I love Sally Hepworth so I am not surprised that this was another great book.
I loved that this was set in Australia, I’ve been wanting to go there so bad lately so it made it that much better.
Three foster girls and an evil terrible foster mother - years later bones are found on the property.

I enjoyed this book, each character storyline was well developed, I thought I had it all figured out but the twist at the end was unexpected.

DARLING GIRLS is another zippy, twisty, and dark thriller from Sally Hepworth.

Set in Australia and centered around three women - Jessica, Alicia, and Nora - who grew up together in an “idyllic” foster home. When a body is uncovered in the rubble of this home, the three reunite and uncover secrets from their past.

I love the way Sally Hepworth combines family dynamics and compelling thrillers and DARLING GIRLS does not sway from this winning formula. The relationship between the sisters is compelling and heartwarming, though at times underdeveloped.

The mystery elements of the story are relatively run of the mill. I guessed the ending coming a mile away, which is unusual for me, but could be due to the many Hepworth novels I’ve consumed in the last few years. The novel is also darker than her others, the subject matter centering on children made it quite hard to read at moments.

Overall: I will always reach for a Sally Hepworth novel when I want something propulsive, particularly if I need a book to break a reading slump.

DARLING GIRLS is out now! Thank you to @macmillanaudio and @stmartinspress for my audio copy 📚

Thank you NetGalley for this free audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

This is my second Sally Hepworth book and won’t be my last. She knows how to write a mystery. I loved this book so much. It was captivating to listen to. I loved the different points of view and the women’s fiction aspect of it. It was something you NEEDED to know the ending to.

Sally Hepworth is always an entertaining read. DARLING GIRLS may not be my favorite of her works — the tempo and some of the plotting don’t deliver the perfect punch – but Hepworth takes good care to keep you engaged in the story.. (Audio edition)

I read this as a buddy read and it was a good choice! I am normally a romance reader, but I occasionally dabble in other genres. This book definitely made me want to read more thrillers this year. The author did a great job at writing all of the characters, especially Miss Fairchild.

Three young girls form a lifelong connection when they are each rescued from family tragedy and brought to the home of Holly Fairchild, their new foster mom. But things are not what they seem as they learn to navigate the “rules” of Miss Fairchild.

When a body is discovered at the secluded estate years after they have left it, these three find themselves thrust into the spotlight as questions about that house and what happened to them emerge.

Sally Hepworth has become a go-to thriller author when I’m looking for deeper, emotional books that include a mystery/thriller element. Her characters are always fully fleshed out, her plot easy to follow and pacing always even. I would definitely recommend grabbing a copy for the pool (like this cover subliminally suggests).

🎧 I read this one with my ears and have to say how much I loved Jessica Clarke’s narration. Her voice is crystal clear throughout the entirety of the story and she manages to convey that eerie ominous feel surrounding the foster care home and the psychological games these characters endured.

Read if you like:
•domestic suspense
•psychological thrillers
•ensemble casts
•multiple POVs
•dual timelines

Thank you St. Martin’s Press and Macmillan Audio for the gifted copies.

I know when I pick up a book by Sally Hepworth that I'm in for a twisty ride, and this was no exception! I really enjoyed the dual timeline as the book moved back and forth from the present to the past to tell the story of the three sisters - foster children in the same house. Ms. Hepworth kept me guessing - whose bones had they uncovered at their old foster home?

Jessica Clarke is an excellent narrator, I couldn't put this one down!

This was an intense read that I could not put down! A story that kept me on my toes. I love the deep dive into the characters.

This was a twisty mystery! I like that every time I thought I had it all figured out, Sally Hepworth would prove me wrong and I would be forced to pivot my way of thinking. I look forward to reading more of Sally's work in the future as this was a thoroughly enjoyable listen.

Jessica Clarke did a great job narrating this novel and I will be looking for more of Jessica's work as well.

I enjoyed this story of 3 very different sisters yet bonded by blood. The audiobook was fantastic to listen to while I drove. Made me look forward to the longer car rides. You won’t be disappointed!

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.

I enjoyed the narration for this story. Jessica did a great job differentiating between the girls and giving us each of their point of views,

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for my gifted copies of this book.

Enjoyed this audiobook. Story was a bit slow, but still enjoyed the overall story. The sisters flowed together well, and as with a real life family, all had very different personalities but a strong bond. Narrator was great.
Thank you to NetGalley & Macmillan Audio for the ARC

Australia ~ Foster families ~ Murder ~ Secrets ~ Suspense ~ Sisters ~ Psychological thriller ~ Childhood trauma ~ Audiobook ~ Well-written characters

I recommend this book. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Thank you to NetGalley & Macmillan Audio for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. This book was released 23 Apr 2024.

