Wow wow wow Sally Hepworth does it again! This book is probabaly hands down my top favorite by here.

The plot twist, the darkness behind the reality someone's mental capabilities, the sad reality of foster care. I mean I was hooked from the first chapter.

Jessica, Norah, and Alicia are all foster "sisters" living together at Wild Meadows with Mrs. Fairchild. Throughout the book the plot goes back and forth between past tense and fast forward 25 years. Jessica is now a successful business women with a hidden secret and a life that seems "perfect". Norah is just trying to get through life while not trying to end up in jail. And for Alicia she wants to the tell the person she loves the most that she wants a shot at a relationship but can't because of her past. Through the book you go on the journey of how the girls ended up at Wild Meadows and the lasting impression it left on them both mentally and emotionally. In the present there is a murder investagation going on now that wild Meadows has been torn down. Upon this discovering the girls are forced to face some of the demons of their past while also running into past relationships that hold secrets.

I highly recommend if you like mystery and explosive secrets! TW: murder, overdose, mental illness, abuse, teen pregnancy, & sexual assault.

thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for allowing me preacess to this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

I really enjoyed this book! The Darling Girls of the title are 3 foster children "cared for" by Miss Fairchild in her rural farmhouse outside of Melbourne. The book goes back and forth in time between the present, when a set of bones are discovered under the farmhouse, and the past, when the girls were young. We learn that Miss Fairchild wasn't exactly an ideal parent, and each of the girls is scarred in her own way by the experiences in that house and their earlier lives.

The characters were well-drawn and really interesting, and the author did a great job of slowly revealing their personalities. Lots of misdirection along the way, and it takes some time to reveal whose body was buried and whether the girls had anything to do with it. The book was fast-paced, and a very enjoyable read. Definitely recommend!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Received an ARC via NetGalley. Disfunction at its best! The characters grab your heart from the beginning. What could go wrong with being in the foster system? Read and find out. Highly recommend. 4.5 stars

I love everything Sally Hepworth writes she is always an auto-read author for me! I was so excited to get this arc and couldn't wait to read it and was not disappointed at all. Her writing style is so easy to read and even when it's a difficult subject matter like foster care I can't put her books down. I don't want to give away too much of the plot but will absolutely recommend this book when it is released. Giving this one 4/4.5 stars I want to thank NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the digital arc in exchange for an honest review.

Loved this and is a definite purchase for me. As with some others I believe in purchasing alot especially when there is a writer like Sally Hepworth

Another wonderfully dark and twisted tale by Sally Hepworth! A great read for suspense fans. I loved this one!

The darling girls are a trio of adult former foster kids who reunite when a child’s skeleton is discovered underneath their former foster house. The tension built slowly, but steadily, and I enjoyed the girls’ subplots that made them feel rich, fully-formed, and imperfect. I will say, I accurately predicted the Big Twist at the 50% mark, but I kept reading for the characters. Sally Hepworth did not disappoint.

Never met a Sally Hepworth book i didnt like. All of her books are 1-day reads for me. They are so easy to FLY through and I am always hanging on until they end to find the resolution. I enjoyed the overarching theme of sisterhood in this one in addition to the "mystery" aspect.

Whenever I see a new Sally Hepworth book, you better believe I'm going to grab it off the shelf. I always love her writing style and this one falls in line with my other favorites from her like The Good Sister and The Soulmate. Definitely a book you should pick up!

This was my first Sally Hepworth book but it won’t be the last. I have seen lany books that I was curious about but never had the chance to read. This book did not dissapoint, what a fun read that kept me guessing to the end. I enjoyed the multiple points of view.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an ARC of Darling Girls.

Darling Girls had a great storyline - we follow three "sisters" from the past to present day and their stories of growing up together in a foster home. The character development of the sisters and their foster mom was so good! I was invested in their storyline from the beginning. I thoroughly enjoyed the twists and turns the book took and loved the ending.

I have read all of Sally Hepworth's books and can't wait for the next one!

