Sister Sister

Publication Date: 6 January 2017

Goodreads Description

Alice: Beautiful, kind, manipulative, liar. Clare: Intelligent, loyal, paranoid, jealous. Clare thinks Alice is a manipulative liar who is trying to steal her life. Alice thinks Claire is jealous of her long-lost return and place in their family.

My Review

Having never read a book by this author before, I wasn't quite sure what to expect. Well, let me tell you, you can expect a lot. She really delivered with this book. The plot was interesting, the characters believable and reading this book got my emotions pumping. The first half of the book deals with Alice's return to the family circle and Clare's reactions to her return. Instead of feeling elated and excited about Alice's return, as Clare thought she would, Clare finds herself being suspicious and jealous. And you know what? A lot of the time I could actually understand Clare's feelings and I shared in her mistrust of Alice. Alice, the one who returns to the loving, open arms of their mother, making her happier than she's been in a long while. Alice, the one who's hanging out with Clare's husband, Luke, in his art studio at 3am while Clare is supposed to be asleep. Alice, the one who goes on day trips with Luke and her two little girls, doing fun and interesting things, while Clare works on a difficult case at her law firm. Alice, the one who prances around the kitchen every morning in nothing but a large T-shirt, despite the fact that Luke's in the kitchen making breakfast. All things considered, Alice's behaviour was such that it got my blood pumping.

By the second half of the book I was asking myself why Luke, who's been married to Clare for over eight years, keeps doubting her. Why doesn't he listen to her and give her the benefit of the doubt. Would a loyal husband do that? Would he side with a stranger over his own wife, the mother of his children? I wanted to throw a bucket of ice water over his head, just to wake him up. And then the seed of doubt crept into my mind - who's really telling the truth and who can be trusted?

As I'm sure you can tell, I was gripped. This psychological thriller had all the elements of a great read - it moved quickly, it got the emotions pumping, there were characters to love and hate and a plausible plot that never let up. It's a great read, plain and simple.

My rating: * * * *

Thanks to author, Sue Fortin, publishers HarperCollins UK and NetGalley for my copy.