This was a phenomenal read. All three sisters were relatable and I found myself rooting for them despite — or perhaps because of — their poor decisions. You know a writer is amazing when as a reader I felt like I really knew and cared for a character that had already died before the book began. This story was a complex look at grief, sisterhood, and adult life. It was equally heartbreaking and heartwarming with beautiful writing.

This book deals with the complexities of families and how three sisters deal with the death of their sister one year after her passing. I tend to enjoy books that have chapters with point of views from different characters, but I found this one a bit harder to get into. The chapters are very long, and sometimes I found myself trying to hurry to the end of the chapter to get back to a different character's part of the story.

Blue Sisters by Coco Mellors follows four women who have seemingly found lives of their own and yet all that they are, are each other's sisters. But when four becomes three, everything shifts and all there is to do is learn how to navigate life missing a sister. ------ What a mess this book has left me in. I'm typically a fast reader by I found myself taking the time to read each word as thoroughly as possible because I feared it would end just too suddenly. What a debut novel Mellors conceived with Cleopatra and Frankenstein, but my word has she blown the roof with this one. This one was so deep, so inviting, so heartbreaking. I wanted more and more with each page. The way each character was explored, not only as individuals but as they are being sisters, wow, wow, wow. Truly a 5+ star read for me. I also feel for the older sisters/first born daughters, what a great portrayal of what "not being that important" means. I'll be thinking about this book for a while, that's for sure. In the end, I'm truly devastated that I have to die not knowing what it's like to be a sister and worst of all, not having one to be my own at all. (All love and thanks to the publisher for the ARC and the opportunity to experience this book)

Blue Sisters is well written and grabs your interest in the women in the book right from the start. You feel like you know them and are soon invested in each of their stories.
I will be recommending this book and I can looking forward to reading Coco Mellors previous book.

The relationship between three sisters is strained when their fourth sister dies. All three, which have seemingly successful lives, struggle with personal issues and the relationships between themselves in the year after her death. When their mother decides to put their home on the market, the sisters finally face each other and their demons. This book covers grief, addiction, and family dynamics.

From the opening paragraph alone, I knew this will be one of my top 5 of the year. Coco Mellors writes a beautiful portrait of a family grappling with the throes of grief and addiction. Sisters Avery, Bonnie, and Lucky get an email from their mother, telling them to clear out their deceased sister Nicky's things from their childhood apartment, as it is being sold at the end of the month. Tensions bubble as private lives mess with the family unit, threatening to destroy everything the sisters have known and are struggling to learn in the wake of their sister's death. With stunning examination of the meaning of family and learning to love ourselves despite imperfections, Mellors' sophomore novel proves that she is here to stay as one of the most brutal, honest, unique voices in the game.

5/5

“We’re your sisters. Whatever you do, we’re ultimately on your side. You could kill someone, and I’d help you sneak the body back to us and fill a bathtub with hydrochloric acid so we could dispose of it discreetly.”

“A sister is not a friend. Who can explain the urge to take a relationship as primal and complex as sibling and reduce it to something as replaceable, as banal as a friend.” True sisterhood is not the same as friendship. Following the Blue Sisters: Avery, the stereotypical eldest daughter that’s hiding a secret that could undo her perfect life. Bonnie, a former renowned boxer that’s working as a bouncer in LA after a devastating defeat. And Lucky, the rebellious youngest whose hard-partying ways finally disrupts her life. They are all grieving the unexpected death of their beloved fourth sister, Nicky, in different ways. But after a year apart, they reunite in New York to stop the sale of their childhood home and finally navigate their loss together.

“All she was asking for was comfort, a little relief. In that sense, perhaps she was no different from an addict. Weren’t all addicts looking for relief from some invisible pain? Weren’t all people?”

This book was amazing. I also had high expectations because I really liked Cleopatra and Frankenstein when I finished the novel last year, and Blue Sisters didn’t disappoint. I usually dislike multiple narratives because certain ones aren’t as great as others, but every Blue sister kept me engaged. This is such a great novel about grief, sisterhood, and addiction from multiple perspectives that made me tear up at the end. The characters are realistic, and the story shows how there’s no “happy ending,” but a real one. This will probably be in my top 10 books of the year, and I’m so happy I had the opportunity to read it. Coco Mellors is an auto-buy author for me, and I would actually recommend you start with this book if you want to read her work.

Thank you NetGalley for the arc!

“But what they don’t know is this: As long as you are alive, it is never too late to be found.”

“I think you're the opposite of insufferable, I suffer you gladly.”

So thankful for this book and for crying in this book and for my sister, how I achingly related so heavily to this story, being an eldest sister. How I didn’t feel so alone in my worry. How my little sister has been Nicky, with what Nicky goes through. Having to go through that and still in recent years, you can't help but put your life down the line to protect your family. It's so interesting to read a book sometimes and relate to it almost too much? I feel like Coco pulled my brain out, inspected it, and knew what to write and how to tell this story for me. My sister is just another thread of me.

