This book made me anxious - every section about the girls as children made me so worried about what was going to happen to them (even though I knew they grew up and made it through their foster child years safely) because Miss Fairchild was such a monster. And the twists keep coming in the story about their adult lives, as things start to unravel and old secrets come to light, and we get to know each of the girls (and their former foster mother) more. This was such a wild ride and I really enjoyed it, even when it made me a little stressed!

Jessica, Alicia, and Norah have been running from their collective traumatic childhood as fast as they can, but it has finally caught up to them. This is a fast, propulsive, gripping read that is able to really hook the reader with its highly fascinating subject matter: foster children abused at the hands of a sociopathic narcissist who presents as kind, high-functioning, and loving to the world. Broken down but still standing, now-adult foster sisters Jessica, Norah, and Alicia each cope differently with their trauma, but via chapters from their child and adult POVs, as well as POV chapters from their foster mother from court-mandated therapy, finally the girls and the police are able to weave together all the information to solve the mystery of the bones under the house (sort of). It is clear to the reader almost instantly that Miss Fairchild is the real deal in terms of her sociopathy and abuse. She is diabolical, a villain you love to hate, and one who ultimately reads as chillingly realistic. Thank you to NetGalley, this is a 4.5 star read for me that I am happy to round up to a 5.

Let me start by saying as a huge Sally fan…she DID NOT disappoint. After not enjoying The Soulmate as much this book was so refreshing. In true Sally fashion she touched on family dynamics but at a different angle by jumping into the beauty and the downfall of the foster system.

Jessica, Norah, and Alicia were brought together as sisters 25 years ago while growing up with their wicked foster mother Miss Fairchild. Miss Fairchild has a way of loving them, making them feel so welcomed, but punishing them in the worst ways.

The girls are brought back to confront their past when human bones are found buried in the ground of the home they grew up in. Who does the bones belong to and how did they get there?

This book will have you intrigued from start to finish. All 3 girls have their own issues all rooting from their upbringing and the further you go into the story the more you understand them and who they are. The story is told from all 3 of the girls POV alternating from past to present which I always can appreciate.

No matter what you think you know or have figured out, you don’t! The ending was *chefs kiss*! I was able to finish this within 24 hours of starting. Expected pub date is April 2024 so add this to your TBR pile. Thanks to NetGalley for the ACR version!

This was excellent and had so many twists. I never expected the ending. The way that the book detailed a foster child's life and showed that even this situation was not the worst to be encountered is heartbreaking. This is an excellent read and is emotionally charged. It does have some potential triggers about infant death/ murder.

My favorite Sally Hepworth book by far!!! This was so good, I couldn’t put it down. It was dark, twisty, and a face paced familiar thriller

This is absolutely my favorite book by this author thus far. The story follows 3 sisters who are forced to delve back into their past in the foster care home that nearly broke them. They’re pulled back, when they receive news that a body has been found there.

I read my first Sally Hepworth book earlier this year and loved it so I jumped on the chance to read her latest thriller! Darling Girls is the story of three foster children who bonded and became chosen sisters during their time with Miss. Fairchild, their abusive foster mother. When human bones are found under their childhood home years later, the three sisters return to find out what happened...

This was a heavy read...one that took me a while to finish because I could only handle a bit at a time. There are themes of childhood abuse, mental abuse and gaslighting and dealing with childhood trauma. I found this book to be one that kept my attention and also kept me guessing until the very end...which I didn't see coming at all.

If you've loved Sally's books in the past, you're going to love this one too!

First off, I’d like to thank St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for my review. Sally Hepworth’s thrillers always draw me in, but there was something especially addicting about Darling Girls. The novel begins and you think you have a good idea on what’s coming. Suddenly, as the story progresses, the reader is no longer sure who to believe. The author gets her story across with just the right amount of detail and cliffhangers. Overall, highly recommending this to fans of thrillers when it comes out in April 2024! 4.5/5 stars!

Darling Girls by Sally Hepworth was one of the better books by her. The subject is disturbing but the story stuck with me, It caught my attention with the first chapter and kept my interest until the end. It was well written with great character development. The changing point of view was helpful in this story. There were just enough twists to keep the reader guessing and when I thought I had it figured out there was another twist.
Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for my review copy of this book.

