Thrillers are supposed to keep you on the edge of your seat, and D.J. Palmer succeeds with his new book, The Perfect Daughter, including a total surprise ending. At the core of the story is the concept of multiple personalities — now known as Dissociative Identity Disorder — that have been a popular idea since the movie The Three Faces of Eve and the book Sybil. Did Penny/Eve/Ruby/Chloe murder her birth mother? Grace struggles to prove her adopted daughter Penny/Eve/Ruby/Chloe innocence. At the same time the girl’s doctor, Mitch McHugh, has to find ways to verify that the girl really has the disorder. Putting clues together Grace, Mitch, and Grace’s son Jack find ways to peel back the layers to find the truth. Highly recommended.

This thriller explores the truth or lies behind a teenage girl's multiple personality disorder. It is an unputdownable, fascinating, and gripping novel. A young daughter with several personalities, twisty family dynamics, a murder and a psychiatric hospital! Oh my. I loved Saving Meghan and absolutely loved The Perfect Daughter. DJ Palmer doesn’t disappoint. 5 stars.

3.5 STARS

Penny Francone, age sixteen, has been charged with a brutal murder. All the evidence points to her guilt especially considering who the victim is in relation to Penny. While it looks at the outset like an open and shut case, Penny’s mother and advocate, Grace, believes Penny is not responsible because she has a multiple personality disorder. Grace wants a verdict of not guilty by reason of insanity; however, that is very difficult to prove in court so the odds are definitely not in her favor. Penny was adopted out of a very extreme circumstance when she was four years old.

Penny is currently incarcerated in a maxim security psychiatric hospital where she comes under the care of Dr. Mitch McHugh. Mitch has his own family issues to deal with making him more sympathetic and empathic to Penny’s case than the previous doctor in charge. Penny’s multiple personalities include: Eve, a goth girl who seems very capable of committing such a horrific crime, Ruby, a Harry Potter loving with a British affectation, and Chloe, a hard-working perfectionist. Mitch is not certain he believes Penny has dissociative identify disorder known as DID; he feels she is quite able to fake her neurosis in order to escape a life sentence in prison.

This psychological thriller has many twists and turns with red herrings abounding. While all of Penny’s alters as they are called are presented from the past and currently, it is Eve who Mitch deals mostly with. Eve is brash, cynical, and abrasive and very often, not cooperative. As the layers are slowly pealed back on this crime, Grace and eventually Mitch, begin to believe that there is much more to the crime and story than previously thought.

As is the frequently the case, a child who has extreme problems produces a lot of trouble for the family as a whole. Penny is no different; her predicament causes major family strife, in part, because Grace is so obsessed with helping her adopted daughter to detriment at times to her sons. Since losing her husband a few years before, Grace has also struggled to keep the family pizza business afloat so she has many issues in the mix.

This intense and very dark story is very complex and at times, convoluted, with all the theories and possibilities floating about. So many deep and hidden secrets have to be unraveled to bring the truth to light. Multiple POVS also add to the layers and complexity. When it comes out, the truth for me seemed somewhat incongruous as well as not quite satisfying, and not just a little bizarre, but perhaps that fits the nature of the story as a hole.

The Perfect Daughter is Daniel Palmer’s third domestic thriller using his D.J. Palmer pseudonym, and my (unpopular) opinion is that this third is a bit of a turd.

Harsh, I know, but I found it so hard to engage with the book that I didn’t want to pick it back up between sittings. I think I finished three others in the meantime! It could be that I started it on the heels of the 5-star psychotherapy memoir, Good Morning, Monster, which expertly dealt with a Dissociative Identity Disorder patient and her tragic childhood. So a thriller using a young girl with D.I.D. as the center of a murder investigation felt like changing the channel from PBS to Lifetime.

A cat is also tortured and killed. Not just referenced in passing, but several pages are dedicated to the end of the poor animal. I skimmed this part with one eye barely open and can’t fully attest to how graphic the description of the event is, but if animal abuse is a trigger for you: WARNING!!!

Clearly based on other early reviews I’m in the minority here, and another reason could simply be domestic thriller fatigue. I keep picking them up due to FOMO, but I need to listen to my gut that the MO isn't any worse than the FO. I'm finding the genre tired and increasingly unoriginal with each passing read, and The Perfect Daughter certainly didn't do anything to change my mind.

So with that, I’m officially putting myself on a one-year hiatus for any books formulaically-titled "The Adjective Family Member."

