Oh boy was this a heavy read. It has quite a few trigger warnings such as child abuse, SA, and neglect. But with those warnings, there was also found family, sisterhood, and love. I actually enjoyed the multiple POVs in this when I usually stay away from more than two POVs. The women in this story being as devoted to each other as they are was really heartwarming. They protected each other in childhood and continue to do so in adulthood. I also really liked the uniqueness of a story of children in foster care and the trauma of that. The ending didn’t disappoint at all. Very good!

SISTERS, SECRETS, LOVE, AND MURDER...

A 4.5⭐️ thriller that I am recommending as a must read!

I am a big fan of Hepworth and her genre of smart domestic fiction. I was very excited to receive an advanced ecopy of her upcoming release (thank you Netgalley and St. Martin's Press) and IMHO it is her best book yet. This psychological thriller centres around three girls- Jessica, Norah and Alicia- who are "lucky" to be sent to live with Miss Fairchild after they are placed in foster care. At first Miss Fairchild presents herself as the perfect doting foster mother- but her instability and dark nature start to seep out and she becomes the scariest kind of the monster- the one that you never see coming. The trauma of the abuse bonds the girls together as sisters.

The book jumps between the girls' time with Miss Fairchild and present tense (25 years later) as the girls- now women- struggle in their adult lives. An unexpected call that a body has been found underneath their former foster home shatters their current existence and the crime unearths old secrets and brings them back to the scene of their nightmare to figure out what happened once and for all. There's a lot of speculation about who the body may be and if the girls are responsible, and it definitely adds to the foreboding atmosphere of the novel. I was glued to every page and an AMAZING twist that I didn't see coming two-thirds into the novel literally left me with my mouth hanging open.

Well-written and well crafted, Hepworth did a fantastic job of making all of the characters believable and unique, each with their own behaviours and demons after surviving their time in foster care. Jessica with her need to please and keep everything clean and orderly, Norah with her emotions too big to contain and her violent streak, and Alicia with her inner voice that keeps telling her she is just not good enough. I felt for these girls, understood their bond and rooted for them to be okay.

As for the pace and length? This thriller was so good I binged it in one sitting. I highly recommend you pick it up or order it as your next BOTM!

.More twists than the corkscrew I used to pop the bottle of wine I needed while reading it!

⏰ 𝐒𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐒𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫: 3 children (Jessica, Norah, Alicia) are bonded by a sisterhood experience - living in foster care at the same “idyllic” location in the country. But Miss Fairchild, the owner and foster parent is anything BUT a proper parent. Flash forward to adulthood and the 3 women are now called back to the house they survived. Bones have been found. Secrets will be revealed. But who is the person responsible and just how deep do more secrets lie? And whose bones have been unearthed? 🤔

💡𝐓𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬: Daaaayyyum!! Hepworth has done a MUCH better job with this novel (Loved The Good Sister but hated The Younger Wife). Granted I’m no foster care expert, but as an inner city school teacher I’ve had experience in this general arena. Hepworth does this topic insanely proud with thorough research and an engaging plot I’d LOVE to see in a movie. She also paints these flawed characters with a broad stroke - never focusing on their trauma, but rather their individuality. All with the twisty moments we crave in the psych thriller genre!

The characters are well-written and engaging, my favorite being hot-tempered Norah (because sometimes you DO need to smack someone down) 😆. In their own ways they are fragile, but Hepworth gives them merit, a presence , a voice and for that I will say 👏🏼 👏🏼 👏🏼. Yassss! Anyone with siblings will know the bond.

This is one of those FOMO books EVERYONE will be running to read. Just Do it! Because Nike was right about that in so many ways…

📚𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐫𝐞: Domestic thriller

😍𝐑𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨: All the psychological /domestic thriller fans will be talking about it.

🙅‍♀️ 𝐍𝐨𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨: I think if you’re over the plot twists like Verity and The Silent Patient (which I loved!)

Thank you to the author and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC and for not forgetting this long-lost reviewer who had a medical battle last year that wrecked my %. You welcomed me back and I am forever grateful. ☺️

Definitely darker than her previous books but it was one of those ‘can’t look away’ types of dark. I just had to know how it was all going to wrap up even with the tough subject matter of child neglect/abuse all throughout.

Hepworth is my go to for domestic thrillers. I have enjoyed all her books and this one did not disappoint. A dark look into the foster care system. Many twists and turns. The ending threw me for a loop.

Norah, Jessica and Alicia all grew up together in a foster home ran by Mrs. Fairchild. Now as adults and still very close are faced with their past when a body shows up in their childhood home after it has been torn down. Each still managing and masking their own trauma from childhood learn new secrets about Mrs Fairchild and the circle of abuse.

Another solid read by Sally Hepworth. Good twists and turns.

This book. THIS BOOK!!! I don’t even know what to say except READ IT. This book was easily a five star read, and then I got to the final chapter and it immediately became a more than that. If I could give it 100 stars I would.

Told in multiple POV’s and a dual timeline this book explores how cruel the life of a foster child can be. The long-term effects of neglect and abuse.

Hepworth made me feel connected to the sisters from the start, and even managed to evoke some sympathy from me for Miss Fairchild. I was constantly guessing what the outcome would be, and once I thought I had it figured out she just laughed and said “you thought!”

