This was a thrilling book with a disturbingly twisted ending. I loved it! It was fast-paced and I could not put it down.

3 Stars

I enjoyed this novel. The characters were great and I loved their flaws. Stephen is remarrying a younger woman, who is his daughter's age. His current wife is in a care facility with dementia. The whole novel centers around is Stephen abusive? Did he cause his wife's dementia? Did he harm is first ex-wife? It was interesting.

The more you dive into the backstory, the more I was getting upset with the characters. Rachel clearly suffered from sexual assault. Tully, her sister, and everyone in her life was too wrapped up to notice? Come on......I feel like someone would have figured out that she went from dating a lot and being an avid runner to no longer dating, no longer running, and is now an avid baker. The self absorption of the characters started to drive me bonkers. Otherwise, it's a fun read, but a bit predictable.

A special thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Sally Hepworth for providing me with an ARC.

The premise of this book is so fascinating -- ex-wife with dementia, husband with a (secret) unsavory past (maybe!), new wife who isn't sure whether she's in danger or not, daughters trying to decipher family secrets while wrestling with issues of their own -- but it just didn't quite get to the "great" category for me. A lot of it took a pretty predictable route and the ending had too many loose ends for me to enjoy it. I did like it, though!

Thank you NetGallery and Sally Hepworth for this ARC to read! This is my unbiased opinion.

As always, Sally Hepworth delivers a read that is hard to put down. With that being said, I wasn't super into how it ended. It didn't end how I expected, which was nice, I thought I had the twist figured out. But I still wasn't happy with how it ended. I would give it 3.5 stars for that. However, it was captivating and I read it quickly which counts for something! I can always count on her for a good thriller experience.

Do you like domestic thrillers that have plot twists you don't see coming? Me too! "The Younger Wife" is Sally Hepworth's latest book. It is a curvy little tale that will keep readers guessing! Is the book perfect? No! There are a few holes in the storyline, but it is definitely worth the read!

Lets look at the main characters:
Stephen Ashton is a older surgeon. His wife Pamela has advanced dementia and lives in a secure nursing home. Stephen met Heather and fell in love. Heather is 29-years younger than Stephen, but the two seem blissfully happy. However, there are a few "small" problems that must be worked out before the wedding can take place. 👰🕺

1. Stephen is still married to Pamela. He must divorce Pamela before he can marry Heather. W-H-A-T?? 🤔

2. Stephen's adult daughter's (Tully and Rachel) think their dad has lost his marbles. Stephen's fiance Heather is younger than they are. Is Heather a gold digger with daddy issues?💋💍📿

3. All the main characters are hiding unresolved secrets, but THIS is what makes the book so delicious! 🤓

"The Younger Wife" will be published April 5th.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press, for the honor of reviewing this juicy e-book. It is an exciting roller coaster ride, but will it end in marital bliss?💞

Another fast, entertaining domestic thriller by Hepworth. The Ashtons have problems. Stephen, the dad, is getting married, even though he's still married. Pam, Stephen's current wife, has dementia. Heather, the fiancee, is younger than the daughters. And may have a problem with alcohol. Tully, one daughter, is a kleptomaniac. Rachel, the other daughter, feeds her feelings with food. I enjoyed the characters, especially Rachel and Tully.

THE END - apparently there are quite a few negative reviews because of the ending. This novel has less of a suprise twist at the end as some of Hepworth's other books. But I liked the sense of ambiguity, did we all know what we were talking about kind of ending. And that's all I'm going to say.

"Stephen Aston is getting married again. The only problem is, he's still married to his first wife, even though she is in a care facility for dementia. But he'll take care of that easily, by divorcing her--even if his adult daughters protest.

Tully and Rachel Aston look upon Heather as nothing but an interloper. Heather is the same age as Rachel and even younger than Tully. Clearly she's a golddigger and after their father's money. Heather has secrets that she's keeping close, and reasons of her own for wanting to marry Stephen.

With their mother unable to speak for herself, Tully and Rachel are determined to get to the truth about their family's secrets, the new wife closing in, and who their father really is. But will getting to the truth unleash the most dangerous impulses...in all of them?"

Thanks to NetGalley for the free ARC in exchange for my honest review.

After reading the synopsis for this book I thought I knew where the plot was going to go.. However it went somewhere completley unexpected and I loved every moment. The characters are so well written I expected them to jump off the page, It sucked me in from the first page, and I couldn't put it down until I finished the book.

