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3.39 AVERAGE
3.39 AVERAGE
I was given a free copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
"We all have different sides, I think. The things we share. The things we keep hidden. The good, the bad. The truth, the lies.".
This book is set in the "Then" (around 10 years ago) and "Now", and starts with our protagonist 25 year old Grace retrieving a memory box that she and her best friend Charlie buried a decade ago. Grace and Charlie have been friends since school, polar opposites but joined at the hip nonetheless. Grace is quiet and thoughtful, whilst Charlie is bold and imaginative. On the day the memory box was buried, Charlie slipped a pink envelope inside, promising Grace that they could open it together when they dug it up as adults. Grace does not expect to find what she does those ten years later about her best friend however, and without Charlie there to help her, things are more difficult than she thought they would be; Charlie wants to find her father; a man who her mother only met briefly fifteen years ago.
So Grace begins her search for Charlie's long lost father, starting by approaching her alcoholic and somewhat hostile mum Lexie, (whom she hasn't spoken to since Charlie's funeral) in hope of attaining closure. After reaching out online she hears from Anna - Charlie's half sister.. And so the real story begins..
My initial and main feelings for Grace included sympathy and frustration; she spends the majority of time alone grieving friends and family members she has lost, and appears somewhat stuck in a tenuous relationship with her thoughtless and somewhat distant long-term boyfriend, Dan. As the book moves on this dissipates, being replaced by curiosity and at times, confusion; there is a lot more to Grace's life than we originally anticipated. Charlie is fun, likeable and extroverted both as a child and as an adult; very much the glue that held Grace together at times.
I think that the way the book is written is interesting; I always love books written in two different tenses but this one seemed exceptionally well done. I found myself getting comfy, but fidgeting impatiently almost immediately, I genuinely struggled to put this book down. It's surprisingly accurate how the depiction of the characters as teenagers is portrayed, it's so often that authors voice children incoherently and inappropriately in books, but the voices of Grace and Charlie seemed realistic and age appropriate throughout to me - I found myself smiling along through these parts, thinking that Charlie sounded a lot like myself at that age.
There is little improvement I felt could be made with this book. My only qualm being (at times) Dan; he is depicted as a little two dimensional, selfish, petulant and boring. His only interests throughout the book appear to be going out with his friends and eating - more like an overgrown child than a man in his mid twenties; a (somewhat lacklustre) side kick than a character in himself, and all in all, a "typical bloke". I didn't quite get the impression that he and Grace "clicked" or were the sort of people that would ever be together in real life. At several points throughout the book I found myself wondering how they even got together in the first place - the first thing he ever did was bully her for christ sake! And no, not in a "I like you so i'll be mean because I'm childish" way. He just came across as a mean person. I feel this could have been developed upon to portray a more three dimensional relationship overall, but maybe I'm just nit picking..
Anyway I have to admit it was the cover of this book that initially attracted me to it (the pink and black colour scheme is striking yet simple, familiar yet original) - It was hard to believe this was a debut novel as it was amazingly well written and just so ... Good. Overall I can't recommend this book enough, it's made it to my favourites on Goodreads and I will certainly be buying a copy to re-read (despite knowing the plot twist) when it comes out. A genuinely original and intriguing read. I can't wait for more books to come from Louise Jensen, I'm sure she'll be a household name if she keeps up writing stories as high caliber as this one. A well deserved five stars from me.
Give it a go
The cover caught my attention and the words inside kept it. I listened to the audiobook edition. The narrator was excellent. She was well suited to the book and brought the characters to life.
The story flicks back and forth from the past to the present, showing the close friendship between Charlie and Grace, and how Grace is (isn't) coping after Charlie's death. I can't say much more without risking spoilers, but I loved it.
I received this book free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Now, we all know that I’m an absolute fiend for a good psychological thriller and because I’m reading more and more of them, I’m getting more and more picky over whether I enjoy them or not. I’ll start by saying that I thought this one by Louise Jensen was incredibly good and I’m absolutely blown away by the fact that this is a debut novel. Let me tell you now: if my debut novel is anywhere near as good as this one, I’ll be over the moon.
