I was really enjoying this book at first. Then the twists started, and it was confusing, a little gross (incest, pedo, Stockholm syndrome). There was a lot of back and forth on the daughter that came back and the fiance. Unfortunately, I would not recommend this one.

This book was INTENSE. I felt like I was going absolutely crazy with the FMC. I literally had goosebumps and felt like I was being watched in certain parts of this book. The only reason this is not a 5 star for me is because I felt like I knew what was going to happen. Don't get me wrong... I STILL did not believe it when it happened.

The ending was top notch suspense and the last chapter wrapped everything up greatly.

This was an interesting read, but I'm not sure I'd that's a good interesting or bad. I guess it did hold my attention, but it was in the way you're inclined to look at a car wreck when driving by. You know it's not a good thing, you know someone is likely injured, but you can't help but scan the scene for details. That was this. I kept reading because as ridiculous as the story got, I had to keep going, hoping I was wrong. I was not. This book was like two separate stories that you knew were going to eventually collide and that might have been the most interesting part of this book. Once you figure out how those two separate stories are related, and you will, it loses its shine. Especially as the story starts to conclude. The plot had potential. It's the blurb that had me signing up for this book, but once I reached that place in the story where it was all starting to come together, it really just seemed so far fetched and ridiculous. I know it's fiction, but I need it to be somewhat believable. Not to mention the over the top descriptive text in every chapter. I just felt like the author was trying too hard or something and as a result, it feels like a miss, not a hit. I don't regret reading this, I mostly feel neutral about it, but I probably won't read any other books by this author.

Thank you, Dandy Smith & Hambright PR, for the ARC of The Wrong Daughter 💙💛

"Something I have come to understand in this last year is that there are universal truths we live by. The sun will always rise in the east and set in the west, Everything that
is born, dies. No one will ever know you the way a sister does. There's a special type of magic being born
to the same two people..."

Review:

Wow!?!! This was an absolutely amazing thriller. The pacing and the plot were excellent. The characters and the devious way things happened in this book were perfect!

I always say this, but I had absolutely no idea where this was going, but I loved every minute of it!

I can't wait to read more by Dandy Smith. This book was so well done. It was definitely my cup of tea 🍵

The Wrong Daughter is available on Kindle Unlimited and in audiobook and paperback formats. I highly recommend it!

This is a dark and twisty thriller that will keep you guessing. It's a ride! Some parts are a bit of a far-fetch or overly dramatized, but it was a good Summer thriller.
Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for access to this eARC.

Thank you @kensingtonbooks #partner for the gifted copy of this book!

This was my first time reading Dandy Smith and I’m definitely coming back for more! The Wrong Daughter starts out with a bang. It was one of those scenes where I was for sure biting my nails. We meet Olivia and Caitlin, kids home alone for the first time. You know where this is going. HA! Their parents leave them pizza money, but the girls have other plans. They explore a bit and do come home but then there’s that whole man watching them from the woods thing and...EEK one sister disappears. That opening scene gave me all the spine-tingling, creepy nightmare vibes. I’ll be sure to check my locks moving forward!

This book is full of sketchy characters that just scream “something’s not right” but you can’t quite put your finger on what. That feeling stuck with me the whole time until everything started unraveling with twist after twist after twist! I didn’t guess the real reasons behind everything as it felt nearly impossible. And wow, what a wild ride that ending was. It was a doozy!

Fair warning: you might have to suspend a bit of disbelief, especially toward the end. It gets pretty dark and disturbing, so definitely check trigger warnings if you’re sensitive. But if you like suspense with a heavy dose of mystery and twists, this one is a must-read.

Caitlin and Olivia Arden are old enough to be left alone for the first time when their parents go out and it turns out to be the worst mistake ever. Olivia is gone when they return, leaving more questions than answers of what happened to her. Fast forward 16 years when a woman shows up claiming to be their Olivia. Is she really her and if yes, where was she? This is a mysterious thriller told in multiple POV’s and goes back and forth from 1st to 3rd person making it a little difficult to follow at times but still kept my interest. There also definitely should be a TW with this as something that is revealed might not be for everyone. What really happened that fateful night? All in all I did enjoy this twisted thriller.

