The experience of reading this book was multi layered for me.

I had a great time learning about the Syrian Jewish culture, as practiced by this specific family - the weight of expectations and the pressures of conformity experienced by each generation, as they are navigating the outside world with their traditional upbringing (which I can completely relate to in my own culture).

I also enjoyed the journey of each of the sisters and their individual and collective conflicts. As a mom myself, I felt uncomfortable reading the youngest high school sister being in a relationship with a 30-year old man. The man being rich may have contributed to the acceptance of her family, which is probably the reality in most families.

I also wish the non English words were in italics, and definitions were provided as footnotes or a different section in the book, making for an easier read. I did end up googling a lot of words to gain better context, which added to the in depth experience of the story.

The story makes for an interesting read, complex in some areas, and thought provoking. Enjoyed it!

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel! I appreciated the alternating perspectives of all three sisters, and I loved being immersed in their Syrian Jewish community in Brooklyn. I look forward to reading more from Esther Chehebar!

Sisters of Fortune was an excellent debut by Esther Chehebar. I loved getting an inside look at the Syrian Jewish community and following along with each sister's story, Fortune, Nina, and Lucy. This was a great story about growth, figuring out who you wanted to be, and choosing the path to lead you to that version of yourself.

Fortune is about to be married to Saul, and you following along as she takes part in all the rituals before her wedding; taking marriage classes, being overwhelmed adding items to her registery, and preparing to go in to the mikvah before her wedding day. As her wedding date gets closer, she starts to question if this is what she wants, or if she is being the obedient daughter and just going along with what she think is best and what her family wants from her.

Lucy, the youngest sister, is about to graduate high school and has already found the love of her life. Unlike Fortune who is questioning if she could love Saul, Lucy knows that is in love with David, even if he is older than her and has already established his life. She wants the traditional life of being married and making a home with her husband, and can't wait to have a ring on her finger.

Nina, the oldest sibling has always bucked tradition. As people look down on her for not being married yet, she wants to live the life she wants, and quits the family business to take a job at a record label where Steven, an acquaintance from high school works. With her newfound independence, as Nina and Steven spend time together, she begins to question if the traditional Syrian Jewish life may be for her and if it is, can she still do it her way.

I enjoyed all of the sisters stories, but Nina's was my favorite as she was determined to do things her way, even if that meant falling back into the traditions she was looking to escape. Being an Ashkenazi Jew who had a different upbringing then the characters in the book did, I still found many similarities and lines relatable. I loved the family dynamic between the sisters, their parents, and their beloved grandmother.

The Sisters of Fortune by Esther Chehebar is the story of 3 sisters of marriageable age. One is already engaged, one thinks she will never find her true love, and the youngest one still in high school has her eyes on someone. It shows how 3 sisters from the same family have very different ideas, ways of thinking of marriage and who they want to marry. Each character is vividly described and one gets to know each character. One learns about the American Syrian Jewish community, their traditions, their foods, language and lifestyle. Book is very enjoyable and easy to read. It is a little slow at times but each sister finds her best option by the end of the story.

This was an impressive debut, with tight, sharp prose and many delightful, witty lines.

The story follows the three Cohen sisters: Nina, Fortune, and Lucy, as they try to figure out life and love. Nina is 26 and unmarried, an embarrassment in her tight-knit Syrian Jewish community. She's off the beaten path, but a new job at an indie record label might change her life.

Fortune is the only one who's engaged. She's dependable and boring, and even her fiance thinks so.

Lucy is a senior in high school, stunning, who just started dating a 30-year old gorgeous, wealthy doctor.

It's told from each of their perspectives, with each one picking up the plot from where the previous one left off, so it's easy to follow.

What I liked: I enjoyed learning more about the Syrian Jewish community. I do have friends from this community, but I appreciated the birds-eye view. The writing was compelling and kept me interested. Would Nina find peace? Would Fortune find freedom? Would David stay with Lucy? How would their family react to their decisions?

What could have been better: There was a bit too much foul language, and for some reason, everyone kept saying "shut up" like 2 year olds. There was way too much focus on money and designer brands, and an obsession with being thin. The author may just feel like this is a "slice of life" and that's how the community is, but I would have expected more depth.

