4.5 stars!

Sally Hepworth has always been one of my favorite authors. Her books are unique, twisty, and thought provoking. This one was right on par, and the jaw dropping final chapter was the cherry on top! Don't miss this one!

Thank you netgalley & publisher for the e-arc!

Sally Hepworth writes great thrillers and this one was no exception. She always keeps me enthralled and guessing. The family dynamic adds some depth with psychological aspects. You will literally be kept on the edge of your seat for the entire read, the suspense is absolutely top tier. I will read anything this woman writes.

Such a great story. I love all of Sally’s books. Part of the book was predictable but I did NOT expect the last chapter. Great twist at the very end

I enjoyed the dual timelines and multiple POV’s. The premise had promise but the execution was just okay; there’s drama but no real thrills. Like most of Sally Hepworth’s books, I never really LOVE them. They’re quick to read through but never really grip me.

The audiobook was well done but maybe because I started to zone out, the “twist” at the end didn’t hit me like it should’ve I guess. I was a bit confused at first but then it clicked. This is a well-loved one so read for yourself but I wasn’t overly impressed.

This has got to be my new favorite Sally Hepworth book! I could NOT put this one down. One of the main characters, Miss Fairchild infuriated me so incredibly much! While covering heavy topics including child abuse, and foster care, this book kept me guessing until the very end!

Thank you to NetGalley, and Sally Hepworth for a copy in exchange for an honest review.

OKAY SALLY WHAT WAS THIS WHO ARE YOU. This one was giving Sally with a dash of Karin Slaughter. Or someone equally as dark (maybe a splash of Winstead). I really liked this one! It was definitely leaning suspense moreso than mystery/thrillers as Sally's usually do, but despite that it was still an absolute page turner and I was hanging off every word and wanted to know what happened.

The book followed foster sisters years after they left the foster home, after the police found human remains beneath their foster home. Each of the characters were well developed and I feel like I really understood all of the decisions they made even when they were the "wrong" ones I felt like I had empathy for them and wanted to support them in any way I could.

Overall, was very intrigued by this book! Knocked the last star off just because I would've liked a bit more mystery thriller!

In Darling Girls, we are introduced to Norah, Jessica, and Alicia, three girls raised together as foster children at the Wild Meadows estate. By all outward appearances, their foster mother Miss Fairchild provided a loving, happy home for the girls, but the reality was far different. In the present day the three women are drawn back to town when a child’s body is discovered buried under Wild Meadows. Are they witnesses, or are they suspects?

I hate to say it, but I didn’t enjoy this book. I know it’s marketed as a thriller, but I didn’t feel any of the tension that should be an integral part of a thriller. This was especially apparent because I just recently finished a fantastic mystery/thriller, and I couldn’t help but compare them. I know the author wanted to shine a light on the very real problems with the foster system, but anyone who reads this should definitely get a trigger warning for lots, and lots, and LOTS of child abuse.

By halfway through the book I felt like it was a slog, with very uneven pacing, and I didn’t feel any depth to the plot or the characters. I had difficulty relating to, or caring about, any of them. After dragging through all the scenes of abuse, all of sudden at the end everything wrapped up very quickly and easily. I didn’t feel like there were any surprising twists, and the ending was very frustrating; it felt almost like it undid everything.

Also, the typos. I know my copy was a review copy and not the final manuscript, but there were a remarkable number of typos, and it was really distracting.

I’ve heard that Hepworth’s other books are very good, and this is a departure from her usual, so I may give her another try for a different book. But this book was definitely not for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for a copy in exchange for an honest review!

🤯🤯🤯 yup, you must read this! If you love a fast paced, cringy, heart breaking and jaw dropping thriller, this is it! Ooo those foster care flashbacks were rough!! A few of them had my cringing and my heart breaking for these girls.

3 girls are placed in foster care, they are unrelated but become fast sisters. You are taken through their lives as adults with flashbacks into their past of their foster home. When a body is found, everything must get uncovered.

I loved all the girls. They were all unique in their own ways and it was easy to follow their individual stories and personalities throughout. You felt connected to these women, their bond and love for each other is unmatched. The last few chapters went by sooo quickly. I was able to get through this read in a day! I couldn’t stop reading and had to know the end! It helped that each chapter was 3-5 pages 😆

This may be my new favorite Sally Hepworth book!

Delightfully surprised by Sally Hepworth's "Darling Girls," where she skillfully diverges from the conventional to present a captivating tale of unconventional family dynamics. Set against the backdrop of Wild Meadows, three girls find themselves entwined in a foster care nightmare under the facade of a seemingly idyllic farmhouse. Fast forward to the present, where the discovery of human bones resurrects buried memories and forces the trio to confront their past. Through alternating perspectives, Hepworth masterfully crafts a narrative that intricately weaves past traumas with present-day challenges, showcasing the resilience and camaraderie of her protagonists. Despite the heavy themes, the story maintains a perfect balance of darkness and light, with characters that are not only relatable but also fiercely endearing. Hepworth's clever storytelling and unexpected twists make for a gripping read, underscored by the empowering portrayal of female friendship.

