This was fabulous-- I loved My Husband's Wife, and this book didn't disappoint. Absolutely gripping read from start to finish!

Fantastic read! This is the story of two sisters, Alison and Kitty, who are dealing with a terrible childhood accident that left Kitty with horrific head injuries and having to live in a care home, unable to communicate with anyone. Alison appears to be unscathed but is self harming and is haunted by guilt. The circumstances of the accident are gradually revealed, flipping between the accident in 1991 and fifteen years later. I found this book to be totally riveting and got hooked with all the lies, deceit, twists, turns and surprises along the way, but the final twist was mind blowing. Would thoroughly recommend this brilliant psychological thriller! Thanks to Net Galley and Penguin for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

Blood Sisters is a terrifying and addictive psychological thriller exploring the relationship between two half sisters before and after a horrific accident that leaves one of them brain damaged. I loved Jane Corry's debut novel but this second novel excels. Impeccable research and authentic characters make for a fascinating read.

Wow this book had me riveted from page 1. Half sisters Alison and Kitty are involved in a fatal car accident, leaving Kitty's best friend and a neighbour both dead. Kitty has complicated injuries and can't even speak anymore. You read the story through both sisters eyes. Kitty meets a boy Johnny in her home and becomes pregnant. Johnny's parents are well off and they help pay for treatment so that Kitty gets a machine that can talk for her. Once Kitty has a voice more of what happened that fateful day comes out and Alison isn't as guilty as it first seems. I will be recommending this to all my book loving friends a great read.

This is the first book I have read of this author and I have to say I was very impressed. I liked the way the story switched between the sisters and the different years. It kept me hooked as I read the book in a day, I couldn't stop reading it! I will be looking to read more by this author. It was a very well written and thought out book and I would highly recommend it.

A brilliantly observed story about one friend and two sisters, one of whom had a terrible accident. I found it engrossing with plenty of suspense and twists.

A very well written story centred around two sisters and a plot line developing which slowly tells a story of what happened years before and led them to where they are now. I really enjoyed the book and was gripped from start to finish, it was so well written and I enjoyed it a lot

Alison and Kitty are half sisters. Alison's mum had met and married David and then along came Kitty, same mum different dad. At school Alison is the studious, serious one. Kitty the arty one. Kitty is daddy's princess, and their mum, not wanting to upset David, lets the obvious favouritism go. This does not help the tension between the girls. But things change when there is a horrible road accident, Kitty is left severely brain-damaged, in a wheelchair and unable to do anything for herself, she can only mumble incoherently.

The story revolves around the two girls alternating chapters that fill in the story from both perspectives. It gives a full account of their lives as children as well as present day events. What seems a basic story soon twists its way into something more sinister. Lies that are told though a person's life have a habit of coming back to haunt and they can also leave scars. The past will never remain hidden, you have to deal with it to be able to move forward and move on.

This is a very good story. The characters are very well described and are easy to remember due the use of nicknames, or key characteristics.The plot of the story line has a number of subplots running throughout, when you think you have solved one little mystery, you find it is something else entirely. But they have been cleverly brought to a satisfactory conclusion, and then there is another twist. Thoroughly enjoyable read, a good page turner with several "didn't see that coming moments".

I would recommend this book to readers of Crime, Thriller and Mystery genres. Also some good discussion points for reading groups.

Three little girls set off to school one morning. Something happens and within an hour one of them is dead, Fifteen years on Kitty lives in a care home unable to speak or remember her past. Her half sister Alison, seems fine on the outside but is struggling with life. Someone is watching Alison and can watch her even closer when she takes a job as an art teacher in a local prison. An interesting story which was twisty and interesting.

Three girls head to school. Before the bell rings one is dead, another catastrophically injured, and the third left to pick up her fragments and live with her guilt. 15 years later Kitty resides in a care home, unable to care for herself or communicate. Her sister Alison lives a deliberately solitary existence, only seeing her art students. When she sees a job advertised for an art teacher in a local prison she seized the chance.....maybe she can still set some thing right....

Imagine a mystery wrapped in an enigma contained in a riddle and all bound up with a solidly brilliant plot. Imagining it.....well there's no need because it's all in this book. Jane Corry has taken several delicate issues and handled them sensitively, the main one been Kitty's disabilities and those of the people she lives with. Having worked and lived with special needs people I felt she captured the way many care homes and day centres are perfectly. And she really hit on the fact that isn't because someone has special needs it doesn't mean they can't be an a-hole too. Not a pc view I know but it's true.