Diving into the things their mum says about her husband, she has dementia so does she really know what shes saying?.. it seems more and more like she does.... and a mysterious bundle found in the back of her closet that makes the sisters question everything.. including their own memories... The twist was surprising and definitely not anything I saw coming. I will absloutely be reading more by this author.

This was a great family thriller that had lots of secrets and unreliable characters, which I love. I wasn't sure how it would end, and the ending definitely surprised me! I teach younger students but I will definitely recommend this book to my older librarian friends to have for older students.

Mysterious, character-driven novel with the complications and nuances of real life. Tully and Rachel face the marriage of their father to a much younger woman while their mother languishes with dementia. On the surface their father’s marriage is ideal, as was his marriage to their mother, but not everything is as it seems. The book raises questions about families, secrets, and trust. How do secrets affect families? And, how many can you keep before you start to lose yourself? I could not put this book down until the final page. Highly recommend. #NetGalley #TheYoungerWife

Thank you, NetGalley and St.Martin's Press for this highly entertaining domestic drama. The story was narrated by three women who may be unreliable. It flowed well and kept me turning the pages in suspense.

The narrators are Rachel and her sister Tully, and their father's soon-to-be new wife, Heather. All three have unresolved problems from the past and secrets. In the present, they have resulting emotional difficulties making their lives ranging from uncomfortable to dysfunctional. Tully has anxiety issues and calms herself by shoplifting. She is married to a lawyer, an upscale home, and two children. She is unable to control her young son. Her family is on the verge of financial ruin.
Rachel stopped dating while a teenager, owns a bakery and has an eating disorder.
Heather loves their father, but tries to hide her low self-esteem, and has a problem with alcohol.

Stephen, the father of Rachel and Tully, is a popular, well-liked heart surgeon and plans to marry Heather. He is in his 60s and Heather is in her 30s. The bride-to-be is slightly younger than his two daughters. They are offended and do not approve of welcoming Heather into the family. A bigger problem than the age disparity is that Stephen is already married to his daughter's mother. She is in a nursing home with early-onset dementia. She seldom recognizes her daughters anymore, and usually speaks to them in what they consider senseless gibberish. Rachel and Tully still compete for the attention of both parents.

The story begins with Stephen's wedding to Heather. His daughters are present and also his very confused ex-wife whom he has recently divorced. Minutes after their marriage vows, while they are signing the register, there is a loud crash, a lot of blood and murder. We do not know the identity of the victim or the culprit.

Then the story goes back in time to events leading up to the wedding ceremony. We learn the thoughts and problems of all three women from their perspectives in separate chapters. You are left to wonder whether any of their viewpoints are reliable.

Some readers were troubled with themes touching on family violence, rape, alcoholism, gaslighting, eating disorders, kleptomania, and unfounded suspicions. I found the women's characters so over-the-top and exaggerated, that their dramatic personalities made it difficult to relate to them as real people. I found I was unable to empathize with them, but they kept me entertained. A few readers were put off by an ambiguous ending that I found very clever.

I enjoyed this book, but do not recommend it to those readers disturbed by some troubling and triggering themes. If you enjoy an intense, suspenseful story based on dysfunctional family dynamics you might be highly entertained.

I need to get a hot water bottle….. and perhaps Darcy could bring it to me. Two sisters meeting their dads new wife-to-be will cause that to happen. It’s a fun light read with a bunch of twists and turns. And, that hot water bottle will make everything right with the world once again. Thanks to NetGalley for the early read.

Holy cow!!! What a fantastic book. I loved the sisters, Rachel and Tully. I loved their significant others and the boys. So many things went on in this book. It was present day, then went back in time to catch us up. Back to present day again flawlessly, it kept everything straight in my head. I actually messaged the author at one point telling her how much I was loving it, along with what I thought was going on… boy was I wrong!!! The end of the book was shocking. Loved it. Thank you to Netgalley for the early read. I’ve already told friends they need to read this as soon as it comes out.

This is the first book by Sally Hepworth I have read.
A twisted tale with quirky characters.
The family drama, hidden secrets kept me turning those pages to find out more. A successful surgeon, a troubled childhood, flawed characters.
Fast paced domestic suspense.

Thank you NetGalley and St Martin's Press for the opportunity to read this book.