I received an advance copy to read and review from St. Martin’s Press via NetGalley. The Perfect Daughter is slated for publication in April 2021, and there’s a good chance you’ll enjoy it more than I did.

This book had me going to the end! Received as an ARC on Netgalley. Did not want to put it down. Interesting book with one of the main characters having DID. Kept me guessing until the end and I never saw it coming. The characters were all very likeable. Loved that I was not able to predict the ending. Highly recommend!

This was a good suspense story. The ending was certainly unexpected! Thank you to Netgalley for the early read.

Another awesome psychological thriller!
I'm always so intrigued by the mental health aspect of criminals. I think Palmer does an awesome job of tying it into thrillers.

I enjoyed this one a lot. It was fast paced, interesting, and had medical, family, and psychological drama all wrapped into one.

I definitely didn't see the ending coming. Such a surprising twist.

Oh my how the hell can I write a review that will do justice to just what a fantastic read this is, well I can’t but I will have a damn good try. The story’s focuses on a teenage girl Penny who is accused of murdering her birth mother and the ongoing determination of her adoptive mother and family to somehow get justice for Penny
The whole crux of this amazing story is that Penny is believed to suffer from DID which is dissociative identity disorder and has multiple personalities but omg the book had me reeling I was going from did she do it, has she got DID and what the hell is happening here as the secrets and surprises just kept coming.
I have read other books with the topic being DID but nothing comes close to being such a mind blowing ride that this book was it was jaw dropping and wow what a ending, sheer perfection at its best!!
I could go on and on with the praise but I won’t bore you with all that and I don’t think I have the words to do it justice anyway so just please read it it’s better than good, it’s amazing and is completely unputdownable also.
I must also give massive praise to DJ Palmer for a brilliantly crafted read that is one of my favourite reads of the year so far.
My thanks also to NetGalley and St Martins Press for giving me the chance to read the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

The Perfect Daughter, by D.J Palmer, is a thriller. It is filled with twists and turns and nicely tied up in, for me, an unexpected ending. I will certainly be seeking out more of Palmer's books to read in the future. Thank you, NetGalley and St. Martin's Press, for providing me with an ARC ebook version of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Grace has a problem. She's trying to move past her husband's death, but her daughter has just been accused of murder. Palmer takes the reader on a roller coaster ride of events and emotions to flesh out the truth, Grace is willing to do anything to help her daighter, to the exclusion of her business and other children, I empathasized with Ryan the most. I felt his emtouims were valid and the most honest. It was a little exhausting keeping up,wth all of the rotating personalities of Penny. It's a good psychological drama.

This book was pretty interesting, though it did get bogged down in the middle, i think it was trying to tell too many stories and didn't do them justice, would have served the story to make it simpler and deeper. I did guess the villain. And it ended the daughter's story without much closure on how she got from point a to b, it would normally take year and years of therapy and it was glossed over

This story will keep you on the edge of your seat as you try to put the pieces together. And that twist at the end? Will you see it coming?

Was it really Penny? Was it someone else? Who was the victim?

I don’t want to tell you about the plot because it’s real secretive until each layer is pulled back.

Well written and gripping, give it a read.

This was a great book. I really enjoyed how the author created such different personalities for Penny. I will be honest, I can usually guess what is going to happen in a book and this one really threw me for a loop. I will definitely check out more of this author's books.

Dissociative identity disorder, “the existence of two or more distinct identities; ongoing gaps in memory”, is a mental condition that has perplexed man for years. The science behind it is better understood today, but the subject is still a source for a tense fiction thriller. D.J. Palmer presents us with Penny, a sixteen-year-old who was found abandoned when she was a little girl. As we’re learning about Penny’s history, we understand that something horrible must have happened to Penny in her previous home environment that triggered DID. The big hint: finding Penny covered in blood, knife in hand, standing over her birth mother’s mutilated body. Let the roller coaster ride begin! Penny has multiple personalities, and you can’t help but like all of them and empathize with why they exist. The author handles the mental illness with respect; it’s obvious a great deal of time was dedicated to studying the illness before writing this novel. I enjoyed the fast pace, the learning experience, and the tension all braided together to create a quick and consuming thriller.
Sincere thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an ARC in exchange for my honest review. The publishing date is April 20, 2021.

This was a very interesting book for me. The mental illness aspect was very interesting and dealt with in a respectful and realistic manner. I was completely engaged through at least the first half. The second fell a little flat for me. The expected last-minute character twist was not stunning but the overall story was still good..