The story flits between the time of the accident to 'now' and Kitty's and Alison's very different existences. They novel melds the stories perfectly right up to the very satisfying ending. 5 stars easily given for this excellent thriller.

I received this from Netgalley for an honest review.

This is a tale of two sisters Alison and Kitty who were involved in a dreadful car accident when Alison was 18 and Kitty was 11. A friend of Kitty’s died and Kitty was so seriously injured that she’s in care home unable to speak or communicate effectively with serious physical limitations. Alison, as the older sister with responsibility for the younger two on the day of the accident, is mentally scarred and still trying to come to terms with what happened that day and event leading up to it.

The story is told in two timescale, near present day and going back to 2001 when the accident happened. It’s told from both Alison and Kitty’s perspectives. I found some of this tedious and although Kitty can have some fairly rational thoughts in her head those around cannot interpret them so this makes for very disjointed dialogue and quite a lot of profanity.

There are many twists and turns are come at a good pace throughout the book keeping the reader engaged. I did struggle to believe the behaviour of some characters and also the idea of a ‘talking machine’ to read Kitty’s brainwaves. But, nevertheless, it was a decent read and kept me gripped.

One big reservation I have is the way self-harm is portrayed. Mental wellbeing is a big topic these days and needs to be approached very carefully. I felt this portrayal of self-harm was borderline on normalising it and giving young people (especially but others too) too many ideas.

Fifteen years later, Alison and Kitty are living separate lives. Kitty is in a care home. She cannot speak and has no memory of the accident that put her there or her life before it.

Alison is an art teacher. She looks fine on the surface but underneath she is far from well. When a job comes up in a prison she decides to take it – this is her chance to finally make things right.

However, someone is watching Kitty and Alison; someone who wants revenge for what happened that day and only another life will do…

A thoroughly good book although it is a little long (400 pages). The story starts quite slowly but does ramp up as the book goes along and has many twists and turns as well as a final twist at the end which is difficult to see coming.

It gives an insight into how people cope or not with bad situations that occur in life and the research into various disabilities used in the book have been carried out comprehensively and with care and compassion.

A good book which is very enjoyable.

Helen

Breakaway Reviewers received a copy of the book to review.

Three girls on the way to school. Two sisters, one best friend. Secrets. Minutes later, one is dead, one severely injured and destined to be in a care home , one unhurt. Only Alison and her sister Kitty know what really happened that day and Kitty cannot communicate with others.

There are a few diversions along the way but gradually the story reveals itself . I loved the character of Kitty - we know all her thoughts but no-one in the book does. Alison finds her guilt to much and begins to unravel but it is only when a way is found for Kitty to communicate that the truth - and the real secret - come out.

A real page turner ! Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a review copy.

I really enjoyed this book, it was different to what I had previously read. I was totally lost in the plot, which is something that really important to myself that I can escape into a book. I highly recommend this book to friends and would even purchase it for them.

This book was incredible. Honestly. One of the best books I've read this year, and I've read a lot! I absolutely adored the inclusion of Kitty's POV and I felt Cory handled her disability with the utmost sensitivity. It really made me think and not only was it a clever device in terms of tension (as a reader, I shared Kitty's sense of frustration), but it also allowed Corry to utilise the 'unreliable narrator' in a unique way. Everything about this book felt fresh and new - the characters, the structure and the twists. Although it was complex, every element of this novel added to the story, and it flowed perfectly from beginning to end, despite the time jumps and the 2 POV's. I can't think of a single thing I'd change about this book, and I'd recommend it to everyone!

This is the story of three girls. Alice and Kitty who are half sisters and Vanesa who is Kitty’s Blood sister. It is a story of jealousy, teenage girls and tragedy. An accident occurs and Vanessa is killed and Kitty left severely disabled and brain damaged. Alison believes it was all her fault and there is no-one around to prove otherwise. Years later with new development Kitty is finally released from her world to say what really happened. This has a twist at the end which I didn’t see coming!

Let me just say that the cover and the blurb sucked me right in. I knew straight away that I had to read this story. The author didn't disappoint me as I loved this story.

