Cover Image: Sisters

Sisters

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Member Reviews

The cover of this book is wild, warning what a ride this novel would be. This was quite the thriller with a shocking twist that broke the story apart slightly. Overall I enjoyed this book and would recommend it to other readers.

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This book was wonderfully creepy. Something about a horror novel set in the pacific northwest always hooks me, and I was hooked on this one. I sort of predicted the twist, which normally turns me off of a book, but I had such a good time reading this one it didn't bother me in the least. Daisy Johnson's writing style is surreal, imaginative, horrifying, addictive....

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I love the style of this novel. It is unsettling, the narrators are all either unreliable or at least suspect, the tone is deeply sinister, and the sense of foreboding is insidious. While these aspects resonated with me, I struggled with the ending a little bit. I still feel unsettled and disturbed. It was dark and moody, and somewhat creepy. It was a decent read and I will definitely look for more from Daisy Johnson!

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I'm a sucker for a story about sisters, as well as books that take place in the Pacific Northwest. Aspects of this reminded me of The Dutch House, one of my favorite books from 2019, and while I enjoyed it, I didn't quite live up to my expectations (which is a me thing, not the book's fault). I also am learning that gothic novels might not be for me. The characters were well draw, the setting was tangible, and the writing was beautiful. If all of these things sound like something you'd enjoy, add this to your list.

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This book was a great, twisted, dark read. Johnson plays with atmosphere and expectations so well. Even though I saw the twist (or 90% of the twist) coming about a quarter of the way in, I was hooked and along for the ride to figure out what was happening and why. This book does not disappoint and subverts expectations from start to finish.

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A good story, held me to the very end. Two sisters, born ten months apart, always close. A tragic case of school bullying turns their lives upside down and sends them off to start a new life. Lots of twists and turns with a sense of impending doom lingering at then end of every page.

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I’m judging the L.A. Times 2020 and 2021 fiction contest. It’d be generous to call what I’m doing upon my first cursory glance—reading. I also don’t take this task lightly. As a fellow writer and lover of words and books, I took this position—in hopes of being a good literary citizen. My heart aches for all the writers who have a debut at this time. What I can share now is the thing that held my attention and got this book from the perspective pile into the read further pile.

''My sister is a black hole.
My sister is a tornado.
My sister is the end of the line my sister is the locked door
my sister is a shot in the dark.
My sister is waiting for me.
My sister is a falling tree.
My sister is a bricked-up window.
My sister is a wishbone my sister is the night train
my sister is the last packet of crisps my sister
is a long lie-in.
My sister is a forest on fire,
My sister is a sinking ship.
My sister is the last house on the street.''

gah!

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A surreal dream of a novel, SISTERS had me hooked from the first page. I had no idea where it was going, but it was a roller coaster and though it was often confusing, I truly enjoyed where it took me.

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Published in Chicago Review of Books:

The first two-thirds of Sisters is filled with allusions to the event that lies at the crux of the story; these sprinkled tidbits of information slowly work to clear the dirt away from the truth of what happened. When you discover the details of that event, you might be shocked, like I was, or you might have seen it coming all along. But this book is no cheap thrill – whether you anticipate the twist or not, you’ll still be wowed.

Read the rest of my review here: https://www.google.com/amp/s/chireviewofbooks.com/2020/09/04/sisters-daisy-johnson/amp/

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SISTERS is a magnificent work of literary suspense that examines the complexities of motherhood, sisterhood and toxic relationships. A haunting story that dives deep into the human psyche. Johnson’s writing is hypnotizing and the plot is propulsive. I loved this creepy little book and I highly recommend.

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This book has everything I want in a novel: stunning writing, a transporting setting, an eerie tone, and deep examination of human fragility. Daisy Johnson is a master writer and anyone who cares about the literary landscape should keep their eye on her.