Penny was found abandoned, with a mysterious past, and it felt like fate brought Penny to her, and her husband Arthur. But as she grew, Penny's actions grew more disturbing, and different "personalities" emerged.

Arthur and Grace took Penny to different psychiatrists, many of whom believed she was putting on a show to help manage her trauma. But Grace didn’t buy it. The personas were too real, too consistent. It had to be a severe multiple personality disorder. One determined psychiatrist, Dr. Mitch McHugh, helped discover someone new inside Penny—a young girl named Abigail. Is this the nameless girl who was abandoned in the park years ago? Mitch thinks Abigail is the key to Penny’s past and to the murder. But as Grace and Mitch dig deeper, they uncover dark and shocking secrets that put all their lives in grave danger.

Okay, I'm the first to admit I haven't loved anything I've read by Daniel Palmer, or his pen name, D.J. Palmer...that is, until now.

I have continued reading his work though, because I could see that glimmer of greatness just under the surface. I feel like, with The Perfect Daughter, he finally broke through that barricade (for me, at least). I see that many of my friends felt differently, but for me, this story worked on nearly every level.

It was incredibly well-researched, and I enjoyed the back and forth way it was written. Told from several points of view, including the mother, Grace; her filmmaker son, Jack; and Penny's psychiatrist, Dr. Mitch McHugh...this book kept all my interest, and even managed to keep me guessing. Dude gets all the props for keeping me guessing. Admittedly, I did end up figuring things out, but I was well into the story before I did...and that always makes me happy.

The conclusion tied everything up beautifully. I actually didn't find it to be implausible or over-the-top at all. I spent a great deal of time working in mental health facilities, both during nursing school and during my nursing career...and the descriptions, reactions, and attitudes in this novel all felt quite authentic to me.

Finally! I can happily recommend The Perfect Daughter.

Available April 20, 2021

Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for my review copy.

DJ Palmer's latest follows the story of Grace the mother of Penny, a teenage girl diagnosed with mulitple personality order who is about to stand trial for the murder of her birth mom. It is told from the viewpoints of Grace the mother, Jack her son/Penny's brother, and Penny's new psychologist.

This was a fast-paced page turner and fun for what it is. One of those you have to extend a bit of disbelief for some of the far fetched actions. But it was interesting, held my attention, and kept me entertained and guessing through out. This satisfied my thriller craving and had an original plot. If you enjoyed the New Husband, check this one out as I thought the Perfect Daughter was an improved follow up.

***Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this book, but I don't feel it was DJ Palmer's best work, I was that happy with the ending because it really didn't fit that well with the story line, and to bring the doctors son into it , when it had nothing to do with the true story. Hoping his next book will be better written.

Author D. J Palmer returns following The Perfect Husband (2020) and Saving Megan (2019) with his most intense and gripping domestic suspense yet —THE PERFECT DAUGHTER.

"Emotionally explosive, fast-paced, action-packed, and haunting. Palmer is at the top of his game!

Cleverly plotted, a twisty, multi-layered complex psychological thriller on steroids, with an explosive heart-pounding and jaw-dropping court scene—when all is revealed. My mouth is still hanging open. You may have to go back and re-read when you get to this part. Trust me, it is, “award-winning” and you will not see this coming!

Truly EPIC, Mr. Palmer.

If you are looking for a unique thriller that stands apart from the rest, this is the one! Now let’s get into the details.

Set in Swampscott, MA, an average family, which turns into anything but ordinary. Parents Grace and Arthur Francone live in the suburbs and have two sons, Jack and Ryan. Grace always wanted a girl. One day at the park, her wish came true.

She discovers a poor little girl alone in the park, hiding. Her parents, nowhere in sight. Being the good mother, Grace, of course, calls the authorities and stays connected to the case. Finally leading to adoption.

Penny was only four years old, and they did not know the sort of mental illness that existed until much later. She was around twelve or thirteen when she started taking on different personalities.

As the book opens, Penny (the name they gave her) is now sixteen-years-old and has been arrested for murder. The person that has been murdered is the biological birth mother, Rachel Boyd. The police believe it a homicide.

There is a history here, and Palmer provides all the details filling in the blanks from the time they found Penny until today.

Penny has DID, Dissociative identity disorder. We will find out just how complex this is for family, legal, and medical.

Meet Ruby, who speaks with a British accent.
Then there’s Chloe, a perfectionist who strives for straight A’s.
And along comes Eve, who is spiteful and vicious.
All of them live inside Penny… Or do they?

