Sally Hepworth's newest novel is The Younger Wife, but it could be called "The First (or is it Second?) Wife," "The Thieving Daughter," "The Binge Eating Daughter," "The Gold Digging Interloper," or "Be Glad You're Not Marrying Stephen Aston." Never has so much drama, neurosis, and psychosis been packed into one family. The Younger Wife literally starts out with a bang-an unknown person is seriously injured at the wedding of Dr. Stephen Aston and Heather, the much younger woman the good doctor hooked up with after his previous wife was diagnosed with dementia. Despite her diagnosis, you'll sometimes think the ailing Pam Aston is the only one with any common sense. The Younger Wife is a kaleidoscope of trouble-Stephen & Pam's daughter Tully is facing financial ruin, their other daughter Rachel has a serious eating disorder that appears to coincide with an incident from her past, their mother has just been admitted to a nursing home, and the woman who was hired to redecorate Stephen & Pam's lavish home is about to become Tully & Rachel's stepmother. At the center of it all is Stephen-beloved among his peers and patients- but perhaps all that glitters isn't really gold. The Younger Wife is gaslighting at its best-it's nearly impossible to tell the good guys from the bad. Sally Hepworth excels at domestic drama, and The Younger Wife features her most dysfunctional family to date.

The best thing about this book is the characterization. It’s the perfect family drama, with Tully our upper middle class mom with a secret- she’s a kleptomaniac. Then we have Rachel, who eats her feelings and won’t ever date due to a trauma in her teens. (No one cares to question this, as it seems like an obvious concern, so that was the one frustration I had with this family). And then we have Heather, the younger woman about to marry Tully and Rachel’s father—the kicker being that he’s still married to their mom, who is in the advanced stages of dementia. The big issue is that Heather starts to suspect that her fiancé is an abuser, and the sisters worry too. The ending is fairly predictable but I didn’t mind because I enjoyed spending time with these quirky characters!

👰‍♀️When Tully and Rachel’s father announces his engagement to much younger Heather they both begin to dig into old family secrets.

👍🏼A quick, page turning read.

👎🏼The characters (and their development), the lack of true thriller elements

🤷🏼‍♀️Fans of Sally Hepworth will enjoy this fast paced family drama (don’t go in expecting a thriller), and while I did enjoy it I wish there had been more depth to the characters who all had significant issues.

WOW! I could not put this book down! The multiple POVs flowed smoothly. The characters were very well developed. The ending was a complete shock and I didn't want it to end! Sally Hepworth has become an auto-buy author for me. Thank you to Netgalley & St. Martin's Press for an advanced e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This novel was a great read! I really enjoyed the characters, the plot, and the all around world building. Definitely worth picking up!

In her latest novel, "The Younger Wife," Sally Hepworth succeeds at what every mystery writer most likely aspires to do (and if they don't, they should) and that is leaving the reader asking a ton of questions about what just happened. In her true signature style, Hepworth spins a web of possibilities of the outcome, all the while leaving it up to the reader to unravel the web. I like her straightforward approach to storytelling and her complexity of character, both of which help develop the plot and draw the reader in hook, line and sinker. Ms. Hepworth's many fans will be thrilled with this latest tale, due out in April, 2022. Thank you NetGalley, for this advanced eCopy.

This book starts off quick and draws you in immediately, which I love! This book is definitely not what I was expecting- based on the title. I loved the twist, turns and multiple point of views. You really can’t guess the plot twists. I wanted a little more from the ending, but maybe that’s what makes a great book?!

Sally Hepworth does it again! I couldn’t put down this book. The novel follows two sisters as they respond to their father Stephen pursuing marriage with a younger woman while still married to their mother who is experiencing dementia. I found the character development to be excellent and I really enjoyed following each of their stories in this quick paced novel.

Really enjoyed this book. It was suspenseful but also well-though out and not predictable. I have enjoyed everyone of Sally's books.

Thanks to Netgalley for an ARC: 3.5 rounded up. This is enjoyable and thought provoking popular fiction. It's the story of an Australian family, two sisters, their demented mother, their father and his new fiancé. The book addresses domestic violence, both via family and stranger abuse. It is a pleasant read about an unpleasant topic. The ambivalence felt quite realistic. The characters questioned their perceptions and loyalties. I judge popular fiction by the quality of the writing--quite good--the sense of place and subject matter. All combined this is an excellent work of popular fiction that has enough complexity to lend itself to discussion.

Thank you NetGalley and St Martin's Press.

This is one of those I tried books. Too predictable and too obvious. I like this author a lot, so I was disappointed.

How well do you really know the people you love? This question lies at the heart of Sally Hepworth’s scintillating The Younger Wife. The book begins with a serious injury at the wedding of Stephen Ahston and the eponymous younger wife, Heather. The narration then shifts to the past where Stephen’s daughters, Rachel and Tully, his dementia-stricken first wife Pam, and Heather as they reveal both the events leading up to the wedding and the secrets that lurk underneath their perfect facades. I honestly couldn’t put this book down because Hepworth has created both a compelling plot and richly layered characters the reader truly cares about it. This feat makes The Younger Wife a book that has stayed with me long after I finished it. If you pick up The Younger Wife, which I highly recommend, clear your schedule and buckle in for a twisty, emotional ride.

Thank you St. Martin Press for this awesome ebook copy!

Sally does it again! Bringing us another riveting thriller!
We thought The Good Sister & The Mother-In-Law was a phenomenal books?
Psshhhhh that has nothing on The Younger Wife. Just Saying.....

