3.75 stars. Sally Hepworth’s books are always good for a few twists and this one didn’t disappoint in that regard. I just figured a couple out before they were revealed which took some wind out of the sails. That didn’t take away from my enjoyment of the book, especially the second half when each chapter seemed to ratchet up the tension.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc.

At face value, The Soulmate appears to be a typical thriller about 2 troubled marriages, and there are certainly elements of mystery and twists and turns within this book, however at its true heart, this is a domestic drama.

Pippa and Gabe are happily married and live in a lovely cottage on the coast of Australia near "The Drop", a place that locals and outsiders both know as a place people go to end their lives. Since moving there, Gabe has successfully talked 7 people out of jumping to their deaths, and the book opens with his first failure to save a person. From there, the book shows us how Pippa and Gabe's lives are entwined with the woman who jumped, and her husband.

In both marriages, all is not as it seems, and we have both Pippa, and Amanda (the woman who fell to her death) as narrators, told in alternating chapters and and in alternating timelines. The mental health issues presented in this novel felt realistic and well presented to me, especially as I am married to someone who shares a diagnosis with one of the characters in the novel. I could tell that aspect was thoughtfully researched.

Generally, I prefer domestic dramas to true thrillers, and I did enjoy that this book seemed to have more to say about marriage and mental health than one would think, but overall the coincidences and conclusion of this book felt unsatisfactory, so I am rounding down from 3.5 stars to 3 stars. There's just something about this book that didn't impress me, and I don't feel like the story will have any longevity in my memory of it.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the electronic ARC of this novel for review.

Sally Hepworth does it agin. No one can capture relationships quite like Sally Hepworth can.

Gabe is charming, the center of attention in any room and the center of Pippa's universe. Gabe has finally found his calling helping people come back from the edge, until he can't save one. When Pippa discovers Gabe knew the victim, the questions spiral...Did the she jump? Was she pushed?
I loved this book, the tone and the pace of it made it easy to read in one sitting.

Absolutely loved! What an interesting book! I really love books about marriages and all their craziness so this one really takes the cake. Probably my favorite book by Sally Hepworth so far!

I always enjoy Hepworth "vibe". Thrilling, surprising, and her characters are never what they seem. They have many layers and each page you turn pulls away a thin layer of intrigue.

Told by two women. Both married. One believes she has her soulmate the other is weary of love.

Told in three time zones-Now, after and then. All centering on the suicide Amanda.

Pippa and Gabe have 2 adorable girls. A great hook up story that was made to be. Living at the Drop high above the ocean, many people have taken their lives. Gabe had the gift of talking them out of their demise. Until Amanda came to the drop. Pippa witness the encounter from her home in horror when Amanda goes to her death. She is not sure what she sees, but she is troubled it. The dynamics of their marriage is complicated and made more with Amanda.

Max and Amanda marriage has it's own dynamics and back ground. Amanda came from a broken home and will not be the victim like her mother. Max is a powerful man making powerful deals and finds Amanda the perfect match. He has suffered his own family dynamics with mental illness. He and Amanda agree not to have children and with that to remain faithful.

I loved the title of this book because having a soulmate is mysterious with complexities. Amanda is telling her story from the grave while lamenting about her marriage. Was it a failure? Always wanting to have the soulmate but not wanting to deal with the vulnerability. These 2 women are connected in ways that are subtle and in the end satisfying.

A special thank you to St. Martins Press and Netgalley for the ARC and the opportunity to post an honest review

CONTENT WARNING: suicide, mention of domestic violence, infidelity, postpartum depression, alcohol misuse, untreated mental illness, self-harm, murder, blood, misdiagnosis

I’m already a fan of Sally Hepworth, and also this type of story—the small town with a perfect-seeming family hiding secrets all wrapped up with a suspicious death. So I was prepared to love it before I even started reading. And I think it was done really well, even with some touchy issues.