I think anyone can relate in so many different ways in this book, without even having a sister. In relationships, careers, family trauma, chronic illness, and addiction. Right off the first page in the prologue, it has gripping and strong writing that pulled me in. The writing is meticulous and thoughtful for each character with an attention to detail that works so well in telling a story. All characters felt nuanced yet flawed, and very human. Make no mistake, these characters are not perfect. Likable yes, but going through it in grief and the consequences of their actions from years of neglectment to themselves. To the point of just boggling your eyes at the decisions they make. But nothing like Coco Mellors to wrap up this book in the way she did. I could read about the Blue Sisters forever, their dialogues, and their life. So much goes on in this book so take your time reading it, if you choose. And savor it too! Definitely a favorite of the year 🩵

“A sister is not a friend. Who can explain the urge to take a relationship as primal and complex as a sibling and reduce it to something as replaceable, as banal as a friend? Yet this status is used again and again to connote the highest intimacy. True sisterhood is not the same as friendship. You don't choose each other and there is no furtive period of getting to know each other. You are a part of each other, right from the start. Look at an umbilical cord– tough, sinuous, unlovely, yet essential– and compare it to a friendship bracelet of brightly woven thread. That is the difference between a sister and a friend.”

I thought this was a touching story of four sisters that dealt really well with difficult topics like cheating, death, and addiction. While the sisters themselves were engaging, the side characters left much to be desired. I also think the presence of the dead sister was felt very deeply. She left a hole in the book that I think is important for talking about grief. The prose was incredibly well done. I think the plotting of the story was sometimes a little off or scenes were explained retroactively like the affair. It wasn't super badly done but it did detract from the story. Overall, I enjoyed this book and thought it was a touching entry into the lives of the Blue Sisters.

My sisters… my Spice Girls… oh how I love the Blues.

I can’t tell you the last time I felt this connected to characters on a page. Maybe it’s because i’m the eldest of three sisters, maybe it’s because Coco Mellors takes my breath away with every sentence she pens. She captured the good, the bad, and the ugly of sisterhood in ways and words I could never even imagine ascribing to the nuances that coincide with such a deep knowing and loving. But she did it flawlessly.

I wish I could verbalize everything I’m feeling after putting this down, but I can’t. I’ll be thinking about this book forever and I can’t wait to reread it… and to make my sisters read it too. Fill the tub ❤️

“It is good you have each other … You never have to explain yourself to sisters. … Until you know my sisters, you don’t know me.”

—

Thank you NetGalley & Penguin Random House - Ballantine for the ARC! Please get your hands on a copy of this as soon as you can!!!

3.5 Stars

This is the story of three adult sisters experiencing the one-year anniversary of the death of their sister Nicky. They grew up in an apartment their parents owned in NYC, and now their mother wants to sell it. At this point the sisters are far flung in various locations like the youngest Lucky who is a model in France, oldest sister Avery a lawyer in England, and Bonnie is taking a hiatus from boxing and working as a bouncer in Los Angeles. The main focus of the book is the tragedy of losing their sister, and it's not revealed how it happened until around the middle of the book. Other conflicts include the sisters' attachment to this apartment and some of their addictions to alcohol and drugs.

I particularly enjoyed how the author described the various locations the sisters lived in; riding the tube, subway, or open top buses, roaming Central Park in NYC, and the leafy suburbia of Hampstead Heath in London, England. I also was a voyeur to bad behavior by the two sisters with the addictions, and perversely, that was riveting. Overall it was a pleasant read, but I would have preferred a little more editing. By the way- I love the book cover!

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for providing an advance reader copy via NetGalley.

This book is for the Gilmore Girls girls! Sharp quick humor interwoven with touching moments. Not to mention characters that make absolutely infuriating mistakes and are often hard to like. Sometimes they were a bit too hard to like, to be honest. I found myself losing interest in some sisters' story lines at times because it's not enjoyable to read about someone burning their lives down. That said, this very much a book by women for women, and I was able to relate to many of the Blue sisters experiences and challenges.

The characters in this book are incredible! Each sister was so unique and I cared about all of their stories. This wasn’t a book where a whole lot of big things happened, but it was still quite gripping. I was sad when it ended because I wanted to continue to know how the Blue sisters were doing. Great, cozy read!

I really like this one although read it slow. In alot of ways its the cool older sister of Hello Beautiful as it addresses grittier, more heavy themes of sex, addiction, abuse, etc. I worried at times it would start as a sister novel then turn right into a romance but am glad it didnt. Would love to spend more time with these characters

Be prepared to have a ton of feelings when you read this book. Coco Mellors does such a good job of throwing the reader into the lives of the characters that I could not help but dive in to this beautiful story of loss, grief, addiction, sisterhood, and belonging.

Blue Sisters is the story of four sisters, Avery, Lucky, Bonnie and Nicky - told a year after the devastating passing of Nicky. Each sister is battling their grief in their own way and none of them is doing a very good job to say the least.