"Three little girls. One good. One bad. One dead. "

The story is told through two points of view in different time zones. Alison and Kitty. Alison is an art teacher who takes a second job in a prison. Kitty can't speak and has no memory of the accident that has her living in a care home.

I found myself reading this in one day as it's addictive reading. So many questions needed answers that I was reluctant to put this book down. Although I thought it started off slow once I got into it the pace did pick up.

A really well written story full of secrets and twists. I'm looking forward to reading more from this author.

This book Blood Sisters was so outstandingly brilliant, that it is definitely one of my top reads for 2017.

I was totally lost within the story from start to finish, it was gripping, addictively good and literally had me sitting on the edge of my seat in anticipation of what would happen next. There was a fair few moments when I gasped at what I was reading and a lot of oh my gods, really or wow didn't see that coming. It was a real page turner and just when you think you know what is going to happen next, you get the unexpected.

I was truly impressed by the storyplot of this book, was all so very cleverly done and how well the author wrote the  characters, so in-depth and real. This book definitely has the triple WOW factor for me.

I can't recommend this book enough, it is a must read for 2017. You will not be disappointed.

Where do I begin? I read this in less than 24 hours. I could not put it down. It's gripping, easy reading full of twists and turns and portrays the sister relationship accurately.

Loved this book from start to finish.... great read. Thanks for the advanced copy. This felt like reading - The Ice Twins - all over again!!

Will add to Summer reading blog recommendations.

I really loved My Husband's Wife when I read it last year. So much so that I have to admit I was a little scared that this latest offering would not stand up to my expectations. Soon after starting it, I realised that my fears were totally unfounded as I simply devoured this one too.
Alison and Kitty are the two survivors of a childhood accident in which one girl died. Although physically unharmed, Alison is still suffering psychologically but Kitty is in a care home, with limited mobility, no speech and little memory of what happened to her. Alison is an college art teacher and one day she spots a notice advertising a teacher-in-residence job in a prison. Still atoning for what happened she feels she has to take the job, well, that and she needs the money. Soon after starting, she begins to receive strange notes and feels someone is watching her. Kitty meanwhile is very frustrated as she can't voice her thoughts. She desperately wants to know what happened to her but is unable to vocalise her needs. What happens next is an extremely well plotted journey, peeling back the layers that have build up around our two main characters since the accident. We go back to their childhoods and see what happened in the build up. Back in the present, it becomes evident that what is happening now is connected back to that day. Will we ever get to the truth? And who needs it the most and what will they do to get it?
Well, this was the book that kept on giving. Just when I thought I had it all worked out, the author spun me around and set me off in another direction. Not without good cause I hasten to add as the characters were spinning quite a bit too. It was also quite original to me in nature and storyline. Something hard to achieve given the sheer volume of this genre book that I read. I found that very refreshing indeed.
The two key locations in the book were also either very well researched or the author has personal experience, and I found both the prison and the care home to be very credible and interesting places. I especially loved Kitty's inner thoughts and really felt for her frustration in being able to communicate them, all attempts being misinterpreted as acting out. Alison was a little harder to get to know. I took a little time warming to her but definitely got there in the end.
Pacing was also very good. I wouldn't say that this is a book that hits the ground running. It starts off at a gentle pace, most of the psychological stuff being cerebral rather than physical and the chapters set in the past are quite slow paced as they are mostly background and scene setting, albeit very important wrt to complementing and explaining what is happening in the present. Delivered in short punchy, sometime cliff-hanging chapters, this book was for me extremely hard to put down when my life insisted I do other things!
In the acknowledgements, the author does admit to taking a few liberties with certain things that I myself also queried but as all taken were integral to the plot and more or less within the bounds of credibility I was well easily able to forgive her for them. Indeed, the subject matter did having me resorting to google to find out more.
Aside from the main story, we also dove into both Kitty and Alison's lives. I definitely had my eyes opened by Kitty's day to day struggles and what happened to her along the way. I also really really want to try my hand at stained glass now too! I found that instead of distracting me from the storyline, their individual stories became integral in building up and defining their characters which, for me, meant that this was a very character driven book which, given the slower paced, more cerebral aspect of the psychological element, meant for a better overall read.
All in all, an excellent read that ticked every box for me along the way and that left me totally satisfied at the end. That is, apart from a nagging yearning for her next book. I hope not to have to wait too long.

My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.