The Younger Wife by Sally Hepworth
Published: April 5, 2022
St. Martin’s Press
Pages: 348
Genre: Domestic Thriller
KKECReads Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I received a copy of this book for free, and I leave my review voluntarily.
Sally Hepworth is the bestselling author of The Secrets of Midwives (2015), The Things We Keep (2016), The Mother’s Promise (2017), The Family Next Door (2018), and The Mother In Law (April 2019). Sally’s books have been labelled “enchanting” by The Herald Sun, “smart and engaging” by Publisher’s Weekly, and New York Times bestselling authors Liane Moriarty and Emily Giffin have praised Sally’s novels as “women’s fiction at its finest” and “totally absorbing.” Sally’s novels are available worldwide in English and have been translated into 10+ languages. Sally lives in Melbourne, Australia, with her husband and three children.
A heart surgeon at the top of his field, Stephen Aston is getting married again. But first he must divorce his current wife, even though she can no longer speak for herself.
THE DAUGHTERS
Tully and Rachel Aston look upon their father’s fiancée, Heather, as nothing but an interloper. Heather is younger than both of them. Clearly, she’s after their father’s money.
THE FORMER WIFE
With their mother in a precarious position, Tully and Rachel are determined to get to the
truth about their family’s secrets, the new wife closing in, and who their father really is.
THE YOUNGER WIFE
Heather has secrets of her own. Will getting to the truth unleash the most dangerous impulses
in all of them?
“Where I come from, we call that survival.”
Tully and Rachel grew up with two loving parents. Their lives weren’t perfect, but they were close. When Pam was diagnosed with dementia, the family was devastated. The last thing they ever expected was for Stephen to announce he intended to marry someone else.
Whoa. This was brilliant! The plot was fantastic! I enjoyed every aspect.
The characters were all well done. Tully with her neurosis, Rachel with her secret, Pam becoming a shadow of her former self. Stephen with his guilt over falling in love again, and Heather with her trauma.
The twists in this were fast and furious. It was like a carefully constructed domino course; as soon as one was tipped, the rest quickly followed.
I enjoyed how this played out, and I found the reveal to be well done. I enjoyed the writing and how the story was told.
I loved the buildup and how things appeared. I also love that this novel was so positive regarding therapy and addressing one’s traumas.
Secrets, coincidence, and speculation will lead to unexpected and deadly consequences.