As a member of Mr. Palmer’s Facebook group, I was able to download an early copy from Net Galley. Publishing in April 2021.

Penny suffers from dissociative identity disorder (DID) (previously known as multiple personality disorder). Her alters include Eve (the protector), Chloe (the artist), Ruby (the British accent). Through a tragic set of events, Penny ended up in Edgewater, a prison “mental” hospital, where she met Dr. Mitch McHugh. Through Grace’s persistence (Penny’s adoptive mother), Dr. Mitch McHugh, and a few other characters, they were able to work their way through all the “clues” Penny (and her alters) were able to relate to Dr. McHugh to get to the truth. The “bad guy” in this story … you won’t believe who it turns out to be. A good psychological read for sure!

As a medical transcriptionist, I am very much interested in medical/psychological reads. I have to hand it to Mr. Palmer for taking the time to research this topic. I think he did an incredible job in the telling of this story, making it very real with very relatable characters. If you are like me and enjoy this sort of read, I highly recommend you get your hands on a copy of “The Perfect Daughter.”

The Perfect Daughter is a wonderful depiction of the way people are hateful and deceitful in life. I was amazed as a counseling student that the depiction of two different types of mental health issues was so accurate. I am recommending this book to all of my classmates. Way to go DJ Palmer for such a wonderful, exciting book.

Lots of twists and turns and had me guessing until almost the end.
Love D.J. Palmer's books because they are easy to read and they make me think all the time.
I learned what "DID" was, so not only did I enjoy the book, I learned also learned a few things.
I love books that keep me guessing and The Perfect Daughter is one that kept me guessing.
I highly recommend this book.

As always, D.J. Palmer delivers a book full of suspense, and keeps you engaged from start to finish. The story is fresh, and the writing is spectacular. Exploring the human mind, and multiple personality disorder of a troubled teenage girl - it is almost impossible to put this story down.

Highly recommended.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press for giving me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

3.5/5 stars

Grace knew that adopting the girl she found abandoned in a park would have its challenges, but she never imagined she would be spending her days in a psychiatric hospital while her daughter awaited trial. The evidence is piling up against Penny, but Grace doesn't lose faith and knows there must be another explanation to all of this. As she searches for more clues, she uncovers dark secrets from the past that could change everything.

I went into this book unsure of how the topics of adoption and mental illness were going to be portrayed. Both are sensitive topics (I am an adoptee) and I was curious how they would be handled in a psychological thriller. While I didn't love the classic narrative of fate bringing together a traumatized child and doting, adoptive mother, I did appreciate that the plot acknowledged Penny's past and her complex feelings surrounding her story. I thought the discussions about mental health were much stronger, though I do not have any experience with Dissociative Identity Disorder. The portrayal was both clinical and humanizing.

The actual story was very intriguing. Just like with The New Husband, I was drawn in and turning the pages as fast as I could. The chapters from the older brother, Jack's perspective were a nice break from the third person narrative and offered a more personal perspective into what was happening. The characters were pretty developed, but I found myself connecting most with Penny and Dr. Mitch. They both had their unique struggles with mental health and I appreciated the glimpses into them and how those challenges influenced their present motivations.

I did not predict the plot twists at all. This is both good and bad for me. I love when I can't predict a plot twist, but I wished there had been a few more clues to hint at what happened. The last plot twist/revelation felt a bit unnecessary to me, but it did resolve some questions I had throughout the book. Overall, it is a strong psychological thriller that will force you to confront mental illness in a new way.

Holy crap. I have read a lot books but this one was over the top. This book kept me reading late in the night. Never knew someone could pack so much action in book. Never seen the twist that came at the end what a ending.

Loved this book. The action starts immediately, a knock on the door, your daughter has been arrested for homicide. From there this pulse pounder just starts heating up. Just when you think you have it figured out, boom, game changer. It's a brick wall you never saw coming.
Love the characters and the fast pace of the writing. Kept me engaged throughout.
Would highly recommend to anyone that is a fan of pulse pounding thrillers.

You are in for a wild ride with Mr Palmer's new book, The Perfect Daughter, Penny, A 17 year old, arrested for her her biological mother's homicide,, but did she do it or was it one of her alters.Penny has a condition called DID. The problem is, Penny does not recall murdering Rachel.

The book is told in 3 different POV's. Grace, Mitch, who is Penny's doctor and Jack.

The research that Mr. Palmer put into this book is extensive. He did a wonderful job switching between all of Penny's personalities and the backstory with her biological mother. I highly recommend this book!

Thos is a psychological thriller. A four year old is found crying in a park. A mother with two sons, who has always wanted a daughter finds her and fights to adopt her.
When the daughter's natural mother is found murdered, the daughter is blamed. While she is awaiting trial her adopted mother will do what she must to prove her daughter innocent.
The problem is proving which of the personalities that dwell within her daughter may be guilty. Thank goodness for family friends and a strong attorney.
Great story!

