REVIEW: Very interesting! I finished The Perfect Daughter by D.J. Palmer yesterday morning and I had to let it sit with me for a while before I could write the review. I wasn’t sure how I felt about it. If you know me, you know I like anything with medical cases and I love legal mysteries. So, right off the bat I had two of my favorites in one book! 

Penny is an adopted daughter who was found in a park and has developed multiple personalities known today as DID (Dissociative Identity Disorder). She has been accused of murdering her biological mother. About 75% of the book was background and trying to find out which one of the personalities committed the murder. The last part was the court trial and the huge surprise ending. I can tell you I didn’t see that one coming at me!

There were some gnarly people in this book. I loved several of the characters and hated what they were going through. For some reason, I felt like I was on the outside looking in. I didn’t have the connection with the characters like I thought I would. Maybe it was the DID that actually made me stand back. 

This story will pull at your heartstrings and it was a good read. I read The New Husband by Mr. Palmer and I will have to say they are nothing alike. If you like a story like this, take a chance on The Perfect Daughter. 

I received a copy of this book from the author/publisher and Netgalley for a fair and honest review. Thank you! 

SYNOPSIS: A thriller that explores the truth or lies behind a teenage girl’s multiple personality disorder, from D.J. Palmer, the author of The New Husband.

Meet Ruby, who speaks with a British accent.
Then there’s Chloe, a perfectionist who strives for straight A’s in school.
And along comes Eve, who is spiteful and vicious.
All of them live inside Penny…
Or do they?

Penny Francone, age sixteen, is a murderer. Her guilt is beyond doubt: she was found alone in the victim’s apartment, covered in blood, holding the murder weapon. The victim’s identity and her secret relationship to Penny give Penny the perfect motive, sealing the deal. All the jury needs to decide now is where Penny will serve out her sentence. Will she be found not guilty by reason of insanity, as her lawyer intends to argue? Or will she get a life sentence in a maximum-security prison?

Already reeling from tragedy after the sudden passing of her beloved husband a few years before, now Grace is on her knees, grateful that Massachusetts doesn’t allow the death penalty.

As Penny awaits trial in a state mental hospital, she is treated by Dr. Mitchell McHugh, a psychiatrist battling demons of his own. Grace’s determination to understand the why behind her daughter’s terrible crime fuels Mitch’s resolve to help the Francone family. Together, they set out in search of the truth about Penny, but discover instead a shocking hidden history of secrets, lies, and betrayals that threatens to consume them all.

The perfect daughter. Is she fooling them all?