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!

Trigger warnings for everything in this one, but especially for child abuse and sexual assault. A trio of sisters, raised in foster care by Miss Fairchild, a monster in disguise. A body found under a house. The lasting repercussions of childhood trauma and instability. This had me absolutely riveted and guessing until the very end = no way was I guessing the ending! A quick, engaging read.

I love all of Sally Hepworth's books but I have to say, this is probably my favorite thus far. It's not often when an author is consistent with their writing and even less often when they're books just get better and better. This story was unique and a complete page turner. I felt invested in the story and was eager to keep reading to find out what exactly happened to the body found under the house. The ending came quickly with surprise after surprise. But of course, Hepworth left another devious surprise at the end. I enjoy her books so much and I cannot wait for the next one to come out. I highly recommend Darling Girls if you're a fan of suspense.

Darling Girls was an intriguing read by Sally Hepworth that kept me guessing. There were a few turns toward the end that I didn't see coming. Possibly a bit of an eye roller but still okay with me!

The characters were easily distinguishable and each took on a clear personality. I appreciated the note in the back as well.

I will comment that I was reading a galley edition and there were a surprising number of uncorrected errors, but I ALSO know that because it is St Martin's Press, every one of them will be corrected by the time this book gets into your hot little hands!

Thank you to Netgalley and St Martin's Press for an ARC of Darling Girls in exchange for an honest review.

Four solid stars!

Wow. This book kept me guessing until the very end. Told from multiple points of view, mainly three adoptive sisters, my interpretation of each character was constantly changing in the best way possible. I thoroughly enjoyed this rollercoaster of a ride while never knowing who to trust. I think it's safe to say this is Sally's best work yet!

Oh the people are not going to love this book lol. I enjoyed it and have a tolerance for a lot of the triggers but I just KNOW!!! People are going to have issues with this one. The abuse, the foster care abuse, the child trafficking, the suicide. Goodness it was a lot. The story was good and compelling and miss Fairchild is a wench.

The last few Sally Hepwoth books fell short for me. But this one hit it home! What a great read! I'm not normally a fan of open ended endings but this one worked.

Sally Hepworth did it AGAIN!! “Darling Girls” is a page turning thriller that will not only pull the reader in but also leave them in awe at the end. The sisterly bond that Norah, Jessica, and Alicia developed, as a result of their experiences living in foster care, is put to the test. When bones are discovered under their childhood home the women are forced to share the horrors of their past & confront their unpredictable foster mother, Ms. Fairchild.

It was truly beyond a pleasure being afforded to receive an ARC copy of this book via @netgalley . Ever since reading “The Younger Wife”, Sally Hepworth QUICKLY became one of my “auto-buy authors!”! Rest assured - you WILL NOT be disappointed once you pick up a copy of “Darling Girls”