meadows) under the thumb of unpredictable Miss Fairchild. Years later when a body is found on the property, the girls return to help uncover the truth about the person they lived with for so many years. What follows are secrets that no one saw coming, especially them. This book has it all, including a surprise ending! The narrator was good, but I did struggle a bit with some of her narrative.

Trigger Warning: Child Neglect & Mental, Emotional & Physical Abuse.

Darling Girls focuses on 3 foster children, Alicia, Norah & Jessica (and their evil foster mom Ms. Fairchild whose name is just as evil) after they receive a phone call 25 years later that human bones were found under the house they grew up in. The story weaves through past and present time, allowing the readers to grasp what awful things the girls went through under Ms. Fairchild’s care.

I quite literally listened to this book in under 24 hours. This book had me hooked from the very beginning and I needed to know what happened next. The ending…. I definitely did not see coming. I was 😱😱😱

Thanks so much Netgalley, St. Martin’s Press & Macmillan Audio for the opportunity to read / listen to this ARC!

This was a good quick read for me. I thought the premise was interesting. 3 sisters and a sordid past. I definitely would recommend.

Jessica, Norah and Alicia were not born sisters,; they became sisters. Raised on a country estate as Forster children they learned to have each other’s backs. The woman responsible for their care, Miss Fairchild, was far from stable. She expected a lot from the girls and,if she didn’t get what she wanted her punishments were cruel. Now, years later, a body has been found on the estate and the sisters find themselves having to relive their pasts and revisit old wounds. They need to know, who was buried on the estate and why?

Did I just become a full-on Hepworth fan? I think I did! I loved this book! And, having just read The Soulmate, and also loving that book, I now need to read everything she ever writes!

Seriously though, the journey these woman take us on, all told from such unique perspectives, was inspired. The characters are authentic and likable. The mystery at the heart of the story is engrossing and keeps you on your toes throughout. And the ending….. fantastic!

I listened to this in audiobook format. It is narrated by Jessica Clarke. I actually read this before I was offered the audio version. The narrator brought these characters to life for me. I really enjoyed hearing the Australian accent along with this story that takes place in Australia. I highly recommend it!

Huge thank you to Macmillian Audio for the opportunity to listen to this book in exchange for an honest review.

I love a Sally Hepworth thriller! This audiobook did not disappoint. There were so many things going on stemming from the trauma these girls experienced in childhood and it was fascinating to see it all unfold!

Alicia, Jessica, and Norah are three girls who survived the foster mother, Miss Fairchild and as adults remain friends and "sisters." The novel flashes back and forth from the past in Miss Fairchild's home to the present when the girls are independent adults. Suddenly called back by the police to their former foster home, they wonder about the bones of a young child found underneath the demolished house.

The focus is on foster children and how they might fare under foster parents who are abusive, controlling, emotionally unhinged. And a foster care system that might also have social workers not invested in the welfare of children they supervise.
The book becomes a mystery to be solved about the identity of the child who was buried years ago under the house they called home.

The characters are delineated carefully, their stories sometimes horrific. The novel has a twist at the end that is chilling.

Not all sisters are blood related. There’s a special bond that’s formed when you go through something traumatic together.

Jessica is the first Fairfield foster child we meet. Jessica seeks her constant approval and affection even though Ms. Fairchilds methods are questionable and borderline abusive at best. Jessica’s affection and the $ received as being a foster parent do not satisfy her obsession with balancing the books and being loved along with an impeccably clean house.

Then comes Norah who brings her own set of problems. She has a lot of aggression pent up And has trouble keeping it inside.

Alicia joins the girls when her grandmother gets sick. What was initially intended as a temporary custody situation, sadly becomes a permanent foster.

Through gaslighting, psychological abuse, and lies, the girls are made to question their sanity.

Until present day, a body is found underneath the house. Correction. Bones. Are they those of one of the babies the girls were caring for?

This story is told with both present day and the past concurrently. We explore each of the sisters’ experiences and their coping strategies they have developed which may or may not have made more problems.

Darling Girls tells the story of 3 young girls in an Australian foster home run, Wild Meadows, run by Ms. Fairchild. It is told in alternating then and now timelines, giving each main character a voice before and after the event that pulls them all back together.

25 years after leaving Ms. Fairchild’s care, the Darling Girls are living relatively productive lives, or so it seems. Mostly. Ok, Norah is a problem. The characters are flawed and their flaws are shown almost immediately. The author highlights those flaws and motivations and shows how each was a product of their origins.

This was an engaging and enjoyable read. The story unfolds slowly, using the alternating timelines. I enjoyed the opening and ending chapters and how they balanced the story. I love it when a book's title is revealed/explained in the telling.,

The characters felt a little flat and a couple of the interactions required a rather large suspension of belief but overall, this was a good story.

