He is going to prove he loved me. I am going to prove he ruined me. For those who loved My Dark Vanessa and Three Women, DEAR DARLING is a bold, beautiful and unflinching story about the crossed borders of desire – and one woman’s path to retribution.
Lauren Tan has waited for this day for twenty years.
The day she’d receive the letter saying he was out of prison.
The day she’d abandon her husband and three-year-old daughter, leaving her pretend life behind.
The day she’d look into the eyes of Daniel Prior – her first love, mentor and stepfather, the man she had sex with when she was fourteen years old.
The day she’d make him atone for everything.
Explosive and uncomfortable, beautiful and provocative, DEAR DARLING cuts to the heart of some of the most complex issues of our age.
Book Info: Page length: 400 pages Publisher: Harper Collins. Publication Date: 9 April 2026
MY THOUGHTS:
I was a huge fan of Ella King’s debut novel Bad Fruit and was so excited to see Dear Darling is being published next year and thrilled to be approved to read an ARC.
Firstly, this is NOT an easy read, it’s not fluffy, cuddly or particularly happy, but if you’ve read Bad Fruit you will know that the author has the ability to take the most triggering and distressing subjects and with her incredible talent, weave a story that is written so beautifully that despite the subject matter the reader becomes utterly immersed.
Dear Darling is NOT for the feint hearted, the easily triggered or those who like a happy-ever-after. It’s about Lauren Tan, a young married mother, who having just experienced the traumatic still birth of her second child, ups and leaves her husband and toddler daughter without warning to meet a man she has dreamt about for the past 20 years.
Daniel Prior has just been released from prison having served time for murder. He was Lauren’s first love, mentor and stepfather and the man she had sex with when she was 14 years old.
Just reviewing the book again is giving me goosebumps and shivers because this topic is VILE, the behaviour and actions of some of the characters are absolutely horrific and left me reeling emotionally.
Ella King is a very brave and bold author and has written this book with sensitivity. It’s an important story that unfortunately needs to be told and highlights the vulnerability of young women, the predatory measures some men take, highlighting physical, mental and sexual abuse.
To me this book is beautifully written, brave but brutally told and another 5 star for me.
