I tore through this one! The Younger Wife checked a majority of the boxes when it comes to this type of story. Flawed families, likable characters, mystery, suspense, and a little romance.

Stephen is getting married. To a much younger woman. And his daughters, Tully and Rachel, aren’t so sure how they feel about it, especially being that their mom and his ex-wife is living in a nursing home with dementia. Rachel and Tully have their own issues to deal with on top of it all. Oh, and did I mention the book opens with a tragedy occurring at the wedding? But what happened exactly? Who did it?

While the ending left something to be desired, I really enjoyed this one. There were moments that warmed my heart, twists, family drama, and so many relatable moments. I would recommend this to lovers of domestic suspense for sure, but really everyone should give it a try.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for allowing me to read and review this book. And thank you to Sally Hepworth for a writing something so entertaining.

Domestic drama with a mystery plot. The beginning had me hooked and it was hard to put down. Dealing with topics such as gaslighting and perception in abuse and how we are affected and changed by it. The end was not as dynamic as I hoped, and the ambiguousness was starting to annoy me. Still a pretty good read in all. #sallyhepworth #theyoungerwife #netgalley #goodreads

I brought my book everywhere with me while I was reading this so I could sneak in snippets! The characters were so intriguing- all flawed in their own ways. The gaslighting was downright terrifying. Recommend for readers who enjoy family drama and suspense.

This book read more like a family drama to me than a psychological thriller. Not your typical married man meets younger woman story. Overall a good story with unreliable characters, a decent plot and enough twists and turns to keep me reading. 3 1/2

Thank you so much for the opportunity to read this book. The plot was engaging and the twists kept me reading more. As she has done in her previous books, Sally Hepworth kept me hooked until the last page. This is a great thriller that I have already recommended to several friends.

A clever thriller with a surprising ending. I enjoyed the different perspectives of the main characters. Well-written and entertaining.

I enjoyed reading The Younger Wife. The novel is about the Aston family. The matriarch Pamela suffers from dementia and recently moved into a nursing home. Her daughters Rachel and Tilly are upset by their mother’s illness and feel even worse when their father Stephen announces his engagement to a woman named Heather. Not only has it been a short amount of time since Pamela’s diagnosis, but Heather is young enough to be the sisters’ friend.

The sisters try to be supportive for their father’s sake but cope with their latent feelings through unhealthy ways. Besides this character arc, the novel’s main mystery is that on Stephen and Heather’s wedding day, someone meets a violent death while the couple is signing their wedding certificate. Along with Stephen and Heather, Rachel, Tilly, Pamela and the officiant are in that enclosed room. As readers, we want to know who killed whom and why.

Besides being a mystery and slightly less a thriller, The Younger Wife tells an interesting story about trauma and how we cope with it in our own ways, even if those methods are destructive. I was impressed with how the author weaved these two arcs into something cohesive and compelling. I also found the ending surprising and was interested to learn how Hepworth got the idea for this story in her acknowledgements.

2.5 stars, rounded up.

I really enjoy Sally Hepworth's writing. I find it interesting and the multi-faceted women she provides in her stories are fantastic. The Young Wife is no exception to this. While, at times, it did start to feel a bit overwhelming keeping up with who was who with regards to side characters (as none of them were that interesting), it was all building up to a fantastically interesting thriller. And then, the ending made it all come crashing down.

For me, in a thriller, there has to be some satisfaction with the actions taken. The reasoning behind the actions needs to make sense to me, and it has to be enjoyable to get there. However, the ending of this book was, genuinely, ridiculous. It made the edge of my seat waiting for the resolution feel like an absolute waste of my time. This rating would be lower, if it weren't for how good the writing was up until 80% in. After that? It all falls apart.

Told from 4 different perspectives, this book kept me guessing the whole time and unsure of who the reliable narrator was in the story. The different POVs really allowed for great character development and unexpected twists and turns.

Psychological. Intense. Hopeful.

This was a great read! Thanks to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for an advanced copy of this new book, coming out April 5 2022! I really enjoyed this read!

The majority of characters pulled me in and had me hoping that everything turned out positively for them almost immediately. They were well-rounded, consistent, and relatable characters, which I really liked!

The plot bounced between the wedding and the past, which worked together to create tension and mystery that gripped the reader!

I recommend this book if you're looking for a slow-burn, psychological thriller! Get it April 2022!

It's a great thriller! The story is more psychological norm rather than unbelievable. How often do you read a story regarding an older man marrying a woman the same age as your daughters? It's all over in today's world. However, Hepworth throws in a twist here and there that makes me wonder if everything is as it seems. The story goes through multiple points of view and plays with the reader's perception of the event. Every single character is well developed. Everyone has a back story that adds to the book as a whole. It clouds the reader's perception to what is true and what is not up until the last sentence. This story was very well thought out and written.

Thank you to St. Martian's Press and NetGalley for letting me read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a very intriguing book. The author took us down a path that seemed pretty straight but with enough side paths that getting to the truth was not as simple as it appeared to be.

Stephen Aston is in his 60s, a successful, highly regarded surgeon and married to Panela, a dementia patient, when he falls in love with a Heather. Stephen has 2 daughters, Natalie (Tully), 37 and Rachel, 35. Their concern is that Heather is 34 and their mother still has days where she recognizes them. Tully is married to Sonny and they have 2 sons, ages 5 & 3. They have a secret, their marriage is in trouble. Rachel bakes cakes for a living. She has a secret that has prevented her moving on in life. Can she trust Darcy with her secret?

All of these people are vague in their statements and this leads to a lot of assumptions. We all know what happens when we assume things.

