Sally Hepworth never fails to write a domestic suspense that I absolutely love. Her characters are real, the situations written as if you could've known that person or been in the situation yourself. Darling Girls is a messed up thriller that really shines the light on nature vs nurture, with a little nightmare of foster care thrown in. Sit down and buckle up. I highly recommend you read it.

I received an advanced copy of this book, all opinions are my own.

I absolutely loved Darling Girls. When the remains of a child are found at their foster home 30 years later, three foster sisters are drawn back to their "home" and reconnect over their shared nightmarish history.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for this advanced copy of Darling Girls!

I have loved every Sally Hepworth novel I’ve ever read and this one doesn’t fall short!

This one is a slow burn but well worth the weight!! A MUST READ!

4 STARS

This book. Yesss.
Absolutely yess

I wasn't sure where this book was going at first. But then something happened and I couldn't put it down.

This book was so easy to read. I loved the twists and the ways it makes you question everything.

And then you get to the last chapter. And BOOM.

I enjoyed every minute of this well- plotted, well-paced novel by the super talented writer Sally Hepworth. I had already read her previous book, The Soulmate, and thought it was excellent. I liked Darling Girls even more.

Three main characters are all courageous, likable, and inspiring women. They were foster kids were raised by an abusive foster mom, and the wounds of their childhood have made them all troubled as adults. They are all working on themselves, and trying to heal and support each other, and I was rooting for them the whole way.

Miss Fairchild, the foster mother, is a narcissist, and accurately represented. Anyone who has spent time in the company of a narcissist will recognize how realistic this character’s behavior is. Sally Hepworth knows her human psychology for sure.

There are also four lovable dogs in this book who add humor and to balance out the sad scenes. There is one chapter where the dogs are farting in the car. I was falling over with giggles as I was reading that part.

Thank you so much Netgalley, St Martin’s Press, and Macmillan Audio, for giving me free digital downloads of both the written book and the audiobook. Having both forms of media is my favorite way to experience a book, because I can absorb every sentence book by reading and hearing it.

The narrator of the audiobook was terrific, and I love hearing an Australian accent. I need to get more audiobooks read aloud by Australians.

Sally Hepworth is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors. I found this book to be dark and twisty. I loved the sisters and their flaws. The twist got me, and was perfect. I would definitely recommend.

Three sisters that grew up in a foster home relive their past when bones are found beneath the home they grew up in. I enjoyed seeing the bond between the sisters and the book kept me guessing. Fast paced read!

I love when a book can keep me guessing (and convinced I know what's going on even when I don't) and Darling Girls absolutely delivered on that. When I first started reading, I wasn't sure if I was going to like the plot/where we were headed, but I am so happy to report that I loved it. Hepworth brings depth and care to her characters' trauma and backstories that help to create an unputdownable read.

This title was less creepy than previous ones but it held my interest well enough. I enjoyed the sister's relationships and research done on the foster care system. Thank you NetGalley for the advance ecopy

Sally Hepworth has again written a fast-paced, intriguing tale of sisterhood, secrets, betrayal, and murder. I dare you to start this book and try to put it down. I loved the relationships that developed between Jessica, Norah, and. Alicia, complete strangers until they all came to live with Miss Fairchild at her sprawling farming estate, But life on the farm was not all rainbows and unicorns. As the girls uncover secrets from the past and try to figure out how to move forward, a body has been discovered in the garden at the farm. Now they must face the woman from their past who shaped them all so much, one Miss Fairchild. This book is interesting and has a lot of great twists. A must read!

Review: Darling Girls by Sally Hepworth 4.25 ️
When a body turns up under their former foster home, three sisters must confront their past to keep their names clear.
Sally is my go-to for domestic suspense and Darling Girls was another hit that was darker than her past books. I love how she explores family dynamics and her books on siblings (in this case foster sisters that become family) happen to be my favorite. 
Sally delivered on both plot and character development. The beginning was a little slow but the multiple POV and dual timeline set the scene for the mystery to unfold as the book progressed. Each character was flawed and dealt with their traumas differently, keeping you guessing who could have been behind the dead body.  While some of the twists were easy to spot, there were a few that surprised me and the ending was a sinister shock. I read and listened (the Australian narrators are amazing) and it had me saying just one more page!

