The Half Sister: A Novel
From Sandie Jones, the New York Times bestselling author of the Hello Sunshine Book Club pick The Other Woman, comes The Half Sister; a compelling new domestic suspense novel about a family who is forever changed when a stranger arrives at their door.
Meet the half sister, and unravel the ties that blind us.
THE TRUTH
Sisters Kate and Lauren meet for Sunday lunch every week without fail, especially after the loss of their father.
THE LIE
But a knock at the door is about to change everything. A young woman by the name of Jess holds a note with the results of a DNA test, claiming to be their half sister.
THE UNTHINKABLE
As the fallout starts, it's clear that they are all hiding secrets, and perhaps this family isn't as perfect as it appears.
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Community Reviews
2.5 stars. I’m sorry, but I was SO bored. I’ll round up to be nice. I usually leave two star ratings for books I absolutely loathed.
I was expecting another psychological thriller like The Other Woman, so I was a bit disappointed to discover this was a domestic suspense, which really just translated into a long drawn-out family drama among three women who don't communicate properly at all. I kept reading and hoping for a massive twist I wouldn't see coming, but unfortunately it was pretty predictable and not at all surprising. The style of book may be someone else's cup of tea, but regrettably, it wasn't mine.
With The Half Sister, author Sandie Jones has joined the ranks of novelists exploring the ramifications of DNA testing.
Lauren and Kate long had very different relationships with their father, a successful divorce attorney. Kate feels that Lauren treated him with contempt for many years prior to his unexpected death from a heart attack. The jealousy the sisters feel for each other is palpable. Lauren is envious of the successful career as a journalist Kate enjoys, interviewing celebrities and attending red carpet events like the Oscars. "Kate's life just looks more exciting," Rose reminds Lauren, assuring her that what she does -- raising children and working as a midwife -- "is far more worthwhile." Lauren's boyfriend, Justin, dumped her when she was seventeen years old, setting off a downward spiral into experimentation with drugs and men. When she stopped punished herself and regained control of her life, she married Simon, an obnoxious boor, and they have three beautiful young children in whose lives he takes no active role. Lauren loved Simon in the beginning, but he works only sporadically and has become increasingly jealous, controlling, and physically and verbally abusive. When a sudden opportunity to re-visit her choices and perhaps start a new chapter in her life presents itself, she explores the possibilities with great trepidation and guilt. She is not prepared for the truth she learns about what actually happened all those years ago and, more importantly, who was responsible for the events that derailed her dreams.
Kate and her husband, Matt, met when they were both reporters at the same newspaper, but when Kate began work at the newspaper's rival they were free to pursue their relationship. They have kept their struggle with infertility a secret and, as the book opens, Kate has another embryo implanted, hoping that this time she will be able to carry the baby to term. However, she needs to keep her anxiety level in check and be cautious during the first critical weeks. The emotional upheaval brought on by the sudden arrival of Jess and her claim to be the younger daughter of Kate's beloved father, Harry, are definitely an unwelcome complication in Kate's life.
Kate refuses to believe that her father was unfaithful to her mother. But Rose's reaction is surprising and it is clear she knows more than she is willing to divulge. When it is revealed that Lauren submitted her DNA to a website for analysis in order to learn more about the family's heritage and ancestors, she insists that she merely wanted to bring the family together by widening their circle with other family members. Jess explains that she was put up for adoption as a baby and, not realizing he is dead, is hoping to meet the father she has never known. She too uploaded her DNA profile and was notified that she and Lauren are a match. Lauren also received the notification -- three months earlier -- and is legitimately shocked when Jess shows up, unannounced, at Rose's house. She only expected to find distant relatives, but regrets having submitted her DNA because "all it's served to do so far is to make people say things and hear things they weren't ready for."
Kate is convinced that Jess is not really their half-sister but is, rather, a scam artist looking for "any family" to attach herself to, perhaps for financial gain. And she interprets her mother's distress as a reaction to painful news about her long marriage to the girls' father. Lauren ponders why "everybody [is] conspiring against her, when all she ever wanted to do was bring her family closer together?" In an effort to clear her father's good name and determine if Jess's motives are indeed duplicitous, Kate employs her investigative skills to discover Jess's real identity, learn about her background, and expose her as the fraud Kate believes her to be. Matt suggests that Jess has "somehow cooked the results."
The Half Sister is an entertaining mystery and a drama about female family members. Jones explores the relationship between Lauren and Kate as details about their parents' marriage come to light and Lauren struggles in her own troubled marriage. Regrets, resentments, and misunderstandings between the siblings surface, and force them to reevaluate the assumptions they have made over the years about each other's lives and feelings. The depiction of the sisters' complicated love and loyalty for each other, tinged with competition and grudges, is credible and poignant. Although deceased, Harry is a prominent character in the story. As the truth about past events comes to light, in part because the girls realize that they ascribed erroneous meanings to things they observed, Jones validates the girls' perceptions that they were each raised by a very different men. Their experiences and relationships with the father they knew were divergent. Kate has kept Harry on a pedestal for thirty-four years. Lauren's anger and bitterness toward Harry and his actions have fueled her choices for many years, but revelations about her pivotal seventeenth year cause her to reassess everything she assumed to be true. Jones also explores the mother-daughter relationships, which are as complex as those of sisters, although in a less intricate manner while deftly and touchingly depicting the girls' reactions to what they learn about their mother.
