This one really captured my attention and was difficult to put down. It was a fast moving, easy to read thriller. I enjoyed getting to know the three main characters who grew up together, and were sadly abused, while in foster care. They are brought together to tell their story when the bones of a body are found beneath their former foster home.

Typical of Hepworth’s thrillers, she weaves a fascinating tale while developing interesting and relatable characters.

I highly recommend this thriller.

I am never disappointed with this author's books and her latest certainly doesn't disappoint.
As you read this book, the tension continues to mount and the suspense heightens. Just when I thought I figured out who did what and where the responsibility for the mystery reigned, I realized I didn't figure it out. That certainly makes for an intriguing ride.

Darling girls was a thrilling read! This is my first Sally Hepworth book and I am now hooked and ready to dive into all of her other novels. I loved how the sisterhood remained strong throughout the story and showed resilience. Definitely recommend

This was a great book. I usually like Sally Hepworth books. There was a little mystery and good development of the character’s personalities and friendships. Kept my interest. Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Three girls bonded by the shared experience of the same foster home. Now grown, they are informed that human bones have been found under the house during demolition. What happened? This is the third Hepworth I’ve read. One was a five star and one was three. This one, unfortunately was a three. I was able to figure out the “twist” and the resolution was underwhelming. Hepworth is always fun to read and I will be seeking out more of her work.

Sally Hepworth has done it again. This book will grab you and hold on to the end. Alicia, Jessica and Norah enter the foster system and are placed together with Miss Fairchild. While not sisters by birth, they are sisters through life and are called together when a body is found in the grounds of the house where they were placed. Alternating between each one’s past and present and an individuals visits to the therapist, you will willingly turn the pages nonstop to find out what happens.

Darling Girls is a twisty and suspenseful journey through the dark side of the foster care system. The plot was fast-paced and suspenseful, and it kept me guessing right up until the very end.

This is the story of 3 sisters with an unbreakable bond. They grew up together in foster care, under the care of Miss Fairchild. They thought themselves lucky to have a home… but what else is going on? Many years later, they return after human remains are found where their foster home once stood… but are they being looked at as witnesses or suspects?

Caution: Don't pick up this book when you are likely to be interrupted - it's hard to put it down. I think of it as a horror book where the monster is human. It's one of the best plotted thrillers I've ever read, with unforgettable characters.

The four main characters are Alicia, Jessica, Norah and Miss Fairchild. There is also an unnamed person who has sessions with a psychiatrist - I didn't figure out who that was until late in the book. The story switches between past and present, and there is at least one unreliable narrator so at times, what you read may not be true.

When Alicia, Jessica and Norah were young, they were each placed with a foster mother, Miss Fairchild, who lived in an isolated area. The girls were not related. Miss Fairchild was unpredictable, and the girls soon learned to be very careful around her, although they could never be careful enough.

They were finally removed from her custody while they were still teens. One of the girls had not been allowed to attend school while in Miss Fairchild's custody, and all of them have emotional damage from that time in their lives.

Years later, they are living their separate lives with varying degrees of success. Then the body of a child was found buried under the house where they had lived with Miss Fairchild, and the three women are brought in for questioning. This book kept me guessing until the end.

I received an e-arc of this book from the publisher St. Martin's Press via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Twenty-five years ago, at a beautiful farmhouse something happened. Jessica, Norah, and Alicia ( sisters not by blood) were in foster care under the care of Miss Fairchild.. To the outsider, Miss Fairchild is a wonderful caring person however that was not the case. Verbal, physical, and emotional abuse was occurring on a daily basis. Miss. Fairchild was very erratic and was quick to punish.

The farmhouse is being demolished and bones have been found. The police are trying to figure out what happened and if the girls were involved.

Jessica - OCD and has another secret
Norah- who has an anger issue and seems to lash out frequently
Alicia- insecure and is in her own way

These three girls travel back to the farm to talk with law enforcement and they also see Miss. Fairchild.

I really enjoyed the POV chapters ( 3 sisters and a mystery person who is in therapy).

It is a great read. Thank you Net Galley for the advanced copy

This is a thriller everyone needs to pick up! It’s a fast paced moving book with revelations after almost every chapter. It could really be read in one sitting if you have the time.


This story follows three women Jessica, Alisha, and Norah who were all fostered by an abusive woman named Holly in a place called wild meadows. As adult women they receive a call that transports them back to the horrors of their upbringing when a body is found under the house at wild meadows. The discovery of the body also brings them to three other women who were under the care of Holly as babies and together they try to figure out who this body is to get the heat off of themselves. Of course this brings them to into a run in the mommy dearest who is still not the mother they always have wanted. What truths will come to light and what secrets will stay buried?

📚 Darling Girls
✍ Sally Hepworth
📖 Psychological Thriller
⭐4/5

➡Twenty five years ago, foster sisters Jessica, Norah and Alicia left the traumatic horrors of their foster mother, Miss Fairchild and her farm in small town Australia behind. Though what they experienced there is never far from mind, they have each other, a small group of friends and their careers pushing them forward until each woman gets a phone call that stops them in their tracks: a set of human remains have been found buried underneath the farmhouse where they were raised.

