My head is spinning aftet ending this book.

Darling Girls follows three woman Jessica, Nora, and Alisha thru their lives living in foster care with Mrs. Fairchild. After a body is found under the house they lived in as children the girls must return to the town and Foster mother they fled. This book jumps timelines back and forth between not only characters but also past and present.

I'll admit it was an interesting story, however it was extremely complicated to keep up with. I still have questions. The ending felt hurried and lacked the proper flow to explain what happened.

Thank you Netgalley for a ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Absolutely YES!!!! I loved the multiple POVs and timelines. The ending is fabulous!
Highly recommend!

Thank you for the opportunity to read and review the newest title from Sally Hepworth!

Like all of Sally’s books I thoroughly enjoyed the ride! The characters were so diverse and complicated and the end left me appalled and disgusted (over what surprise is revealed).

I finished Darling Girls and I really liked it.

Three girls who have a close knit relationship with each other but not with their foster mother Ms. Fairchild.

Jessica- very organized, well put together was the closest to Ms Fairchild. She literally gave her everything she had. And Jessica just wanted to be loved and have a mother. Unfortunately, Jessica learned the hard way with her.

Norah-dangerous, unpredictable and she could care less about anything. She always had her sisters backs and I think Ms. Fairchild hated her the worse.

Alicia-hardworking, most sympathetic she just tried to do her time and get back with her Grammy.

All in all these characters grew on me. I loved the developing first chapters and loved the ending. The middle was interesting. So did Ms Fairchild just call Zara that because she wanted an Amy? Because she knew what she was doing the whole book. She knew she had killed Amy. The whole “made up story” got me good. Until realizing that Ms Fairchild was just a privileged entitled brat that couldn’t stand being second.

This wasn't my favorite Hepworth novel. Part of that is just my personal preference. I don't enjoy stories where foster children are abused by their foster parent. Not that I think many people actually enjoy those situations, but I have a visceral dislike for that kind of story. So, part of my problem with this book is all on me and I should've read the synopsis and known not to bother picking the book up.

But I think there are other issues besides a subject matter that I don't like. I just didn't find it to be all that thrilling. There weren't any instances when my heart started racing or I was worried for the characters. I also thought there should've been more twists. The only (somewhat) surprising thing takes place on the last couple of pages. (And even that isn't really surprising when you consider the other awful things this character has done.) The rest of the story was a lot of child abuse and grown women not being able to get their lives together. I think other books I've read by the author were much stronger.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an Arc of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

Jessica, Norah and Alicia are three foster sisters suddenly suspects when a body is discovered on the land they grew up on. Everyone thinks they were raised by the loving, doting and caring Miss Fairchild, but only they know the truth.

Darling Girls is twisty and distressing, exactly how I expect my domestic thrillers. Each girl is deeply disturbed with her own issues, but together they have a sister bond that can’t be broken. Creepy throughout but the ending was incredibly satisfying!

It’s hard to say I enjoyed a book like this one because it tackles the sad subject matter of child abuse but this was an emotional and riveting read. Darling Girls tugged at my heartstrings and while much of it made me angry, I could not put the book down. This is a story about the bonds between sisters, the family that you choose, inner strength and resilience. In the midst of all this there is somewhat of a mystery and the author kept me guessing until the final page.

I liked all three central characters, Jessica, Norah, and Alicia. Author Sally Hepworth really brings them to life in these pages. Each of these women went through so much as children and now a adults they still struggle with their demons but they have each other to lean on. Alicia is a social worker helping foster kids, Jessica runs her own home organizing business and Nora is still finding her way in life

This is my second book by this author, I read The Soulmate last year. I’d definitely read more of her work.

Loved this thriller and the different perspectives and jumping between time period. It surprised me up until the very end.

4.5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 stars! WTH did I just read!! Jessica, Alicia and Norah are foster children that were raised my Ms. Fairchild at the Wild Meadows estate and considered themselves sisters. Ms. Fairchild was supposed to be the epitome of a perfect parent, or was she?

Years later, when the sisters are now women, they get contacted my the police stating that they had found a body at Wild Meadows and are asked if they can come back for questioning. The authorities need help in finding who this person was and if they can assist with finding out who did this.

