The Good Sister

Sally Hepworth has done it again! She's written an amazing story full of interesting characters, plot points and twists.

I had absolutely no idea where this book was headed and that made me NEED to keep reading. Books like this are honestly my favourite; unpredictable tales that have a chilling thrill about them.

The characters in this book were fantastic. I really felt as though I knew Fern, and related to her in more ways than one.

I definitely recommend this book to those who are fans of the genre, because it's sure to be a huge hit!

Fern Castle works in her local library. She has dinner with her twin sister Rose three nights a week. And she avoids crowds, bright lights and loud noises as much as possible. Fern has a carefully structured life and disrupting her routine can be ... dangerous.

When Fern discovers that Rose wants to get pregnant but can’t, she decides she needs to help. After everything her sister has done for her, it’s the least she can do.

But as her plan develops, things start to crack around the edges. Her past is coming back to catch up to her, and it’s not all as it seems...

Sally Hepworth does it again! Another absolutely phenomenal book. It’s been a couple of months since I have read a book that I absolutely loved and couldn’t put down and I’m glad it was this one that broke the spell. I am absolutely LOVING seeing more authors write books from the perspective of real life people. Fern struggles with sensory issues and Sally opens these up brilliantly - the coming to terms with these challenges not being Fern’s fault, understanding how to manage them, and learning that there are other people in the world who also struggle with these on a day to day basis.

The other perspective is from Rose, who paints this picture of their mother being an absolute sociopath. She gets this image stuck in your head of what their mother did to them and that this was what made their life such a struggle.

The plot twist was brilliant and was one that I didn’t even guess until it pretty much happened. I love a book that leaves me guessing.

It’s fantastic and perfect for anyone that wants a ‘thriller’ without the nightmares and absolute terror of some more intense thrillers. It’s absolutely brilliant.

I loved so many things about this book. The characters and their relationships were very well written, the story was intriguing and the last third of the book had me on the edge of my seat!

I really like when books withhold crucial information and feed it to the reader slowly, and this book does exactly that. Through the inclusion of Rose’s diary entries alongside Fern’s point of view, we get both sisters’ perspectives of the events as they unfold.

I liked the way the author explored mental illness through the book – alluding to Fern’s mental illness and sensory processing difficulties on various occasions. Rose deals with her own mental health issues as we find out towards the end that she is the one that tried to kill her mother, orchestrated the death of the boy and tries to steal the baby from Fern after manipulating her. We also find out she was sexually assaulted as a child, and this would have had a devastating effect on her. There are so many layers to this story, and I loved the way each of them is peeled back and explored.

I was emotionally invested in the characters and their relationships. There were so many scenes in the second half of the book which pulled at my heart strings, Fern’s scene on the bus on the way to the clinic pulled was definitely one of them.

I loved this book. It was an intense read and I can’t wait to read another of Sally Hepworth’s books!

Twin sisters Fern and Rose are extremely close.
Fern is on the spectrum, and Rose considers herself her twin’s protector, making sure she is always safe and taken care of, something she has done since their troubled childhood.

When Rose and her husband, Owen, remain childless after years of struggling, Fern decides that she can finally return the help her sister has been giving to her all of these years. Fern can have a baby for Rose. She just needs to find a father.

What Fern doesn't bargain for is falling in love, the impact this will have on her relationship with Rose and the dangers of becoming closer than ever with her sister.

This novel incorporates both sisters point of view through Rose’s diary exploring the twins childhood and through Fern’s current day life.

Rose's diary tells of the girl's painful upbringing by a cruel and moody mother who always favored Fern over Rose. Rose also hints at a traumatic event that occurred when the girls were 12 that changes their lives forever, proving Fern will always need Rose to be there to fix her mistakes.

In the current day Fern is a librarian who is haunted by her childhood secret. She avoids loud noises, bright lights and crowds as she has sensory-processing issues. Fern has a carefully structured life and minimal relationships outside of Rose and her husband. However this all changes when she meets Wally at the library.

From here the less said about the plot details the better, because it is so interesting to watch the way everything unfolds.

This book emanates a heavy sense of foreboding while reading and I was on the edge of my seat anticipating a juicy twist. While the story definitely has thriller elements I loved the drama of the story and the character development so much more. This is a fast paced read and the drama never slows down, it is a constant ride of gripping emotion.

I love how the author has a way of writing relatable characters that pull me in and then throws you for a loop creating a fine line between protagonist and antagonist, introducing uncertain motives and hiding the truth just below the surface.

This novel has one of the most unique and loveable protagonists I’ve read about in a long while. It was an unpredictable, spine-tingling read that made me question everyone and in the end I loved watching this sister grow and blossom, while the other sister got what was coming to her.

