Sally Hepworth (born 1980) is an Australian writer. She wrote seven books, most notably The Secrets of Midwives, a novel published in 2015, and The Good Sister, which won the 2021 Adult crime novel Davitt Award.[1][2] Hepworth and her works have been featured in media outlets that have included USA Today, The New York Times, and The Sydney Morning Herald.[3][4][5]

Sally Hepworth
Born1980 (age 43–44)
OccupationWriter
Notable workThe Secrets of Midwives
Websitesallyhepworthauthor.com

Career

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Hepworth worked in both event management and Human Resources prior to becoming a writer.[5] While on maternity leave with her first child, Hepworth wrote Love Like the French, a novel about a British woman who goes to France after an accident leaves her husband in a coma.[6] The character goes to France to see what the French could teach her about living.[6] Hepworth was unable to finish the book immediately after her son Oscar was born, but the book was eventually published in Germany in 2014.[5]

In 2015, Hepworth released a second book, The Secrets of Midwives, that she wrote while pregnant with her second child. The novel is about three generations of midwives.[5] Her research for the book came from her own questioning of midwives during check-ups and reading fiction and nonfiction books on the subject.[5] KJ Dell'Antonia from The New York Times called it a "fast and fun read," with other reviews of the book coming by way of Publishers Weekly, The Sydney Morning Herald, and Kirkus Reviews.[7][8][9]

Hepworth has continued to release a novel every year, including The Things We Keep in 2016,[10] The Mother's Promise in 2017[11] and The Family Next Door in 2018.[12] The Family Next Door was Hepworth's first novel set in her hometown of Melbourne, Australia, a trend she has continued in her 2019 novel The Mother-in-Law.[13]

Bibliography

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Publication year Title Original publisher ISBN Notes
2024 Darling Girls St. Martin's Press ISBN 9781250284525
2023 The Soulmate St. Martin's Press ISBN 9781250229700
2022 The Younger Wife St. Martin's Press ISBN 9781250229618
2020 The Good Sister St. Martin's Press ISBN 9781760552190
2019 The Mother-in-Law St. Martin's Press ISBN 9781760552183
2018 The Family Next Door St. Martin's Press ISBN 9781250120892 Sally's first novel set in her hometown of Melbourne, Australia.
2017 The Mother's Promise St. Martin's Press ISBN 9781250077752
2016 The Things We Keep St. Martin's Press ISBN 9781250051929 Announced release of 2016.[14]
2015 The Secrets of Midwives St. Martin's Press ISBN 9781250051899
2014 Love Like the French Random House Germany ISBN 9783442382538 Published in German under the name Wenn du an meiner Seite bist.[15]

Personal life

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Hepworth resides in Melbourne, Australia with her husband and three children, Oscar, Eloise and Clementine Rose. On August 11, 2023, she announced her separation from her husband, Christian. [5]

References

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  1. ^ Harris, Joyce Saenz (20 February 2015). "Fiction Review – The Secrets of Midwives by Sally Hepworth". Dallas Morning News. Retrieved 13 July 2015.
  2. ^ "Davitt Awards winners announced". Books+Publishing. 30 August 2021. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  3. ^ Dell'Antonia, KJ (7 April 2015). "Shelf, iPad, Bed Table: Reading March 2015". The New York Times. Retrieved 13 July 2015.
  4. ^ "Sally Hepworth recs some novels that feature midwives". USA Today. 11 February 2015. Retrieved 13 July 2015.
  5. ^ a b c d e f Hardy, Karen (21 February 2015). "Sally Hepworth: How I gave birth to writing The Secrets of Midwives". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 13 July 2015.
  6. ^ a b Galanti, Donna. "Write-On Wednesdays! Here today with Aussie Sally Hepworth". The Element Trilogy. Retrieved 13 July 2015.
  7. ^ "The Secrets of Midwives". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved 13 July 2015.
  8. ^ Goldsworthy, Keryn (14 March 2015). "Short reviews of fiction by Samuel Kaye, Patrick Lenton, Bob Franklin, and Sally Hepworth". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 13 July 2015.
  9. ^ "Book review: The Secrets of Midwives". Kirkus Reviews. 7 December 2014. Retrieved 13 July 2015.
  10. ^ "The Things We Keep". Fantastic Fiction. Retrieved 13 July 2015.
  11. ^ "The Mother's Promise by Sally Hepworth". Pan Macmillan Australia. 28 February 2017. Retrieved 13 September 2018.
  12. ^ "The Family Next Door by Sally Hepworth". Pan Macmillan Australia. 27 February 2018. Retrieved 13 September 2018.
  13. ^ "The Mother-in-Law by Sally Hepworth". Pan Macmillan Australia. 29 January 2019. Retrieved 13 September 2018.
  14. ^ Deahl, Rachel (5 December 2014). "Book Deals: Week of December 8, 2014". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved 13 July 2015.
  15. ^ "Author Sally Hepworth explores family secrets through the eyes of three generations of midwives". Star Telegrapm. Retrieved 13 July 2015.
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