This is not a fun read. I appreciate that these characters are complex, and you can sort of see how their turbulent upbringings would make them behave in ways that seem a little nuts.

This is a novel about the failure of the foster care system and adults doing terrible things to kids that even go beyond physical violence (although there is that, too).

I liked the characters of Jessica, Norah, and Alicia. We read about their stories today, 25 years after they fled a horrific foster care situation that bonded them for life, and at the time that sent them to live with Miss. Fairchild, which caused all the emotional damage. Both timelines are harrowing. In some ways they escaped the abuse, but in other ways the psychological scars are still messing them up. The various mysteries do you keep you reading, even though you’re sort of flinching and gritting your teeth through a lot of it.

NetGalley provided an advance copy of this novel, which RELEASES APRIL 23, 2024.

An exciting thriller novel that was hard to put down! The author's ability to introduce the 3 main characters and create an interest for a reader not only in their present lives, but also in their pasts, was clever. And Sally Hepworth's talent at keeping the suspense flowing, while keeping you guessing about who is the real victim and who is the real perpetrator, will keep you on the edge of your seat. Recommend this captivating read for a fun escape!

I thank the author, the publisher and Net Galley for my ARC of this book.

By far the best Sally Hepworth book I have read! She has already been on my list of auto-buy authors and this just proved as to why she deserves to be there. I had thought I had the twist figured out fairly early on in the book, but I was so far off. And then once that twist was revealed, she went ahead and threw another curve ball in!

I will be recommending this to every single reader I know! She deserves all the stars for this one.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I always love a good Sally Hepworth novel but she has outdone herself with Darling Girls! I HIGHLY recommend this book to all readers. You will not be disappointed. Everything about this book was phenomenal and kept me up reading way too late into the night. I could not put Darling Girls down. I never saw the twists and turns coming, especially the huge reveal on the very last page. Congratulations, to Sally! Can hardly wait to see what she comes up with next!!

Huge thanks to St. Martin’s Press, NetGalley and Sally Hepworth for allowing me the privilege to read this ARC. I truly enjoyed every page.

Jessica, Norah, and Alicia are foster sisters that grew up in a household that from the outside appeared to make them seem lucky. But what goes on behind those doors is anything but that. When they think it’s all behind them they are pulled back by a shocking event that unveils so much about the past.

This is my favorite Hepworth that I’ve read so far! She has such a great way of writing complex characters that draw you into the story. The bond that these foster sisters have is heart warming and makes their story feel so real and tragic. This book is a great, but sad story and insight into what some children must endure in foster care. It also does a good job of showing how long lasting the effects of growing up in an environment like this or with a narcissist can be.

This story is told from the perspective of multiple POVs and dual timelines. Which is my fav in a book. *4.5 stars*

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the advanced copy of this novel!

My first 5 star book of the year! I loved this book. From the start, I was invested and wanted to keep reading. I saw some things coming but then…nope! A very different dynamic for a family thriller.
The story follows three foster sisters through their abusive relationship with their caretaker. The timeline shifts from past to present. Each character is well developed and you feel the way the author wants you to feel about each. Add in that they each respond to their traumatic childhoods with a different set of ptsd symptoms and it’s just really well done.

Several stories within a story. Darling Girls tells the story (stories) of four foster sisters and they're very questionable foster mother. Such beautiful writing, she delves into love, addiction, abuse and so much more. I will forever be a fan!

Sally Hepworth is so so good with character development and that's why she's one of my favorite authors. I loved the three strong female leads. I also loved that this story touched on abuse and the manipulation from Miss Fairchild. Sally truly kept it well balanced with the comic relief while shedding light on a rough topic. I did predict a few of the puzzle pieces, but the twist definitely humbled me. Loved it.

Received another ARC and it’s another 5 star by Sally Hepworth! This book was everything I needed and more. I found myself picking up this book in the middle of doing anything just to get back into the story. Great story that just came to life in my head.