A teenager charged with murdering her biological mother! But which one of her several personalities is responsible for the crime? Thus begins the exploration into the psyche of Penny, a traumatized teen adopted by Grace, who is grieving the recent death of her husband and trying to keep her two sons from falling apart from the family losses while assisting Dr. Mitch in proving Penny’s innocence.
By far my favorite of DJs books! Characters are well developed and ‘real’, family bonds, struggles and relationships are at the core of this novel-you will not want to pass this one up!

DJ Palmer has done it again. Just when I think I can figure out the ending of a book there comes the twist completely out of nowhere. The story follows the event of the murder of Rachel who happens to be the birth mother of the accused, Penny. Penny does not recall murdering Rachel or any of the events of that evening. Penny also has DID which is a metal illness where she has multiple personalities or alters as they are called. Did one of the alters kill Rachel? If so, why? What does Penny recall from her early days with Rachel? What is in store for this family?

If you get lucky enough to get your hands on this book - make sure you have nothing going on in your life as this is one book you will not want to put down for anything else.

Holly hell! My jaw dropped, my nose hit the floor! Before losing other parts of my face: I’m screaming: this is freaking fascinating!

This is like eating Wagyu steak accompanied with one bottle of St. Emilion Grand Cru and a thick slice of Sweet Lady Jane’s chocolate cake! This is quite thriller feast for me:

I found all my dreamy thrilling elements such as brutal murder, unreliable narrators, dissociative identity disorder, mental hospital theme, intense slow burn pace. And of course mind shattering writing style which deceives you with new theories and sudden changing directions make you question your own reality!

And that pulling the rug up it from under you kind of extra WTH final: that revelation earned extra star from me! For million years I could never see it coming! The author punched me so fast and I barely gathered myself!

Quick summary of the story :( I’ll do everything not to give spoilers and ruin your reading adventure. Actually I’m really wondering how your face expression will change as you reach the last blowing chapters!!!)

When Grace returns back to her home after busy working day at family Italian restaurant, she realizes something must be wrong because her deceased husband’s car is not parked in front of the house and her daughter Penny is not at home. Penny already deals with psychological issues and she was so close to get arrested after her murder bucket list she has written was gone viral. So she has no permission to leave her without informing her mom and drive her father’s car. But she did them both!

Somebody knocks the door. Grace thinks her daughter came back but no: there is a police officer waiting outside to inform her they arrested her daughter for murder charge. She is found standing in front of her death birth mother, covered in blood. The murder weapon is covered with her fingerprints!

Grace doesn’t want to believe her daughter can commit such a brutal crime and actually her daughter Penny is long gone, her body is invaded by her alter persona Eve who has no idea why she’s at the police station.

Penny/ Eve gets locked at the state hospital till her court date for more detailed observation of her mental situation. Her new doctor Mitch McHugh is expert about DID cases. As other personas like Chloe, Ruby starts to appear, Mitch gets more confused to give a diagnosis. Penny’s one of the personas insist she wasn’t alone during the crime scene. Could she tell the truth? Could somebody who knows her mental state to put the blame on her? Or could she be a psychopath who plays game with them by acting like she’s suffering from DID?

Time to shut my big mouth! This is good! This is smart! This is so far my favorite book of the author! I highly recommend it to the author’s fans and psychological thriller/ crime thriller lovers!
By the way: I mostly enjoyed Jack’s POV ( Penny’s brother who is Emerson College student, plans to make a movie about his sister’s case!) His narration was dark, smart, sarcastic, entertaining! I loved his relationship dynamics with his sister.

Overall: It deserved my five gazillion stars with its ultra smart writing style.

Special thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for sharing this digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest opinions.

The Perfect Daughter is a fascinating look at a baffling psychiatric condition...dissociative identity disorder. Patients with DID have a "primary" self and at least two "alters" (alternative personalities). The Perfect Daughter makes clear that DID differs from schizophrenia, although multiple personalities are often seen in both. It is obvious D.J. Palmer did extensive research on DID, and the passages where alters appear and disappear seemingly out of thin air are mezmerizing. The problem with The Perfect Daughter is you have to chew on quite a bit of fat to get to the "meat" of the story-did Penny (or one of her alters) commit a brutal murder, or is she faking symptoms to avoid spending the rest of her life in prison? Author Palmer builds the plot slowly with the back story of how Penny was found abandoned in a park at age four, then the appearance of the first alter. You can't help but feel for Penny even if she is guilty of murder-her early life with a drug addict mother is a horror story on its own. The Perfect Daughter has two major twists-one is pure genius but the other feels contrived simply as a way to wrap up the story. This comes as a let down after pages of heightened tension. But The Perfect Daughter has much going for it-J.D. Palmer answers the "why" a murder happens as suspensefully as any "who dunnit" you'll find.