A must-read that leaves a lasting impression. ★★★★½

Thank you Netgalley, St-Martin’s Press and Sally Hepworth.
This was such a read, three very young girls who were put in the same foster home and through adversity became more than sisters could ever be in adulthood.
The story spans their lives, good and bad. I could not put this book down. It was not an easy read, some of the stuff those girls went through was heart-wrenching.
I think this is the best one I read so far from Sally Hepworth.

Recommend
4 stars

Darling Girls by Sally Hepworth
Format: ebook
Release Date: 4/23/24
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

This is a difficult book for me to review, but I will try to be fair! I really struggled with the content of this book and I don’t think I’d ever recommend it to someone. It was a tough subject matter and I really struggled to read such constant flashbacks of foster child abuse. I usually don’t mind dark thrillers but this one just hit different for me.

That being said, it was a well crafted thriller. The flashbacks were used well in order to build suspense and keep the reader guessing. And there is definitely a reveal at the end that I didn’t see coming!!

I also really loved the bond Jessica, Alicia l, & Norah built along the way and seeing how they coped together in the past as well as present day.

Unfortunately, I’m just not sure Sally Hepworth’s novels are for me and that is fine. I do think a good amount of people might enjoy this one. Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

A new Sally Hepworth novel like no other! Darling Girls is the story of three foster sisters: Jessica, Norah, and Alicia. As young girls, they bonded over shared traumas and horrible experiences in their foster home, Wild Meadows. Now, as adults, the three women are forced to recall their tragic memories when the bones of a body are found under their former foster house. Whose bones are they? How did they get under the house? And most importantly… who put them there? Told in multiple points of view over a dual timeline, Darling Girls explores themes of family, love, and self-acceptance.

This book truly had me hooked from cover to cover. In the beginning, when you’re just getting to know the three girls, you learn their quirks and personality flaws that make them feel so real. None of the characters in this book are one-dimensional – they all have many layers to them, and it helped develop a delightful book. A criticism that I often have of mystery/suspense novels is that the ending feels very rushed, but I did not have that feeling with this book at all. The ending came about at the exact right speed to keep you enthralled but also make it very believable. The story was wrapped up just enough to answer all questions, but also leave you a little plot twist as a treat at the end.

This book was extremely well written, thoughtful, and exciting. As much as I enjoyed reading this book, I rated it 4 stars because I don’t think that it will be a book that “sticks with you.” It’s fun while you’re at it, but it does feel like something you’ll forget about soon after reading it. There wasn’t anything groundbreaking enough to keep it in your long-term memory. It’s something you’ll see in the store in six months, say “Oh, I enjoyed that book!” but not be able to recall how it ended or many of the major details.

I would recommend this book to all Sally Hepworth fans. It’s a little different than her other books, but I think I liked it best of all her books. I would also recommend this to readers who enjoy multiple POV, dual timelines, and sisterly bonding stories. There is a trigger warning for child abuse, however.

One can only imagine what it is like to grow up in foster care; that is one can only imagine if they've never had any experience with foster care. Sally Hepworth spins a horrific story you could only hope is fiction, but in the back of your mind, you know more than likely it has happened in real life.

Three young girls find themselves in the small town of Port Agatha in a house in the country with a women, who on the outside, appears to be a nice, loving motherly type. However, they soon learn how mentally manipulative she can really be. The three girls are not sisters by blood, but the atrocities they live through created a sisterly bond that carries they twenty-five years in the future. Then a call draws them back to their horrific childhood and discovered bones.

The inner workings of a demented mind is artistically painted in the pages of Darling Girls. It is quite frightening just how true these events could play out outside of the pages of the book. The reader feels sympathy for the children, and sometimes might be lead to sympathize with the villain...but who is the villain really? There are several twists you might not see coming.

Sally Hepworth is a master of mind bending suspense, and Darling Girls is another right up there with her best offerings. Don't wait, grab this book and lose yourself in this page turner.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the digital ARC. The opinions expressed are my own.

Darling Girls is a story that keeps you turning the pages until the end. The story follows three foster sisters, Jessica, Norah, and Alicia, in a dual timeline. One timeline is in the present and describes the challenges each woman faces. The other timeline takes place in the past when the three sisters were in Wild Meadows foster care home run by Miss Fairchild. During the present timeline, the sisters receive a phone call that unidentified bones have been discovered in their old foster care home. As the mystery of these bones unravels, the story of the girls’ abuse by Miss Fairchild is told. While I was invested in the story, the characters of the three sisters and their fierce loyalty to each other pulled me in. This is a perfect summer thriller.
Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and Netgalley for a free copy of this ebook in exchange for my honest review.

