Review: The Storm Sister by Lucinda Riley

THE STORM SISTER (THE SEVEN SISTERS, BOOK #2)
BY LUCINDA RILEY

Publication Date: March 22, 2016
Atria Books
Hardcover & eBook; 512 Pages

Series: The Seven Sisters
Genre: Historical Fiction/Romance/Contemporary

Gathered at their childhood home to mourn their father’s death, Ally D’Aplièse and her five adoptive sisters receive tantalizing clues to their distinct heritages. Ally soon finds herself in Norway where she begins to make sense of her elusive past in the second part of an epic new series by #1 internationally bestselling author Lucinda Riley.

Olympic hopeful Ally is in the midst of preparations for one of the world’s most challenging yacht races when news of her beloved father’s death shocks the accomplished sailor. Saying goodbye to the love of her life, a man her family knows nothing about, she rushes back to her family home, an enchanting chateau where she and her five sisters—each adopted as infants—were raised on the shores of Lake Geneva.

When new tragedy strikes on the high seas, pummeling Ally yet again with a terrible and unexpected loss, she turns her back on the water and instead follows her own North Star—an intriguing clue left by her father which leads her to Norway and the promise of unmasking her origins. Surrounded by the majestic beauty of an unfamiliar homeland, Ally begins to unpack the century-old story of a remarkable young woman named Anna Landvik, a talented singer with an astonishing link to composer Edvard Grieg and his celebrated musical accompaniment to Henrik Ibsen’s iconic play “Peer Gynt.”

Lucinda Riley’s captivating story brings together two resilient women—decades apart—weaving their stories into a moving examination of family, love, and identity.

AMAZON | BARNES & NOBLE | BOOKS-A-MILLION | INDIEBOUND

In moments of weakness, you will find your greatest strength.

The Storm Sister – and its series – captivates me on many levels. The dual timeline is presented both seamlessly and creatively, and each story has multiple layers to uncover. As a series, the overarching thread of the sisters and their mysterious adoptive father continued to intrigue me – and new depths and questions were added that have me anxiously waiting for the next installment. (While this book can be read as a standalone, it is best appreciated in the context of the series.)

Ally’s story will make you ugly cry, not gonna lie.  At least it did me.  Like.. full-on sob.  So tragic it makes my heart ache to think about it even now.  But the tragedy leads her to several discoveries that expand her circle of family in more ways than one, and this dimension to her story adds a welcome measure of sweet to the bitter.

What draws me most to this series however is the thread that weaves through each story and ties them all together. “Pa Salt” is the mysterious and beneficent father who adopted each of the sisters and named them after the famous constellation. Even as secrets surround his death, (I have my own theories about this… we shall see if they match what Riley has planned) answers to other, long-held, secrets are revealed. The way that each book – at least so far – takes place simultaneously adds both to the air of mystery and the cohesiveness of the series.

Content Disclaimer:  While I mainly review Christian fiction on my blog, this particular title is written for the general market.  As such, it does contain some “general market” language, ideas and non-explicit situations.

(I received a copy of this book in exchange for only my honest review.)

About the Author

Lucinda Riley was born in Ireland and wrote her first book aged 24. Her novel ‘Hothouse Flower’ (also called ‘The Orchid House’) was selected for the UK’s Richard and Judy Bookclub in 2011 and went on to sell 2 million copies worldwide. She is a multiple New York Times bestselling author and has topped the bestseller charts in four European countries.

In response to demand from her readers, she has recently re-written two books from her early writing career when published under her maiden name Lucinda Edmonds – the books are now being published as ‘The Italian Girl’ and ‘The Angel Tree’.

‘The Seven Sisters’ is the first of a unique seven book series based allegorically on the mythology of the famous star constellation.

Lucinda’s books are translated into 28 languages and published in 38 countries. She lives with her husband and four children on the North Norfolk coast in England and in the South of France.

For more information visit http://thesevensistersseries.com. You can connect with Lucinda Riley on Facebook,Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, and Goodreads.