Dandy Smith’s The Wrong Daughter is a moody, razor-edged psychological thriller that snuck into my head and refused to leave. From its opening scene—a warm, nostalgic evening that turns into a nightmare—the book plants a creeping unease that only deepens with each chapter. Sixteen years after Caitlin’s sister Olivia was abducted from their home, a woman shows up claiming to be her. The reunion should feel like a miracle, but Smith expertly tilts the scene just enough to make you doubt whether this is a happy ending or the start of a much darker game.

The story unfolds in two threads: Caitlin’s tense present, told with all the jittery paranoia of someone who’s lived under a shadow too long, and Elinor’s claustrophobic life with her brother and cruel uncle in a sprawling country estate. At first, these narratives seem unrelated, and I spent the first third of the book smugly piecing together theories about how they’d merge. I was wrong. In fact, Smith seems to want you to be wrong—dangling clues that feel obvious until they aren’t.

The pacing is a careful push-and-pull. Some chapters simmer with domestic dread, where the most threatening thing is the way someone won’t answer a question. Others are sharp with bursts of action or shocking reveals. Smith knows when to pause and let the tension breathe, which only makes the next twist land harder.

Caitlin herself is one of the book’s greatest strengths. She’s not the glossy thriller protagonist who’s somehow immune to trauma. She’s flawed, sometimes prickly, and often drowning in her own guilt. Her voice feels lived-in—equal parts brittle humor, resignation, and a stubborn spark of hope. Watching her navigate the impossible choice between embracing this “Olivia” and protecting herself is as compelling as any of the plot’s twists.

The prose has a jagged beauty to it. One line in particular hooked itself in my brain:

“I felt the razor blades that laced the space between us; one wrong move would illicit a thousand bloody cuts.”

It’s an apt metaphor for the entire book—relationships here are both intimate and dangerous, full of sharp edges you don’t see until you’re bleeding.

If I have one quibble, it’s that the final stretch leans into slightly heightened drama, the kind of cinematic flourish that risks stretching believability. But honestly, I forgave it. By then, I was too invested in Caitlin, too eager to see how the two storylines would smash together. And when they did—let’s just say I had to close the book and sit in silence for a minute.

In the end, The Wrong Daughter isn’t just about a mystery. It’s about the corrosive power of guilt, the lies we tell to survive, and the danger of loving someone you’re not sure you can trust. It’s a reminder that sometimes, the most dangerous person in the room is the one you’ve been waiting for all along.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4.5 rounded up)
#TheWrongDaughter #NetGalley #PsychologicalThriller #BookReview #DandySmith #SuspenseBooks #TwistyReads #BookstagramReads #ThrillerObsessed #DarkReads #DomesticSuspense #BookLovers

Dark and creepy. Unfortunately this book was not for me. I enjoy suspenseful psychological thrillers, but the theme of incest put me off. There are also abductions, murder and bonding of the captor with her abductor. A lot going on, just not for me. Thank you Netgalley and Kensington Publishing for this eARC. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Comments expressed in this review are my personal opinion.

Olivia has come home Its' been many years since the night she disappeared and now her little sister Caitlin is faced with their collective past. This is a twisty one (no spoilers) that has some unsavory elements. As much as it's about what happened it's about the psychological effect on both sister.s. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. For thriller fans.

This was a 2.5 star for me.

The synopsis of this book sounded interesting; however, the delivery fell flat for me. At no point while I was reading the book did I get the vibes I look for in a psychological thriller book. Other than Olivia being taken in the beginning of the book, it kind of dragged for me and didn't start picking up for me until halfway in. Even then as soon as I started getting into the storyline with Caitlin and Olivia, it would jump into the storyline with Heath and Eleanor's characters which messed up the flow for me and made me a little less interested in the story. I also was looking for more of a plot twist so when we do find out who "Olivia" really is and what happened to her it wasn't really like a wow moment and it was more like a "really" all this happened to get there.

