First of all, I am quickly becoming a big Sally Hepworth fan! I was *obsessed* with this book. The story is so intriguing and fast paced that you can't stop, I finished it in 24 hours and really enjoyed every moment. I live for a good twist and this delivered! Highly recommend this thriller! I had a physical copy from BOTM and an audio copy thanks to Netgalley and the publisher!

Darling Girls by Sally Hepworth rapidly went from four to five stars with that 60th chapter!

Three foster sisters… one seemingly perfect foster mother… secrets buried bone deep…

Each sister was well-developed and unique, making their three perspectives easy to differentiate, each portraying different ways an abusive childhood can affect an individual. I enjoyed seeing how Hepworth handled trauma through each character’s development; each woman was given an appropriately resolute character arc, which made the overall plot satisfying.

Admittedly, this isn't my favourite audiobook recording. There were noises between speaking moments that irked me; swallowing, inhaling, and shuffling are all notable in addition to the text narration. Yes, this is easy enough to oversee, but they are still present. Although not always the case (especially with multiple perspective books), this plot is easy enough to follow along with in audiobook form, making it perfect to accompany readers while performing mundane tasks!

With twists that kept me pointing my accusatory finger up until the end, this thriller has made me itching for another from Hepworth!

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the complimentary audio copy to read and review.

Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the audiobook ARC of this title. This was another captivating mystery/thriller by Sally Hepworth. The narrator does a great job of voicing the different characters and noticeably changes her voice when reading as a child, male, etc. Darling Girls tells the story of "now," when Jessica, Alicia, & Norah find out about bones discovered under their childhood home, and "then," when they were young girls being brought up there. I loved getting to know the characters in this way and I was eager to keep reading, but the ending fell a bit short for me. Overall still a very enjoyable read and I would recommend to others.

This is my 5th suspenseful book by this author (I haven't read her earlier fiction novels though my friend Jenna swears those are her favourites) and I found this one very twisty and captivating but ultimately it is not a new favourite. For some reason, I still have a bit of a soft spot in my heart for The Good Sister because I really LOVED those characters and the story was creepy too.

In Darling Girls, three sisters (foster sisters who are very much a found family) return to the foster house they met at because it has become a crime scene. A crime from decades ago is unearthed and it's impossible to know who to trust as the reader because there are a lot of subtleties involved in the past story. The characters never really completely grew on me, but my heart did go out to them for their past trauma and I feel that content warnings for childhood abuse and neglect as well as child death must be included here. There's also a woven narrative from the foster mother throughout the story and that added another layer and perspective to it all.

It was gripping and would make an excellent vacation/beach read much like all of hers! I do eventually hope to go back and read The Mother's Promise and The Things we Keep by this author.

Darling Girls was a tale of foster sisters caught in the mystery of a body found in the creepy house they were raised in. The characters have dark backstory and were not the most impactful in my opinion. While haunting, the mystery and story were predictable and I found the whole thing to be anticlimactic.

Having read a few of Sally Hepworth’s books already, I was so excited to listen to Darling Girls, the story of three foster girls, their trauma filled experiences growing up and the incredible bond they created while living in this horrific foster home. Their sister-like bond held strong over the years, especially when as adults they are forced to return to the town they grew up in when a body was discovered buried on the property that was once their foster home. What follows will keep you on the edge of your seat! Like her others books, Darling Girls will not disappoint.

Sometimes my mind can wander when I’m listening to an audiobook, but this thriller with its twists and turns kept me throughly engaged from beginning to end. The narration was fantastic, which I find can make or break a book.

Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillan Audio and St. Martin’s Press for the opportunity to listen to Darling Girls and provide my honest review for others. To Sally Hepworth- You’ve done it again! Darling Girls will be added to my recommendations for those looking for a thriller that will stay with them long after finishing the book.

I've never read any Sally Hepworth before but I enjoyed this one! Told in two primary timelines, we get into the mid of 3 foster sisters both in the present (where we know a body was found during renovation of their former foster home) and the past as they survive the abuse of their foster mother. This one definitely has some major triggers so check out your content warnings before diving in. Idk if it's because my mom was a social worker when I was a kid or I am just passionate about it, but it kills me when foster parents mistreat their foster kids, needless to say I was not a fan of their foster mom. The mystery itself is quite the slow burn as we spend a good chunk of the book just getting to know these 3 ladies in the past and present before we learn anything about the connection to the bones in the present. But it's a good slow burn. The audio is great too. I really enjoyed listening to it.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of both the audiobook and the digital book. I ended up listening to the audio. At first I wasn't sure that I would like the audio because of the British accent, but I think the accent added to the narrative. I have read many of Sally Hepworth's books and this one didn't disappoint!

This one was a good domestic thriller. These sisters have lived through a lot in their lives but what happens when the past comes back to haunt them. What happened all those years ago? Now the sisters must revisit the worst time of their lives to figure this mystery out.

Narration by Jessica Clarke was very well done with so many characters.

I liked this one and would recommend it if you like family drama buried memories and secrets!

3 stars

I received this audiobook from the publisher Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for a fair and honest review.

Foster sisters who share a troubled past, closer than close except for the secrets the could destroy them. This one was high suspense with all the feels. I literally could not turn it off. The narrator did a masterful job. The bad "guy" was sufficiently awful. The ending delightfully twisty at the same time as it provided a fair measure of closure. Bravo. Highly recommended.