That feeling when you were right all along...

I LOVED Sally Hepworth's last book #thesoulmate and couldn't believe my luck when I scored this #arc from #netgalley and #stmartinspress

On its own, this was a great read, but it didn't hold a candle to The Soulmate IMO. One of the reasons was the predictable ending. I'm always both excited and disappointed when I guess right. It doesn't happen often, and it's usually just a hunch not something I've actually figured out with my little grey cells 😜 but I do feel a bit let down.

There's definitely some hard things to read about child abuse in the foster care system. Not that I want to bury my head in the sand and pretend that it's all roses and puppies, but I really struggle with topics like that in the reading I do for pleasure and relaxation. Anyhow, Hepworth was able to convey the idea without a lot of focus or detail which I appreciated.

I definitely recommend this book for Sally Hepworth fans, and thriller fans in general, but don't go in expecting to find your soulmate - see what I did there? 😆

Synopsis:
From the outside, Alicia, Jessica and Norah might seem like ordinary women you'd meet on the street any day of the week. Sure, Jessica has a little OCD and Norah has some anger issues. And Alicia has low self-esteem that manifests itself in surprising ways. But these three have a bond that no one can fully understand. It's a bond that takes them back decades, to when they were girls, and they lived on a farm with a foster mother named Miss Fairchild. Miss Fairchild had rules. Miss Fairchild could be unpredictable. And Miss Fairchild was never, ever to be crossed. In a moment of desperation, the three broke away from Miss Fairchild, and they thought they were free. But the reach of someone with such power is long, and even though they never saw her again, she was always somewhere in the shadows of their minds. When bones are discovered buried under the farmhouse of their childhood, they are called in by the police to tell what they know. Against their will, they are brought back to the past, and to Miss Fairchild herself.

This book was darker than anything I have read from Sally Hepworth and it absolutely devastated me!

I was shocked at the intensity and level of abuse this book had, but each little piece made up such a brutally compelling story of sisterhood and perseverance.

Three girls- Jessica, Norah and Alicia were all foster children of Miss Fairchild when they were teenagers, forming a fast and impenetrable bond. From outside, the live they shared in Fairchild’s home was one filled with love and contentment, but inside, it was a very different story.

Years after they were seemingly free from her grasp and her rules, they are brought back to where it all started when bones are found under the house of Miss Fairchild. While the three of them have stayed incredibly close, not one of those girls has ever truly repaired the damage done, and they are each dealing internally with issues.

Ultimately, this book was so powerful and so hard to get through. But I absolutely loved it.

This was a book that I was wildly excited to read...and it did not disappoint! I was hesitant going into it, because it all centers arounds children...and while I like a good thriller, I'd like the children to be off limits. Ya know? Well, the children were DEF not off limits and those darling girls grew up and found things out! I was captivated!

This book shows how the past shapes and changes us, and we can control how it affects our mindset...a legit make or break moment! Plus the sweet taste of revenge is ALWAYS a plus!

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martins Publishing Group for the advanced readers copy of this book!

Five Stars!

Sally Hepworth knows how to write a story that has me constantly guessing and needing to know more. Her stories are typically unputdownable for me and “Darling Girls” was no different.

The bond between foster sisters Norah (“without a t”), Alicia and Jessica was like nothing I have ever read. I felt sad but happy that these fictional characters had, at least, each other while trying to navigate their foster home at Wild Meadows with Miss Fairchild.

I am positive I will continue to read whatever Sally Hepworth writes.

A tragic story which had many twists and turns that I had not predicted. The story kept me reading "just one more chapter". Darling Girls is about a foster care parent and the children left in her care. This portrays the bad side of the system and what could go wrong. Thoroughly enjoyed Sally Hepworth's writing style and how I was kept engrossed to the very last chapter. Excellent story.

A quick, well-written novel about three women who grew up in the same foster home as children. They form a life-long bond as sisters and are called back to their former foster home when human bones are found underneath the house.
Fair warning - there is a lot of child abuse in this book and detailed flaws of foster care. Miss Fairchild, the foster mother, is a difficult and disturbing character.
The story goes back and forth between past and present with the multiple POVs of the sisters (Norah, Jessica, and Alicia). All three sisters are still dealing with their traumatic childhoods.
An interesting twist at the end!
Recommend!

