This week’s book recommendation comes from Platform book club member Kirke Viira.
This psychological thriller will keep you nailed to the book to find out what happens next.
The Sister is British author Louise Jensen’s first book that brought endless success and initially kick-started her career.
The debut novel was released in 2016 and reached No one in the UK and the Canadian Amazon chart within three weeks of release, No one in Apple’s iBooks and is listed as a USA Today Bestseller.
It tells the story of a woman, who has lost her best friend and finds comfort from a stranger, who claims to be the half-sister of her dear friend.
Grace’s grief makes it easy for her to trust Anna. Not long after they first meet, she asks Anna to come and live with her and her boyfriend Dan.
Anna wants to get to know more about her half-sister Charlie, and the girls work together to solve why Charlie mysteriously disappeared before her death.
The only clue they have is a letter from Charlie that says: “I did something terrible, Grace. I hope you can forgive me.”
During their investigation strange things start to happen – Grace feels like she is always followed, she gets fired from a job she adores and her and her relationship with Dan is on rocks.
Grace tries to brush these things off and thinks it’s just her mind playing games with her until everything escalates and she discovers that her life could be in serious danger.
The build-up to the conclusion is intense and gripping and when you think you’ve got it all figured out, another plot twist appears and makes you rethink everything.
The ending is quite dark and emotional, explaining the antagonist’s point of view and makes you feel bad for them and plays with the reader’s emotions.
I liked that even though in the present time of the novel Charlie is dead, her and Grace’s close bond is very well presented by Grace’s memories of them in their childhood and as teenagers – a friendship like that is what we all wish for and it makes it even more understandable why Grace’s life shattered after Charlie’s death.
I would really recommend this book to anyone that loves psychological thrillers, that make you fully invested in the story and characters – this book was truly hard to put down.
By Kirke Viira
Feature image: Anna Elias