I listened to the audiobook, and at first it wasn't holding my attention but I stayed with it and I'm so glad I did. Jessica, Norah and Alicia have always been told how lucky they are being raised by a loving foster mother. Miss Fairchild is anything but loving!, she's mean, cruel and abusive. They weren't lucky at all. Now years later they all struggle with issues and and are still haunted by Miss Fairchild. When a body is found under the Fairchild home, they are summoned back to their painful past, and might be prime suspects. A gripping and twisted story that didn't disappoint. A great summer thriller.

Thank you MacMillan Audio

Dawnny Ruby
Novels N Latte
Hudson Valley NY

Told from three darling girl POVs, Jessica, Norah, and Alicia, this book is set in both the present and the past. The characters are realistically flawed and I found them easy to like. I especially loved their sister bond! Their upbringing with their foster parent, Miss Fairchild, is sad and scary. TW: child abuse. Bones have been found at the site of the house they grew up in and now the sisters have been called back to the town of their childhood in order to help the police figure out just who the bones belong to. I found the police investigation to be completely unbelievable and while I enjoyed the overall story, I didn't find it to be very exciting. That being said, the ending got me. Way to go Sally!

I read the physical book and I also listened to the audio book. I'm giving this book 4 stars based on Jessica Clarke's fantastic narration which brought all of the characters to life. I enjoyed the audio version far more than the print version. Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for my copy of this audio book in exchange for my honest review.

Unfortunately I was not able to listen to this one before it was archived, but still want to get to it sometime. I’ve heard great things about it. Giving it 5(hopeful) stars.

SISTERS, SECRETS, LOVE, AND MURDER... Sally Hepworth’s new novel has it all.

This hashtag made me want to read the book and I’m glad I did!

The audiobook version of Darling Girls was phenomenal. I loved the foster sisters in this book and how they cared about each other then and now as adults. The mystery was good too. I couldn’t figure out the twist! Listen to this one! It’s good!

Thanks to #NetGalley and the publisher for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review..

This is my second Sally Hepworth and I thoroughly enjoyed this! I loved the twists and pacing. I enjoyed this book the entire way through and was also blown away by the ending. I am a sucker for past and present chapters- multiple timelines are my favorite and this was done so well! I can't wait to read what she writes next!

This was my second read from Sally Hepworth and I really ended up enjoying it! I had been taking a hiatus from thrillers/mysteries and this book made me remember why I enjoy it! I really loved the twists and the unexpected ending! I think the audio could have worked with having different narrators for the sisters but I still really liked Jessica Clarke's narration.

Thank you so much to Macmillan Audio for the ALC.

This was my first novel by this author, and I don't often read this genre, but I'll definitely be reading more of her books! I felt invested in the individual stories of each well-developed character. Three grown women struggle to build productive lives years after surviving their time with an abusive foster mother. When a murder investigation takes them back to her home, their reflections on the past serve to explain how they became the women they are today. There are plenty of twists that keep the reader guessing (and one of mine was right!), but the story of foster care gone wrong will linger.

⭐️⭐️⭐️/ 5 Stars
Happy pub month to Sally Hepworth and Darling Girls! Thank you to Sally Hepworth, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley for allowing me to listen to this book for an honest review. Additionally, thank you to St. Martin’s Press for allowing me to read this book for an honest review!

📅 Tuesday, April 23, 2024 is the pub date for Darling Girls. 📅

Darling Girls is a twisty adventure…part mystery, part thriller, and everything psychological. The book opens with multiple phone calls to several young women from a detective stating that an investigation has been opened to look into the excavation of human remains. For Jessica, Norah, and Alicia, trauma from their childhood resurfaces because they are asked to return to the estate and hometown in which they spent many unhappy years under the care of Holly Fairchild.

Ms. Fairchild was known in the foster care system as a reliable and loving caregiver with strong maternal instincts. She owned a spacious home that accommodated several young girls for various amounts of time over the years. Jessica, Norah, and Alicia became sisters that would literally do anything to protect each other and although their idea of love is a bit skewed, they prove time and time again that they love each other dearly.

Will being reunited again unveil more than the hidden memories of the past? Could one of sisters kill someone without the others knowing? Are they all covering for one another? Will seeing Ms. Fairchild again break the glue that has kept them strong over the years?

If you’ve read books by Sally Hepworth in the past, you’ll enjoy her newest book! It will keep you guessing. When you think you’re on the right track, additional information will be shared that throws you off the trail. Sally wrote a story with a compelling plot and characters but the ending fell flat for me. Some portions of the ending seemed a tad forced and far fetched. It wasn’t as congruent as I would have liked to the rest of the storyline.

⚠️Trigger Warning: Child abuse. Verbal, physical and emotional. Resurfacing of childhood trauma.

4.5 ⭐ rounded up- thanks to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio/ St. Martin's Press for the audiobook and e-book arcs of this novel. This was such a fun psychological thriller to read- I definitely did not want to put it down. Short chapters and multiple character perspectives are my favorites! I also enjoyed getting the multiple different timelines. I loved the bond that the sisters had from growing up in a foster home together while still each having their own personalities. This book took some wild turns and definitely kept me guessing. I didn't want to put it down! I only wish we might have had different narrators for the sisters in the audio version.

This book was a great mix of intrigue and mystery with relatable characters. The story telling with multiple perspectives and timelines was enjoyable but at times a little hard to follow. I can see it being a great mini series though!

While initially I found the ending unsatisfying, once I got to the very end I felt it was a lot more satisfying