Mad Mabel by Sally Hepworth

STAFF REVIEW

This has been one of my favourite Sally Hepworth novels to date and an example of a very skilled author at the top of her game, doing what she does best – sharing a story. Filled with humour, heart and the importance of human connection, from almost the first line I was wholeheartedly on board for wherever feisty Elsie, aka ‘Mad Mabel’, was going to take me. Hepworth has perfectly woven Elsie’s story, jumping between her 81 yo present day life on Kenny Lane, and her childhood in a huge manor house in mid-century Melbourne.  This is not one of Hepworth’s pacey, twisty thrillers, but rather a more character driven mystery / drama, more closely aligned to some of her earlier works such as The Things We Keep. With a fabulous cast of supporting characters, I finished this book feeling thoroughly satisfied – warmly entertained by a master storyteller.

Reviewed by Kate

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From the New York Times bestselling author of The Soulmate and Darling Girls comes the story of Mad Mabel. They called it murder. She called it justice.

‘In 1954, at just fourteen years of age, Mabel Waller became the youngest Australian in history to be convicted of murder.’

In 2025, on a quiet Melbourne lane, an elderly man is found dead by his neighbour, 81-year-old Elsie Fitzpatrick. No one suspects any foul play.

Until they discover Elsie’s past.

In the 1950s, her name was not Elsie. It was Mabel.

‘She is known around the world as Mad Mabel. But is she mad? More importantly, is she guilty?’

When the police open a new investigation and the media descend upon her, the elderly Mabel decides it’s time to set the record straight.

‘In a world first, at the age of eighty-one, Mabel Waller is speaking. This is her story.’

New York Times bestselling author Sally Hepworth is at her finest in this twisty, compulsive thriller of friendship, family and murder. Or is it justice . . . ?

About the Author: Sally Hepworth is the New York Times bestselling author of ten novels, including The Soulmate and Darling Girls. 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. They are available worldwide in English and have been translated into twenty languages. Sally lives in Melbourne, Australia, with her family and one adorable dog.

30 Sep 2025

Mad Mabel by Sally Hepworth ISBN 9781761266492