An amazing book, I would highly recommend.

I haven’t read any of Sally Hepworth’s book before and was delighted to be given an opportunity by Netgalley and publisher Pan Macmillan Australia to read her latest novel The Good Sister.

The story is about twin sisters, Fern and Rose Castle. Their mother has an undiagnosed mental illness and their upbringing is fraught with tension and uncertainty. The story is told from the point of view of both sisters, with Rose also including a journal her therapist suggested to write to deal with some of her issues. While Fern is on the spectrum, Rose is presented as the caring an supportive sister who keeps a close eye on Fern. Rose becomes extremely concerned when Fern starts dating Wally who is a homeless IT consultant.

I really enjoyed the story and while there were a lot of mental illness issues for many of the characters this was presented in an incredibly sensitive and subtle ways; without labels or strict categorising characters as one thing or another - mental illness is complicated and labels are often inappropriate because they are a lot of individual variations. Although this is a work of fiction there are many aspects that could help people understand individuals who suffer from a mental illness.

The story itself had many, many twists that I didn’t see coming and this made it incredibly interesting. This was quite the ‘thriller’ without any blood or gore but with lots of undercurrents.

Highly recommended read.

I will also be looking to read more of Sally Hepworth’s novels.

Thank you again to Netgalley and Pan Macmillan for a copy to read and review.

Fern and Rose are twins sisters. The story switches between present day and memories from the past. Growing up life wasn’t always perfect but both girls have slightly different memories on their childhood.

Rose is the responsible one and early on you can see how motherly and protective she is over Fern. Fern follows a strict routine and enjoys her job at the library, the one place that always felt like home to her. Rose had the perfect husband and house all that’s missing is a baby. Rose becomes obsessed with getting pregnant only to find out that it can’t happens and her perfect life shifts.

Rode is very good at dropping subtle hints to Fern and Fern only seeing the good in people wants to help her sister. Fern meets Wally at work and their relationship blossoms naturally in their own quickly way. Rose becomes threatened by the thought or her sister becoming more independent and Rose begins laying the foundation of doubt.

Fern slowly beings too see though the lies and when it all comes to a head is it too late for the truth? Secrets always come back to haunt you! This was my second Hepworth novel and I freaking loved it! The manipulation, the love and the dedication to getting her way was fascinating.

Fraternal twin sisters Rose and Fern alternate in telling their stories in this psychological thriller. Fern seems to be on the spectrum and is has sensory issues. She believes she is a dangerous person due to a childhood incident. Working in a library she meets Rocco who she calls Wally due to his appearance which reminds her of Where's Wally in appearance.
Rose seems to be Fern's protector and is always looking out for her. Their mother is now in a nursing home but Fern is the only one who regularly visits her as Rose believes she made her childhood a misery.
The story develops in unexpected ways and is very successful in telling of a tragedy which affects both girls throughout their adolescence and adulthood until the truth slowly emerges. A great read.

Firstly I’m wondering what has taken me so long to pick up a Sally Hepworth book and secondly I need to read all her others. What an incredible read and my favourite thriller of 2020.

The story centres around twin sisters Rose and Fern. From when they were young Rose has always looked out for Fern especially when it was in relation to her mother. Rose is married and desperately wants a child and Fern lives alone and works at the local library. I don’t want to go into the story any further because it’s almost impossible to do without spoilers.

This one messed with my head in all the right ways that make an amazing thriller and I can’t recommend it highly enough. It kept me guessing right up until the end and is definitely one of my favourites of all time.

I want to thank Pan Macmillan and Netgalley for generously providing me with this book in exchange for an honest review.

Having recently read The Mother in Law by Sally Hepworth I was thrilled to receive an ARC of The Good Sister by the same author and IT IS PHENOMENAL. Part family drama, part mystery and a heart breaking account of how people on the low spectrum of Asperger’s syndrome function in our society.

Twin sisters Rose and Fern had a difficult childhood with period living in cars or libraries with their mother who suffered with mental health issues. The story unfolds over two POV - which I love - with Fern telling us about her childhood and how Rose has always been there for her. Fern has Sensory Processing Issues and is often overwhelmed by loud noises, bright lights, and pungent smells and Rose has always been her fierce protector. Fern works as a librarian and strikes up a friendship with a "homeless by choice" man and I love the journey her character takes in experiencing love for the first time.

The second POV is told through Rose's diary and we learn of the an event Rose holds over Fern - who blames herself, and we see an edge of manipulation and darkness to Rose and the toxicity of what initially appeared to be a loving healthy sister relationship.

A twisty turning family thriller with well developed and characters full of tension, thoroughly enjoyable and a solid 4/5 stars from me!
thanks to NetGalley and Sally Hepworth for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.