After everything was revealed, I felt the ending of the book was rushed a little and it almost felt like all the events leading up to it were in vain. The very end of the book was a little confusing as well because I wasn't sure if how I perceived what Caitlin wrote was accurate. I had high hopes but this didn't quite hit the mark for me and it read more as a mystery than a psychological thriller..

Thank you to the publisher Kensington for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

3.5 Stars

A twisty suspense novel that could get over the top at times but was a fun ride to go on. Caitlin’s sister, Olivia, was kidnapped but then returns home 16 years later. Although Caitlin has questions and doubts about her sister, no one else seems to. It unravels from there.

The writing was compulsive and I was drawn in from the first chapter. I loved questioning everything with Caitlin and figuring out the truth.

This was probably like more of a 4.5⭐️ rounded up. It was (shocker!) the ending that did it for me. It was fine. The epilogue really saved it for me and made it a 5⭐️ I devoured this book. The main character Caitlin was incredible. The more chaotic and twisting the story became, the more Caitlin spiraled and I ate that up! I ate that shit up! Caitlin chapter 38 was… absolutely feral and I loved her. I. Love. Her. The description of her sister Olivia’s eyes is repeated throughout the story, which can be annoying for some, but I personally liked it. I feel like it captures the memory that Caitlin has of her sister from over a decade ago, a memory she clings to and finds comfort and security in, which is why this repetition occurs. It’s so beautiful and poetic. Caitlin has so much trauma and fear in her life and it is so crushing to see. This singular moment altered her life forever and haunted her for years and to now have everything resurface with Olivia (?👀) brings back so much. I can’t even imagine how a child.. lives and how a family continues when something rips their whole fabric apart. A main theme I saw in this book was loneliness. All of the characters felt alone or were alone in so many ways at many different points throughout the story. And it was sad to see how they handled it or how there was a major lack of support. When I think about it, this book was/is sort of sad in the way family relations and friendships are, but I enjoyed it for the mystery and chaos and intrigue. I needed to see and to know what was gonna happen..!! This book has two povs: Caitlin and Elinor. I liked Elinor too. She is obviously sheltered and a little naive, but I don’t think she’s dumb. I think she’s clever, and she obviously craving freedom and attention and love. So it’s interesting to see these two stories unfold parallel in this book and to see where the author takes these characters. I would 100% recommend this book. I feel like this plot/this storyline has been ‘done’ before, so if you read a lot of mystery like this, you might not find this as ‘impressive’, but I mix my reading taste around a lot, so I think it was great! It was exactly what I needed. I think this would be a great read for summer/fall because that’s when the book mainly takes place or if you’re in a book slump because I couldn’t stop thinking about it!

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher, Kensington Publishing, for this staggering, astonishing and gripping mystery thriller ARC!

The Wrong Daughter pulls you into a dark and twisty story that explores the aftermath of a sister's return after being missing for 16 years. Dandy Smith does an impressive job of crafting a suspenseful atmosphere, and I found the psychological aspects quite engaging. The premise of family secrets and the search for truth is compelling and kept me turning pages.

However, as much as I wanted to love it, I struggled with some of the plot elements. Certain twists felt a bit unbelievable and far-fetched, which pulled me out of the story at times. I appreciate a good suspenseful tale, but I need the events to feel grounded in reality to fully connect with the characters.

Overall, it’s not a bad book, but it didn't quite resonate with me as strongly as I had hoped. If you're a fan of darker psychological suspense, it might be worth a read—just be prepared for some elements that stretch credibility!

The Wrong Daughter is a psychological thriller that draws in the reader right from the prologue the reader with an unsettling premise: sixteen years after her sister Olivia was abducted, Caitlin opens her door to find her standing there — alive, older, but very much a mystery. What follows is an emotionally complex story that explores trauma, memory, and familial secrecy.

