Sister of Mine + Chatting with Laurie Petrou
More than a year after the fire, a charming young man comes to town. Hattie and Penny quickly bring him into the fold and into their hearts but their love for him threatens the delicate balance. Soon long-held resentments, sibling rivalry, and debts unpaid boil over, and the bonds of sisterhood begin to snap. As one little lie grows into the next, the sisters’ secrets will unravel, eroding their lives until only a single, horrible truth remains: You owe me.
A compelling novel of suspense from a talented new voice, Sister of Mine asks us to consider the bonds of family, what it takes to commit the unthinkable, and how far you’ll go to protect the ones you love.
My Review
I was looking forward to reading this book. I was in the mood for a good physiological thriller. Yet, I struggled early on with this book. The sisters were fine but there was nothing interesting about them. Also, the story started moving out slowly. I kept waiting for the story to pick up but it was mot moving fast enough for me. My reading speed of this book was more of a stop and go. After doing this several times, I personally could not go on further reading this book.
AUTHOR Q&A
Laurie Petrou
1. What
made you want to focus on a relationship between two sisters?
A:
I have always loved fictional siblings
and families: from Salinger’s Glass family to Roddy Doyle’s close-knit family
in The Snapper, but also close fictional friendships that last lifetimes. I
have a life-long best friend (Nicole), and other very close girlfriends. I have
a brother with whom I am very close. Luckily none of these relationships have
ever become toxic or strained, but I wouldn’t be who I am without them, and to
that end, so much of how we identify and who we are can be wrapped up with
those people with whom we are close. This interests me.
2. The
Grayson sisters have a very complicated relationship. Did you base their
relationship off of anyone’s you know in real life?
A:
No, they are a product of my wondering
about how far we could push very close relationships before they buckle under
the strain.
3. Hattie
and Penny are both incredibly unique and underused names, as is Jameson. How
did you go about choosing them for your main characters?
A:
Oooh! Good question..I’ve always liked
the name Hattie, or Harriet. I seem to remember wanting both names to be able
to be shortened, whimsical in their nickname but more formal in their given
names. I can’t remember when I thought of Jameson, but I can’t see him as
anything else. Sometimes, right before I’m done a book, I change some of the
names. It might be a function of my trying to see if they still work (a rose by
any other name and all that). I believe Iain’s name changed a couple of times.
4. Who
or what shaped your love of writing?
A:
My parents are both voracious readers, as
is my brother Michael and bestie Nicole. I have always read, which is like
laying the necessary groundwork for writing. I had wonderful teachers in high
school who encouraged creative writing. Writer’s Craft was one of my favourite
classes; I remember feeling such a thrill working on my ‘homework’ for that
course.
5. We
all hate criticism, but sometimes the harshest advice is also the most useful.
What is the hardest piece of advice someone has given you?
A:
Be patient. And it is the advice I
cheerfully dole out to any and all writers, even while having a very hard time
following it. It will come. Don’t pester people. Write. The rest will follow.
6. Do
you have any advice for other new authors?
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