Between Sisters by Kristin Hannah @jessduffyy @panmacmillan

I am a huge fan of Kristin Hannah so I was very excited to be offered a review copy of her latest book, Between Sisters.  I read this book in two days whilst in hospital and it was so nice to have a great book to keep me company.

Book Description:

We all make mistakes, but for Meghann Dontess the terrible choice she made some years ago cost her everything, including the love of her sister, Claire. Meghann is now a highly successful attorney, and has put all thoughts of love completely behind her – until she meets the one man who believes he can change her mind.

Claire has fallen in love for the first time in her life, and as her wedding day approaches she prepares to face her strong-willed older sister. Reunited after two decades, these two women who believe they have nothing in common will try to become what they never were: a family.

Tender, funny, bittersweet and moving, Kristin Hannah’s Between Sisters skilfully explores the profound joys and sorrows shared in a close relationship, the mistakes made in the name of love, and the promise of redemption.

My Review:

Kristin Hannah has created a thoroughly absorbing but emotional story in Between Sisters.  It was great to read about the estranged sisters attempts to rebuild their relationship and be there for each other.  I think this story appealed to me on a personal level as I also have a younger sister who I don’t always see eye to eye with.

The character development in this book was brilliant.  I started off not really liking or feeling sympathy with either of the sisters but by the end I found myself hoping they had a good ending and even shedding a few tears when things went right for them.  I think this is down to the subtle way the author introduces facts about their lives and their past that’s let’s the reader understand more about why they are like they are and what makes then tick.  The sister’s fall out about quite normal, everyday things which makes the story seem more realistic and allows the reader to be more involved in the story as you want to keep reading to find out what will happen next.

The differences between the two sisters is very vividly described throughout the story and leads to some of the more emotional moments in the book.  The cold, impersonal almost clinical corporate life Meghann lives in without any close friends and family is very different to the vibrant, casual life full of friends and loved ones that Claire lives.  At times I had a lump in my throat reading some of the passages describing these differences and realising how much this affects the sisters when these differences become apparent.

I absolutely loved the ending! It was exactly how I wanted it to end.  I felt all the characters got the ending I wanted them to have and I must confess I had tears in my eyes reading how things turned out for them.  It was lovely to see how much the characters had changed and how far they had come.

Huge thanks to Jess Duffy and Pan Macmillan for my review copy of this book.

About The Author:

Kristin Hannah is an award-winning and bestselling author of more than 20 novels including the international blockbuster, The Nightingale, Winter Garden, Night Road, and Firefly Lane.

Her novel, The Nightingale, has been published in over 39 languages and is currently in movie development at Tri Star Pictures. Her novel, Home Front has been optioned for film by 1492 Films (produced the Oscar-nominated The Help) with Chris Columbus attached to direct.

Kristin is a former-lawyer-turned writer who lives in the Pacific Northwest and Hawaii with her husband. She began her writing career as a young mother and has never looked back. Her novel, Firefly Lane, became a runaway bestseller in 2009, a touchstone novel that brought women together, and The Nightingale, in 2015 was voted a best book of the year by Amazon, Buzzfeed, iTunes, Library Journal, Paste, The Wall Street Journal and The Week.  Additionally, the novel won the coveted Goodreads and People’s Choice Awards. The audiobook of The Nightingale won the Audiobook of the Year Award in the fiction category.