Jones keeps the story moving at a quick pace as Kate zeroes in on the shocking truth about her father, her parents' marriage, and Jess's real identity. The Half Sister is clever, inventive, and full of surprises. Once all is revealed, Jones provides a satisfying and believable conclusion for characters with whom readers readily identify and relate.
The Half Sister is an entertaining family drama, told from the alternating perspectives of Kate and Lauren, that also serves as a cautionary tale. Yet again, readers who contemplating submitting their DNA to a third party for analysis would be wise to proceed guardedly lest they find themselves confronting relatives and family secrets that complicate their lives in unimaginable and unforeseen ways.
Thanks to NetGalley for an Advance Reader's Copy of the book.
Lauren and Kate long had very different relationships with their father, a successful divorce attorney. Kate feels that Lauren treated him with contempt for many years prior to his unexpected death from a heart attack. The jealousy the sisters feel for each other is palpable. Lauren is envious of the successful career as a journalist Kate enjoys, interviewing celebrities and attending red carpet events like the Oscars. "Kate's life just looks more exciting," Rose reminds Lauren, assuring her that what she does -- raising children and working as a midwife -- "is far more worthwhile." Lauren's boyfriend, Justin, dumped her when she was seventeen years old, setting off a downward spiral into experimentation with drugs and men. When she stopped punished herself and regained control of her life, she married Simon, an obnoxious boor, and they have three beautiful young children in whose lives he takes no active role. Lauren loved Simon in the beginning, but he works only sporadically and has become increasingly jealous, controlling, and physically and verbally abusive. When a sudden opportunity to re-visit her choices and perhaps start a new chapter in her life presents itself, she explores the possibilities with great trepidation and guilt. She is not prepared for the truth she learns about what actually happened all those years ago and, more importantly, who was responsible for the events that derailed her dreams.
Kate and her husband, Matt, met when they were both reporters at the same newspaper, but when Kate began work at the newspaper's rival they were free to pursue their relationship. They have kept their struggle with infertility a secret and, as the book opens, Kate has another embryo implanted, hoping that this time she will be able to carry the baby to term. However, she needs to keep her anxiety level in check and be cautious during the first critical weeks. The emotional upheaval brought on by the sudden arrival of Jess and her claim to be the younger daughter of Kate's beloved father, Harry, are definitely an unwelcome complication in Kate's life.
Kate refuses to believe that her father was unfaithful to her mother. But Rose's reaction is surprising and it is clear she knows more than she is willing to divulge. When it is revealed that Lauren submitted her DNA to a website for analysis in order to learn more about the family's heritage and ancestors, she insists that she merely wanted to bring the family together by widening their circle with other family members. Jess explains that she was put up for adoption as a baby and, not realizing he is dead, is hoping to meet the father she has never known. She too uploaded her DNA profile and was notified that she and Lauren are a match. Lauren also received the notification -- three months earlier -- and is legitimately shocked when Jess shows up, unannounced, at Rose's house. She only expected to find distant relatives, but regrets having submitted her DNA because "all it's served to do so far is to make people say things and hear things they weren't ready for."
Kate is convinced that Jess is not really their half-sister but is, rather, a scam artist looking for "any family" to attach herself to, perhaps for financial gain. And she interprets her mother's distress as a reaction to painful news about her long marriage to the girls' father. Lauren ponders why "everybody [is] conspiring against her, when all she ever wanted to do was bring her family closer together?" In an effort to clear her father's good name and determine if Jess's motives are indeed duplicitous, Kate employs her investigative skills to discover Jess's real identity, learn about her background, and expose her as the fraud Kate believes her to be. Matt suggests that Jess has "somehow cooked the results."
The Half Sister is an entertaining mystery and a drama about female family members. Jones explores the relationship between Lauren and Kate as details about their parents' marriage come to light and Lauren struggles in her own troubled marriage. Regrets, resentments, and misunderstandings between the siblings surface, and force them to reevaluate the assumptions they have made over the years about each other's lives and feelings. The depiction of the sisters' complicated love and loyalty for each other, tinged with competition and grudges, is credible and poignant. Although deceased, Harry is a prominent character in the story. As the truth about past events comes to light, in part because the girls realize that they ascribed erroneous meanings to things they observed, Jones validates the girls' perceptions that they were each raised by a very different men. Their experiences and relationships with the father they knew were divergent. Kate has kept Harry on a pedestal for thirty-four years. Lauren's anger and bitterness toward Harry and his actions have fueled her choices for many years, but revelations about her pivotal seventeenth year cause her to reassess everything she assumed to be true. Jones also explores the mother-daughter relationships, which are as complex as those of sisters, although in a less intricate manner while deftly and touchingly depicting the girls' reactions to what they learn about their mother.
Jones keeps the story moving at a quick pace as Kate zeroes in on the shocking truth about her father, her parents' marriage, and Jess's real identity. The Half Sister is clever, inventive, and full of surprises. Once all is revealed, Jones provides a satisfying and believable conclusion for characters with whom readers readily identify and relate.
The Half Sister is an entertaining family drama, told from the alternating perspectives of Kate and Lauren, that also serves as a cautionary tale. Yet again, readers who contemplating submitting their DNA to a third party for analysis would be wise to proceed guardedly lest they find themselves confronting relatives and family secrets that complicate their lives in unimaginable and unforeseen ways.
Thanks to NetGalley for an Advance Reader's Copy of the book.
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