The story jumps between “before” and “after” from the POV of Pippa, Gabe’s wife, and Amanda, the woman who jumped. It took me a minute to adjust to the voice of a decease character, but it was an intriguing way to allow readers to see the other side of the story. It lets us gain insight into not only the inner workings of Pippa and Gabe’s marriage, but that of Amanda and Max’s marriage, both of which seem unrelated, but converge further into the story. And while both marriages seem picture-perfect from the outside, each of them have their own issues that are handled quietly behind closed doors.

My feelings about the characters changed dramatically over the course of the story. I empathized with certain characters in the beginning, and had others painted as villains. But as more information came to light throughout the story, the lines between the “good guys” and “the bad guys” started to blur more and more.

The story was a page-turner, with short chapters and a fast-moving plot that made it nearly impossible for me to put this book down. There were a lot of surprising twists and turns, and it pulled me in quickly and didn’t let go right up until the end. It deals with some heavy issues right out of the gate—starting with suicide, and then moving into the nature of mixed families, alcohol misuse, illegal activities, postpartum depression, and both untreated and misdiagnosed mental illness. These topics are handled with care, and I appreciated how the author did it, especially how she addressed consequences, treatment, and the importance of support. Hepworth also talks about core values within a marriage, such as fidelity and loyalty, and how these values play out within a marriage, amongst major issues that come up.

Sally Hepworth became an auto-buy author for me a few years ago and I always enjoy her books. The Soulmate publishes in April but I couldn’t wait any longer to read this one (as it turns out April is going to be pretty busy for us haha!) Gabe and Pippa have found their dream home, a cottage on a cliff in a beautiful coastal town. But, like everything, if it seems too good to be true it probably is. The Cliff, also known as The Drop, has become a place where people go to end their lives. Gabe has taken on the role of talking them off their ledge, until one day he can’t. When Amanda Cameron is found dead at the cliff, a lot of questions arise, most notably, is this a cut and dry suicide or not? Secrets can never be kept secret for long and when the police begin to dive into Amanda’s death a lot of secrets are threatening to come to the surface and things begin unraveling quickly.

From the very beginning this book captivated me. Hepworth goes a great job of creating an atmospheric book. I really enjoyed that this book was told through Amanda and Pippa’s viewpoints and that it alternated between the past and present. I often find that this leads to a more suspenseful read and makes me question everything more in a book. There were a few twists I certainly didn’t see coming and overall I really enjoyed this book. Be sure to pick this one up when it publishes on April 4th!

After THE YOUNGER WIFE Sally made her way onto my auto buy shelf, and she definitely delivered with THE SOULMATE. This one is destined for my Top 5 for April, and can't wait to talk about it with Sally on the Killer Author Club on March 21st. Smart and engrossing, THE SOULMATE is a read-in-one-sitting stunner.

The Soulmate was my first thriller read of 2023 and it did not disappoint! I loved the atmosphere of the cottage on a cliff in a seaside coastal town, and the multiple twists made it impossible to put this book down. This is my first Sally Hepworth novel, but I will be picking up another one in the very near future! I highly recommend this one to all of my domestic thriller/suspense lovers out there!

TW: Infidelity, Suicide, and Mental Illness

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press For an ARC of The Soulmate!

Thank you to St. Martin's Press, Sally Hepworth and Netgalley for the ARC copy of The Soulmate.

3.5 stars, rounded up to 4.

I was excited to read this book, as I really enjoy Hepworth's writing style. She always does a great job of building the characters, and storyline in a way that gives you little bits at a time. I like this roll out style, and then how it all comes together at the end. I liked the concept of this book, and Hepworth did a great job really setting the scene for where this books takes place, as that is a huge part of the book. It was an original concept, and gave off a fun "ominous" vibe. However, I just don't think this book was fully executed in the way it should have. The beginning was great, and made me want to keep reading, but then it did become a bit repetitive, and the ending was very underwhelming. I liked some of the twists, but in the end, I just don't think it kept up the steam from where it started with.

However, I did really like the cover! It really goes well with the setting and ominous vibes of this book.

This book releases in April of 2023, so make sure you try it out, especially if you like Sally Hepworth's previous books!

This is a thrillerish novel with a alternating POV and going Now and Then. It's an adequate novel but doesn't conform to a domestic thriller type and is anticlimactic in the end..Meh over all.

