Book Review: The Weird Sisters

Usually when I am asked to do book reviews, I get introduced to new authors, but this time I got offered a book that EVERYONE and their mother has been asking me if I'd read yet: The Weird Sisters by Eleanor Brown. The book centers around three sisters raised by a Shakespeare-obsessed father who return home to care for their sick mother and are thrown back into the issues and arguments of their childhood, so maybe it is because I have a Master's degree in literature, or maybe it's just because people think I'm weird, but they're all shocked that I haven't read it yet.

I'm not going to lie though -- I felt a lot of pressure once this book appeared and starting hanging out on my nightstand. I was sure I was going to have to keep my guard up, that this book would have little hidden references that only "literature people" would get, or that the book would be simple on the surface but that everyone would be talking about the hidden metaphors and whatnot and make me feel stupid when I was done reading because I had missed it all.

Thankfully, as soon as I began reading, I was assured that this was a novel I would love and it was not out to "trick" me. I did not have to be on guard; I just had to enjoy the ride. The sisters Bianca (Bean), Cordelia (Cordy), and Rosalind (Rose) were so real from the first few pages that I knew I wasn't going to be able to stop reading until I learned everything about them that I possibly could. 

The most interesting thing about this book is definitely the sisters, and the weird part is that they are flawed -- OH so flawed -- and they make it clear that they don't like each other at all -- how can sisters dislike each other as much as these women do? -- but somehow I still liked them, cared about their plights, and wanted to know how things ended up for them. It took me a long time to shake that "We really dislike each other" line that appears early in the book, because my sister and I might not be joined at the hip, but I would never characterize my feelings for her that way. It's just a sister thing, and these sisters don't have it. But in the end, that's one of the things that makes the book interesting, and the book is definitely unique in many ways, so it really all comes together and all makes sense in the end. 

I hate book reviews that give away the plot, so I won't do that. What I will say is Eleanor Brown is some who better write a LOT more books for me, and all those people who were telling me to read this book were definitely right.

To read more, visit the BlogHer: http://www.blogher.com/bookclub/now-reading-weird-sisters

I was given a copy of The Weird Sisters and compensated for this review, but it reflects my own opinions, because I'm mean and would tell you if I hated it.