Tully and Rachel's father is getting married....to a much younger woman. Heather was their parents' interior designer until the girls' mother's Alzheimer's became so severe she had to be moved to a care facility. Heather is not really the gold-digger everyone initially assumes she is, she just wants a life of peace and security which was part of what attracted her to Stephen. Heather proceeds with wedding plans, building a relationship with Tully and Rachel and even visiting Pam, Stephen's ex-wife, in the care facility. But Heather keeps having suspicious accidents, and Rachel finds a large sum of hidden money in her mother's belongings, and the name 'Fiona Arthur' keeps popping up.

Sally Hepworth is a master at domestic suspense thrillers. I always feel like I am reading a true crime book because of the realism of the situations and plot line. At the end of the book, I was thinking, "Now wait a minute - the bad guy was really the bad guy, right?!" This is a story of gaslighting at its most evil!

Another really great book by Sally Hepworth. As always you’re second guessing what’s really going on - who’s really the bad guy and who is just misunderstood. Really well done.

Loved the characters and their flaws and strengths, and how they all dealt with their own mental health struggles while trying to make sense of their family tensions and find the truth. Ms Hepworth did a great job of fleshing out how trauma can affect you and how important working thru things, talking about them and not hiding them can be. Admittedly at times some of the gaslighting was difficult for me to read, so fair warning if this is a trigger point for any readers. It’s pretty well played out and authentically done.

Thanks to Netgalley for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Two sister…. A younger step mom … a mother with dementia … a wedding gone wrong …gaslighting …

✔️ told from the perspective of two sisters - Tully and Rachel - and their father’s much younger fiancé - Heather - this is a story about abuse, gaslighting and a family that is coming apart at the seams - and definitely not what I was expecting - in a good way!
✔️ my favourite character was definitely Rachael …and then Heather …Tully was a little bit too much at times
✔️ the ending is not as clear cut as some readers may like, but I definitely did !

There’s a lot to unpack here friends. A. LOT. I binge read The Younger Wife by Sally Hepworth in one sitting into the hour not quite night but not quite morning. Time your reading start carefully, you will not put this down. I’m still trying to wrap my brain around what happened.
In post Covid Australia a seemingly idyllic family is anything but when you get past the money, manners, misdirection, and malfunctioning relationships. Patriarch Stephen is a respected doctor, father of two grown daughters who revere him, doting grandfather, whose wife is suffering from dementia. Stephen announced his engagement to girlfriend, Heather, at a meet and greet lunch with daughters, Rachel and Tully. Torn between loyalty to their mother and wanting to please their father the sisters are further conflicted by unnamed and unresolved childhood traumas. As they bond with Heather a question arises about Stephen, one that not only jeopardizes the upcoming wedding but the entire foundation of their family.
This is my first book by Sally Hepworth so I had no idea what to expect. It is a carefully woven psychological suspense with several threads going in different directions. We don’t know what’s going to connect where, how important something is going to be, if another thread is going to be introduced and woven in to fill in a gap and tying together seemingly unrelated areas until you give it a little tug at the end. Usually an ambiguous ending bothers me, and this did at first, less so now. I’m inclined to go back and revisit parts to see if I can connect more, always an excellent sign.
I recommend for readers and bookclubs who enjoy psychological suspense, also for buddy reads. There’s so much to discuss in this one.

TW: This is a book best gone in cold but if you have sensitivity to content navigating sexual assault, miscarriage, or physical and psychological abuse then due diligence is suggested.

My sincere thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for the Advanced Reader Copy and the opportunity to review The Younger Wife by Sally Hepworth. All opinions are my own.

Enjoyed this book immensely. The character development is brilliant. The story is presented with multiple points of view and very mysterious. The twist in the tale is good, and there is enough suspense to keep you engaged right till the end.

It took me about 25% to get into this book but once I did I couldn’t stop. I finished it in a few hours. There is something really endearing about Tully and Rachel is just so strong. You pretty quickly realize that it is impossible to tell who you can trust and who you cannot. The chapters alternate between the two sisters and the very young soon-to-be wife of their father. There were so many chapters that ended with me needing to know what happened next and by the time it got back to that narrator something else had happened to distract me. This book is packed full of tidbits that will have you racing to figure out how they play into the story.

Sally Hepworth's latest novel is The Younger Wife. This story is mostly told by three different voices, Tully, Rachel, and Heather. Although Heather is around the same age as Tully and Rachel she is about to become their step-mother. The story begins at the wedding and then takes us back in time to show the reader how the characters arrived there. Sometimes it's a bumpy ride. I want to thank NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an early copy to review.