The Soulmate by Sally Hepworth, WOW! Pippa and Gabe are married with 2 small daughters. They live in a house on a cliff and encounter many who want to die by jumping off the cliff. Luckily, Gabe is able to encourage most of them to not go through with it. Except for one, Amanda. But did she really jump?

This book was really good. I enjoyed the story, although slow at times, the twists were amazing! Sally hasn’t disappointed me yet!

I wasn't sure if this would be the book for me when I started, but I was quickly drawn in to the mystery of the novel. The tension of not knowing what to believe when it comes to your family is supremely well done and carries the book through.

There were moments when reading where I would find myself eyeing the door as if someone was about to barge in. That's how you know you've got a good thriller.

This was the first Sally Hepworth book I've read and it's safe to say I'm hooked. Thrillers that deal with mental illness usually don't end up sitting well with me, but Hepworth handled the topic with sensitivity while also creating an exciting story. I thought having Amanda's perspective from beyond the grave was super unique and added a layer to the story that I wouldn't have expected. I've never seen that done in a thriller and Hepworth did it extremely well. I thought the family dynamics in this book also added an unexpected layer of suspense since you could definitely tell that Pippa's family knew something was going on with Gabe but since Pippa didn't want to see it, there was an extra layer of tension. The relationships in this book were portrayed so well and the writing was simply phenomenal and I can't wait to read the rest of Hepworth's titles.

I enjoyed this and found it to be a quick read. Months later though, it hasn’t stuck with me as much as I would have thought. I’d still be interested in reading more from this author!

Surprisingly this was my first Sally Hepworth book and it definitely did not disappoint. The Soulmate starts off with a woman jumping to her death near Gabe and Pippa's dream home on the coast. Things become much more complicated when it's discovered that Gabe knew the woman, Amanda, who jumped. Did she actually jump? Was Gabe involved? This thriller, told in two timelines, by both Pippa and Amanda, delves into what happened in the past and the present to get to the bottom of the mystery. Though there were lots of good twists and turns, I really was hoping there would be a bigger punch at the end. The story did wrap up in a satisfying way though and I thought it was really well done!

Wow! This twisty, turny thriller packs a wallop. I enjoyed every exciting page and read into the night to see what would happen next.
A young couple with a small child moves into a beautiful home only to come to understand that they face a cliff , called The Drop, an unfortunately popular suicide
spot. Since Pippa, the wife , is a successful attorney , Gabe, the unemployed husband, takes on the role as stay at home dad. Gabe has observed people on The Drop and has been cast as a hero for talking then down.
At the beginning of the book Gabe is on the cliff with a woman who manages to jump- or did she fall? Or was she pushed ?
Pippa has her own suspicions when she learns that the dead woman is someone they both know and Gabe might have motive for wanting her gone.
The Soulmate is a book about love, steadfastness, promises, agreements, mental illness, and striking bargains with the devil. There is excitement in the read along with clearly defined characters who are easy to know.
For readers of thrillers, mystery, and even love stories, this book it a treat.

Sally Hepworth does it again with another twisty book. Pippa and Gabe seem to have a perfect marriage and a beautiful home on a cliff. The book unfolds and things may not be as great as they first appeared. I do not want to spoil anything in the book. This is a great beach read that moves quickly and keeps your attention from the beginning to the twists at the end of the book.

I would like to thank NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. #TheSoulmate #NetGalley #SallyHepworth

The Soulmate is a very fun and very addicting read. There are several twists, all of which surprised me and made me carry this book with me every where. The rotating first-person narratives of the women in the past and current timelines was a fun storytelling technique and I really liked when the stories merged together at the end. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the advanced copy.

This is my first time reading a Sally Hepworth novel, but it will not be my last! The Soulmate pulled me in from the start and was so hard to put down. The alternating POV's allowed me to really connect with each of the characters and understand their thoughts and motivations. I truly cared about the characters and felt so many different emotions while reading. The twist and ending could not have been more perfect. 5 star read! Highly recommend! I will be looking for more books written by this author.

Thank you to Netgalley and St Martins Press for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.