Tigers, Not Daughters is a contemporary young adult coming of age story of three teenage girls growing up in a chaotic home in San Antonio, Texas.

After losing their sister Ana the previous year (and their mother a decade before) Jessica, Iridian and Rosa are aimlessly drifting through a life of mourning and confusion. Jessica is stuck in a toxic romantic relationship, Iridian is hiding at home with her books and writing journals and young Rosa is sneaking out on her own determined to get to the bottom of the hyena sightings around town. Each sister will have her own disturbing interaction with both her father and what she believes to be the ghost of her sister. The tension builds as each Torres sibling realizes the only way out is through and that they have to stick together if they are going to make it.

Samantha Mabry does an excellent job with both the characters and beautiful imagery of Tigers, Not Daughters. Each sister is fleshed out, complicated and relatable in her own way. The paperback includes a beautiful illustrated sketch of girl along with a bit about her personality. I found myself referring back to it as I read as both it and the cover are stunning. The plot managed to be both gritty and have that magical dream-like quality you don’t see often in young adult contemporary. In between the layers of their fraught relationship with their father are moments of impossibility like fireflies that stop glowing at once, a hyena that wanders a city undiscovered and a sister that leaves messages a year past her death. By using the POVs of each sister plus the neighbor boys that can’t look away the reader has a 360 degree view of this family of girls in crisis.

I highly recommend this contemporary novel for fans of all ages looking for a lyrical and beautiful story full of resilience, sisterhood and the often claustrophobic feeling teenage girls can have when it feels like all eyes are on them but no one is reaching out. This talented author is one to watch.

5 stars ⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

My review copy was provided by the publisher for the Spring 2021 blog tour

This beautifully written novel hooked me from the opening paragraph (truly, it has one of the most captivating prologues I've ever read).

This book is an intuitive story about sisterhood and grief. The author's writing is lyrical and engaging, and her characters practically leapt off the page with their liveliness. It would be an excellent addition to school libraries.

Tigers, Not Daughters is a lyrical tale of sisters too haunted by grief and too burdened by the men in their lives... until they suspect that the sister they lost a year ago is closer than they thought.

Told mostly from the points of view of the three sisters Ana left behind, Tigers, Not Daughters does an incredible job of giving each sister a different voice, personality, and motivation for what goes on in their lives. Can I pick a favorite? I don't think so. I love Iridian for her love of writing and stories, her stubbornness, and her tenderness beneath it all. I love Rosa for her compassion and feistiness. And I love Jessica for her anger and attitude and her desire to be heard. They are all so distinct.

The writing is beautiful and lyrical, each chapter feeling like a different poem told by a different sister. I loved the strong imagery and themes that work their way through the story. There's some domestic abuse and violence present in this story, but it ends on a hopeful note, nor did it go as far as I predicted at one point. The men in the story drag the girls down in so many ways, but the ending is triumphant as they stand up for themselves.

Overall Feelings

A beautiful tale of grief and sisterly love, with a touch of magical realism. I highly recommend for people looking for a quick, poetic read.

This is a book that tastes like a summer day on the edge of a thunderstorm. It's full of grief and sisterhood and the untamed power and fury of teenage girls. I picked this book up and couldn't put it down, reading it in one whole sitting, and it's a story that will stay with me far longer than that. The Torres girls are fierce and messy, fragile and strong, and all with their own struggles and gifts, but most of all they're sisters and know just how tight a bond that is. I loved reading all of their perspectives through the books and following the way they re-shaped and re-discovered themselves in the wake of their sister Ana's tragic death. It's a sad story but it's also full of hope too and one that leaves you clinging tight to these sisters and their lives, even that of Ana and her ghost. I highly recommend this one.

I really wanted to love this book. But I feel like this is one of those instances where a short book didn’t include enough to fully flesh out the story. I loved the base story of the 3 sisters who were torn apart by the death of the eldest 4th sister. Each one mourns the loss in a different way: one by never leaving the house and losing herself in writing; one by communicating with animals; and one by emulating her older sister.

One year after their sister’s death, strange things start to happen in the house. This is where the story also takes a strange turn and becomes a ghost story. It was interesting to take a traditional story of grief in this way but it also took away from the sisters.

In general, I wanted to spend more time with each sister and learn about their lives but with 3 POVs and a book under 300 pages, you don’t get a lot of time spent with any of the characters.

