As readers of Sally Hepworth know, she is a master of the plot twist. There were several in “The Soulmate“, so in that respect she is writing true to form.

Within these pages we learned the story of two couples.

Max and Amanda Cameron are a wealthy childless couple. When Amanda married Max she had only one stipulation and that was fidelity. When she learned that Max had been unfaithful, she went to a renowned suicide spot called “The Drop” on the Australian coast.

Protagonists Gabe and Pippa Gerard are the happily married parents of two pre-school girls. They live in a home situated right on “The Drop”. Pippa is a lawyer, and Gabe now is a ‘househusband’, though he has had several careers in the past. Gabe has talked people out of committing suicide on several occasions since moving to this house and he has even been featured in the newspaper for his efforts. When Gabe and Pippa see a woman outside, near ‘The Drop’, Gabe tells Pippa to call the police and he goes out to do what he does best…. talk her out of it. But this time Gabe fails and the woman plunges to her death.

When the police later interrogate Gabe he is not totally transparent as to what really happened. Pippa trusts Gabe, but wonders why what he told the police does not match what she saw… Despite the fact that she works as a lawyer, she supports Gabe’s story and lies to the police. Gabe is her soulmate after all…

I couldn’t really warm to either of the couples depicted. Perhaps I wasn’t meant to?  Though, to be candid, the fact that I didn’t much care about them made me less invested in what happened to them, marring my enjoyment of the story. I did enjoy the dead woman’s narrative as it lent an interesting slant to the plot.

How these two couples inter-connect was complicated and intriguing. I won’t divulge as to the hows and whys so as not to spoil the reading experience of potential readers.

The novel begs the questions, Can even the most solid, loving marriage withstand secrets and lies? AND Can anyone ever REALLY KNOW anyone else?  It also touches upon themes of fidelity, mental illness, ruthless business practices, and loyalty.

Sally Hepworth is an auto-read author for me, and this was a solid thriller, though not her best work. I found the ending somewhat dissatisfying.     3.5 stars rounded up for Amazon and rounded down for Goodreads where the stars have different values.

This review was written voluntarily and my rating was in no way influenced by the fact that I received a complimentary digital copy of this novel from St. Martin’s Press/Macmillan via Edelweiss. Publication date: April 4, 2023

ISBN: 9781250229700 – ASIN: B09Y467GZY – 336 pages

Sally Hepworth is the New York Times bestselling author of seven novels, most recently The Younger Wife (2022), Good Sister (2021), which was an instant bestseller. Her novel, Mother In Law (2019) has been optioned for a TV series by Hollywood actress and producer, Amy Poehler.
Drawing on the good, the bad and the downright odd of human behaviour, Sally writes incisively about family, relationships and identity. Her domestic thriller novels are laced with quirky humour, sass and a darkly charming tone.
Sally’s novels are available worldwide in English and have been translated into 20 languages.
​Sally lives in Melbourne, Australia with her husband and three children.

Follow Sally Hepworth on Twitter @SallyHepworth