By going back to Wild Meadows, Jessica, Norah and Alicia start to unpack their childhood and we get to see what did they really go through and if they did have this perfect life that Ms. Fairchild portrayed. This story is told in dual timelines and multiple POVs this psychological thriller was good from beginning to end! Please check the trigger warnings for this book and it is on the dark side but it was really, really good and I definitely recommend it!

This was such a great read! I love Sally Hepworth’s writing. The story flowed so nicely and the ENDING!! I was not expecting that! My mouth literally fell open at it!

This book grabbed me from the beginning anything having to do with young girls kind of raised in an orphanage or in a different situation is totally up my alley I was intrigued by what these young girls went through. Was there a missing girl was there not a missing girl? Did they imagine that there was someone else really a gripping story Sally Hepworth has done it again great book highly recommend.

Another twisty psychological thriller by Sally Hepworth! It was totally worth the hype.

My favorite thing to do reading a psychological thriller like this is to try to anticipate what is actually happening and yet again with Sally Hepworth - I couldn’t! Ha!

I loved every minute up until the very last one!

Thank you for the advanced copy!

I adore Sally Hepworth but sadly this is not my favorite. I found it a bit difficult due to the subject matter, but that wasn’t the reason it didn’t work for me. I felt the twist at the end took the unreliable narrator thing a bit too far and I think broke some of the “not fair to the reader” rules of crime fiction.

Darling Girl by Sally Hepworth is an outstanding thriller that keeps you guessing until the very end. The story is filled with unexpected twists, captivating characters, and a plot that hooks you from the first page. Hepworth’s writing is sharp and engaging, making it hard to put down. This novel is a must-read for anyone who loves thrilling mysteries with emotional depth.

I absolutely LOVED this book! Sally Hepworth is such a fantastic thriller writer. The twists and turns are always unexpected and jaw dropping which is what I look for in any thriller I read!

Creepy foster home!

Miss Fairchild lives on a farm, Wild Meadows in Port Agatha. She fosters children in need. On the outside, she seems like a good person helping out.

The first child to arrive is Jessica. She got there when she was five. Years later, she is joined by Norah who is eleven, and then by Alicia who is twelve. These three girls will endure trauma that will mark them as adults.

Twenty-five years later, all three girls are contacted. The body of a child has been found buried under Wild Meadows' property and they are all called back to talk to the police. The three return to their childhood town where they will relive the worst time of their lives.

The novel is narrated by the three main characters and also by an unknown narrator who is getting therapy sessions. It also alternates between past and present.

The plot was engaging and the girls, because of their flaws, were humanized making the reader empathize with their current situation.

Jessica Clarke did an amazing job narrating Darling Girls. Every time Miss Fairchild said Darling girls it gave me the creeps!

Sally Hepworth has become an auto-request/buy for me.

Cliffhanger: No

4/5 Fangs

A complimentary copy was provided by St. Martin's Press via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Good suspenseful story with a couple of surprises. This is a story of foster children and found family. This is a lot better than Sally Hepworth's last book.

thank you to netgalley & st. martin’s press for this arc!!

READ THIS IF YOU ENJOY ↡
👥 multiple POVs
⏪ past + present
👭 close sister relationships

REVIEW ↡
i always love sally hepworth books and DARLING GIRLS is one of my favorites now!! i loved this story, even though it was considerably darker than the other books i’ve read by her. the creepy suspense surrounding miss fairchild kept me very hooked! there were several red herrings to keep us guessing what happened. i liked how none of my assumptions as a reader were true. the final chapter (iykyk) didn’t do much for me - i would have been okay without it, but this was still worthy of 5 stars for me!!

This book was more mystery than thriller and I did enjoy it. This definitely kept me guessing until the end. Three adult women who grew up in foster care, told in past & present. The house they lived in is torn down and a body is discovered underneath. They are brought in for questioning and you then get glimpses in their past. The ending, eeeek.

There's no real mystery here-- you know who the bad guy(s) are from page one. I was intrigued by the three central women, who did feel real to me. The pacing of the before-and-after timelines was well done, and it kept me reading.