Reviews with content warning for Emotional abuse - Sisters

Reviews tagging 'Emotional abuse'

bookishsapphicshay's review

Go to review page

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Content Warnings

cristina_margarita's review

Go to review page

dark reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This story wriggled its way inside me like a tapeworm. I keep trying to pin down how it made me feel or any thoughts I have but they’re so evasive. I just desperately want July to be alright but buried beneath that is the deepest feelings of unease regarding her.

The characters are incredibly & disturbingly real. And the ending. The ending felt like slotting in the last piece of a puzzle - perfectly fitting but tinged with remorse at how it had to end.

The most coherent thought I have about this book is that it reminds me of House of Hollow, just less glamorous & fantastical & for an adult audience.

Content Warnings

savvylit's review

Go to review page

dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

July is the primary narrator of Sisters. She is an incredibly real-seeming, naive young woman with an absolutely shattered sense of self. It's not long into the story before it becomes evident that September's need for control has stunted July's ability to be her own person. July constantly looks to September for approval on everything from what to do & say to what to eat.

In writing Sisters, Daisy Johnson creates a palpable and ruinous atmosphere of codependency. This book and its slow-burn plot are an extraordinary reminder that sometimes the most important relationships can also be the most damaging.

Content Warnings

calisbooklog's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

Content Warnings

aplambeck's review

Go to review page

dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Content Warnings

bookmaddie's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

Content Warnings

serendipitysbooks's review

Go to review page

dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I picked up Sisters because Daisy Johnson is one of the ten nominees for the Women’s Prize x Good Housekeeping Futures Award.
It is an eerie atmospheric read with more than a touch of horror, centred around an unhealthy relationship between September and July, two teenage sisters who are practically twins. Something has recently happened which has caused a big upheaval in their life, causing them to flee to an isolated family home near the coast. Their mother Sheela is not fully present, depression often confining her to her bed. The way the story unfolds is frustrating - deliberately so, obfuscating information which the reader desperately wants to know. It’s fragmentary in nature, moving back and forward in time, revealing that July and September’s isn’t the only unhealthy relationship in the family. By the time the truth about what happened to cause the family’s move is revealed I wasn’t surprised, having already suspected as much. This isn’t a slight on the book at all, more a sign that the twist was not one of those totally out-of-left field ones which I can find a bit irritating. This books is a powerful exploration of memory, inheritance, love and power. It does a great job of capturing some of the essence of the teenage experience. I especially enjoyed the author’s way with words and the atmosphere she was able to create.

Content Warnings