This is probably my fourth or fifth Sally Hepworth novel, and I can say with confidence that she is one of my favorites!

I love the way this story unfolds slowly, but is never slow. There is so much going on all the time, but we get it in bits and pieces.

The characters are all flawed, all real, and all so lovable! I found myself wishing I could have been their foster mom! 😭

This is a heartbreakingly sad story for so many of the characters. I found myself tearing up, cheering them on, and also cringing for/at them at times. So many emotions!

The end was not a surprise for me, but it sure did make me furious, anyway! In a good way. 😂

Note: I am absolutely and completely annoyed that this is labeled as a thriller. It is not a thriller at all. Mystery? Yes. Drama? Absolutely. But not even one aspect of this novel makes it a thriller.

First time reading this author, but thoroughly enjoyed the book! It was well written and the perspectives of each of the sisters was very realistic. Foster care is an unappreciated topic in most cases, but the reality of what takes place in the system cannot be denied.

Highly recommend Darling Girls.

What I love about all of Hepworth's book as well as this one:
** I love how she combines so much family drama into the mystery/thriller.....and not just surface level drama, but deep trauma inducing drama.
** I love how she develops each character. She often is able to write that gray zone of good vs evil so well, and how you often end up rooting for someone who may be the "bad" guy
** I also love how she chooses her settings and makes them a character of their own

I absolutely loved the relationship between Jessica, Norah, and Alicia in this one. I loved how they developed throughout the book, and I loved how their relationships with each other and others developed as well. I think this is one of Hepworth's best yet!

🎧🔲DARLING GIRLS by Sally Hepworth was everything I hoped it would be!

I was able to pair the digital copy along with the audio which was perfectly narrated by Jessica Clarke, allowing me to fly through this dramatic story full of questions.

I did find this story to be a bit darker and with the circumstances surrounding foster care and child abuse, it could be a tougher one for some. I thought it was a fantastic way to highlight pitfalls of this system while telling a very suspenseful tale. I also appreciated the way motives were examined and yet, that ending...!

Just knowing that is enough to go into it.

I am a fan of Hepworth and will continue to be as she dives into complicated relational situations with her suspense novels. This one was a win for me! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you to @netgalley @macmillan.audio & @stmartinspress for the ARC and ALC of this title coming out April 23rd!

In "Darling Girls" by Sally Hepworth, readers and listeners are drawn into a suspenseful and unique narrative that delves into the lives of three foster sisters—Jessica, Norah, and Alicia. As they navigate the complexities of their shared past and the unexpected discovery of a body under their childhood home, the story unfolds with gripping intensity. Jessica Clarke's narration in the audiobook version adds an extra layer of depth to this compelling tale.

The novel introduces readers to Jessica, Norah, and Alicia, who were raised by their foster mother, Miss Fairchild, on an idyllic farming estate. Despite the facade of a happy family life, the sisters' upbringing was shrouded in secrets and unpredictability. The specific roles each sister plays within the group add a fascinating dynamic to the narrative, creating a rich tapestry of relationships and individual struggles. Hepworth weaves a masterful plot that keeps readers and listeners on the edge of their seats, culminating in a surprising and impactful ending.

In the audiobook version, Jessica Clarke skillfully brings the story to life, immersing listeners in the emotional depth of the characters and the suspenseful atmosphere of the plot. Her narration enhances the overall experience, adding an extra dimension to the already captivating storytelling.

"Darling Girls" is a thrilling page-turner that seamlessly blends themes of sisterhood, secrets, love, and murder. Sally Hepworth's masterful storytelling, combined with Jessica Clarke's engaging narration, delivers a riveting experience for both readers and audiobook enthusiasts. Prepare to be captivated by this suspenseful journey into the shadows of the foster sisters' past and the unexpected twists that await them.

Whether experienced through the physical book or the audiobook, "Darling Girls" is a must-read/listen for fans of suspenseful fiction and intricate character-driven narratives.

This was my first book from this author so I have nothing to compare to. I neither liked nor disliked this story.
Unfortunately my midway rating is mostly because I didn’t l/couldn’t connect with any of the characters, good or bad. There just did not seem to be anything about any of them I could latch on to.
This story had many threads going off on different tangents and I had a hard time keeping them straight. Even the twist for the ending had me a bit perplexed.
I am going to read another of this author’s books since so many like her thrillers!

Thanks for the opportunity to listen to this book. I also have a digital copy but chose to listen instead.