Book Review: The Soulmate by Sally Hepworth

My Rating  2.5⭐

Pippa and Gabe Gerard move to a cliffside cottage in a scenic coastal town on the outskirts of Melbourne with their two daughters with hopes of starting over after a difficult phase in their marriage. Their new home is close to the edge of a cliff, "The Drop" – an area frequented by those who chose to end their lives. Gabe, a sensitive person who has struggled with mental health issues, has made a name for himself by being able to persuade people from jumping to death. On one fateful night, Pippa sees a woman hovering close to the edge and calls the authorities as Gabe approaches the woman to talk to her. Pippa sees them talking but in a tragic turn of events, the woman plunges to her death and Pippa notices Gabe standing with his hands outstretched, which he later tells her was so that he could try to save the woman. Pippa isn’t quite convinced but chooses to believe her husband. Then it is revealed that the woman was none other than Amanda Cameron the wife of Gabe’s former employer Max Cameron – a fact that Gabe had not shared with Pippa initially. Was there more to what transpired that night of which Pippa is unaware? What is Gabe hiding from her and why?

The narrative is shared across “Now” and “Then” (Pippa’s PoV) and “Before" and “After" (Amanda’s PoV). The author touches upon themes of love, marriage and fidelity and mental health among others. None of the characters are particularly likable though I could sympathize with Amanda to an extent and Gabe for his personal struggles. On this note, I had serious issues with how the topic of mental health was handled in this story. We are shown that Gabe was receiving professional help but I found it hard to believe Pippa did not question the initial diagnosis. As the narrative begins to shed light on past events, I thought Pippa, a lawyer by profession who has dealt with Gabe’s past indiscretions and mental health issues in the past, chose to ignore or rather was in denial over the gravity of the situation in the present timeline. With two young children at home, one would expect her to be circumspect and act on it, instead of wishing her troubles away and second-guessing her suspicions. As a plot point, I found this aspect of the story utterly unconvincing.

The author packs a lot into this story - dysfunctional relationships, mental health issues, lies and secrets and ambition with a few surprises along the way but the result is more family drama than domestic thriller and as that too, isn’t quite a satisfying read.

I’ve enjoyed Sally Hepworth’s domestic thrillers in the past and was happy for the opportunity to read an advance copy of her latest offering. Unfortunately, The Soulmate did not work for me. I know I am an outlier here but I honestly struggled to finish this one. I did not find the plot engaging, and though I was surprised a couple of times (always a good thing!) a few of the so-called twists felt contrived and I found the tension and the absorbing build-up that I enjoyed in the author’s previous works missing in this one.

Many thanks to author Sally Hepworth, St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the digital review copy. All opinions expressed in this review are my own. This novel is due to be released on April 04, 2023.