Title: The Soulmate

Author: Sally Hepworth

Publisher: St. Martin’s Press

ISBN: 9781250229700

When a woman jumps to her death from a cliff, the couple who witnesses her suicide are horrified. Soon enough, however, the wife begins to suspect her husband is involved. As she works to pick apart their lives, present and past, the wife must face the reality that her “perfect” life isn’t so perfect after all. Author Sally Hepworth’s newest thriller provides a satisfying slow burn in The Soulmate.

Pippa and Gabe Gerard fell love with the house on the cliff when they first saw it, but in the year since moving in Pippa wonders if they made a mistake. Since they’ve joined the neighborhood, seven people have come to the cliff—the Drop, as the locals call it—to jump to their deaths. Did Pippa ever actually think that the cliff would be a romantic setting for starting over?

The one saving grace is that Gabe has turned into a rescuer. Every single time someone has come to the Drop, Gabe has talked to them, listened to them, and convinced them there is a better way to handle their problems. Seven people came to jump, and Gabe has managed to get all seven to change their minds.

On the night that the eighth person comes, Gabe goes outside and Pippa watches him through the window as he approaches the woman. Their conversation seems different compared to those he’s had with previous would-be jumpers. Before Pippa can ask and before Gabe can react, the woman goes over the cliff.

As if her death isn’t bad enough, Pippa soon discovers that she and Gabe knew the woman. Her name was Amanda Cameron, and she was the wife of media mogul Max Cameron. Max was also Gabe’s former boss and the person who fired him. The termination of Gabe’s employment led the move to the seaside town and the house on the Drop.

Pippa had no idea their problems would follow them out of the city, but they start to resurface. Gabe’s behavior has started to become erratic again. Pippa worries about him around their four-year-old daughters, Asha and Freya, and she also worries about Gabe himself. He was always the antidote to all of the hard, sticky things in life…until he lost control. 

She also can’t get around the most recent events. Why did Amanda come to the Drop? Why did Gabe have his hands out as if pushing something away? Will Max come after them now? What will happen to Asha and Freya if something happens to her and Gabe? The questions keep plaguing Pippa, forcing her to re-examine everything she thought they’d fixed and wondering if it’s still broken after all.

Author Sally Hepworth is a master of the “thinking” thriller. Even as her plot pushes and pulls Pippa in various directions, Hepworth adds a layer of nuance that will leave readers asking questions about their own relationships long after the book is over. Chapters from Amanda provide insight into the woman before and after her tragedy, but Hepworth is careful to unfold Amanda’s story at just the right speed and time to keep tension high.

The author paces her plot with ease, putting her characters into the most difficult situations that also ring true to life at the same time. The book, though, does contain a few softer spots that might slow it down. Astute readers will probably guess Gabe’s affliction long before it’s officially announced, and the relationship between Amanda and Max comes off as wooden at times. Hepworth was hoping to strike a balance between business partnership and marriage for the two, but the novel wobbles in those attempts in some scenes.

Regardless, Hepworth has once again created a story and a cast of characters that make it easy to suspend all disbelief. Her title, too, induces careful consideration of what it means to meet and stay with “the one.” The small touches—for example, the relationship between the girls, particularly Asha, and Pippa—ground the novel in reality. Readers will feel like they know these characters personally, always a win for any author.

For those eagerly awaiting Sally Hepworth’s newest work, the wait is worth it. I recommend readers Bookmark The Soulmate.