Hattie and Penny Grayson are sisters but are complete opposites. Hattie is red-headed and full of life, while Penny is dark haired and with a darker and more intense personality to match. That said they’re very close and will do anything for each other, in effect they have an abnormally intense bond and one that is surely to lead them into trouble.
After a traumatic childhood - their father walks out on the family, their mother dies from a bee sting - Penny grows up and gets married to Buddy, who soon proves to be a brutal bully. After much abuse she can no longer take it and snaps. She decides to burn down her house with him inside it. Only she can’t bring herself to do it. Hattie does it for her in an act of sisterly commitment. When Hattie wants a child but cannot get pregnant, Penny steps in to return the favour.
For a while it appears that balance is restored, but of course, life is never that simple and soon their past returns to haunt them.
This is a well written family drama and domestic thriller, full of hidden secrets and tensions. Its not a long book, just two hundred and fifty pages, and those pages turn fast. The publishers say that readers will burn through the book in one sitting and I can see why, its brevity complemented by its tight plotting and compelling characters.
Sister of Mine is the author’s debut novel and won a prize when unpublished, so I expect she will be a writer we will hear much more from in the future. Those who like psychological thrillers and domestic noir would be advised to give this a read.
3 out of 5 stars
Thanks for the blog tour support x
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