I enjoyed the narrator; crisp, clean narration. I always appreciate when a book set in a county like Australia is voiced by someone with an appropriate accent.

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for Arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

First off, I love Sally Hepworth, but this one is different with its focus on child abuse and neglect. Hepworth still kept me listening with the short chapters and different perspectives and timelines, but I did find it harder to digest. Miss Fairchild fosters/abuses her “darling girls” in the past timeline, and in the present the girls are called into question when bones are found below the house of their foster home years later. I found myself just wanting to listen to one more chapter to get answers all the way up to the end.

Huge thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the ALC.

Darling Girls by Sally Hepworth was such a captivating and wild ride of a psychological thriller! I couldn’t stop listening to it!

Every aspect of the book made you feel something; sadness and love for the children, who despite their horrible upbringing, bonded and really became sisters over. Mrs. Fairchild, their foster caregiver, was a horribly nasty person and you just couldn’t help but LOATE her! Nothing short of awesome writing and character development can make you feel this way!

The ending…. I didn’t see it coming! Completely taken by surprise! It was a great book all together!

The author did a great job of shining light on the flawed side of the foster system. That being said, I would preface with there being trigger warnings of mental, emotional and physical abuse and child neglect.

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for an ARC copy in return for an honest review.

Sally Hepworth knows how to write a psychological thriller. Every time I pick up one of her books I finish it in a day or two. I want to get to the end, but don’t actually want it to end!

There were many things I liked about this book. The sisters bond…I love how they all had each other in their difficult upbringing. The evil villain…Ms. Fairchild. You can’t help but truly hate this woman. And just the story itself. Unfortunately for many foster children, they experience similar things to the 3 children in this book. I like how the author kept the story believable. And the best part, in my opinion, was the ending. It solidified my opinion on one of the main characters and really shocked, I definitely didn’t see that ending and it was perfect for this book.

The narrator did a great job with this audio.

***Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for an ARC copy in return for an honest review***

Thank you for allowing me to listen to this audiobook as an ARC.
OMG what a ride. I flew through this one as I could not put it down!! As usual, another amazing book by Sally Hepworth. I have loved every single one of her books and this one for sure is right up there along with all the others. Excellent story and you can tell that the author conducted research about the foster system!
The characters are well described and built up with the back and forth in the 2 different times. I felt like I was there in the story with them and could picture everything in front of me. Great character selection for all of them. I especially loved the ending as no stone was left unturned and the reader didn't have to wonder about what happened to any of them. And of course those twists and turns. Fascinating and totally unexpected! Excellent audiobook, 5 🌟

WOW I had no idea where this one was headed but I was so glad to be along for the ride!!!

I loved the sisters and their devotion to one another. I thought that was a very nice touch from Sally, because there are so many foster kids without allies.

I thought I had the ending figured out and then there were a few twists that gave me total whiplash!!!! I enjoyed this one, but it isn't my fave from Hepworth.

A compelling story that pulled me in. I liked how the author told the story from each girls perspective.
I was surprised by the ending.. although I probably shouldn’t have been.

Darling Girls focuses on three foster "sisters", who grew up together for a couple of years at Wild Meadows foster home in Port Agatha. They are all grown and living their not so best lives, when they each receive a phone call 25 years later from a detective about the discovery of human bones on the site of Meadows Hill.
All three of the women who are so close they call each other sisters, go back to Meadows Hill to be interviewed by the detectives on the case. Jessica, Alicia, and Norah all have flashbacks from their time at Meadows Hill and with their cruel and abusive foster mother, Miss Fairchild. It's a mystery who the bones could belong to, because as children no one ever believed them and they were gaslit for years.
This book was a very good portrayal on the life-long lasting effects of being raised by an abusive, narcissistic foster parent/ parent. There was also a good character study done on that of Miss Fairchild, and how she was able to manipulate everyone around her.
I highly recommend reading this book, as the twists and turns were plentiful!!

A highly suspenseful, unpredictable, and gripping novel about sisters, secrets, and childhood trauma. There were twists and turns throughout with an unexpected ending!

Thank you Netgalley and McMillan audio for this ARC

Jessica, Norah and Alicia are foster girls rescued from different family situations and placed with Miss Holly Fairchild at Wild Meadows farm in the 1990s. The book goes back and forth between past and present, it showed how they came to have such a tight bond. The reader is drawn in to read about what happened to the foster girls before and while they were at Wild Meadows.
Years go by before they get a phone call from police about a body found under the house. The questions that rises, do they know anything? Did they do it?

This is the first book I have read by Sally Hepworth and she kept me on my toes. It was wonderfully twisted, dark and I was horrified to read about the torment the girls went through and made me call my mom after I was done just to tell her I love her.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the arc in exchange for my honest review!