Ultimately, everything played out more or less as expected, although I was a bit surprised at the David and Lucy arc. He is 30, she is 18 and in high school. He clearly was only interested in her for her looks, but everyone was thrilled about the match. I was expecting a bit more drama in how their relationship played out, especially considering some foreshadowing that didn't go anywhere. I also felt that the end should have happened sooner; the last few chapters felt like an unnecessary epilogue.

3.5 stars, and I look forward to reading more from this author.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House, and Esther Chehebar for the opportunity to review an advanced copy.

🌟 I'd like to start my review with a big thank you to Esther Chehebar, Random House, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read Sisters of Fortune. I will share my review to Amazon, Goodreads, and Barnes & Noble upon release.

🌟 Sisters of Fortune introduces us to three Syrian Jewish Brooklynite sisters: Lucy, Fortune, and Nina. Even though they are raised within the same household, each woman has a very different view on life and love. Navigating these things within a culture that places heavy expectations on women is challenging for the women, of course. Here we have a plot which on its face seems well explored; the ideals of sisterhood and family, marriage, culture and tradition, the weight of those expectations and the burning desire for self-discovery. Little Women, Pride & Prejudice, Sense & Sensibility are classics for good reason. But when these elements are put all together by Chehebar, they felt touching in a way I hadn't expected.

🌟 The characters themselves feel real - and I felt a range of emotions with them as they attempt to piece together a kind of womanhood that serves them. The book is full of references to food, geography, language, and cultural traditions related to the Syrian Jewish community in New York City. Jumping in knowing very little about Syrian Jewish customs, I really appreciated learning lots of new things - and spent a lot of time Googling as I read. Sisters of Fortune does start out a tad slow, but the character development is a must because it's so rewarding. Most women will be able to find elements of the sisters that they relate and connect to, and the book definitely made me reflect on my own ideas about womanhood, marriage, and tradition in ways I'm thankful for.

🌟 Major Tropes/Themes:

👯sisterhood, family, womanhood
🕌 Syrian Jewish culture, food, language, immigration
👰‍♀️ marriage, love
❤️Age gap love story
🤤AMAZING food descriptions
✨ character-focused

🌟 You may like if you loved:

- The Jewish references and romance in The Matzah Ball by Jean Meltzer
- The focus on sisterhood in Little Women, Pride & Prejudice

4.2 stars out of 5!

Sisters of Fortune is a fresh take on the dramatic dynamic of sisters during wedding preparations. Three sisters find themselves in a tug-of-war between family and cultural tradition and the wonders of modernity, reckoning with what their community wants and what they want for themselves. All while learning how to roll the perfect grape leaf under the tutelage of their charismatic grandmother, Sitto, who fled Syria in 1992, and of their mother, Sally, whose anxieties are tangled up in her daughters’ futures.

Sisters of Fortune reckons with what we dream for ourselves, our daughters, and granddaughters. It is concerned as much with where we come from as where we are going—and, above all, with what we are eating for dinner. (And who is making it).

I didn't know there was a vibrant Syrian Jewish community in Brooklyn. Esther Chehebar artfully crafts cultural details into the narrative, making it easy to visualize the players and the setting. This story shows the beauty of Jewish and Arab culture, with mouthwatering food descriptions and pithy Arabic phrases, and illustrates how, during this stressful time, it is possible for the cultures to celebrate their commonalities.

Chehebar did a fantastic job crafting each character, making me emotionally invested in their journeys, especially Sitto, the sisters’ charismatic grandmother, who stole every scene she was in, and played an essential role in the novel's flow.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for the advanced copy.

I found this book so funny and engaging. I feel like between the three sisters, you can find a way to relate to one of them as they try to navigate love, forging different paths and choosing oneself. I loved the family dynamics and how important tradition was to these three sisters. The battle they faced with how you uphold that tradition and ones culture, while also being true to what you want for your future was powerful. I laughed a lot with each sisters POV. The humor each sister had with whatever situation they faced was really the essence of this book. Thank you Random House Publishing and Netgalley for this ARC.

I loved this book! I enjoyed getting an inside look at this wonderful family (and the clever book title) and community. I enjoyed learning about Sephardic culture and the traditional foods. Mostly I enjoyed the writing and the author’s intimate style. Lovely debut novel!

