Your daughter is accused of a horrific murder but you are determined she did not do it. This is what faces Grace and her daughter Penny.
As with all of DJ. Palmer's books, mental health is central to the plot. Penny has multiple personalities and Eve is the most destructive. Mental health stories can be a trigger so be aware before you read Palmer's books. I have read all of his books and loved this one as much as his others. Eve/Penny/others are very interesting part of the book and is essential to the story. As we learn more about Penny and her past, you understand her more. Grace has faith in her daughter and is not willing to accept her daughter committed the crime.
The ending of this book is truly shocking and I did not see it coming. I loved this book and read it in two days!

Wow! The Perfect Daughter by DJ Palmer was so good! This book is about a teenage girl named Penny, She has been found at a murder scene ,bloody, and with the murder weapon. Obviously she did it, right? Especially since the murder victim is her biological mother who abandoned her in a park as a four year old. Grace is the mom who adopted her and also the person who found her in the park all those years ago. Grace had two sons and had always dreamed of having a daughter. Once she found Penny she knew she was the perfect daughter. She had to become her mom. She convinced her husband to let them adopt her. All has gone well through the years. Everything except Penny has DID.—-Dissociative identity disorder, commonly called multiple personality disorder. When Penny is arrested for the crime of murder, Grace is sure she is innocent. There is no way that her sweet Penny would’ve done such a thing. Maybe it was one of her alters? The chapters alternate between the viewpoint of Grace, Dr. Mitch McHugh, a troubled psychiatrist in charge of Edgewater mental hospital where Penny is being held until trial, and Penny’s brother Jack who is making a documentary about her case. You will thank you know what’s going on 100 different times while reading this book. You will be wrong. DJ Palmer gets better with every book. This was a very twisty, mindbending thriller. I definitely sympathize with Grace, a mother who would do anything to protect her child. I also sympathize with Dr. McHugh, a troubled man with family drama of his own. They were really great characters that had a lot of depth.You should definitely read this book, you will not be disappointed! Thank you to net galley and the publisher for the advanced copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free, electronic ARC of this novel received in exchange for an honest review. I was so excited to be able to read this book and review it as anything by D.J. Palmer is almost sure to be amazing! :) Let me tell you this book does NOT disappoint! This may actually be the best book he's written yet! AMAZING! You will not be able to put this down once you start! Add this to your must read pile for 2021! Again, WOW!

DNF. This is a well written suspenseful murder that I will recommend to my library’s patrons but just not a good fit for me. It seems to have a lot of twists and turns but I will leave it to those who enjoy this genre.

I absolutely loved this novel! Grace's daughter is arrested for the murder of her birth mother when she is only sixteen. Claiming she doesn't remember even being there, she is covered in blood and is holding the knife. But Grace suspects there's more to the story and when Eve/Penny is committed to a psychiatric hospital awaiting trial, Grace hopes the doctor will see she has Dissociative Identity Disorder which causes her "alters" to come forward and take charge when there is trauma. There are so many twists and turns in this thriller that your head will be spinning but I dare you to guess the end! I've adored D.J. Palmer's other books and this one was truly amazing!

This book was an ARC I received from #Netgalley. I have read other books by D. J. Palmer so I was looking forward to this one. And it didnt disappoint me. A simple story - Penny was left in the park and Grace came upon her when she took her own son there. Not only was she abandoned but Grace decided that she wanted to adopt her and make her family complete.

But what she didnt know was Penny had multiple personalities and when they started coming out, it made Grace's life a living hell. But her love for Penny was strong and Grace found herself fighting for Penny even when she was convicted of murder. The rest of the book covers this court fight but the big surprise is at the end. No spoilers. Just get the book to find out, you wont be disappointed. Due to be released on April 20, 2021

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC. Penny is found hovering over her dead birth mother's body, covered in blood. The police arrest her and charge her for the murder. Penny's adoptive mother, Grace, know she is innocent but is not sure how she is going to prove it. Once in custody, her multiple personalities make an appearance. Once Grace sees them, she realizes these personalities have been around for a long time but she thought Penny was role playing. So did one of these personalities commit murder or was someone else involved? This book kept me guessing!!! The transition between personalities is fascinating and kept my on the edge of my seat! #theperfectdaughter #djpalmer #Apr2021

This novel is VERY good. Explores Dissociative disorder, or multiple personality disorder...in a murder case scenario.
Really good description of the arrested girl and her DID, but also covers the family dynamics that just really define what a family goes thru , not only with a DID but a trial as well.
and a surprise ending...recommend this one.