Dandy excels at developing atmosphere and creating tension. From the first chapter, there’s a tangible sense of unease. The dual POV structure — told through alternating perspectives — keeps the pacing sharp and the revelations layered. Readers are never quite sure who to trust versus who is unreliable, which is exactly what makes this novel work: it demands constant questioning and rewards close attention.

The characters are deeply flawed, and at times intentionally unlikeable, something I love in a novel. Caitlin is guarded and emotionally raw, while Olivia (or the woman claiming to be her) is an enigmatic figure whose presence destabilizes everyone around her. Smith does an excellent job peeling back layers of their personalities without ever giving away too much too soon.

That said, the novel’s biggest strength — its unpredictability — might also be its downfall. While I liked the ending, I can see how some may find it either too abrupt or too far-fetched after such a build-up. The final twist is daring, and while it won’t work for everyone, it’s undeniably bold.

The pacing in the middle act dragged for me, especially as emotions take centre stage over plot momentum. However, the overall structure is pretty solid, and the climax delivers the emotional and narrative payoff promised from the beginning.

Final Thoughts:
The Wrong Daughter is a chilling, character-driven thriller that will appeal to fans of domestic suspense and psychological tension. It’s less about the crime itself and more about its emotional fallout — how one disappearance haunts an entire family, and what happens when long-lost truth is finally revealed. If you enjoy stories where nothing is quite as it seems and everyone has something to hide, try this book. I think that fans of Lisa Jewell (for the family drama), Gillian Flynn (for the morally dark female leads) and Karin Slaughter (for the trauma and familial dysfunction) would love this book.

RATING: 3.5 (rounded up to 4)

3.5 stars
The Wrong Daughter kept me engaged from the start — I was hooked, constantly trying to piece together who was telling the truth and what really happened. There were also some strange relationship dynamics that I honestly thought I misread, but I didn’t. Could have done without that….

However, the suspense was well-paced and had me turning the pages, eager to find out how it would all unfold. That said, the ending felt a bit rushed and wrapped up a little too conveniently for my taste. Still, it was an entertaining read overall, and I’d recommend it to anyone who enjoys fast-paced thrillers.

The Wrong Daughter by Dandy Smith
Rating: ⭐️ ⭐️ 💫
2.5 stars (rounded up.)

So, I liked the synopsis (obviously,) but didn’t actually enjoy the novel very much.

There are two timelines running through this novel. In the beginning it’s hard to follow the separate stories and you wonder why the heck they’re in the same book. Then it starts to become predictable
(at least to me it did,) and by the time the stories tie together at the end, you’ve already figured it out.

The first timeline involves a kidnapping of Olivia witnessed by her younger sister, Caitlin. Caitlin grows up in the shadow of the lost sister, always trying to meet her parents standards and be the perfect daughter that was abducted but never manages to meet the expectations. 16 years later Olivia suddenly returns and Caitlin’s life is turned upside down. Again. Weird things start happening and Caitlin isn’t sure that Olivia is really even her sister…

Then there is Elinor and Health. “Siblings,” whose parents passed away and they were left the family mansion and money with their Uncle as the guarantor until they are of age. The uncle is a detestable human being. Elinor and Heath are extremely close. Too close. The progression of their timeline is so far-fetched.

The two timelines converge at the end and it was a dud. Anticlimactic. Disappointing.

Ultimately I feel like this novel wasn’t cohesive. It read as a jumbled outline of so many ideas that branched off in different directions. The pacing was slow, then somehow it was even slower and dragged on only to speed up at the end with events being thrown at us that just weren’t realistic.

This was not an enjoyable read for me but I do thank NetGalley for the advanced reader copy for the U.S. release, in exchange for my honest opinion.

