To be completely honest this book wasn’t for me. I didn’t find that it was fast enough paced for me, but I liked the story line itself. I would definitely give this author another read, as the book was very well written.

Great idea for a book and really well executed. A thoroughly good read. Highly recommended. .

St. Martin's Griffin and NetGalley provided me with an electronic copy of If You Knew My Sister. I volutarily chose to review this book and my opinion is freely given.

Dr. Irini Harringford was given away by her parents just before her fourth birthday, for reasons still unknown to her. They had kept her sister Elle, who pops in and out of Irini's life throughout the years. A phone call from Elle prompts Irini to go back to the childhood home that she barely remembers. Will Irini finally learn the reasons for the abandonment all those years before?

There was nothing remarkable or memorable about the story or the characters. If You Knew My Sister is not a story that I will remember next week, as I never forged a connection to the characters or the plot. Family drama, when done well, evokes emotion and feeling, but I was disappointed on these fronts. Overall, If You Knew My Sister is not a book that I would recommend to other readers.

If you knew my sister, you’d run too…

First there was the Robert Kneel incident.
Then what happened to Margot Wolfe.
And now she’s found me again.

Dr. Irini Harringford was given away by her parents just before her fourth birthday. Although she has spent her whole life trying to convince herself she doesn't need them, deep down Irini longs to understand why she was abandoned, while her parents kept her older sister, Elle.

So when Elle gets in touch with news that their mother has died, Irini reluctantly agrees to return to the family home. But she is ill at ease. She and Elle are not close. Irini knows only too well what Elle is capable of. Inexplicably drawn to her enigmatic sister, yet terrified of the sway she holds, Irini tries to protect herself even as she is sucked back into her family's toxic web of secrets...and soon realizes that the past is more complicated than she imagined, and that her very future rests upon discovering the truth about why she was really given away.

I will start by telling you that I am now a card carrying devoted reader of Michelle Adams, I have already stalked her Goodreads, purchased the audiobook of this book and very much look forward to her next! Michelle Adams is one to look out for!

Ooooh, i love a good dysfuntional family thriller! Even better when they surround two sisters!

If You Knew My Sister is chilling, gripping and has all of the right twists and turns! This is a stay up late with the lights ON kind of book. The characters are very well developed and connective. You won't be able to put this down!

If you like a good creepy, what the Janie, Mary and Joseph's name is going on, ending with an OMG moment book, then If You Knew My Sister is the book for you!

Special thanks to Netgalley and St Martins's Press for an opportunity to read and review this book.

I received IF YOU KNEW MY SISTER from NetGalley not long after I first found the site and a couple months into the rush and fever of starting our blog but I'm sad to say I lost it in the shuffle, because when I found it the other day and starting reading it, I couldn't stop! I read this book in a day and a half and I loved every second of it.
I couldn't wait to find out the family secrets and what made them give Irini away. The death of a mother she doesn't remember throws her back into the crazy world that is her family and back into the clutches of the sister she has avoided for 6years this time. Michelle Adams does a great job of making you feel Irini's struggle for what she should do. Her struggle to get away from her toxic and dangerous sister and the desire she can't deny to be close to the only family that wants her, the only family that kept looking for her. However Elle has plans, what will it cost Irini this time?
I loved this story and was surprised by the twists and reveals I didn't really see coming. Irini's damage is palpable and understandable but what she soon comes to know is that she knows even less than she thought she did.
Michelle Adams does a great job weaving a fun and twisted thriller that you just can't put down and I can't wait to see more from this wonderful author.

This had the premise and some components of a good thriller/psychological suspense novel. While overall an interesting read, I found the ending flat, rather than surprising.

A quick read with plenty of twists and turns to keep you turning the pages. Some of the events stretched credulity, but hey, it's a suspense so I'm willing to suspend some disbelief. Can't say too much without giving something away, but this is a good beach read or book to read on a rainy afternoon.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book for review.

My Sister was a truly unique and suspenseful read that not only managed to grab my attention but also made me feel unsettled and weird. And how I love it when books make me feel uneasy!

