The Younger Wife is second novel I’ve read by Sally Hepworth and I hate to say that I’m in the minority on my opinion for this one. I was expecting a thriller but I’d classify this as a domestic drama: An older, wealthy man is engaged to a woman young enough to be his daughter (she’s actually younger than one of his daughters) but here’s the catch: his current wife is in a nursing home for dementia.

The plot of this novel didn’t feel original to me which is why I didn’t quite connect with it. It seems that so many thrillers these days have unreliable female characters but the men are perfect, successful, and handsome…The Younger Wife unfortunately fell into that category. While this novel didn’t check the boxes for me, I’ll still pick up Hepworth’s future novels.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely love a good family suspense novel, and the synopsis of this one seemed way too good to pass up. The short chapters, multiple POVs, and unreliable narrators had me instantly hooked! I needed to know all the secrets behind Heather, the new and younger wife, joining the family.

I really loved how some chapters included flashes to the present day wedding, while most of the story was written during the past events leading up to that day. These glimpses into the wedding really built up the suspense level for me, and made the book extra tough to put down!

This book stayed consistent from beginning to end and I enjoyed it all the way through! I had no idea what to expect at the end of the book, but absolutely love how everything came together in the end and would definitely recommend to fans of suspense novels!

Thank you so much to netgalley and the author for an ecopy of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

This begins with the wedding of Stephen Aston and Heather, but he’s still married to his wife, Pam! The author takes us to through the past then leading us to the present. It’s told by three POVs - sisters Tully & Rachel, and Heather. Each of them have vices/addictions that they’ll have to confront. This reads more like a family drama than a suspenseful thriller. Thank you to St. Martin’s Press for a gifted copy.

The Younger Wife starts off with a bloody accident at the Younger Wife’s wedding. The story weaves between the wedding and the year prior to it. For me, this book was a slow start, but eventually grabbed my interest. While I generally enjoyed the story, the possibility of “what ifs” at the end of the story made it feel weird.

This book has me feeling very meh. I feel some parts of the book were done well and then other parts of the book felt flat. The pacing of the book was a struggle; the first half of the story felt slow with longer chapters whereas the last bit of the book moved quicker with shorter chapters. I did like the fact there were three different narrators but at the same time they felt disconnected. Also the ending doesn’t have the “pow/wow/shock” factor I think the author was going for.

Thank you @netgalley and @stmartinspress for this eARC in exchange for my honest feedback.

What was that ending? This book flowed and was a quick read. The ending did have me questioning what was happening and how it could all have been so terribly misinterpreted. The final scene was in contrast to how the ending wrapped up but if you don’t over think it too much it was a solid read.

Sally Hepworth is now an auto-buy author for me! I have enjoyed her other books and this will make my list of favorites. The Younger Wife drew me in and before I knew it, I couldn't put it down. This domestic thriller features the women in Stephen's life... his new wife, his daughters, his ex-wife, and another good surprise. The ending might make it or break it for you - I liked it!

Total read alike to Liane Moriarty, especially since the narrator is the same. I have liked other Hepworth novels better than this one, but it was just fine. Easy to recommend to readers who like this genre.

This thriller achieves what many do not, the power to make me care about the characters. They were memorable and I enjoyed learning about what made them tick as the story developed. I enjoyed the twists and the plot’s pacing was perfectly executed.
“The comfort of being around drunk people when you were also drunk was not to be underestimated,” is a quote that made me laugh in this otherwise serious drama that deals with many important issues like rape, abuse, and dementia just to name a few. I enjoyed the way Sally Hepworth brought these characters and issues to life and kept me engaged from the first page. Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for my copy.⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thanks to St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for.the ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I always admire how an author can take new approach to a standard story. Sally Hepworth's latest, "The Younger Wife" centers around two sisters and the younger woman their father plans on marrying, but instead of going into the sheer ridiculousness antics out of a Lifetime movie, Hepworth has written an intelligent and well-developed story that's going to expand her ever growing readership.

Tully and Rachel are summoned to lunch to meet their father's new girlfriend, Heather. Both notice immediately how attractive she is and how much younger she is then their father. They are both surprised by the engagement. They are even more surprised how the engagement triggers events that make them come face to face with their own complex problems. Heather is just as surprised to find out that her own engagement will force her to face her troubled past and can possibly lead her into an equally troubling future.

If you're thinking already that the majority of the book revolves around how two sisters put aside their differences to expose their father's golddigging fiance then you're in for a surprise.

Tully, Rachel, and Heather are interesting women. They're individually facing a crisis that keeps them from being fulfilled and happy. Each of their stories deal with a different issue that is handled with sensitivity and understanding.

I very much appreciated that the men such as Tully's husband, Sonny and Rachel's potential suitor, Darcy aren't insensitive dolts, but good men who help them get through their rough patches.

I especially enjoyed how the surprising developments in the story didn't jump out at me, but are handled with ease and sneakiness.

Last year, I read Sally Hepworth's chilling previous release, "The Good Sister" and looked forward to reading her next book. "The Younger Wife" is a different kind of book, but it still kept me turning its pages until its devilishly clever final pages.

I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and Saint Martin’s Press for the advanced reading copy of The Younger Wife by Sally Hepworth.

This was my first Sally Hepworth novel and I would pick up her previous novels. I went into this book not knowing anything (how I personally like to go into thrillers), which I’m glad I did as I love a good domestic thriller.

