Happy Thursday bibliophiles!

Excited to share with you my review for this chilling thriller! Another fabulous debut!❄️

The Winter Sister
By: Megan Collins
Narrated by: Rebekkah Ross
Length: 10 hrs and 30 mins
Unabridged Audiobook
Release date: 02-05-19
Language: English
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

My Thoughts

A beautifully told story packed with secrets, grief, and guilt!

Megan Collins has crafted an entertaining tale with an effortless flow. Another exquisite debut, this year seems to be oozing with amazing debuts!

Sylvie has come back home after being gone for many years to take care of her estranged mother who is suffering from cancer. Over a decade ago Sylvie’s older sister Persephone went missing only to be found a few days later dead in a pile of snow. The killer is never found, Sylvie is buried in grief, and her mother Annie retreats into a world of darkness. Now Sylvie is back home forced to face her past, her guilt, her secrets, and the man she is convinced killed her sister. What happened all those years ago? Will the truth set Sylvie free? Will it bring her mother out of the darkness? So many secrets so long buried what will happen when they all come to light? Well you will need to read this book to find all this out!

You may have read this trope before, however I thought it was extremely well executed in this story. Sylvie is an incredibly likable and engaging character someone you could see yourself as friends with. The twists and reveals were cleverly done with the perfect amount of clues sprinkled throughout the story. The ending was unquestionably fraught with tension. I was absolutely glued to those pages, needing to know what the story behind everything was, and I truly was almost more interested in Sylvie’ss mom’s backstory then the murder. There was also a nice dose of romance in this book a little unexpected and a little unsettling. Cannot wait to see what Megan Collins has in store for us next, absolutely recommend!

🎧🎧🎧 Rebecca Ross narrates this book bringing the perfect voice to Sylvie. Rebecca Ross is such an amazing narrator she really breathes life into the books she narrates. If you have not listen to a book narrated by her this is a good place to start! Just saying!

🎵🎵🎵Song Running Through My Head

Hello?
Is there anybody in there?
Just nod if you can hear me
Is there anyone at home?
Come on, now
I hear you’re feeling down
Well I can ease your pain
Get you on your feet again
Relax
I’ll need some information first
Just the basic facts
Can you show me where it hurts?
There is no pain you are receding
A distant ship’s smoke on the horizon
You are the only coming through in waves
Your lips move but I can’t hear what you’re saying
When I was a child I had a fever
My hands felt just like two balloons
Now I’ve got that feeling once again
I can’t explain you would not understand
This is not how I am
I have become comfortably numb
I have become comfortably numb
Okay
Just a little pinprick
There’ll be no more
But you may feel a little sick
Can you stand up?
I do…

*** many thanks to Atria and Simon and Schuster Audio for my copy of this book ***

About the Book

Publisher’s Summary

In this spellbinding and suspenseful debut, a young woman haunted by the past returns home to care for her ailing mother and begins to dig deeper into her sister’s unsolved murder.
Sixteen years ago, Sylvie’s sister, Persephone, never came home. Out too late with the boyfriend she was forbidden to see, Persephone was missing for three days before her body was found – and years later, her murder remains unsolved.
In the present day, Sylvie returns home to care for her estranged mother, Annie, as she undergoes treatment for cancer. Prone to unexplained “Dark Days” even before Persephone’s death, Annie’s once-close bond with Sylvie dissolved in the weeks after their loss, making for an uncomfortable reunion all these years later. Worse, Persephone’s former boyfriend, Ben, is now a nurse at the cancer center where Annie is being treated. Sylvie’s always believed Ben was responsible for the murder – but she carries her own guilt about that night, guilt that traps her in the past while the world goes on around her.
As she navigates the complicated relationship with her mother, Sylvie begins to uncover the secrets that fill their house – and what really happened the night Persephone died. As it turns out, the truth will set you free, once you can bear to look at it.
The Winter Sister is a mesmerizing portrayal of the complex bond between sisters, between mothers and daughters alike, and forces us to ask ourselves – how well do we know the people we love most?

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Have a Beautiful day!🌹

Berit☀️✨

The sun is finally shining here in the gloomy UK, I’m not sure how long it is going to last, but my windows are all open, and I can hang my washing on the line Wahoo!

I get so excited about the most ridiculous things 😂

I am super happy to bring you my review of this fab little thriller.

Why did I pick it up? – I received a paper copy of this last year, my first unsolicited paperback, I was so excited lol, but because I am an audio girl I patiently waited for this one to be released, and then grabbed it as soon as I could.

My Thoughts

This one is a bit of a slow burner, it starts off at a steady pace, but once it gets it’s heels in, it’s a race to the finish line, and I think a photo finish is just what it deserves!

1997 – Laurel and Primrose (Rosie for short) are sisters, Laurel is 10 and Rosie is 6, they are out playing in the park when they entice a small toddler to play down the canal path with them.

The body of that toddler is later discovered brutally murdered and the 2 girls dubbed The Flower Girls in court are arrested, unfortunately Rosie is too young to be prosecuted, so Laurel stands trial for murder.

Rosie and her parents are given new identities because of the media backlash and they move far away.

Laurel serves her time, and 19 years later is up for parole, but the family of the murdered toddler have strong objections.

Meanwhile, Hazel and her boyfriend are at a fancy hotel celebrating her 25th Birthday when a little 5 year old girl goes missing.

The similarities between Hazel and the lesser known Rosie are noticed.

Could she be the missing Flower Girl?

Could she be responsible for the missing girl?

🎧🎧 – Narrated by Emilia Fox who is a regular on TV in the UK in things like Silent Witness.

Emilia did an outstanding job narrating this one, I was very impressed with her narration skills, and will certainly not hesitate in buying another book that he has narrated again.

If you are familiar with the news in the UK, then you may remember the murder of James Bulger, this was the first thing that popped into my head while reading this, I remember it being on every TV channel, and in every newspaper when I went into the shops, so I think that the media portrayal in this book was very well done.

**Thank you to Bloomsbury Raven and the author for sending me a copy of the book