I enjoy Sally Hepworth stories and this is another hit. I wonder where she got the idea of this one. It is brilliant!

Stephen is a sixty-something man who becomes engaged to Heather, a woman younger than his two daughters, Tully and Rachel. The problem is he is still married to his wife, Pam.

Heather, the glowing bride-to-be is actually likable and soon fits right in with the family. But Heather has a few secrets.

Rachel is a wonderful baker who owns her own successful business. She eats to hide a past tragedy and to soothe her anxieties.

Tully is married to a successful lawyer who somehow loses all their money. As she struggles to hide her shame she harbors another secret. She is a kleptomaniac.

Pam is Stephen’s wife. She is excited to attend the wedding and Stephen himself walks her down the aisle to the front row! But she also has secrets!

This story caught my attention from the very beginning. The reader knows there is a tragedy but does not find out who the victim is or exactly what has happened until the end. Told in multiple viewpoints, alternating timelines, and easy to follow short chapters, Hepworth does a great job building the family drama to a dramatic conclusion. This was the first book I have read by this author. I will definitely be reading more!

Triggers: rape, physical abuse, dementia

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher, St. Martin’s Press, for my eARC. This book will be released on April 5, 2022.

I absolutely sped through this one, but the suspicions I had in the early aughts of the book only held and were then proven right. It felt predictable; the twist at the end was cute and has me scratching my head, but it wasn't enough counterevidence of the conclusion of the book to make me question the characters' choices. A good read, but not particularly substantive.

Dr Stephen Aston announces to his grown daughters, Tully and Rachel, that he is engaged to a much younger woman, Heather, There is only one small problem, He is still married to their mother, Pam, who has dementia and lives at a care facility, His solution is to get a divorce and marry Heather. Tully and Rachel are appalled by the idea that their father would simply dismiss their mother in this way, What kind of a man would do that? And what about the things their mother has been saying? IS it the dementia or something darker coming to light? As Rachel and Tully work through their own issues as well as decipher what is going on with their parents, Heather begins to have doubts. The walk down the wedding aisle was never quite so bumpy. The walk down memory lane is not exactly smooth either, All the character go through both self discovery and the realization that those who your things you knew best, may be the ones you know the least about.
This is a fast read and characters, although flawed, have a relatable aspect to them. You will fly through the pages to get to this wedding day!

My thanks to NetGalley for ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review,

Thank you NetGalley, the publisher, and the author, for the opportunity to read and give an honest review of this book.

It is certainly true that most every family has its difficulties and its secrets. The Aston family really seems to have more than their share.

Rachel deals with her problems using food. She cooks and she bakes. As a matter of fact, the business that she owns is an at home bakery. Her sister Tully’s problems surface in the form of shoplifting. She has done this since she was eleven. The girls are in the process of slowly losing their mother through her dementia. Meanwhile, it seems like their father has moved on, finding a new girlfriend, and making plans to marry her. Their step mother-to-be is younger than the sisters. She has her own baggage from her family of origin. As a result, she tends to drink more than she should. Well, what is Dr. Stephan Aston’s issue? He certainly can’t be the upstanding flawless man he seems to be.

The mystery contained in this book includes almost $100,000 in cash found in an old hot water bottle and the name ‘Fiona’. As Rachel pursues all the clues and puts the pieces together, things start to make sense. Things aren’t always as they seem.

The characters in this book are flawed but likable. If you like a story about the strengths and weaknesses as well as alliances in families, this book is for you.

Imagine being engaged to a man who’s daughters are roughly around your age AND who’s mother is still married to their dad ! With me so far !?
Now imagine trying really hard to make a good impression on your soon to be strong daughters who have their own personal issues !!! The family drama is so intense that I stayed up way past my bedtime ! Sooooo worth the bags under my eyes the next day !
You won’t believe the twists revolving the father and the secrets that come to the surface !!! A definite page turner and an absolutely wonderful read ❤️❤️

This is my first Sally Hepworth read but it definitely won't be my last!

I absolutely loved every page of this story. The mystery was well-developed, the characters had depth and were well-rounded, and the family drama was just so very interesting!

I also think that this is the kind of book that must be read by a book club or with a buddy, because half the fun is discussing the story afterwards.

Rachel and Tully aren’t sure what to make of their father’s new fiancée. It’s uncomfortable on multiple levels. First, Stephen Aston is still married to their mother, Pam. Second, Stephen’s fiancée is the same age as Rachel and younger than Tully. Stephen assures them that it will all work out. Pam is in a nursing home with dementia and won’t even realize the divorce is happening. As the wedding gets closer, all the women begin discovering secrets of the family and become determined to unveil the truth before the marriage license is signed.

I’m not sure what to make of this. The Younger Wife began as a standard psychological thriller that I was expecting from Hepworth. As I read on, I was getting more frustrated by how much the women were being gaslighted and how their mental health was portrayed. They all seemed helpless and in need of a man to save them. While I appreciate partnership and open discussions about mental health, this didn’t really hit the mark for me.

Hepworth definitely succeeded at an ambiguous ending, but that frustrated me too. After an entire book of women being gaslighted and questioning their own realities, the reader also is left confused on what was reality. I suppose this is indicative of real life in that there are not always clear cut answers. If you want a family drama with surprising twists, this could be for you. Just be aware you will be left feeling confused and unsure of which narrative to trust.

I received this book in exchange for an honest review. Love a book with an amazing twist. Intriguing characters and an unexpected ending. Sally Hepworth did a remarkable job of building this story. Highly recommend!