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Friday, November 14, 2008

Sisters of Misery

by Megan Kelley Hall

I picked this book off the shelf on Halloween day so I could get a little dose of 'SPOOKY' this season. It was a good choice.

Hall's first YA mystery/thriller is set in a small town near Salem, Massachusetts with witch stories to rival those of Salem. There are the 3 faces of the Pickering sisters who keep mysteriously showing up on the Insane Asylum's wall even though it's been plastered and rebricked.

Maddie doesn't believe in witches, but she still won't look at the pictures. She begins to question their authenticity after her beautiful, but eccentric cousin moves in with her family. Her close girls friends don't like Maddie's cousin and try to make things miserable for her.

The title of the book comes from an agreement that select, popular girls make on the Island of Misery. This sisterhood is older than their mothers and grandmothers. The big question is how far is Maddie willing to go to protect her claim to the sisterhood.

I wasn't sure I was going to like this book when I started reading. It was obviously aimed at a high school/college age group and there was the regular bits about not feeling as good as the other popular girls, along with the problems of mother/daughter relationships. Once the cousin and her mother enter the picture the book becomes more intense. The story builds upon unanswered questions, devious schemes, mysterious people, and hidden secrets - very gothic and good. I am anxiously looking forward to the next installment of the Sisters of Misery.

13 comments:

Andi said...

This sounds like a book I'd enjoy. And on a completely shallow note, I love the cover. Very pretty.

Literary Feline said...

I just read another review of this book. It does sound interesting. Thanks for the great review!

jenclair said...

Sounds good to me - love gothic and mysterious!

Jill said...

This sounds like fun - I'll definitely have to check it out!

Booklogged said...

Andi, LitFeline, Jenclair, Darla, thanks for your comments. I think you'll all enjoy this book. I enjoyed much more than I expected.

Anonymous said...

It sounds like it might be a good book for my niece.

The other two books you reviewed - Photographer Guide to the Oregon Coast and Walking Portland - I think I'm going to have to get both.

Iliana said...

I was surprised with how much she packed into the story - the runes, the insane asylum bit, the faces on the wall... on and on. I had a few quibbles with it but for the most part I really enjoyed it and I'm really looking forward to the next book. I'm so curious what's going to happen! :)

Bellezza said...

This sounds like a great book for my neice!

Megan Kelley Hall said...

Thanks, everyone! I hope you like THE LOST SISTER (the sequel to SISTERS OF MISERY) when it comes out next year. I really appreciate you all blogging about SISTERS and recommending it to friends. It's the perfect holiday gift for under 10 dollars. What could be better than that?

:)

xoxo
Megan

Booklogged said...

Carrie and Bellezza, I think it would be good for your niece if she's in high school or older. I'm passing it on to my 19-yr-old daughter.

Illiana, she really did pack a lot in, didn't she. I liked how I didn't need to have prior knowledge of runes - she helped me understand them.

Booklogged said...

Megan, thank you for stopping by and commenting. I am definitely looking forward to reading The Lost Sister. And I'm betting it will be fantastic.

Stephanie said...

I just reviewed this book about a week ago!!

Anonymous said...

definitely need to check this one out. As an adult, I find YA books comforting, because I can read them with a sense of perspective I sure didn't have in high school!