“Sister of Mine” by Laurie Petrou
A fire that can’t be extinguished.
Hands down, this book is totally “unputdownable”. I got hooked on it since the beginning, and as I went deeper into the story and got immersed in the relationship between the two main characters and the secrets that take hold of their lives, it was really hard to stop reading.
Penny and Hattie are two sisters living in the small town of St. Margaret, where they grew up. They’ve always been close, but have been bound together more strongly by an important secret that drastically changed their family when they were young. Their relationship is complex; being sisters, there’s love and loyalty of course, but there’s also guilt and resentment as a result of that secret.
As it can happen with siblings, one is more charismatic than the other. Hattie is beautiful and charms everyone that she comes across with. On the other hand, Penny — who is older — is more serious, and the “responsible one” who is always looking after her younger sister. Penny and Hattie find themselves living on their own after their father left when they were young and their mother died unexpectedly when they were teenagers. Since then it’s just the two of them, living in a house full of memories, and where they continue to build a relationship of unconditional sisterly love for years — that is, until Penny falls deeply for Buddy Collerfield and gets married.
Starting the fire
The book begins with a fire and one of them running through the forest to get home safely. “It’s me. I’m home.” she tells her sister when she gets there. As a result of the fire, Penny’s abusive husband dies and her house is destroyed, so she moves back to the family home to live with Hattie and to what seemed to be the start of a new life for her.
The truth of what happened that night is just the beginning of an entangled web of secrets, rivalry and resentment. As the story unfolds, we see both of them go on with their lives — with their jobs, their home, and with other people from St. Margaret…including those who are looking for the truth behind the fire, such as the police officer investigating the case and Buddy’s resentful and suspicious best friend.
Living through the ashes
A year after the fire, Penny and Hattie are happily living together in their family home. That is, until love walks right through their door. Penny invites her work peer Jameson over as she has a bit of a crush on him. After Hattie meets Jameson, things get a bit complex — remember I mentioned Hattie is the charming and charismatic one? What happens next is the start of a love triangle that brings more secrets and resentment with it, as well as moral debts that will need to be paid eventually. Or will they?
The author uses the differences in both sisters’ personalities very wisely to deepen the complexity of their relationship, and entangle the web of secrets that surround their lives. Because there’s not only the secrets that they both share; there are also secrets that they keep from each other. Through the story we see Penny trying to move away and live a life of her own, however, due to the consequences of their secrets, she always ends up needing to go back to look after Hattie. It’s hard for her — but after all, she’s the older sister who loves and needs to take care of her younger sibling, no matter what.
There is also the use of flashbacks here and there, which help provide more context and justify the actions and attitudes of the two main characters. I found that these were very valuable in helping the reader get a stronger understanding of each one of them, and why they act the way they do.
The reason I found this book hard to put down is because, by the way it’s written, it keeps you on the edge of your seat thinking that at some point either of them is going to break down and leave their secrets in the open — or, that someone else will discover them. To me it really stood out from other thrillers and psychological suspense books because of the smart way in which the story is told, and the clarity in the personalities of the two main characters.
To me, having a sibling is something very special — there’s a bond and intrinsic loyalty between you that’s unique and that will always be there. However, there are cases — as in this story- in which these may go through challenges and difficult, life-changing tests. That is why Sister of Mine left me with several thoughts, such as: do any moral debts between you really need to be paid in spite of the bond you share? And, how do you know when it’s been fully paid?
If you’re looking for a different and highly engaging thriller, and one that you will find very hard to put down, I recommend this book without a doubt.
Thanks for reading!
thrillers - psychological thriller - page-turner - Globe and Mail Top 100 Book of 2018 - suspense - siblings