Besides perspective, I liked how the book begged the question "what is enough?". Every woman had a different answer for what that was and it was interesting to see them either grapple or have the answer to what it was. In the end, the cycle never ends.

I can understand that some may feel uncomfortable about David and Lucy's relationship given she is 18 and he is 30 but I think that was part of the learning about other cultures. I assumed this was normal as noone seemed to bat an eyelid in the book. As an immigrant as well, it felt familiar the way the family seemed to do things to impress the community or worried so much about what people would say. Not saying it was okay, but it felt familiar.

Overall, it was an enjoyable read and I liked that it did not end with a nice little bow. Thanks to Net Galley and Random House for the chance to read an early copy of the book.

My favorite movie when I was a kid was Titanic, so imagine my delight when I got to read this sister drama based upon that fateful voyage. Without trying to spoil anything, I will say that I love a good series of sister interactions and so this one was a fun one. I would recommend this book to anyone who is into fiction and family dramas.

I really loved this look at a family of sisters in a Syrian Jewish neighborhood in New York. I'm in a mostly Ashkenazi community, and I kept telling friends while reading this that we really don't talk enough about Mizrahi Jews in the US, since being Ashkenazi is "the norm." Because of that, I learned a lot from this book, and really loved the insights it gave into Syrian Jewish culture.

The three sisters, Fortune, Lucy, and Nina, are all very different, and have different love interests, but all are interested in marriage, even if they don't think so at the time. This book is correctly described as "Jewish Jane Austen," complete with the social commentary of Austen that only someone familiar with the community can give.

I felt the ending of the book was a bit rushed, and it was a slow build, but for me it was worth the read. If you are interested in Jewish culture or learning about a community you probably don't know much about, highly recommend!

I love novels about sisters. This is a well written book, but some of the dialogue felt unnatural and corny. The pacing of the story felt slightly slow as well. I liked reading about the three sisters Syrian Jewish faith and their family traditions. That was the strongest part of the novel. Overall I think the story could have been paced better and I wish some of loose ends would have came sooner in the book.

As a Jewish woman this book was both familiar and enlightening — there were many things that were familiar, but also aspects of Syrian culture and Syrian Jewish culture that were new to me. It made for a fascinating, informative glimpse into the life of three sisters.

Each of the sisters felt like unique, fully realized characters with interesting inner lives and relationships. Fortune’s story grabbed me the most personally, but all three storylines were good and captivating in their own right. The writing style felt personal and literary, a nice balance.

Sisters of Fortune makes for a bingeable read as it gives readers a sneak peak into the lives of three sisters as they navigate their changing relationship with their parents, their community and each other. What I most enjoyed about this story, aside from getting to know the three sisters, was learning about the unique traditions of the Syrian Jewish community.

If you enjoyed books like the House on Pineapple Street and Crazy Rich Asians then you should give Sisters of Fortune a try

I wish I could have gotten into the book more. The three sisters are great characters but the story was way too slow. I wish there was quicker dialogue and not as much introspection on each sister’s narrative.

I honestly thought I wasn’t going to finish this book because the first half dragged so much, but I’m so glad I stuck with it. Once the action picked up, I was totally hooked.
Sister of Fortune tells the story of three Syrian American Jewish sisters and their lives within their community. I loved the family dynamics — they reminded me so much of every family with bickering parents and siblings. The story is told from each sister’s point of view, and reading about their culture was fascinating. A lot of their Jewish traditions felt familiar to me which made it even more special.
A great story about family, finding your place, and the complicated balance between tradition and modern life..

I really enjoyed Sisters of Fortune. The characters were interesting and the overall plot was great. It was an easy read and I felt like I learned a lot too.

I received an ARC of this novel from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Three Syrian sisters live under the weight of family and community expectations while struggling to navigate young adulthood.

Sisters of Fortune” is what you’d get if Jane Austen traded English tea rooms for Syrian family dinners — clever, sharp, and full of delightful social scheming. Esther Chehabar’s writing nails the humor and heartache of finding love when everyone around you has an opinion (and probably a cousin to set you up with