This was the tale of two different sisters, Irini and Eleanor. Irini was given away by her parents when she was three years old and she has never understood why they didn’t keep her instead of her sister. She went to live with an aunt that didn’t love her and has struggled with relationships ever since. When her mother dies, she returns home and reconnects with Elle while uncovering dark secrets about her childhood.

This was way more “psychological” than “thriller” and I think it’s precisely what made it so special. Forget about the classic domestic thriller, this was way more gothic and eerie, kind of like what I felt when reading The Roanoke Girls. Don’t you love it when books are not what you expected at all? When the plot captivates you even though you don’t even like most the characters?

If You Knew My Sister was an interesting read, mainly because the characters including the narrator, Irini, we're complex and not very likeable. The novel follows Irini as she deals with strained relationships with her family, including g parents who gave her away without explanation when she was only 3 years old. As she tries to come to terms with abandonment issues, she must also deal with the deaths of her parents and her sister who reminded me quite a bit of the wife from Gone Girl. Overall, an enjoyable and fun read. :)

This was just an ok read for me. I kept waiting for that moment when this book grabbed me in, but that never came. I found some of the situations to be a bit stretched and the ending to me was predictable. Thanks to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for the arc of this book in return for my honest review.

I finished this book in two days - it was tense, suspenseful and filled with drama. Plus the setting (a large family home in rural Scotland filled with secrets) is great for these kind of familial sagas. I really enjoyed it, but the ending left me with several questions.

The plot revolves around the complicated relationship between sisters Irini and Elle. Elle grew up with their parents and their parents’ money, while Irini was given away to relatives and only had hand-me-downs growing up. Irini receives a call from Elle asking for her to come to the family’s estate for their mother’s funeral. Irini plans for it to be a final goodbye to her past, but as events unfold, the secrets in the past threaten to take over Irini’s life.

I loved this book and its plot. I was getting anxious as Irini’s trip home became more and more fraught with tension. I was upset for her. I couldn’t stop turning pages until I found out certain things. There’s not much “mystery” here, plenty of foreshadowing left me with a pretty ok idea of some plot points. But there’s some twists and questions about how it’s all going to shake out in the end.

And this book stayed with me long after the ending. I was looking over my shoulder the entire night, lol.

And in the end, those twists and revelations come fast furious - perhaps a little to fast. Some things kind of got glossed over. And some things weren’t fully explained. I don’t want to spoil it, because it’s really worth reading yourself, but I’d love to discuss with someone, so feel free to comment if you’ve read this one.

Overall, I really did love this book - it has a great, exciting plot that will keep you reading. Just be prepared to want chat about it. It’d be perfect for a book club.

Thank you to Netgalley and the author for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!

The well-developed characters and setting, along with the plotline that kept me guessing made this a fascinating read that I could not put down!

This novel had a lot of potential as it began. I really felt Irini's emotions and was drawn to her story. As soon as Elle was introduced, she gave me those perfect creepy vibes I was looking for. I loved the way they interacted with each other, and I loved that the story flitted between the past and present. However, I thought that the reason the siblings were split up was really obvious from the get-go; in fact, that was what I thought the twist would be about and I was quite disappointed that it wasn't. By the halfway point, this novel had lost a lot of its intrigue. Even the characters stopped being interesting. I really only kept reading to see if what I had guessed would come true, and it did. Honestly, I feel like this novel could have been way better if there was more depth to the characters, and a less obvious plot. I also felt like the ending wasn't fully developed, making it lackluster. For those reasons, I'm giving it a 2/5 stars.

If You Knew My Sister is certainly an intriguing read, though it veered more into gothic drama than I had anticipated. The story is still a fascinating read involving families and secrets.

I have some mixed emotions over this book. I loved it in some ways, but it is also one of those books where you want to grab the main character and shake them because they seem to be so naive that it is painful.

Regardless of my conflicted emotions over the main character, this was a strangely enjoyable thrill ride from the very beginning and the twists just kept coming until the very end. I was so curious about what would happen and how it would all work out that I stayed up most of one night reading to find out.

