𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗗 𝗜𝗙 𝗬𝗢𝗨 𝗟𝗜𝗞𝗘
✷ Dark family secrets
✷ Dual timelines
✷ Emotional thrillers
✷ Messy sister dynamics
✷ Slow-burn suspense with a strong final twist

𝗧𝗛𝗢𝗨𝗚𝗛𝗧𝗦
This was such a compelling, bingeable read. From the first chapter, I was hooked by the “before and after” timeline and the mystery of whose body was found beneath the house at Wild Meadows. The premise is dark and emotional — three women, once foster sisters in a deeply abusive home, are forced to return when the investigation begins. That setup alone had me glued to the page.

The flashbacks were really well done and added a ton of tension and emotional weight to the story. The scenes with Miss Fairchild were chilling and gave real insight into the trauma these characters carried. That said, I do wish the character development had been a little deeper. While I cared about the story and was invested in the mystery, the sisters sometimes felt flat or underdeveloped. Still, the plot kept me intrigued the whole way through — and I have to say, the last chapter really stuck the landing. It was satisfying in the exact way I needed.

This one might not break new ground in the genre, but it absolutely held my attention and delivered a solid, twisty ride. I definitely recommend it if you like your thrillers with family secrets, emotional weight, and a great final twist.

I love Sally Hepworth. When you think you’ve figured it out, she throws you for a loop. In this novel about 3 foster sisters we learn about their past and present and how a sisterly bond never goes away.

Absolutely not thrilling at all. I didn't connect with any characters and couldn't wait for the book to be over.

I DNF this book. It was very hard to get into for me personally. The beginning was slow and didn't grab or hold my attention.

I'd love to try again in the future, maybe I wasn't in the right mood or frame of mind.

I typically enjoy Slaly Hepworth, so I'm hoping this was just a fluke.

It took me a while to get into this but the last 20% made up for it honestly. I’m not sure I would necessarily call this a thriller, it was more like a psychological character analysis? Either way, still very enjoyable by the end of it!

This is a slower-burn novel. Typically, I don’t love slow-burn but Sally did a great job with this one. I just don’t have the attention span for a slower-paced novel. This one kept my attention the whole time. That says a lot!! The character development was I love the multi-POV and dual-time line. Don’t worry, it is easy to follow along!

I love the sisterhood that developed between the 3 main foster children (Jessica, Norah, and Alicia). They bonded and were there for each other for the rest of their lives. Some of the stuff Miss Fairchild did to the girls was horrible. Unfortunately, there are people in the world who really treat children this way.

I couldn’t figure out who was found buried on the property. I thought it was Miss Fairchild at first. At different parts of the story, I thought it was one of the foster children (Jessica, Norah, or Alicia). It kept me guessing to the very end.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
A Gripping Read That Pulled Me in From Page One – Even as a Busy Mom!

As a mom with very little free time, I rarely finish books quickly—but Darling Girls had me hooked from the start. I found myself sneaking in pages during nap time, in between laundry and staying up late even when I needed the sleep.

The story is chilling and suspenseful, with complex characters and just the right amount of twists to keep me guessing. I appreciated that the chapters were short and punchy—perfect for fitting into a packed schedule. Despite the heavy themes, the writing was thoughtful and the pacing made it easy to stay engaged.

It’s not often I say this, but I was genuinely sad when it ended. If you’re a mom looking for a well-written thriller that grabs your attention and doesn’t let go—Darling Girls is it.

Another excellnt thriller by Ms. Hepworth!! I would definitely add this to the list of her novels that i would recomend

LOVED this one! I read it in less than 24 hours. The Sally Hepworth has a talent for creating memorable plot twists and characters. I love how this plot unfolded and kept me guessing. Definitely a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️!