Release: August 26, 2025
Author: Dandy Smith
Publisher: Kensington

Rating: 3.75 ★ 

Sixteen years ago, Caitlin’s older sister Olivia vanished without a trace from their shared bedroom while their parents were out for the evening. What was supposed to be an exciting milestone—staying home alone for the first time—turned into a night that would haunt Caitlin and her family forever. No one saw it coming; they lived in a quiet, trusting town where no one even locked their doors.
Now, after all those years of grief, guilt, and unanswered questions, a woman shows up claiming to be Olivia. The reunion should be joyful, but instead it stirs up buried doubts and painful memories. Caitlin isn’t sure if this is really her sister—or if her own memories of that night can be trusted.
As secrets unravel on both sides, the entire family is forced to confront the truth about what really happened. But trusting the wrong person could be dangerous, and the cost of choosing the wrong sister might be more than any of them can bear.
Dandy Smith delivers a gripping and twist-filled psychological thriller that kept me turning pages late into the night. The Wrong Daughter opens with a chilling premise: after vanishing from her bedroom as a teenager, Olivia suddenly returns sixteen years later—only her sister Caitlin isn’t so sure it’s really her.
From the start, the story pulls you into a dark, emotional whirlwind. Told through multiple points of view, the book does a great job of weaving suspense and emotional depth, especially around themes like trauma, identity, and the complicated bonds between sisters. There’s an unsettling atmosphere throughout, and just when you think you’ve figured things out, the plot takes another sharp turn. Some twists I saw coming, but others truly shocked me in the best way.
While parts of the book felt a little slow or confusing at first—especially when trying to connect the dual storylines—it all pays off once the threads start coming together. The ending is bold, unexpected, and raises thought-provoking questions about memory, trust, and survival.
Though not every character or subplot was equally strong for me, the overall experience was intense and addictive. If you enjoy dark thrillers that mess with your head and keep you guessing until the very last page, this one is worth your time.

Favorite quote: 
“but I felt the razor blades that laced the space between us; one wrong move would illicit a thousand bloody cuts.”

A psychological thriller, The Wrong Daughter (2024) by Dandy Smith is a tense tale with plenty of twists. Two sisters, Olivia thirteen and Caitlin ten, are left at home as their parents go out one evening. Caitlin awakens in fright to witness Olivia’s abduction by a masked man. Sixteen years later, Caitlin has a new life as a school teacher, fiancé and online business operator. She then receives a shocking telephone call from her father to say Olivia has returned home. As the sisters reunite, Caitlin begins to see a masked stranger and begins to experience strange things that her family believes she is imagining. Caitlin is battling to keep her life under control, as Olivia takes over causing even more suspicion. With its building tension, a rising body count and not-so-surprising reveals make for an enjoyable three and a half stars read rating. With thanks to Embla Books and the author, for an uncorrected advanced review copy for review purposes. As always, the opinions herein are totally my own, freely given and without inducement.

Caitlin and Olivia, ages 10 and 13, are left home alone for the first time while their parents go out. A man comes into the house after the girls have gone to bed and takes Olivia away at knifepoint. Caitlin witnesses the abduction but is too frightened to do anything. The story then jumps forward sixteen years and suddenly Olivia returns. Everyone is overjoyed of course, but Caitlin has struggled with so much guilt for not calling the police the night of the abduction that she has so many questions to ask and be answered - but no one else seems to want to ask these questions. Caitlin has also been catching glimpses of a man in the same mask that the kidnapper wore when he took Olivia. No one else sees him and they don’t believe her. Is she seeking attention? Is she telling the truth? Is she imagining things? Is it really Olivia? A lot of questions indeed! There is also another storyline involved, centering on a young woman named Elinor, living alone with her brother in a huge house. Both siblings are under the thumb of a very cruel uncle who controls their estate and finances. How do the two storylines intersect. The story really gripped me to see how it would all turn out. Parts were very creepy, dark and very unsettling. However, I was still fascinated to see where it would end. The book is a quick read. I give the book 4.5 stars out of 5, which I’ll round up to 5.

Thank you to the publisher and to NetGalley for this digital ARC in exchange for my honest review. The book will be published on August 26, 2025.