Review: @sallyhepworth never disappoints me! I was dying to get a copy of this book. Darling Girls absolutely captured my attention and I devoured it in one setting. I cannot praise this book enough.

From the first chapter, I was completely captivated by the 3 sisters. The book shares the story of their upbringing in a foster home, from each of the perspectives. The story is told in a dual timeline- the time the sisters spend at their foster home and current time where police have found a body in that that foster home.

Having to relive their past, the story unfolds the traumatic experience of the girls. The past and present start to combine and questions are continuously being raised. The story is more than just about survival but it’s about the power of trust and loyalty. What these sisters survived is incredible.

More of a domestic suspense, the ending does have some good twists. I gasped at the last chapter, not believing how it ended. It was absolutely incredible and twisted.

Aside from the plot, the characters were incredible. I usually don’t like multiple POVs, but the author did such an incredible job giving light to each of these stories. It wasn’t all dark, some chapters, especially Norah’s made me laugh at times.

Even though this psychological family thriller didn't blow me away, it did keep me solidly engaged, and the last chapter definitely got me -- I didn't see it coming. I really love the relationship that the three sisters have, and I enjoyed seeing how their wildly different personalities and lives still all worked together. And getting a little update on each of them at the end was just what I needed! Not often the MCs of a thriller get a happy-ish ending.

What a good book! Jessica, Alicia and Norah came to Wild Meadows as foster children. There was a beautiful home with a swimming pool, and their foster mother, Miss Fairfield, appeared to be perfect. .To those on the outside everything appears to be good, but inside, the story is different. Miss Fairfield's behavior is unpredictable, food is often scarce, and punishment is ever looming. The three girls have no one else, but choose to be sisters, looking out for each other.

Fast forward until the time the three girls are grown women. They are living mostly responsible lives, although each has scars from their childhood. Then the call from the police comes - during a demolition of the house, bones have been found buried in the basement. Who do the bones belong to? Who is responsible? Will they be accused?

This is an excellent book with good character development and an intriguing story line. Read it-you won’t be disappointed!

Thanks to Net Galley for and ARC of this book.

Sally Hepworth is back and dare I say this is my favorite?

The perfect amount of family secrets and intrigue with mystery. The sister relationships really worked here

This is only my second book by this author, but I do believe I quite like her. This story didn't feel like a psychological thriller like those I'm used to. True, I was confused as to who was actually the main narrator, so that little twist was a surprise. What these girls went through was painful, but seeing them pull together I order to protect each other, despite not being related by blood, was an important aspect of this story. Did it WOW me with lots of twists and a-ha moments? No, but all in all a good read.

This was just Sally’s best yet. It was super dark and twisted. Loved the sisters so much and all of their flaws. The twist was perfection!

Surprise, surprise - I enjoyed another book by Sally Hepworth! She’s such a consistent author for me that I’m convinced she can do no wrong. This is probably my favorite of the books I’ve read by this author yet. But please, make sure you check the trigger warnings before diving into this one because it is darker than her usual (child abuse, sexual abuse).

SISTERS, SECRETS, and MURDER - I was hooked from the start and captivated by this mystery the entire time I was reading it. The ending shocked me and overall I really enjoyed how everything wrapped up and came to light. Definitely recommend!

Thank you to the publisher for providing an ARC via NetGalley.

4 stars!! One of my favorite authors & an auto-buy for me. Sally Hepworth is back with a twisty, but well paced thriller. Multiple POVs with time jumps tells the story of three foster girls (now adults) who are reunited after a body is found at the estate where they were raised. Memories are twisted, truths are told & emotions run high in “Darling Girls” - highly recommend for all the thriller lovers out there!

Thank you St.Martin Press & NetGalley for providing and ARC for me to read/review. All thoughts are my own.

I have enjoyed previous reads from this author and this book was no exception, despite the VERY dark content. As other reviewers have mentioned, there are several trigger warnings, including child abuse and trauma. I thought the character development was well done and I really liked the sisterly bond between the three main characters. I liked the Dr. Warren chapters and guessed who his patient was pretty early on, which was a win for me because I am not normally a good guesser. I did, however, find the good doctor to be creepy and more than a little bit unprofessional.

Many people didn’t seem to like the twist in the final few pages, but I was fine with it (and I really did not see that one coming at all).