Great suspense, not all characters my fav but the twists and secrets kept me interested for sure. Ty for the arc netgalley

Sally Hepworth delivers another gripping, emotional thriller with Darling Girls. The story follows three foster sisters—Jessica, Norah, and Alicia—whose troubled past comes back to haunt them when human remains are found at their childhood home. As secrets unravel, they’re forced to confront the dark truth about their past and the chilling Miss Fairchild.

Hepworth’s past-and-present storytelling keeps the tension high, and the sisterhood at the heart of the book adds real depth. Just when I thought I had it figured out, twists kept me guessing until the very end!

It was slow at first, but after a while I could not stop turning the pages.

Sally Hepworth is one of my favorite authors. Her stories and thrilling, but the character development is also on point. You tend to care about the characters (or get really, really mad at them!). She’s an auto-buy for me.

Darling Girls will leave you enthralled, but I do feel the ending lacked something that I can’t put my finger on. It felt a bit rushed. Otherwise, I enjoyed this one as much as I have her others!

This was a twisty and turny thriller. Jumping between the girls' pasts, their present and the perspective of 'someone' meeting with a psychiatrist, this book kept me guessing all the way to the end. It wasn't really a murder thriller, but rather, who is reliable and who isn't? What is the truth? A true psychological thriller. All three women carry scars from their time there, evident in their interpersonal relationships outside of the one amongst themselves. Even after it appears all our questions have been answered, a new bomb was dropped. 3.25 stars

I had been wanting to read Darling Girls for a little while now and I finally found the time to do just that. All I can say is I am so glad I read this one. I was hooked almost immediately. I didn’t find this book slow at all. I almost finished it in one night, but 4:30am came around too quickly.

Darling Girls is about three foster children, Jessica, Norah, and Alicia, who all go to the same foster home. They arrive at different times, but they end up together. Miss. Fairchild is the woman who takes them in and takes “care” of them while making their lives miserable.

The book goes back and forth from present time to the past when the girls were young. The girls had been able to get out of Miss Fairchild’s care and away from that small town when they got older. But years later when Miss Fairchild’s house is demolished and the ground under the house is dug up a body is found. Suddenly all sorts of questions come up that need answers and the past has to be revisited.

This was my first Sally Hepworth read. I’m looking forward to reading more books by her. I really enjoyed this book. It’s an easy read, but suspenseful with some twists at the end.

This ARC was provided to me by St Martin’s Press and Netgalley for giving an honest review. Thank you!

This book was SO good! It was unputdownable. I read it on my kindle and listened on audio when I couldn't read and it was the perfect way to get through this quickly to find out everything that was happening. The twists were good - I didn't see them coming.

I ended up really loving this one. It started out slow but I think it was necessary to get to know the characters. I am mad I waited so long to read, because that ending! It was crazy. I thought I had it all figured out and the ending shook me. 4 stars

This book was incredibly good. I could stop reading it. The characters were really interesting and the twists kept coming. I would definitely recommend this to readers! Thank you netgalley for my free copy

This was not my favorite novel by Sally Hepworth. I enjoyed the storyline and the character development, but the "twist" was predictable and had low impact. The best portion was the dynamics between the three sisters, and I would be interested in hearing more about those characters because they were so likable.

Darling Girls by Sally Hepworth was an easy five star read for me. Jessica, Norah, and Alicia are adopted sisters who share a very traumatic upbringing at the hands of their foster mother. Years later, a body is found and they must work together to discover what happened all those years ago.
Darling Girls weaves the past and present together almost effortlessly. At times, it was hard to read given the subject matter. It definitely gets dark. I absolutely loved it. While it is more mystery than thriller, that absolutely had no baring in my enjoyment of this read.

I think I have to preface this with the fact that it really takes a lot for a thriller, especially a domestic thriller to thrill me. I did like this story.. the characters were well developed and the mystery was enough to keep me reading. It was pretty easy to tell who the mysterious POV was going to be and from there the twists were easy to guess. Overall though, it was all kind of sad about cycles of abuse and the effects it has on people for years to come.