Reading the author’s note at the end, with all of her sources of inspiration, made me appreciate what she tried to do with this story. However, I think it needed a bit more in its execution.

TW: abusive relationship; death of a child; alcoholism

This was a super quick read, but it was still a great one! It wasn't what I was expecting, but I liked it even better because of that.

When I picked this up, I wasn't expecting a ghost story, so when Ana's ghost showed up, I was super surprised. I'm super happy that this didn't turn into a ghost story though. At heart, it stayed the journey of Rosa, Jessica, and Iridian. I do wish that the ghost had been explored a bit more, because it had a ton of potential.

I really loved the three sisters we see here. Every one of them is completely different, and I loved spending time in each of their heads. Rosa is definitely my least favorite, but I was rooting for her the entire time. Their relationships with each other were touching, and I loved how they were developed throughout the story.

I really wish that the sisters' grief had been explored more. Throughout the story, we see several of their coping mechanisms, and its obvious that they aren't healthy. There was so much potential for a more in depth healing journey, so I was disappointed that we didn't get it.

I definitely think this book could've been a hundred pages longer. Every one of my problems with it stemmed from a lack of detail, not from a dislike of the book. This was a great book, and I can't wait to see what else Mabry writes!

Thanks to Netgalley and Samantha Mabry for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review!

“maybe she was still, in a way, alive to these people ─ like she was for us.”

this book has an absolutely STUNNING cover, which is what had drawn me to it in the first place so i could only hope that the inside matches the outside! the first half of the novel was honestly exquisite and super quick to read. i loved the author’s poetic, almost prose like, writing. it is so incredibly beautiful that i sometimes had to slow down my reading just to go over the lines again, taking in every single word once more because the way she puts them together is so magical to me.

the magical elements in tigers, not daughters were so good too. it was magical of course, but still felt so realistic in a way that i never once doubted the contents because it all flowed so well. after half of the book, however, the pace really fell off for me and it felt like i was reading a totally different story because it suddenly hindered my enjoyment of it ─ except for the parts that were about ana, which i still thoroughly enjoyed. i’m not really sure what it is but i couldn’t get myself to pay attention to everything so clearly like i did during the first half, because it seemed unnecessary to me in a way? i thought that maybe i was just not in the mood, really, but the fact that some passages still brought out those feelings that i mean contradicted that thought i guess.

an aspect that i really enjoyed were the different point of views! the story is told by the remaining three sisters in their points of views, but every now and then there’s a chapter told from the outside perspective of their neighbor hector and his friend. i thought that this was really refreshing, especially when the first chapter started off like that already and the story has been told from the first person plural, which is something i have never read before i think! each of the sisters’ chapters had their own charme and you could really tell what each of them were passionate about and what made them so different.

truth be told, i found the ending to be really unsatisfying. it felt kind of rushed and like it came too short, as if the book had needed a few more pages or chapters to be wrapped up properly. this was very unfortunate, as i had been quite enjoying the story and had needed that like rounded it up fully? but i also found out that this book is now getting a sequel, so i’m very eager to see what that will be about and if it’s a direct continuation because i currently have absolutely no idea what it could be about then!

thank you so much to the publisher for providing me with an arc in exchange for an honest review!

→ 4 stars

Tigers, Not Daughters is a beautiful story about strength in the face of adversity. These sisters face down issues like loss, grief, and abuse while growing together as a unit. Adding in a bit of magical realism, discussion of religion, and a manhunt for a hyena only adds character to the novel. The writing was beautiful, but I had some issues with the pacing that lessened the immersion for me.

This was a very heavy book that explores grief in a family. Check the trigger warnings before you start this book as it may not be suitable for everyone.

A great read but the switching of POVs in this was not something I enjoyed and I think other readers may find it jarring as well.

Sisterhood. Jessica, Iridian and Rosa are still mourning the loss of their sister Ana a year after she died but magical things start happening that make the sisters believe their sister Ana wants their attention. Jessica's story held my interest the most. She's in an abusive relationship and she's really trying hard just to keep everything together for her family. Some characters are fierce and others take the punishment they feel they deserve. Not all of it is easy to read. The passion the sisters feel for each other is immense.