Thanks to Netgalley and Amazon Publishing UK for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Private investigator Jessica Shaw, who specializes in missing persons cases, takes a job working for an investigator named Connor. They quickly find themselves hired by a woman to investigate her daughter who went missing in the desert east of LA. Two other missing women were last seen in the same area.

This is the third novel in this series and all can be read as stand alones. I really enjoy this series. I find them to be really engaging procedurals and I like the character of Jessica Shaw a lot. I can't wait for the next one.

Grace is a mother willing to do anything for her child. Penny, her adopted daughter found abandoned in a park, is diagnosed in adolescence with multiple personality disorder. There’s sweet, studious, funny, and...possibly psychopathic. When Grace answers the door to police saying they’d arrested her daughter “Eve” covered in blood and next to her murdered birth mother, Grace gives up everything to try to prove Penny’s innocence while she is awaiting trial at a prison mental hospital. Did Penny/Eve commit murder or was a troubled girl framed?

This book was part domestic thriller, part legal procedural, and part medical/psychological discourse. Definitely not like anything else on the market! I enjoyed the legal and medical aspects so much that I gave it a 5 stars. The eventual twist was a bit out of nowhere and felt a bit far fetched, but I definitely was surprised!

Highly recommend - I very much enjoyed and was disappointed when it was over!

I would give this book a 5 star rating. This is the 3rd medical mystery book by DJ Palmer that I have read. I have loved each one but this was truly my favorite. It kept me reading well into the night to find out what would happen next. I was not able to figure out the ending until the author was ready for me to find out. A real page turner. It is a must read for anyone who enjoys medical mystery and even for those that don't.

This book is a solid 5-star read. It is not only enjoyable, but also worthwhile as a learning activity because of its topic.

DJ Palmer has been one of my favorite writers for the last several years. His previous books Saving Megan and The New Husband are two of the best thrillers I’ve ever read. Palmer has previously previously written under the name Daniel Palmer; he is the son of the late Michael Palmer.

One of the things I like most about DJ Palmer’s writing is the structure of his novels. He has somehow latched onto the perfect technique for advancing a plot at just the right pace and in an easily-followed sequence of events. In this book, The Perfect Daughter, he has used two different point-of-view approaches. Most chapters are presented in the usual third person omniscient point of view; but some chapters are written using first and second person narration of a brother speaking to his troubled sister, the perfect daughter. It is a highly effective way to present the action of the plot along with emphasizing the emotional impact of mental illness on an entire family.

The topic of dissociative identity disorder (DID) is of almost universal fascination, and there has been much distortion of the condition presented through the years in books and movies on the topic. Palmer’s treatment of the topic seems realistic and grips the reader’s emotions and imagination.

I read at least 200 books per year, and I am inclined to skip portions of descriptive narration and lengthy dialogue as I read. I was aware that I did very little of that while reading this novel. I wanted to read every word. The story is engrossing; I highly recommend this book to fellow readers who enjoy psychological thrillers and mystery novels as well as those who love to read about relationship development.

The Perfect Daughter is an engaging mystery, with a teenager, Penny who is accused of murdering her biological mother, Rachel. It is hard to be sure, but the killer might be Penny or Eve or Chloe or Ruby since Grace Francone's adopted daughter has dissociative identity disorder. A condition many people fail to believe is real. Grace has to trust Penny's psychiatrist, Dr. McHugh to help her daughter and save her from a life behind bars.
Grace knows that her sweet Penny could not have killed Rachel, and if an alter is responsible, Penny needs help, not to spend her life in jail. Grace starts to question if her daughter is even the killer, as more than one person had a motive to kill Rachel. With the truth locked somewhere inside Penny, Grace will do whatever it takes to uncover the truth.
A ton of revelations kept me furiously flipping pages. By about the 60% mark, I was sure I had figured out whodunnit and why. Yep, my smug self was so sure of the outcome, and I was 100% wrong. The reveal was a shocker, and I never looked twice at this character.
DJ Palmer, if I ever get the chance to interact with you, I would like to share my truly flawed theory. You would probably laugh, but who knows, perhaps I would find out that it was a scenario you considered. Anyhow, a well-played hand by the author. Great characters, a twisty plot, an illness that may or may not be real, and an OMG ending. I loved it!

Wow! Amazing read! What can I say about this book? I don’t want to give away any spoilers so...... You never really know what is going on in someone’s life/family and then when you go to someone for help, you don’t know who you are really getting. You may receive something that you never imagined. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and highly recommend it. I did receive an advance reader copy of this book but that had no effect whatsoever on my opinion of this book.

I really enjoyed this book. It’s a different story than the same old themes that you see over and over again. It kept me turning the pages and really drew me in. I didn’t guess the villain of the story, and was quite surprised at who it ended up being. It just didn’t seem to make sense, and I was a little disappointed, but it didn’t spoil the book. All in all, a really good read.