"The Perfect Daughter" was well written and quite enjoyable. The story opens with Grace Francone learning that her (adopted) daughter Penny (aka Isabella Boyd) has been charged with killing her birth mother, Rachel Boyd. Penny was found in Rachel's home, covered in Rachel's blood and holding the knife that was used to brutally stab Rachel 25 times. When arrested, Penny gives her name as Eve and claims to have no recollection of what happened prior to the police finding her. It is soon revealed that Penny has dissociative identity disorder (DID) or so it is claimed. In addition to Penny, there are three known alternate personalities -- Eve, Ruby, and Chloe.

The story focuses on (1) the efforts by Grace to convince others, especially Penny's lawyer and Penny's psychiatrist, that Penny has DID and that when she committed the murder, she did not know what she was doing and therefore should be found not guilty by reason of insanity; a task complicated by past actions by Penny/Eve; (2) the film project by Penny's brother, Jack, a budding filmmaker, who is trying to figure out if his sister really has DID or is actually a psychopath, as some mental health professionals have concluded and as the prosecution will allege; and (3) Dr. Mitchell McHugh, the new psychiatrist at Edgewater State Hospital, who believes in the existence of DID as a valid diagnosis, but is not sure if Penny actually qualifies for the diagnosis.

The author does a great job of addressing the issue of dissociative identity disorder and the controversy surrounding the diagnosis. Through the course of the story, the reader learns how Isabella/Penny came to be adopted by the Francone family, how the alternate personalities appeared, and when the family realized there was something wrong with Penny and the diagnosis of DID first came about. The different personalities are well portrayed, especially Eve, the dominating, aggressive protective personality. As Dr. McHugh delves into Penny's history and tries different techniques to make the alternate personalities manifest (as it is Eve who primarily appears during her stay at Edgewater), and as Jack and Grace reveal information about Penny's past behavior, the author portrays events and conversations in a manner that leaves the reader guessing as to whether the DID is legitimate or an elaborate con. The author creates the possibility of an accomplice or witness in the form of another troubled girl (Maria) who is friends with Penny/Eve and the possibility of another killer in the form of Rachel's boyfriend (Vincent Rapino), which complicates the efforts by the Francone family and Dr. McHugh to figure out what is truly going on with Penny. The story ends with some rather explosive and surprising twists.

Not long after Dr. McHugh is introduced as a character, the author starts off a side plot involving Dr. McHugh's own mental health issues and his son's substance abuse issues. Initially, I did not like this subplot, as it seemed like an unnecessary distraction. However, the author manages to integrate it well into the overall story, especially Dr. McHugh's approach to the mystery of Penny.

I would definitely recommend "The Perfect Daughter."

I received a copy of the e-book via NetGalley in exchange for a review.

Thank you to NetGalley, D.J. Palmer and St. Martin's Press for this ARC.

D.J. Palmer, you've done it again! This is my second of his novels, and it's a great one. I thought the character of Penny was very well written, and I learned quite a bit about dissociative identity disorder. I figured out the twist ending pretty quickly (which I also did while reading The New Husband), but it took absolutely nothing away from the story. If anything, I was more and more intrigued as to why the book ended the way it did.

Another great, twisty thriller from D, J. Palmer!

This is the second DJ Palmer book I’ve had the privilege of reading and reviewing. I loved ‘The New Husband’ and I couldn’t wait to start this one as soon as I seen it was on netgalley. I was not disappointed. Again, DJ Palmer has you hooked from the very beginning. The strange case of the child abandoned in a park by her birth mother, adopted by a caring and loving family who welcome her into their home and she quickly becomes just like one of their own. However Penny has issues, and we learn early on in the book that she has committed a terrible crime. But was it Penny, or one of her alters? Penny has DID and we learn a lot of this condition throughout the book. I was absolutely intrigued. The only downside for me was it slowed down a little around 3/4 of the way through where I just wanted to know the outcome and which way this was going to go for all the characters. There was a lot going on in this book, however it is so well written you can’t fail to be gripped.
I look forward to reading more by this author. Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for the chance to read this arc.