Tigers not Daughters is a beautiful story about 4 sisters living their life after one of them died. The writing is beautiful, the characters are unique and the whole book is just *chefs kiss*

I loved each sister and their own journey they took after the death of their sister. This contemporary with a little bit of magic sprinkled in was such a good surprise and I can't wait to pick up other works from the author.

A beautiful written story about loss, love and family bonds. The Torres sisters are grieving the loss of their sister, Ana which shows in different ways. They rise above in their owns ways, creating for a wonderful new magical story. Highly recommend adding this to your reading list.

'Tigers, Not Daughters' completely blew me away, I don't know what I was expecting but it definetely wasn't what I've just read. Dark, gritty and haunting (literally!) this book is a rollercoaster of emotions told from multiple POVs.

A year after their big sisters death, strange things start to happen at the Torres household. Each sister is dealing with their own, often self-destructive issues but can they come together to work out what Ana is trying to tell them?

The overall story is stranger than I thought it would be and at more than one point I was totally freaked out but I weirdly loved it, the the Torres sisters are so messed up that you desperately want them to be ok. Odd but fantastic.

Thank you Netgalley and Algonquin Young Readers for providing me with a digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

This was a beautiful book. I found it so lyrical and poignant. The cover is absolutely stunning as well. It was nice reading something new and refreshing. I think I will keep an eye on Samantha Mabry, She will have a fantastic career. I was very moved by this book, I hurt with with characters, I cheered for them, and enjoyed watching their growth.

This is an interesting book, and one that I am sure many, many people will enjoy.
I, unfortunately, was not one of them.
I struggled to get into the book, and because of that, I found myself not being able to enjoy the storyline.
I may give this book another try in the future, but I don't see that happening any time soon.
I still think other people should give it a try, though.

Think Little Women mixed with the dark and fantastical and you'll get Tigers, Not Daughters. Throughly enjoyed this read.

I was very excited for the opportunity to read this new novel by Mabry but I was disappointed with what I read. I struggled to connect to the character(s) and the story. I often found myself drifting in thought because I was not engaged in what was going on. That could be because this was a "magical realism" story and I do not enjoy those.

I did not like how each chapter was told from a different sister's POV because they both sounded the same. It sounded like the same voice telling the entire story but I had to keep reminding myself that wasn't the case. They both felt flat, shallow, and one dimensional.

This was a long story with nothing going on. With a story that already had lack luster characters, magical realism (something about a ghost?), and a whole lot of nothing, this became boring very quickly. It was just bland characters giving a play by play of their daily lives. I needed so much more than what I read.

Loved this tale of three sisters as they deal with the loss of their fourth sister. I could see bits of myself in each sister. The character development in this was amazing. In addition, the reader was kept on edge wondering what is haunting the Torres sisters.

My Highly Caffeinated Thought: A wonderfully complex and intricate tale about the bonds sisters, the struggles that come with growing up, and loss.

TIGERS NOT DAUGHTERS is such a beautifully written and compelling story that many times I felt as if I were there with the Torres sisters. Mabry brings to life these characters with every word she writes. I loved the uniqueness of each of the sisters and how carefully their essence is woven into the fabric of their everyday life.

It is masterful how the author brings together the struggles and issues of the coming of age of these girls with the supernatural elements. There is a realness within the more magical moments and the presence of Ana. Then, there are Jessica, Iridian, and Rosa. These girls will take you on a journey with them as they try to figure out why all these strange things are happening.

Here is the thing. Yes. This book is technically geared for a teen or young adult audience, but truly, anyone can read and enjoy this book. The variety of characters and what they experience within these pages translates far beyond a specific age bracket. So, if you are looking for a great read about love, loss, growing up, and the bonds of sisterhood, this is the book for you. You will sit down and get to know the Torres sisters for the dynamic and wonderfully real girls they are. What a read!

* I received this ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

This book was really, really well-written. The story-line wasn't particularly thrilling but it was such a quiet, intimate slow burn of a novel and the characters were really interesting to watch.

It felt very 'The Virgin Suicides' at the beginning, but I loved that we got to hear from multiple people's POVs and you got to understand their motivations. Rosa was so whimsical and watchful, Iridian was so awkward and painful, and Jessica was so sharp and hurt.

I also liked that the supernatural element was vague and not the whole focus of the novel, but moreso a look at how different people in the same family navigate their grief.