Reviews

Sistersong by Lucy Holland

a_chickletz's review against another edition

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3.0

I'd like to thank NetGalley for allowing me a chance to read this book.

Thanks to Juliet Mariller, I realized that as I began to read this book... I knew it as one of the tales she covered in the Sevenwaters series of books. However, from what I recalled, she didn't add a LGBTQ character. So it made me all the more interested to see what and who that character would be.

If you have never read Juliet Mariller's Sevenwaters series, you should. It's absolutely gorgeous and she does a bang-up job of retelling the tale. If you have, this will still come as a delight to you because the characters still have a distinctive and fulfilling arc.

The reason I rated this book a star less is that I think the world building was a bit lax. The threat of the Saxtons and Christianity coming forth and trying to take over the land was a bit downplayed. So when it came to those bits, I felt a little lost at what the true terror was.

I hate comparing two different authors and their handling of a tale, but this book is gorgeous and it does have really well done characters and fulfills the story of the three sisters. I just think that we lack any sort of fear or agency in this book to give it the pay off it needs.

library_of_stoner's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

kcmag1's review against another edition

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adventurous dark medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes

3.75

Had echoes of the Bear & The Nightingale in its themes, but did not provide the same element of wonder for me. It may have resonated more if I knew the source material, but then again I didn’t know the source material/inspiration of the Bear and the Nightingale either. The characters were interesting, but I ended up wanting a bit more from their development and ended up feeling dissatisfied with the ending. Unfortunately, the “twist” was quite predictable and subsequently lacked mystery/tension.

meganmc89's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional

4.75

loftycomet's review against another edition

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medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

adinadwd's review against another edition

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3.0

3.62

Enemy dick really tore a family apart that's crazy.

I wasn't familiar with The Twa Sisters ballad at first, but this is a really interesting retelling.

I do think this is geared towards a YA audience, so some of tropes were definitely overused (lying evil meddling priest, magician who pops up at convenient times to show the siblings valuable lessons, male love interest who's a liar and woman who falls in love with him).

I absolutely loved Keyne's storyline. Riva however, was very aggravating. Overall, a quick and easy read that I enjoyed.

jnichols's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

There is a song part way through the book that was so well done in the audiobook, it was absolutely haunting. The book was sad, sweet, and satisfying. 

natashac42's review against another edition

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adventurous tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

beecallaghan's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional inspiring reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

culturekath's review against another edition

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dark sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75