This was well written and enjoyable. And living in Massachusetts it was fun to see my home state in a great book

When she was 4 years old Penny was found by Grace and her two sons in the pouring rain all alone. She wasn’t able to give them her name so Ryan named her Penny as in lucky Penny. There are 2 voices telling the story. Ryan “talks to” Penny in a journal to help his movie project. The rest is in real time. There are some sketchy characters on the path to solving Penny’s birth mother’s murder. Circumtantially Penny is the main, or really only suspect in the murder. But Penny has no memories of the gruesome murder, could one of her alters have committed the murder? DID is explored in an informed manner. DL Palmer clearly researched disassociative identity disorder. Grace and her family try to prove Pennys innocence by reason of insanity. But Eve (penny’s alter who is present most at Edgewater) is clearly not insane

I usually figure stories like this which disappoints a little but I never saw this outcome coming. I also loved the ending because all loose ends were tied up well. I often find I have questions at the end of novels like these. All of my questions were answered in a very satisfying manner rather than just stopping when the murder was solved.

Riveting read! Full of mystery and suspense!! Totally twisted and shocking.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own

D.J. Palmer is one of my favorite authors. This book is just one step under the other books. I say this because I feel that it dragged on in the middle of the book when it could have gone farther, faster, with more meat and potatoes. However, this book is one that I couldn't wait to find out what really happened. I never guessed throughout the book and it was a surprise ending. It has a nice closure in the end.

The Francone family has had some ups and downs lets just say. From the time Penny, their adopted daughter, was brought into their lives, things were never the same for any of them. They knew something was mentally off about her and they were always striving to get help for her from psychiatrists. She was diagnosed with a personality disorder but many did not believe this was her problem.

As the story unfolds we find that Grace Francone, Penny's adopted mother, stops at nothing to prove her daughter has a multiple personality disorder and can not be held responsible for things she may have done. Definitely a page turner and a book that will make you want to peak at the ending but you have to stop yourself!

This is the third book by D.J. Palmer that I have devoured; and, yes, Palmer has done it again! The Perfect Daughter captures your attention in the first few paragraphs and doesn't let up. Palmer does a wonderful job of exploring the world of D.I.D. (or multiple personalities as it is more commonly called) in the family setting. Grace finds a young girl in the park. Fast forward and Grace's family has adopted the found little girl, Penny, and raised her as their own. Little by little her personalities began to show their faces. When a young woman is found murdered, it looks like Penny could be guilty. Or could it be one of her personalities that has taken over? Grace struggles to find a psychiatrist to help defend Penny and her DID diagnosis. And if Penny wasn't the killer, who was behind this?
I will definitely be recommending The Perfect Daughter to any who will listen to my recommendation. I will also be on the lookout for more future works by D.J. Palmer. Special thanks to NetGalley, D.J. Palmer, and St. Martin's Press for the advanced digital copy in exchange for my honest opinion.
#ThePerfectDaughter #NetGalley

If you liked Steena Holmes' THE PATIENT or Kerry Lonsdale's EVERYTHING series (all excellent books that you should absolutely read if you haven't yet)...

You're *definitely* going to like this one. Palmer takes a similar base idea and puts a spin on it that neither Holmes nor Lonsdale did. This is somewhat of a slow burn, but the mystery is compelling throughout. And then that last 10% of the book (well, from roughly 90% - roughly 98%) is some explosive courtroom stuff straight out of John Grisham's best works.

And if you were already a fan of Palmer... this may be his best one yet. Seriously. 🙂

I think this book was good and kept my interest sometimes I had trouble following with so many characters but overall I would recommend it. I love his other books too!

This book was a lot to wrap my head around. I love a good plot twist, but the one in this book was too unbelievable. There also was a side story that could have totally been left out and added absolutely nothing to the plot. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free copy in exchange for review.


3.5/5

I received a free copy from NetGalley. Penny has dissociative identity disorder (DID), or does she? And is not in a mental hospital after being found standing over her birth mother covered in blood and holding the knife that killed her but did Penny or one of her alters do it? Penny's adopted mother will go how far to find out the truth? With lots of twists and turns you won't want to put this one down. Raises some good questions about mental health and how it is dealt and not dealt with by the current systems.

Another suspenseful and twisted thriller from this incredible author ! I thought I had it figured out, but I was wrong. A brutal murder. A young girl arrested. Did she kill her birth mother ? What horrors has she seen ? And a mother who never gives up on her daughter. Once you pick this book up you will not want to put it down. You must read this book. I have read every book by this author and have loved them all.