Book Review - Between Sisters by Cathy Kelly

Book review

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Review by Suze

Cassie and Coco had to grow up without a mother. She left them when they were little girls. Even though they're grown women now they're still not over this. Their grandmother has always taken care of them, so they had a loving childhood, but they missed having a mother. Now Cassie has her own family with two teenage daughters and Coco is single. They're both successful in their careers. Cassie always tries to be perfect, both in her personal and professional life. Coco is still in love with the man who wanted to marry her four years ago and she's never been able to admit to anyone what ended their relationship.

Something in Cassie's marriage has gone horribly wrong. She wants her daughters to be happy and because she's trying to be brave so hard without relying on anyone else she's often finding consolation in a drink. Coco has her own vintage clothing shop and she's struggling with a lazy employee. When something awful happens to her best friend her life changes drastically all of a sudden. Will the sisters be able to cope and how does the past still influence their present decisions and relationships?

Between Sisters isn't a light and cheerful read. It's a story about real life and people who make mistakes. I love stories about sisters and Coco and Cassie are both great women and they are likable characters. They're both sweet and deserve to be happy. Other people don't always understand them and it takes time for them to start understanding themselves. Because of everything that's happening in their lives the sisters can't be there for each other as much as they would have liked, but they keep loving one another and they're always just a phone call away. I loved that strong connection.

Every character has their own little story inside the bigger one. I really liked reading about grandmother Pearl and designer Phoebe for example. They're both talented women who want to protect everyone around them. Cathy Kelly has paid attention to each character in the book, which is something I greatly enjoyed. They all have their worries and their ups and downs, but love and warmth is what's pulling them through. I liked the description of emotions, both the good and the bad. The not-having-a-mother aspect has been written about in a sensitive, truthful and accurate way. I admired that very much. Even the animals are playing their own important part. Cathy Kelly has perfected every single detail. This makes Between Sisters a beautiful and realistic story with a solid basis. I highly recommend this amazing book.

 

About Cathy Kelly

 

 

Born in Belfast but raised in Dublin, Cathy initially worked for thirteen years as a newspaper journalist with a national Irish Sunday newspaper, where she worked in news, features, along with spending time as an agony aunt and the paper’s film critic. However, her overwhelming love was always fiction and she published her first international bestseller, Woman To Woman, in 1997. She did not become a full-time writer until she had written another two books (She’s The One and Never Too Late) and finally decided to leave the world of journalism in 2001, moving to HarperCollins Publishers at the same time.

Someone Like You and What She Wants followed in successive years. Her sixth novel, Just Between Us, was her first Sunday Times number one bestseller, while her eighth novel, Always and Forever, topped the UK bestseller lists in October 2005, displacing Dan Brown and J. K. Rowling. In 2007, Past Secrets in was also a number one paperback bestseller.

Lessons in Heartbreak was shortlisted for the Eason Irish Popular Fiction Book of the Year at the Irish Book Awards in April 2009. In September 2009, Once in a Lifetime topped the UK bestseller lists for three weeks. In March 2011, Homecoming achieved the same feat. Her latest novel is It Started With Paris, published by Orion in 2014.

In Autumn 2011, Cathy headlined a search for a new writer on ITV’s The Alan Titchmarsh Show.

Cathy’s trademark is warm story-telling and she consistently tops the bestseller lists around the world with books which deal with themes ranging from relationships and marriage to depression and loss, but always with an uplifting message and strong female characters at the heart.

Cathy also has a passionate interest in children’s rights and is an ambassador for UNICEF Ireland. Her role for UNICEF is a Global Parent, which means raising funds and awareness for children orphaned by or living with HIV/AIDs.

She lives with her husband, John, their twin sons, Dylan and Murray, and their three dogs in Enniskerry, Co Wicklow.

To contact Cathy email info@cathykelly.com

 

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