Brought back to town by the police for questioning, each woman will recount the horrors she experienced at the helm of Miss Fairchild and must ultimately decide which truths are worth lying for.
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🙏 Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the advanced copy of Darling Girls. All opinions are my own.
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🎯 What I loved: Told in alternating perspectives in both the past and present tense, this harrowing book about three foster 'sisters' who survived horrible psychological trauma at the hands of their foster mother was propulsive and fascinating. Tied together by the thread of a murder mystery, this kept me guessing until the last few pages. Ultimately, the characters are all a little flawed but you're rooting for them nonetheless- something I don't always feel with thrillers. What keeps me coming back for more and more with Hepworth is her ability to create layered personalities and intricate character webs like no one else.
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Read if you love:
*complicated parental relationships
*thrillers involving the foster care system
*no-violence psychological thrillers
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See also: Before We Were Yours, The Heiress, The Problem with Forever

Sally Hepworth is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors. Her books are fast paced and always have very interesting characters.

Alicia, Jessica, and Norah grew up in a foster home with a very unpredictable foster mother, Ms. Fairchild. The girls developed an unbreakable bond out of the need to survive and be loved. Years after escaping their childhood and Ms. Fairchild they are dragged back to their childhood home when a dark buried secret comes to light.

Hepworth does an excellent job developing her characters. The girls have very different personalities that most readers can relate to. If you like fast paced domestic thrillers told by multiple characters and multiple timelines you will love Darling girls by Sally Hepworth.

Sally Hepworth is quickly becoming one of my fav authors. Her psychological thrillers just deliver every single time and this gem was no different! I usually get intimidated when I see multiple main characters because I easily confuse story lines but the stories were so unique and the characters so memorable that that just wasn’t the case.
Overall, it was just so nicely done and I couldn’t have guessed where the story was going! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.2 from me! A big thank you to Netgalley for letting me read this as an ARC!

It is hard to say “I enjoyed this book” when the foundational premise is a terrible foster care experience- but I did. I thought the plot kept moving and it truly wasn’t over until the last page. There was good character development and overall a good story. I am a Sally Hepworth fan and thought this was a great addition to her repertoire.

Easily a five star read for me! Suspenseful with a jaw dropping, climactic ending I never saw coming! This is my first book to read from this author, and it definitely won’t be the last!

This book was good but definitely so much heavier than I was expecting. If you have any triggers related to foster youth or abuse I might skip this one, I am not one to typically get triggered by these things but it was a lot for me. Super dark and twisty and would recommend. Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC :)

What a twisted way to grow up in foster care. Although this is just a fictional story, it had my mind racing as to what foster children really could be going through behind closed doors.
Darling girls is written in first person with the exchange of points of view (POV) throughout the story. It gave the reader a full look into each main character's thoughts, feelings and experiences.
The story is based on a trio of foster sisters raised in Port Agatha at Wild Meadows by a wretched woman, Miss Fairchild. It showcases the past and present of these women and what became of them from their torment and traumatic upbringing.
All being called together to help investigators uncover an old crime that took place at Wild Meadows.
The storyline does go back and forth from character as well as from past to present, so attention to detail when reading this is needed.
As a reader, the story embedded suspicions of what could really have happened with regard to the situation the police are investigating and who is at fault.
The story flows together well with twists and turns that make the reader re-evaluate their original thought process.

Darling Girls is Sally Hepworth’s latest book and thanks to NetGalley. I was sent an e- copy book earl to read and review and her latest book is a thrill page turner and keeps you guessing right up until the last page. I always enjoy her books and her newest one is not to be missed. Bravo Sally🙋‍♀️🇨🇦📚🙏❤️👏👏👏

✨ ARC Review ✨

Book: Darling Girls
Author: Sally Hepworth
Genre: thriller
Format: 📕
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Synopsis: Three women formed a bond of sisterhood while in the home of Miss Fairchild as foster children. When bones are discovered under the foundation of the now torn down house, the women are called back to the town the left decades ago.

Sally Hapworth has been a favorite author of mine for awhile so getting an ARC of her next birth was so exciting. I was hooked from the first page and loved all the twists and turns throughout. I felt like I got to know the characters well and could keep track even with a lot going on.

Reading this on my kindle could be the reason for a little confusion, but there were parts that seemed to not be separated out as a chapter when they should have been. With so many POVs, it’s important to know who you’re reading and the fourth POV wasn’t named the same as the rest making it more difficult. Once I was able to decipher it, I truly enjoyed having four POVs.

Thank you to @stmartinspress, @netgalley, and @sallyhepworth for the advanced read is a great book.

Somehow this was my first Sally Hepworth novel, and I really enjoyed it! It had a great sense of creepiness and intrigue and a pretty fast pace. I didn’t grow to love the characters, but I did have a hard time reading about some of what they went through in their foster home. Even though this was a thriller, it got difficult thinking of the reality of foster care. I liked the multiple points of view, and I definitely was surprised by the last little twist.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this arc!