Cover Image: The Stepsisters

The Stepsisters

Pub Date:   |   Archive Date:

Member Reviews

I’m a huge Susan Mallery fan!
But I can’t get past the ending of this book.
It is a complete no go for me.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an arc in exchange for my honest review.

Was this review helpful?

I always read Susan Mallery whenever I get a copy of any of her books and review them when they come out on the other platforms. I sometimes forget to review them on here. This was a wonderful book by her as always.

Was this review helpful?

First off this cover is a summer eye catching one. My first time reading Susan Mallory. I enjoyed her genuine and heartfelt development of her perfectly flawed characters. The sister dynamic is often times a complicated one as this novel portrays. Self-actualization plays a big role not only for Sage but Daisy as well. The journey these sisters have traveled is one fraught with heartache. Heartache from each other and the world in general. As each sister comes into her own you will find yourself rooting for each one of them even if you didn’t like them at first. Love, friendship and sisterhood are themes explored in this enmeshed story. Personal relationships are key to propelling the storyline. Romance is sprinkled throughout as well. Thank you #NetGalley #The Stepsisters for the ARC.

Was this review helpful?

Daisy hasn’t seen her sister or stepsister in years, then Sage resumes her when her car dies on the side of the road and Cassidy needs someplace to recover after an accident on the side of a mountain. En engaging read that had me up too late one night. ARC from NetGalley.

Was this review helpful?

At first I was waiting for the story to really grab me and it took awhile, but once it did I was on board! The story of the sisters as individuals and as a family is inspiring. They are such vastly different people and were written beautifully.
Sometimes I just wanted to yell at the book characters that they were acting stupid and just need to say/do something!

I would recommend this book!

Was this review helpful?

The Stepsisters is your typical family drama, women's lit novel. It was enjoyable and made for the summertime. I wanted all of the characters to resolve all of their hard feelings and come together as extended family once again. And it's crazy the path life can take when you step off of a cliff!

Was this review helpful?

i really enjoyed reading this book early! it was so cute and precious. i'm so thankful to netgalley for letting me read this one before it came out!! you guys rock my socks.

Was this review helpful?

An ex step- sister, a conniving ex step mother, a half sister, and a whole lot of drama. I have mixed feelings about this book. The story was great, right up until the end. The characters were well developed, and mostly relatable, the plot moved along at a good pace, but the ending made me crazy. That is all I can say without spoilers.


Thanks to Ms. Mallery, Harlequin Books and NetGalley for this ARC.

Was this review helpful?

This was a wonderful beach read about sisters (step) and their relationships. It begins with Daisy who is a mother of two and having marital troubles. As she is stopped by the side of the road, to tend to her sick daughter, her step sister, Sage drives up to help. The two sisters have had a strained relationship for years, so Daisy is perplexed that Sage would stop and help.
As the story continues, the youngest sister, Cassidy, comes to Daisy’s to heal physically and emotionally from an accident. Daisy’s dad asked that Daisy help Cassidy heal but she hasn’t seen Cassidy for years given that they too don’t get along.
Each sister has their own relationship struggles and they all try to mend their relationships with each other to realize families are everything.

Was this review helpful?

Spoiler-free Thoughts: Really, really enjoyed this one. I’ve been really into beach reads and this fit right into that. Very consumable, but also very heartfelt. I don’t have a sister, but could still deeply relate.

Characters: Let’s start with Daisy. She is so amazing, but also didn’t seem to have many flaws other than people being jealous of her. I wish she wasn’t so angelic, but it’s not the end of the world. Then we have Sage, who is delightful but also self-destructive and a sorta reformed mean girl. I enjoyed her, and appreciated her flaws. I thought Cassidy was kind of a brat, but she grows on you. I just wish she had a little something else—like more of her adventurous side or journalist side—that we could see other than be told. The men, Jordan, Adam, and Desean were likeable in ascending order from what I have there. Adam in particular stood out to me since he is supposed to be this sweet nice guy, but sometimes I’m like woah man you stepped over the line. Idk I get his role but it was a bit misguided.

Plot: For me, this moved along nicely. I loved watching the two stepsisters get closer and closer. It was so nice and sweet. And, when the big BIG happened, I didn’t think it came out of nowhere. Even though I hated it—a lot. A lot a lot. I liked how we learned a little more each chapter, in many cases at the same time as the characters.

Writing Style: All third person from each of the two stepsisters. I think I would have liked Cassidy’s perspective too, but not that mad about it.

Rating: 4/5, I was feeling it and the family relationships were so so sweet.

Was this review helpful?

Daisy and Sage have a long history of not getting along. Sage is popular and beautiful, while Daisy is smart and nerdy. Eighteen years later they have to put their differences aside for their sister Cassidy. When truths and secrets are revealed they come together putting their differences aside.