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The sisters of the title are September and July -- named for their birth months, less than a year apart. This slim novel takes you for a ride as you try to decipher what has happened -- the girls and their mother retreat to a borrowed seaside home to regroup after the teenaged girls are kicked out of school. To say the girls have a complicated relationship would be an understatement, just look at the book cover. We read this slim book for bookclub, despite it's size the twisty tale gave us a lot to talk about.

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"She does not come gently or with peaceful intentions. My sister is a black hole my sister is a bricked-up window my sister is a house on fire my sister is a car crash my sister is a long night my sister is a battle my sister is here.”

I am always up for a twisted, evil sister story and Daisy Johnson delivered in this unsettling, gothic tale. July (the younger sister) is our narrator and it becomes quickly apparent that something terrible has happened concerning the girls - but exactly what took place remains a mystery. Their mother suffers from crippling bouts of severe depression which has left the sisters fending for themselves for most of their lives. July and September are incredibly close: speaking their own language and navigating life together in such an inseparable way that at times it feels like they are one person. September’s ability to manipulate and control July is incredibly disturbing and the games that they play and actions they take are unsettling, to say the least. “Does September make you do things you don’t want to do?” a teacher asks July at one point in the story. “I said no no no no but underneath the no there was a maybe.”

The unknown permeates the pages and a heavy feeling of dread never left me as I kept trying to figure out what exactly was happening. Was it all in their head? Were the girls having mental breaks from reality? Were they ghosts? July’s unwillingness to address what has happened head-on and her selective recall of the events over the last year finally comes to a head towards the end and I was taken by surprise when the mystery was finally revealed. Many thanks to Riverhead Books for providing an egalley in exchange for my honest review.

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This book just wasn't for me. Maybe the dysfunctional family trope hits too close to home, or maybe the sheer uncomfortable feeling I got from July and September was too much, but I tried to read this for months. I started and stopped, but I finally finished...I still wish I wouldn't have put this much effort in, but I wanted to love this book.
I can see the value to the genre and the appeal for other readers. I have recommended.

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Thank you to NetGalley and PENGUIN for this free ARC.

Shirley Jackson would have been proud of this book. It was such a relatable and haunting story. I should have known something was wrong when September never wanted to eat. I would love to go back and read it again so see what I missed the first time.

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I didn't realize this book would be so moody and thrilleresque based on previous experience with this author. There are a lot of questions about what has happened, why the family has relocated to this moldy home, but it's clearly something with ("Irish") sisters September and July. The entire novel is a bit circular in storytelling so some pieces are left out and some are repeated. The setting and emotions evoked are good for a spooktober read!

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Oh, I loved this! The writing was different but beautiful. At times I thought hmm this might be a little too strange for me but then it all came together for me. Haunting but lovely.

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Dazzling, puzzling, sharp and thoughtful, Sisters is a tour de force. It's challenging and extremely agile in its ability to make you think even as you find yourself sinking into Daisy Johnson's assured and brilliant writing. This isn't an effortless read; it's challenging and challenges you, but it's absolutely worth it! Brilliant!

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Suspenseful is this eerie tale of sisters in a toxic relationship. September and July are bound by The cruelty of high school bullying, the distance of their mother and the absence of the father who died many years ago. Povs change from the girls, their mother and the house they flee to. The denouement is eerie and though it didn’t 100 percent work for me, fans of gothic literature would be quick to read this.

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the cover of the book really had read the book and understood the essence of the story. It is a puzzling story, where you see the parts but its not until the end that the reader understands what is going on. The second thing is that the Daisy Johnson is a master at foreshadowing. From the beginning you know something terrible happened to teenaged September and July. Their single mom, Sheena, has moved them to a remote house on the coast, leaving their former home of Oxford behind. You know it is so terrible, that July has totally blocked what happened. The third thing that stands out to me is the author’ ability with language. In only 224 pages, Johnson is able to convey the sinister mood of the story through the descriptions of the disgusting house they’ve moved into, their mother’s mental state, and July’s thoughts. Yes, at times the book is confusing, but that is by design. The reader needs to feel the confusion July feels as she narrates the story. The gaps, the spookiness of the story and the location are all there by design.

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