Reviews tagging 'Abandonment'

Darling Girls by Sally Hepworth

29 reviews

amysalwaysreading's review

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix

4.0

Darling Girls begins with the discovery of a body buried beneath their childhood foster home brings three foster sisters back to the place they swore they'd never return. What unfolds will keep you guessing until the very last page.

I am a huge Sally Hepworth fan and couldn't wait to read her latest book. It's fantastic. While more character-driven than the previous novels I've read of her catalog, this was a very propulsive store that kept me on the edge of my seat. I couldn't flip the pages fast enough to unravel the twisty story of Darling Girls. This story is dark (please check content warnings!) but had some hilarious bits thrown in as well. The sisterhood bond displayed was also great. This would be a great book to toss in your beach bag, take on an upcoming, or sink into by the pool.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review..

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Cursing, Death of parent, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child death, Gaslighting, Confinement, Kidnapping, Mental illness, and Self harm

foster care, adoption

sare1125's review

emotional hopeful mysterious sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Death of parent, Child death, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Confinement, and Cursing

Moderate: Abandonment, Rape, Sexual content, Adult/minor relationship, Pregnancy, and Domestic abuse

Minor: Vomit

kiwichill's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Character flaws caused by a chaotic upbringing in the foster care system.   The scenarios in this book may seem to be far-fetched but unfortunately they are not.  The whole system needs an overhaul because there are far too many kids with psychological damage from the foster care system 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Sexual violence, Trafficking, Sexual assault, Forced institutionalization, Misogyny, Death, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Violence, Gaslighting, Pedophilia, Adult/minor relationship, Fire/Fire injury, Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Abandonment, Child abuse, Child death, Drug abuse, Kidnapping, Rape, Self harm, Suicide attempt, Bullying, Pregnancy, Grief, Incest, Infidelity, Mental illness, Murder, Death of parent, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Sexism, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Slavery, Cursing, Alcohol, and Body shaming

meghan_w's review

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Wow. This one was a hard read. I typically DNF books with references to child abuse or death, but I felt connected to this one in a different way. Hepworth does a very good job approaching the topic delicately and also straightforward without graphic detail which I really appreciated. I wasn’t totally sure how I felt after finishing. The book was addicting, well written, satisfying plot, but saying I enjoyed a book with these themes is hard for me. What got me in the end was actually the acknowledgments after the book finishes. Hepworth talks about her research speaking to foster children, parents, etc. She speaks of the importance of remembering that for all the evil in the world, there is also good. She speaks to the importance of chosen family, which I speak about often as well. It’s because of this, that I am choosing to rate this 5 stars even with the darker themes. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Rape, Sexual assault, Addiction, Gaslighting, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Vomit, Pregnancy, Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Panic attacks/disorders, Confinement, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Drug use, Torture, and Child death

princessblueyes's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Sexual assault, Gaslighting, Sexual violence, Bullying, Mental illness, Death, Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Murder, Violence, Toxic relationship, Panic attacks/disorders, Kidnapping, Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Grief, Drug abuse, Child death, Addiction, and Alcohol

minimicropup's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

This was sad but also heart-warming 🥹

 

Energy: Shrewd. Resilient. Contemplative. 

Scene: 🇦🇺 Fictional town of Port Agatha, near Melbourne, Australia

Perspective: We follow three sisters bonded through their foster care experience and estranged from their foster mother. Their stories are told through the past (growing up) and as adults returning to town after bones are found on the property. We also get the perspective of an unknown character speaking to their therapist about childhood trauma. 

 

🐩 Tail Wags: The sisters. The accurate depictions of toxic traits and personality disorders. Easy listening audio narration. 

 

🤔 Random Thoughts:

This book is sad, check content warnings! But the sad moments are balanced by the sisters’ resilience and their strong bonds. The depiction of narcissistic abuse, and how hard it is to report is so spot-on. 

 

This is more of a story about the sisters and an examination of their life and the trauma of foster care, with mysterious occurrences and a touch of true crime suspense. I wouldn’t classify it as a thriller.  

 

I liked the audio - the accents and narrator’s voices made the characters come to life in my mind.

 

That ending! Well done, I didn’t see that coming

 

----

🤓 Reader Role: Listener and Empath. There in the room with the characters, feeling what they’re feeling as scenes unfold or are recalled. 

🗺️ World-Building: Easy to picture the scenes and pick up on the energy in the room, almost cinematic. 

🔥 Fuel: Why are the foster kids being treated this way? Will they report the abuse? Will they be believed? Who is the unknown person we overhear in their therapy sessions? What is the identity of the body found under the house? Was it accident or murder? How will things turn out for the girls, now women, as they go head-to-head with Ms Fairchild? 

📖 Cred: Realism with chunks of hyper-realistic. 

 

Mood Reading Match-Up:

-Music box. Whinnying horses. Flashlights under bed covers. Whispers. Giggles. Car tires on gravel. 

-Psychological suspense with a touch of sapphic romance.

-Reflective stories about trauma and sisterhood.

 

Content Heads-Up: Parental/caregiver neglect, abandonment. Loss of caregiver. Loss of parent. Addiction, substance abuse. Foster care. Child abuse/torture (verbal, emotional, physical). Narcissistic abuse. Narcissism. Extortion. Trauma bonds. Sexual content (brief, consenting). Pedophilia (mention; brief). Kidnapping. Child murder. Suicide attempt. 

 

Rep: Bisexual. Heterosexual. Lesbian. Cisgender. Brown and pale-skinned Australians.

 

📚 Format: Library Audio

 

My musings 💖 powered by puppy snuggles 🐶

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment and Child abuse

Moderate: Addiction and Child death

0ldoini's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Suicidal thoughts, Child death, Abandonment, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, Bullying, Incest, Kidnapping, Pregnancy, Sexual violence, Suicide attempt, Adult/minor relationship, Drug abuse, Body shaming, Death of parent, Sexual assault, Child abuse, Cursing, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Violence, Drug use, Murder, Suicide, Addiction, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Religious bigotry, Sexual content, Torture, Fatphobia, Gaslighting, Infidelity, Rape, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, and Pedophilia

blueeyedshook's review

dark

3.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Confinement, Addiction, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Child death, Drug abuse, Kidnapping, Physical abuse, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Cursing, Infidelity, Mental illness, Suicide attempt, Adult/minor relationship, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, Bullying, Drug use, and Abandonment

Minor: Sexual content

LGBTQ character/romance

mandareads222's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Gaslighting, Child death, Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Drug use, Drug abuse, Addiction, Pregnancy, Suicidal thoughts, Confinement, and Child abuse

Moderate: Vomit, Violence, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Religious bigotry, Pedophilia, Body shaming, Medical content, Bullying, Abandonment, and Rape

Minor: Sexual content

ch3r's review

dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse and Drug use

Moderate: Abandonment, Sexual assault, and Sexual harassment