Which personality murdered the mother and why? Or was it someone else?

Penny does not speak. However, to help save her, her mother is very protective, and now she must hire a criminal defense attorney and try and find a doctor specializing in this condition. An attorney falls into her lap.

However, one of Penny’s friends is very dark – Maria and very manipulative when looking over the past. There is a lot of evidence that does not help her case from the past with violent fantasies the girls secretly shared with a hit list of targets and murder.

Back then, Penny’s psychiatrist came to the rescue but now murder. One of those targets happened to be Ryan (the other son), who had difficulty with his sister and Rachel Boyd was the other.

How much trauma did Penny actually experience before coming to live with her adopted family? This time she has a bloodstained knife in her hand but has blacked out the events with no memory. Real or fake?

Grace, the mom is tenacious and does not believe Penny is a murderer. She must find a professional who can work with her to prove this. However, they can never get to speak to Penny. She is always turning into another personality to guard her. Time is running out before going to trial. Greg Navarro was hired as the attorney. Penny’s brothers Jack and Ryan attend college in Boston.

Were the personalities really a psychopath inventing alternate characters to justify and explain away the crimes and this time murder? Is she playing them? Is she damaged or deranged?

With her alters taken over and locked up in Edgewater State Hospital, which less a healthcare facility and more housing for the criminally insane. They must seek a competent a psychiatrist who can get through to her.

There are hints that someone else was there. There are many clues if they can put them together to help re-enact that night to bring back Penny to determine what happened. She is in a fugue state. Penny has no memory of how she had come to be at the hospital.

There is the bad shrink, and also one of the brothers is acting weird, and many red herrings having readers suspecting everyone. Jack, the film student, seems to be helping but not Ryan, who is acting weird.

The family pizza restaurant is failing and there are money problems. Ryan drops out of college. The husband dies (suspicions there), and now all of this is left on Grace to bear the burden. Jack is making a film which makes it more intriguing.

A new doctor takes over the case, Dr. Mitch McHugh (adore him). He has his own tormented family past, and just maybe he can reach the real Penny to determine what happened that night. However, there are behind the scene forces, clues, and faint memories. As the book moves on with more twists than the Pacific Hwy, we arrive at the explosive court scene.

Will, they put Penny on the stand, and what if one of her personalities takes over? It could hurt the case. What comes next will have your head spinning and jaw-dropping! Out of nowhere, nothing is as it appears.

Wow! This was one intense and highly entertaining impeccable suspense thriller. No one does complex mental health issues mixed with domestic family drama better than Palmer. An unlikely pair of broken people come together to solve a murder.

Palmer adds a nice tie-in to the story with the doctor and his family seeking redemption. He is compassionate and determined, with his own mental problems and drug issues- son and family.

Fans of Author, Michael Robotham’s (a favorite), will enjoy this one; especially, fans of his Cyrus Haven series. THE PERFECT DAUGHTER is a perfect spring and summer read. I am hoping for a sequel or series. I want to see more of Dr. Mitch McHugh.

If you have not read D.J Palmer or Daniel Palmer, you better move them to the top of your list. Of course, this is Daniel and Michael Palmer (long-time fan) which are the BEST.

Now writing under a new name D.J., combining the best of father and son with domestic suspense combined and medical thrillers for a winning-combo. He just keeps getting better and better. His writing is stellar. Your dad would be proud! Highly recommend!

Stay tuned for my upcoming Elevator Ride with the Author where we will go behind the book’s scenes and the author on April 20th.

#JDCMustReadBooks @JudithDCollins
Top Books of 2021

A special thank you to St. Martin's Press and #NetGalley for an advanced reading copy.

When Grace's car has gone missing along with her 16 year old daughter, she fears the worst. That knock on the door with the police outside confirms her worst fears. Something has happened to Penny, her daughter. But it's a shocking revelation that Penny is unharmed, in fact, she has been arrested...for murder. And there's no question of Penny's guilt. She was found at the scene of the crime with the victim's blood all over her body and clothes.
But Penny has DID, or multiple personality disorder and Grace is absolutely sure that one of Penny's alters has committed this vicious crime. She hires a good attorney and the fight is on to save Penny...from herself!
Told in multiple POV's this thriller delves deep into the diagnosis of DID and how Penny came to live with Grace and her family. We learn that there may be a new alter, who might just be the key to unlock Penny's mysterious past...
At times the writing is simple and cheesy but the ride is worth it! Pick up this title as soon as you can get your hands on it!