My Sister's Bones

Publication Date: February 2017

Goodreads Description

ARE YOU BRAVE ENOUGH TO GO BACK? Kate Rafter is a successful war reporter. She's the strong one. The one who escaped Herne Bay and the memories it holds. Her sister Sally didn't. Instead, she drinks. But when their mother dies, Kate is forced to return to the old family home. And on her first night she is woken by a terrifying scream. What secret has Kate stumbled upon? And is she strong enough to uncover the truth . . . and make it out alive?

My Review

The first thing that struck me about this book was how emotional I found the first quarter of the story. I wasn't expecting that. When Kate returns home after the death of her mother, she can't help but think back over her childhood and the time she spent with her Mom, to the close bond that they had and to the abuse that she and her mother endured at the hands of her father. The author definitely manages to pull the reader in with the emotional account and any reader who has or had a close relationship with their mother will probably find Kate's pain tangible.

This is ultimately the story of two sisters, Kate and Sally, although we hardly get to know Sally during the first half of the book. We are introduced to her once and other than that the story focuses on Kate, her life as a reporter, her relationship with her family members and her time spent in Syria. Sally only comes into her own during the second half of the story.

I must be honest and say that when I learnt that part of the story centered around Kate's life as a reporter and her time spent in Syria, I wasn't very excited. It's not that I don't sympathize with the people of Syria and the refugee crisis but I'm not a fan or reading books about wars, refugees, politics and so on. I don't actively choose to read fiction books that are set in war zones or that focus on the terrible atrocities that are going on in the world. But, luckily, this story didn't delve into the Syrian crisis in much detail and although there are small sections of the book that touch on Kate's time spent reporting from Syria, they aren't lengthy and it didn't detract from the book for me.

I liked this book, but I did have some concerns and problems with it. Firstly, I thought that the flow was a bit disjointed and the actions of the characters seemed strange at times with no clear and gradual link between their normal actions and then the craziness. For example, and this doesn't give anything away, Paul's actions towards Sally were so strange. From one extreme to the next with no indication to the reader that his mind set was starting to change. Secondly, and probably because of the jump from a pretty normal story to a strange one, I found things a tad overboard and unlikely. I know that this could probably be a criticism of many psychological thrillers but in this one, it just seemed more pronounced. I didn't feel that the story pulled together well. But that's just me.

My verdict is that this is a good read but not one that you need to rush out and buy today. If it comes across your reading path, then give it a go. It didn't blow me away, but it's a fairly decent read that will probably appeal to many people.

My rating: * * *

Many thanks to author Nuala Ellwood and publisher's Penguin Random House SA for my copy.