Coco Mellors' writing style is beautiful and makes this read even more captivating.

Thank you to the publisher, the author and Netgalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Unsure if this is an all-time favorite, but easily my favorite read of 2024 so far.

This book is so visceral and honest and I love books that say things that I have only thought to myself. The fight scenes felt cinematic and the flashbacks were written in such an exquisite way. Everything flowed perfectly together. Writing has never sucked me in like this.

I actually love how this book has a theme of hopefulness for life that kinda sneaks up on you as the reader. This book deals with a lot of sad topics, so having this sprinkling of light in life was a joy to read.

This book was simultaneously easy to read (because it was written so gosh darn well) and difficult to read (characters kept making bad choices that made me second guess my mental wellbeing). Avery's storyline was my favorite and the one I related to the most. Because yes, it is difficult and stressful being the oldest sister, but also it's kinda easy to martyr yourself. I really loved Avery's mix of selfishness and selflessness and her overall complexity. I felt for her but at the same time her decisions were the ones that I brought up in therapy.

Slightly spoilery territory about the overall vibes of the ending - I wish it didn't end so positively/wrapped in a bow, but reading Mellor's acknowledgements I totally understand why <3

This book f*cked me five stars

The Blue sisters, Avery, Bonnie, Nicky and Lucky, grow up in a very small apartment in New York with selfish, abusive and mostly absent parents. Avery, the oldest, takes over the mother role early on. She is the responsible, smart one who they all look up to. The Blue sisters have a strong bond, they are a perfect foursome. But then Nicky dies and their symmetry crumbles. The sisters are drifting apart and are getting catapulted in very different corners of the world. During the first year after Nicky’s death, each sister is grieving differently, but all are giving in to self-destruction and some sort of addiction. On the first anniversary of Nicky’s death, the sisters are meeting in New York to clean out their childhood/Nicky’s apartment that they hadn’t been able to give up yet. Here they must each face their own demons and finally find their own identities again.
I was really looking forward to reading this book, and it didn’t disappoint. It is beautifully written and takes you on an emotional roller coaster. How do you cope with the loss of a loved one and the guilt of not being able to save them? Each of the Blue sisters are a product of circumstances and are trying to make the best they can of it, each on their own. This book is about sisterhood, grief, and life after loss. The characters are developed through each sister’s alternating perspectives. There is not really a plot, but the story is built by each sister’s memories triggered by Nicky’s death and how they deal with them. I loved, loved, loved this book, and the cover is just gorgeous. I look forward to reading more from Ms Coco Mellors.
I thank Netgalley, the author and especially Random House Publishing/Ballantine Books for the opportunity to read this advance copy. The above is my honest review and my own opinion. I highly recommend this book to my fellow readers. Check out Goodreads and Amazon on pub day for this review.

Absolutely adored this read. The Blue Sisters will take you on an emotional ride of grief, substance abuse, and sibling bonds. This read will not only have you immersed in each sister’s individual journey and struggles but also on how they rediscover their dynamic as a unit of three instead of four. Beautifully written.

Netgalley eARC

I loved Blue Sisters so much! I found myself sobbing, laughing, angry, and all the emotions in between. Coco Mellors is a master at writing characters that are relatable along with writing books that make you forget you’re reading. This book discusses heavy topics such as grief, substance abuse, complex relationships, and more. I highly recommend this book! One of my favorites of the year! Thank you to the publisher for this e-ARC!

"Blue Sisters" tells the story of—you guessed it—the four sisters of the Blue family still struggling to pick up the pieces a year after their youngest sister died. Avery, a self-destructive lawyer struggling to keep all loose ends within her grasp, reaches out to Lucky, a possibly more if not equally self-destructive yet carefree model trying to figure out her life, and Bonnie, a sweet and introverted former champion boxer, on the anniversary of Nicky’s death. This kickstarts the timespan of the novel as the sisters start to face their new reality, their tumultuous upbringing, and ultimately the bond and resilience of sisterhood.

This was such a unique and vivid story in the sense that we really only see these characters in this specific moment in time. Through recollections and conversations, we learn about their alcoholic father and absentee mother and the way each sister fulfilled a specific role in the family dynamic–roles that proved difficult to shed into adulthood. The focus is on the void Nicky’s death left in the sisters’ lives while seemingly intentionally not going into great detail into Nicky’s story and how she died. So often in novels like these, an unexpected death is the impetus for the main character’s actions, and while that is essentially the case here, it feels like a much more understated reason. The family already had many issues; each sister had her own internal struggle well before Nicky died and yet they still didn't face any of them until a year after her death.

I really enjoyed the pacing of the novel and the varying perspectives. I wish we had more insight into their parents and how they interacted as adults, but the stories of their upbringing reveal enough for the reader to put the pieces together. I felt as though I knew this family and was able to understand and experience their resilience as an outsider. Super compelling read that I’d recommend fully immersing yourself in!