Was this review helpful?

I am a big fan of Susan Mallery but I'm not sure about the book. Daisy and Sage met as children when their parents married. Daisy was so excited to have a big sister but Sage was not happy. As the years progressed they had a younger sister, Cassidy. When Cassidy needs help after an accident, Daisy and Sage both come home to help her. The 3 begin building a good friendship until Sage sleeps with Daisy's husband. This is where I start to have trouble with the ladies relationship. I find the outcome of the story a little hard to believe. I found the sisters hard to like and didn't connect with them. I received a copy of this ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Was this review helpful?

I received an arc of this title from NetGalley for an honest review. I'm a huge fan of author, Mallery and was looking forward to this title. For me, it was not my favorite of her books. Although it was a good read, I found myself rolling my eyes an awful lot.

Was this review helpful?

This was a great summer read! A fun setting and a trio of sisters made this one pop. I loved the separate stories of the sisters and how it all came together at the end. A story of forgiveness and love, something everyone can relate to. This was emotional and a fun read. My thanks to the publisher for the advance reader in exchange for my honest review.

Was this review helpful?

I am sorry for not reviewing fully but I don’t have the time to read this at the moment. I believe that it wouldn't benefit you as a publisher or your book if I only skimmed it and wrote a rushed review. Again, I am sorry for not fully reviewing!

Was this review helpful?

A great beach read to curl up with this summer! Three siblings through marriage and blood, are brought together as each of their lives are falling apart in different ways. Forced to lean on one another when circumstances force them in close proximity.

Daisy and Sage are step-sisters, but share a half-sister, Cassidy. The sisters aren't close, and Daisy was always bullied and picked on by the other two, especially after their parents divorced.

Each of the women are dealing with their own problems:
**Daisy - her husband moves out after 12 years, telling her via text, leaving her with their two kids and no clue as to why he left.
**Sage - has 3 ex-husbands, none of whom she's loved, and dealing with a self-destructing and emotionally abusive mother.
**Cassidy - recovering from an accident after being proposed to, she's pushing away the love of her life and finding out where she belongs in her family after her belief in love/marriage has been shattered.

I'm a huge Susan Mallery fan and own multiple copies of all her books, but this is the first one that I was physically upset with while reading. The story development was great, and looking back I can understand why certain decisions were made for the sake of the plot, creating a slow build that was a little on the sadder side of things. It was refreshing to see characters that are genuine and flawed, but man - this one broke me emotionally.

There are certain things I don't want to see in books, but that's due to my own issues, so I try not to get upset when they occur. My heart shattered during this book and I had to step away from it for a day before I could finish (personal past drama), but it was a great story of fighting for your own happiness and what you want in life.

**Trigger warning: Cheating

Was this review helpful?

A great story about stepsisters reuniting and setting aside their differences when one of them needs them. After working to mend their differences one act may ruin all the progress they made. A great lesson on how bullying can ruin a person's life and destroy a family.

Sage and Daisy have a tumultuous past that destroyed their relationship. But when their little sister, Cassidy, needs them they will reunite after 18 years of separation. Truths will be revealed, friendships start to blossom until one careless act puts everything in jeopardy. Will this end this new blossoming relationship or can they forgive?

Was this review helpful?

What a wonderful book which explores the dynamics of stepsisters and half sisters, both the perceptions and the actual issues. I couldn’t put it down.

Was this review helpful?

This was a great read with 3 sisters reuniting when one of them is in an accident. The story is filled with childhood (and beyond) bad feelings for each other, actually two of the sisters hate the third. Each sister is struggling with their happily ever after, this includes a twist near the end that almost undoes all the progress the sisters have made.

Was this review helpful?

The Stepsisters was my second book written by Susan Mallery and it did not disappoint. It was a delightful, stand-alone story about stepsisters, Sage and Daisy and their half-sister, Cassidy. I loved the writing style of Susan Mallery and the characters she created. Sage and Daisy were interesting individuals and they dislike one another intensely as children. Sage goes to California hoping never to see Daisy again but the stepsisters are reunited eighteen years later when Cassidy needs some help.

I simply adored this story. Although Sage and Daisy had their differences, ultimately they both wanted the same thing. All of Susan Mallery's characters in the tale are well developed and the sisters have a lot of issues that they have to put behind them in order to become a family again. I thought this story of drama and dynamics was a book of absolute brilliance and it would make a perfect summer read. I will definitely be reading more of Susan Mallery's books!

I received a complimentary copy of this novel at my own request from Harlequin MIRA via NetGalley. This review is my own unbiased opinion.

Was this review helpful?