Thank you so much for the chance to read and review this book! I have read several books by Sally Hepworth and as very excited to see a new book coming out!

Darling Girls by Sally Hepworth definitely gets 4.5 stars from me!

Darling Girls grabbed me from the very beginning! Sally made us love and feel connected to the characters from the start! You feel like you are experiencing everything with Alicia, Norah and Jessica.

There were lots of twists and turns until the very end! I was very impressed with this book! I was very emotionally involved in the story and with the characters!

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for allowing me to read and advanced copy of Darling Girls by Sally Hemp Worth.

Darling Girls tells a twisted story of three sisters Jessica, Norah and Alicia who as young children live with their foster mother Miss Fairchild. Each of the sisters has their own quirks and unique traits that the reader gets to watch develop throughout the story. As each character’s story is told in alternating perspectives you get a sense of how Jessica, Norah and Alicia are shaped by their past traumas and how they form a beautifully tight bond. I fond the dual story timeline to be gripping, engaging and a bit heartbreaking reading what each child went through in the foster care system and under Miss Fairchilds roof. As adults the three sisters now have their own lives but are still very bonded. A set of bones is found buried under their childhood home and all three sisters are called back to the foster home by detectives to figure out who it is.  I fount this book to be very entertaining and I could not put it down. The first part of the book was a slow burn for me but it definitely picked up mid way through. The plot and twits and turns were very well written. The last chapter of the book had my jaw on the floor! This is my second Sally Hempworth book and I am a total fan! I’d highly recommend this book to anyone.

If you’ve been around for any length of time then you know I love Sally Hepworth. She is the queen of a domestic/psychological thriller, and the biggest joy to follow on insta. I couldn’t wait any longer to read her newest, Darling Girls. It doesn’t come out until April, but I swear that you’ll want to get your pre-order in for this ASAP.

This follows three sisters - Jessica, Norah, and Alicia - as they are taken back to Wild Meadows, the foster home they all lived in when they were younger. Not only are they forced to relive the past, but also Ms. Fairchild.

Here’s what I loved -

✨ twist after twist

✨ dual timelines and multiple POVs - especially loved Norah’s perspective

✨ found family + the female friendships

✨ conversations around the foster system and being raised by an abusive/narcissistic foster parent

✨ the shock of the ending

This book is undoubtedly hard to read at times and some of the things that happen feel strange rate. Overall though, this was a compulsive read! I’m landing on 4.5 stars with this one.

Loved it!
This book is rich and multilayered. The characters of the three sisters are complex, distinct, and rich. I was enthralled. I loved exploring the relationships between these three sisters and how their bond developed from their shared experiences.
The descriptions of the three sisters' time at the foster home from hell are vivid and paced perfectly to keep you glued to the screen. I particularly enjoyed how the abuse wasn't obvious. It was more subtle and insidious in nature but no less harmful as a result.
I was fully prepared to give this five stars even as I approached the end thinking there really was no big surprise there. And then the author threw the twist at the end which made me sit up and take notice. I wanted to break out in applause!
Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for my ARC.

Darling Girls follows three foster children, Jessica, Norah, and Alicia, in their adulthood and in flashbacks to their foster years. For years, these three were under the care of Miss Fairchild. Into adulthood, they learn a body had been found buried in the house. Thus begins the story…

Each foster sister is assigned specific character traits that they stuck to throughout the book. I wanted to see some growth. I also wanted to see any of them in therapy.

Alicia was my favorite sister. She decided to use her life as a way to help other kids in the foster system. She was relatable and sweet. However, she was raised by her grandma, who sores on her and loved her. Yet it took one comment from her foster mother to make her rethink her entire outlook on life. It wasn’t realistic. Norah was insanely beautiful but was explosive in anger. I couldn’t stand her and the way she used her attractiveness to get what she wanted. Jessica was the biggest mystery to me. My biggest issue? Why did she even have a husband? She treated him like he was a piece of furniture in her life.

I like feeling emotions when I read a book. It can connect me to the characters. In this case, it also made me forget the time so I ended up not being able to stop. Sally has a way with writing manipulative people that pulls me in every time.

I’ll absolutely recommend this to friends.

I received this ARC from Netgalley for my honest review.