Here we have Rachel and Tully, two sister's.
They are shocked when they find out that their father Stephen has fallen in love with Heather a woman their age and to top it all off they're getting married....
But one small problem Stephen is still married to Pamela the girls mother.
Their mother is suffering from dementia.
Soon things start spiraling out of control and big secrets are uncovered.
This story will leave you saying "What The Actual F+++!"

Each chapter is told by one of the three ladies.... Tully, Rachel and Heather.
This was an excellent novel.
A family drama with a mystery that hooks you and has you flipping the pages continuously.
Enthralling from the beginning.
This author has a way that makes you want to get to know these interesting characters to stay tuned to see how it all unfolds.
I was completely infatuated with this story.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

I'm incredibly grateful for the opportunity to read an early release copy!
Thank you again St. Martin Press, NG and Sally for this amazing new novel!
I will post to my platforms closer to pub date!

I enjoyed this book and the points of view from each person in it. I liked the character development and the issues in which they each encountered. The ending wasn’t my favorite but it was also a surprise ending.

Summary:

Tully and Rachel Aston’s father is getting married……but their mother is still alive and in a center for those with memory loss and confusion. This novel begins with the process of Tully and Rachel’s protesting against their father divorcing their mother who doesn’t know what is going on. It doesn’t help that the new wife is the same age as Rachel and younger than Tully.

Tully and Rachel are convinced that Heather, the new fiancé, is after their father’s money. They make it their mission to figure out Heather’s story while also dealing with their own personal demons in their lives.

Secrets remain all around…..for Heather, for Tully and Rachel, and for their mother.

My Thoughts :

Sally Hepworth does it again!! She speaks from the souls of flawed women by exposing raw secrets and making the reader love these female characters even more despite their flaws.

I would categorize this as a domestic suspenseful drama as most of Hepworth’s novels seem to focus on in a superb manner. Hepworth can dig into the flaws and raw truths of families by exposing the feelings and secrets of her female characters.

The ending of this novel will leave your jaw dropping!!

I highly recommend you pick up this book on October 21st! I finished it in a little less than 3 days. It is another fantastic product from Sally Hepworth.

I had high hopes for Sally Hepworth's next book, THE YOUNGER WIFE, especially after loving her last book THE GOOD SISTER.

Due to dementia of his previous wife and his own issues, the father has moved on and now wishes to remarry a much younger wife. His two daughters, to no one's surprise, are less than thrilled. Through multiple POVs and storylines, the reader learns all of this dysfunctional family issues. Often, the character's actions did not match their reasons for the behavior. And the ending left with many questions. To me, it felt like Sally Hepworth was attempting to pull a VERITY ending that was not successfully executed. And I have yet to understand Darcy's role and their mother's statements regarding him. DM if you have a theory. PLEASE! I did appreciate the few twists along the way that threw me off and led me to confusion.

This is not my favorite Sally Hepworth book, but not every book can be a winner. Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Sally Hepworth did it again! No one writes a domestic thriller like she can. Instantly captivating and continually interesting and entertaining. I found myself genuinely interested in and eager to learn more about topics she wrote about, mainly kleptomania. I may also start hiding cash in a hot water bottle just because.😂 5 stars from me, can’t wait to recommend it to all of my friends who are Sally fans!

THE YOUNGER WIFE is a psychological head-spinner that will make you second-guess yourself and then second-guess your second-guess. Sally Hepworth’s story was easy to read and reasonably paced, with realistic characters who were trying to break from cycles or falling from grace.
Heather Wisher is marrying Stephen Aston, a prominent heart surgeon, but something happens after the wedding that changes their lives. Tully and Rachel have just learned that their father is divorcing their mother to marry a much younger woman. Their mother has dementia, so she isn’t truly affected by the divorce, but some of her mutterings and the appearance of a hot water bottle cause Tully and Rachel to question their father’s past.
I enjoyed the story. The shifting points of view carried the story along at a moderate pace, and the characters were well-defined. There’s a bit of mystery to the story, and I was swept into it.
I’d recommend the book to experienced readers who enjoy mysteries and psychological twists. Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan for providing me a free copy of the book for my honest review.

Sally Hepworth has become an auto-buy author for me. Her newest release, The Younger Wife is releasing in April 5, 2022. It was exactly what I've come to expect and love from the author. It grabbed me from the beginning and I couldn't put it down. I'm still thinking about the ending days later!

When Dr. Stephen Aston introduces his young fiancee to his daughters, who are horrified not only by the fact that she's younger than they are but also because he's still married to their mother, whose dementia has recently progressed to require her hospitalization. Despite this they do their best to support Stephen's decision to divorce and remarry, although both are embroiled in their own problems . Rachel,, whose new assistant is disturbingly attractive, had a dark secret in her own past that makes a relationship impossible; Tully, whose husband just lost all their money and their house in a bad investment, finds relief from her crippling anxiety only in her decades-old kleptomania, as deep a secret as her sister's fear of letting anyone get too close . When Rachel finds almost a hundred thousand dollars in her mother's old hour water bottle, with the names of her sister and an unknown woman scrawled on a i slip of paper tucked in with the cash, the plot takes yet another turn, as indications that their father is a serial abuser force them to examine his and their lives looking for clues they missed and trying to decide whether to warn Heather , their father's fiancee In a shocking denouement A somewhat convoluted plot detracts slightly from the narrative pacing, but doesn't keep the reader from finishing it at an enthusiastic gallop .