The story is based around a girl, Grace, who lives with her boyfriend shortly after the sudden death of her best friend. We aren’t told, at first, how her best friend has died, nor are we sure whether or not her death is homicide. We are aware though, that before her death, Charlie admitted to doing something pretty horrendous and Grace is absolutely obsessed with the idea of finding out what it is. Eventually, we are introduced to Anna, Charlie’s half-sister, and from this point onwards everything seems to go horribly wrong.
I was hooked on the story from the word go and I was SO curious not only to find out the secret that Charlie had died keeping, but also to find out the secret that Grace herself was holding onto. These two mysteries are the ones that keep the story so interesting all the way through: it’s pretty obvious from the word go who the perpetrator of the modern day disasters that are being thrown Grace’s way, with the exception of a few twists and turns here and there. I enjoyed the characterisation and the switch between the present day and the past especially. I felt incredibly sorry for Grace and really connected with her character. I have to say that I actually felt quite anxious reading certain scenes, particularly since I was reading them at night. I took special care in making sure my doors and windows were tightly locked before going to bed, I’ll tell you that for nothing! I’d definitely recommend this one to anyone who likes crime/thrillers, but you’ll have to wait a little bit as it’s not released until July!
4/5.
The characters were well written - albeit all slightly frustrating at times - and I loved Grace's development over the novel and I really was rooting for her.
*spoiler* The only thing that let me down was the lack of something really thrilling or exciting. Somehow I never really feared for anyone's life and my guess at the ending was pretty much spot on. The fact that Grace thought that Anna and Charlie looked alike as soon as she met gave it away instantly for me. *spoiler*
I said this the last time I read a psychological thriller and this book has confirmed my thoughts - I've read a few too many to be thrilled or surprised by anything lately. I know what to look for and it's dampening my enjoyment a little.
Aside from that, this book is a stellar example of a psychological thriller and a great introduction to the genre for any newbies out there.
https://youngatheart1blog.wordpress.com/2016/07/29/review-the-sister-by-louise-jensen/
This was a very exciting read! I don’t read a lot of psychological thrillers, although I really should because I always enjoy them. I loved Gone Girl and Girl on a Train and The Sister had a similar feel to it. The story starts with Grace grieving over the death of her friend, Charlie. The narrative is told through both present time and as a series of flashbacks. After Charlie’s death, Grace decides to search for Charlie’s father, who left before Charlie was born. She hopes that by finding him she will finally be able to cope with Charlie’s death and hopefully find answers. This is where things really start to pick up.
I really enjoyed the “then” and “now” flashbacks. They were absolutely relevant and helped us understand Grace, who was not a very honest or reliable narrator in her adult life. Both story lines were equally interesting and exciting. They often switched at a cliffhanger which was frustrating but only because I was so eager to know what happened! I felt as if the flashbacks and present time were all culminating into this big understanding of what was really happening and I eagerly read until the end.
There is also the overarching mystery of “what Charlie did.” Early on, we learn that Charlie dies and leaves behind a note saying she did something “terrible.”I was constantly thinking of this throughout the story. What did she do? Did she leave any clues? It was very exciting. Especially as we got to know Charlie through the flashbacks..my mind never stopped coming up with possible scenarios!
Grace is quite the unreliable narrator, which I actually like in this book. She is never fully honest in her adult narrative so we learn about her as a character through a series of flashbacks. These flashbacks help us answer questions about her past. Why was she raised by her Grandparents? How did she meet Dan? Why was she so close with Charlie?
She was also quite oblivious at times. She often frustrated me and sometimes I wanted to shake her and scream- “Just look around and pay attention!”I additionally wanted to point out that I noticed a lot of reviewers said the plot is predictable. Yes and no. Yes, there were some things that I felt I knew before Grace, but that did not stop me from greedily reading until the end! I quickly realized the more important part of the story was not necessarily who the antagonist is and what they are doing to Grace, but why they are doing it. There were also quite a few revelations at the end that still surprised me.
Overall this was a very entertaining read and I would definitely recommend if you enjoy psychological thrillers.