Without giving away too much. Heather is about to marry her current boyfriend Stephen. Stephen is a respectable doctor with two adult daughters. The only problem is Stephen is currently married to their mother Pamela and the Aston family seem to have more secrets than Heather herself.

The story was hard to get interested in (could be life circumstances more than the book itself as we just sold our house) but I also wasn’t a fan of the ending.

It was weird reading a story that had Covid in it so casually.

This was a very well developed domestic thriller! The beginning was amazing and kept me hooked. This was a page turner I thoroughly enjoyed! Thank you NetGalley!

I am obsessed with this story. There is so much drama. Throughout the entire story, I fell for every red herring. But even after the ending, I am not even sure what to believe! I loved how unsure I felt the whole way. I listened to this entire book in not even two days, I could not put it down. There was so much intrigue. The pacing was quick, short chapters that each ended with a plot twist of sort keeping me turning pages.

Each character brought a different feeling. Tully was annoying. Rachel felt comforting. Heather felt unreliable. This is my first Hepworth but she writes the kinda thrillers for me and I can't wait to read her entire backlist. I loved the addition of an epilogue because it made you think and wonder "did they get it right?"

The Younger Wife by Sally Hepworth - 3/5 ✰ - I really wanted to like this one more than I did. I absolutely loved The Mother-in-law by this author so I was hoping to love this one just as much but it fell a bit short for me. While I enjoyed the plot, it just wasn’t very thrilling. I wanted to know what was going to happen in the end but wasn’t exactly on the edge of my seat. All in all, could have been worse but could have been better.

𝙎𝙝𝙤𝙧𝙩 𝙨𝙮𝙣𝙤𝙥𝙨𝙞𝙨: Tully and Rachel’s mom was recently put into a nursing home for her dementia. Even though their parents are still legally married, their dad decides to introduce them to his new Fiancé, Heather. Everyone seems to have a secret. What are they?

I love Sally Hepworth's books. The chapters hold just enough intrigue to keep me going.
This book takes a look at the different forms of abuse and how we all cope in different ways.
I personally loved this book however I do wish the ending was a little different though. I would have preferred to see Pam's outburst about Stephen fully validated.

older doctor plans to marry a younger woman who happens to be the same age of his daughters. He also has a wife that has Alzheimers......but the plot thickens. Turns out he had a previous marriage that the daughters don't remember and his wife can't elucidate upon. His daughters both have unusual psychological issues and then there is the matter of the hot water bottle containing $97,000.00 ???
Brilliantly weaved. Satisfying ending. Highly recommend.
I would like to Thank NeGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for my unbiased review.

This is the first Sally Hepworth novel I have read, and I was not disappointed. I do not typically read “thrillers, but this was more of a mystery, so I was incredibly happy I decided to read this book!
Written in “backwards style” meaning the start of the book is the ending and we go back in time to see how the events unfold. Many times, this style of writing makes me confused, but it was quite easy to follow the story. I read the book and listened to the audio, and I enjoyed the narration.
The story begins with a wedding and unfolds from multiple POV. Not everything is at seems in the perfect lives of Rachel, Tulley, Pam and Heather. Each and everyone of them has been carrying around a secret their entire lives. All signs point to one person as the cause of these secrets, but are we sure? The sign of a good mystery/thriller has you guessing until the end. You need to read this one and draw your own conclusions about the ending.
Thank you to Net Galley and St. Martin’s Press for my eArc and audio copy of The Younger Wife. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This is classified as a thriller, but I would consider it more of a character-driven domestic drama. It starts off at a wedding in the present when something happens. You don't really know what it is yet. Most of the book details everything leading up to the wedding with little flashes to the present to give you little bits of information at a time.

This is told from 4 POVs, with a different narrator for each one. The audio format for this was great and I enjoyed that aspect of it. The main characters are all well-developed and I was invested in each of their lives. There was a small timeline issue with Darcy that bothered me though. If you've read it I'd love to know if anyone else felt the same. The author delves into issues of rape, domestic abuse and gaslighting in a sensitive and, I feel, realistic way. That is, until the end.

The ending ruined this book for me. I can't say why exactly without spoilers. I will say that it felt rushed and out of character for most of the people in this book.

I've bounced my star rating all over for this one. The first 90% was 4 stars for me. The last 10% I hated. The audio was great though and saved this from a lower rating than what I would have settled on if I had just read it.

Thank you to @netgalley @stmartinspress and @macmillan.audio for this gifted copy in exchange for an honest review!

4 stars

Fun, quick, and with a few good twists at the end. I did enjoy this one; I’m generally a fan of well-written domestic suspense novels, and this fits into that genre well. In some ways, it reminded me of a few Liane Moriarty (and similar) books, and only a small part of that was because of the Australian setting. It had a good mix of interesting characters, and the alternating perspectives worked well for the story. The ending ultimately wasn’t a huge shock, and although there were some sad moments, I was satisfied with the conclusion. It was another one I’d been hanging onto for quite a while and am glad I was able to read now.

I mean, honestly, does anybody write domestic thrillers as twisty and emotion-filled as Sally Hepworth? Once I started, I couldn’t stop—reading this compelling book in just a few hours. The story is told from multiple points of views, each chapter chock full of secrets, and with each revelation my head was spinning, not knowing who or what to believe. There is so much to unwrap, so many truths to uncover, that, like me, you will not be able to put this book down.