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martins Press for the opportunity to read this book!

At first read, I couldn't tell who was meeting with the psychologist. I thought that added an another element of surprise. I liked how they told.each of the sister's perspectives and connected them throughout the entire story.

I loved it. This is exactly the type of thriller I like to read. It kept me engaged the whole time and I couldn't wait to finish it.

This felt like a little bit more of a suspense and family drama than thriller. Still really liked it! SH writes such complex characters that you kinda love them all even though they have tricky pieces- just like the rest of us. Love the cover, the setting, the pacing. Great finish!

I've seen Darling Girls by Sally Hepworth described as a thrilling page-turner, and that is absolutely not how I would describe it. If you go in expecting a fast-paced thriller, you will likely be disappointed. However if you are looking for a psychological thriller, this might be for you. I typically prefer plot-driven books, and this one leans heavily on the characters. However, I was hooked from the start. I have not read Sally Hepworth before, but in this case, she wrote characters who drew me in. I wanted to know more about them and cared what happened. I won't say anything specific about the plot, as I think it's best not to know too much going in. If you like stories that look at the human experience, familial bonds, shifting loyalites and uncertain circumstances, give it a try!

Thank you to #NetGalley and #StMartinsPress for a free copy of #DarlingGirls by Sally Hepworth. All opinions are my own.

This story is about 3 foster sisters who share a bond like blood sisters would.Jessica, Norah, and Alicia grew up together on a farm with a terrible foster mother.Years later bones are found in their childhood farmhouse yard and all of the girls are summons in to the Police Dept for questioning. When all the pieces are put together at the end the revelation is absolutely SHOCKING. Highly recommend.

Darling Girls by Sally Hepworth is a great psychological thrill. When three foster sisters must face their past after something is discovered at their old foster home the reader is taken on a wild adventure.
I loved the multiple points of view and all three of the main characters. I loved the thrill of this book and the mystery.

Darling Girls was somehow my first Sally Hepworth book but not my last! I've added all of her books to my TBR! If you love a good mystery, this is a book for you! Thank you, NetGalley, for the opportunity to read this ARC!

This was by far my favorite book by Sally Hepworth. It is a heavy story that touches on topics of grief, child and sexual abuse but so well written and emotional that you are hooked right from the first page. Multiple POVs and flashbacks to the past painted a full story of three sisters’ childhood and how those experiences shaped their adulthood. I really loved their bond and love for one another.
This is a twisty, emotional thriller that you can devour in one sitting, just like I did. Highly recommend it!
Thank you NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press and the author for a free ARC in exchange for my honest review.

4.25/5 stars

Trigger Warnings for child abuse, drug abuse, sexual assault and child abandonment

This was my first Sally Hepworth book but it won’t be my last. I was so invested in this dark, thrilling and mysterious book. I had to know how it ended. Sometimes it was hard to keep the three sisters straight in the beginning but I made notes and was able to reference them throughout the book. This book definitely opened my eyes to the foster care system and what some kids go through. I had to read the last chapter 3 times because I was so surprised as to what happened. I really liked how each of the sisters stories ended. The back and forth timeline was confusing at some points but I think it was done well overall.

I’m eager to read another book by this author as she is amazing at writing thrilling book!

This book reminded me of why I like Sally Hepworth novels. This was a well-researched dive into the horrors that can happen in the foster system. Part of it was about the relationships and bonds that are formed. The rest of it was about the body under the house...

The dual timeline moved between the sisters' time together, their individual traumas that brought them there, and some brief interludes with a psychologist. I loved how Hepworth created an almost gothic feel to the foster home, "Wild Meadows", where Jessica, Norah, and Alicia spent their formative years. The punishments were rarely physical, but the psychological harm they inflicted had long-lasting consequences. I could see a very type-cast Jessica Lange playing the role of Miss Fairchild, the gracious to others, but cold, uncaring foster mother to all of the children under her care.

This was a dark and twisted story and I loved every minute of it!

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's press for an advance reader's copy.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an early copy of Darling Girls. WOW, WOW, WOW!! I cannot believe I read this in a day, it was soooooooo CONSUMING! The dark side of foster care is Horrible, so very sad. This book was so well written about a taboo subject and had such a wonderful ending. The characters were Fantastic, this book will stay with me for a loooong time. You do NOT go wrong with a Sally Hepworth novel, she ALWAYS comes through. FANTASTIC, COMPELLING, EMOTIONAL, RIVETING!

A dark story with dual timelines, One timeline is three girls' time in foster care. The second timeline is the girls as adult women dealing with the trauma they experienced as children. It was dark and sad but I was fully engrossed in the fast paced story.

Thank you @stmartinspress @macmillan.audio for a copy of this book. Before you read this, be aware that there's depiction of child neglect and abuse that is heartbreaking. This story is told in 3 POV of the "sisters" that grew up in a foster home together. It's told in past and present and gives you a good backstory of each of these ladies. The story is interesting and I think the author did a good job depicting that not all foster homes were safe. I got a little muddled in parts of the story with so many POV in audio. The narrator did a foot job and the last 1/3 of the book really picked up and tied the story together.