I didn’t know what to expect going into this but I enjoyed it! The audio book was fantastic and the narrator did a great job.

The narration was great however the actually story was ⭐️⭐️⭐️.
The plot unfolded at a painfully slow pace. The ending was kind of anticlimactic and fell flat.

Hepworth knows how to weave a story together so flawlessly. I couldn't get enough of this story. The sisters and their completely different personalities complimented each other so well. If you're looking for a story to hook you from the very first page this one is for you. Thanks to NetGalley for an advance copy in exchange for my honest feedback!

Darling Girls
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Author: Sally Hepworth

I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press and Macmillan Audio and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased.

Synopsis: For as long as they can remember, Jessica, Norah, and Alicia have been told how lucky they are. As young girls they were rescued from family tragedies and raised by a loving foster mother, Miss Fairchild, on an idyllic farming estate and given an elusive second chance at a happy family life.

But their childhood wasn’t the fairy tale everyone thinks it was. Miss Fairchild had rules. Miss Fairchild could be unpredictable. And Miss Fairchild was never, ever to be crossed. In a moment of desperation, the three broke away from Miss Fairchild and thought they were free. Even though they never saw her again, she was always somewhere in the shadows of their minds. When a body is discovered under the home they grew up in, the foster sisters find themselves thrust into the spotlight as key witnesses. Or are they prime suspects?

My Thoughts: This was a captivating tale of sisterhood love and secrets, and what happens when you test the boiling point with murder. Jessica, Norah, and Alicia were pulled from their homes and placed with Miss Fairchild, the best foster mother that the system had, living on an exclusive large farm called Wild Meadows. However, their childhood was not the fairytales that everyone believes. Miss Fairchild had rules and was highly unpredictable. When the trio finally broke away, they thought they were free. When the farm is sold and a body is found, they become the key witnesses, or suspects?

The story is set in Australia, which I love. The three girls get a call from law enforcement about discovering a body under the place they called home for a few years. They all return for interviews with the detective, but also to hopefully get some closure and healing. The story is narrated in both present and past tense of the three girls. The narrative really gives an insight into what happened to these girls, how they grew through the process, and how they had to do anything to survive. I really love how the story focused on three girls, united by fostering, but kept a sister bond through their lives.

The story is narrated in a third person POV. The narrators are primarily Jessica, Norah, and Alicia, with a fourth unknown person having discussions with a psychologist. Jessica’s life is deteriorating when she is caught stealing pills from a client home and struggling with demons of addiction and being estranged from her husband. She is complex, and we start to discover the layers to her character. Norah has her own demons, struggling with anger and the thought of facing jail time. She is sarcastic and her character’s vulnerability really penetrates my heart. Finally, Alicia, is now a social worker, although she is very insecure and has been unable to have meaningful relationships with anyone. She has a very kind and compassionate heart. The characters were well developed, fleshed out, were mysterious, secretive, and intriguing. The author’s writing style was complex, multilayered, twisty, suspenseful, and just brilliantly written. Our characters were built up in a slow burn manner, the plot is developed in twisty layers, and the ending is brilliant.

TW: emotional abuse, physical abuse, and addiction. Hepworth’s new novel is everything you expect from her. It was captivating, compelling, twisty, dark, and gripping. This psychological thriller will keep you on the edge of your seat. The narrator, Jessica Clarke, does an amazing job with voice variation within character distinction. Has excellent pitch and flow, I was able to listen at 2x speed and had no issues understanding and keeping up. This heart-wrenching novel will be a top book for this year. I have read other Hepworth books before, but I thin this is the best one yet. I highly recommend picking this up today! Please read the author note after the story, it provides the context for this novel.

What a heartbreaking story! And masterfully weaved.

It is a story about three women, that had became sisters under the roof of their foster mother. Now, 25 years later, a dead body is about to reunite all of them and resurface all the forgotten secrets and pains.

The bond between these three women was awesome to watch. They grow through the bad and the good together, building their bond and strength through the horrors of living with the woman that seems so good in the eyes of everyone else around them. It shed so much light on living in foster care, on mental health, on childhood trauma that keeps following through the rest of your life.

Though in parts it felt a bit slow, the twist in the end, and the secrets that were uncovered left me loving this book, and would definitely recommend for those looking for women's fiction with sister bond, mental health, and family secrets.

Thank you to St. Martin's press for me audio review copy.

This is my 2nd Sally Hepworth book and unfortunately I think we just don’t vibe well. I found the premise interesting but for the entire the middle section I just tuned out. The ending was interesting but I didn’t like the pretty bow put on it.
It’s not you, it’s me.

I did enjoy the narration but the POVs were a bit much.

2.5