A review by aliciae08
Sistersong by Lucy Holland

adventurous challenging reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

I read Sistersong as a book club read, and it took me a little bit to get into it as it’s very different from most of the books I have read this year. 

Sistersong is inspired by the Twa Sisters, a traditional murder ballad from as far back as the 17th century (according to Youtube).  The ballad itself is gorgeous, and having very little prior knowledge of it, I was excited to get into Sistersong and take on it’s interpretation. 

Sistersong follows three siblings and we get alternating chapters through each point of view: Riva, the oldest, Keyne (later called Constantine) and Sinne.  The story itself is set on the backdrop of war, growing Christian/Pagan resentments, and their own internal struggles.  There’s love and betrayal and an air of mystery, along with gender-queer and trans representation. Despite there being transphobia, this is not a trans trauma story, rather a becoming fully and confidently myself story. 

A massive portion of the first two thirds felt extremely slow, with a whole lot of nothing happening. I found myself getting frustrated because some of the inner turmoil presented felt repetitive (particularly around Riva and Keyne). I also think that because of the length of the set up, I was able to work out who was doing what.

I also thought that some of the relationships were unrealistic in their executions. We’re made to think through the book synopsis that these siblings are really close, and even though a past closeness is alluded to, that is not what we see.  They don’t know or recognize each other at all until the end. 

I also felt that there wasn’t really any closure around certain betrayals. It was kind of “oh these things happened and it’s fine”. We spent so long in the build up that this felt really unsatisfying to me. 

It was well-written and there were parts that I found to be gorgeous. 


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