One of the things I liked about this novel so much, was that you were never sure whom you could trust. There were times when I wondered whether Elle was as bad as they made her out to be and other times when I wanted to shake the book and scream RUN! RUN AWAY! I wasn't even positive I could trust the main character. That made this pretty exciting.

Overall, this is a great book with a lot to recommend it and I'm looking forward to reading more of this author's work.

This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher, provided through Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

rini was given away by her parents when she was three years old, she was sent to live with an aunt and uncle, who didn’t treat her in any form of a loving way. Her parents kept Irini’s older sister, Elle, for unknown reasons, though Irini has always been curious why they chose her sister over her. When Irini gets a phone call from her sister that their mother has passed away, it’s time to get the answers she so rightly deserves, even though the mysterious ways of her sister haunt her every day. If You Knew My Sister by Micelle Adams is a haunting story about mind games between family members, and how one person can pull you into their world of lies, yet make you want to run away all at the same time.

Even though she really doesn’t want to, Irini eventually decides to head back home to attend her mother’s funeral. Regardless of the fact that she’s been trying to hide from her sister, and been successful at it for the past six years, there’s just something about Elle that doesn’t sit right with her, Elle is evil, and Irini needs to figure out what the truth is behind their mother’s death, and what other secrets Elle may be hiding.

When the two get together, once again, that feeling of evil comes back. Elle is menacing, manipulative, and down right scary, but Irini wants the truth, why did her parents give her away all those years ago? Once she finds out the answer, will she be satisfied or will it open up a whole new can of worms?

I received this book from St. Martin’s Press and I was more than excited to finally get a chance to read it, it’s been on my to read list since I saw it was coming out in October. When I finally got a chance to sit down and crack it open, I soon lost interest. There wasn’t much in this story that I really felt I cared about. The characters were flat, Irini is constantly talking about her disability, she has a disfigured hip, which seemed to be the only quality that was given in the book, and her boyfriend seemed to be a douchebag from the very first page. Now, the character of Elle is just bizarre to me. The author wanted to make her mentally ill, I believe, but did it in a garish and unflattering way. She wanted to make her scary, but at the same time I feel that mental illness isn’t something to condemn. The story flatlined after a while, this is the debut novel for Michelle, I would try her writing again, but I honestly don’t think this was her best effort. The fact that this book is almost 400 pages and nothing quite interesting happens for more than half the book, really just takes the whole thing down a notch. Plus, some of the questions weren’t answered in a satisfying way. You know how when you watch Pretty Little Liars and they tell you that they are going to finally unveil who A is, and then sort of gloss over it, or create another A, well that’s how I felt this book ended, and I wasn’t for it. I give this 2 out of 5 stars.

Ahh sister relationships never fail to intrigue me, especially messy ones and Irini and Elle have one of the most complex relationships I’ve read about in awhile. Irini was sent to live with relatives when she was just three and she has no idea why, so when her mother dies and Elle summons her back home the idea of finally finding out some answers is too much for her to resist. Elle is toxic, manipulative and calculating but she is Irini’s sister and her hold on her is very strong.

I was dying to learn exactly why Irini was sent away and to find out if Elle was really as crazy as Irini remembered, there was definitely that sense of uneasiness about both women throughout. Elle is clearly unbalanced but there were times that something about Irini seemed off as well. There was a heavy ominous undertone, something sinister and creepy lurking around that I really liked, it messed with my head in the best possible way. Put that together with really strong writing and I’m super impressed it was Adams debut, she has a subtle, nuanced style that worked really well for me.

There was something intoxicating about this book, it almost had me in a hypnotic state while I was reading it, I was that captivated by it. Despite it being a true psychological thriller I found it to be heavy on the psychological aspect and pretty light on the thriller part, but that did not in any way stop my enjoyment of this one. I actually think it further enhanced my experience and forced me to savor this read instead of rushing through it like I sometimes do in a twisty, fast paced thriller.

With a good premise, this novel just missed the mark and turned predictable fairly quickly. The story seemed to drag along for a dark tale that was suppose to be twisty. There was only one smaller twist at the end that I didn't figure out early on. The ending did not answer all my questions and left me unsatisfied.

If You Knew My Sister by Michelle Adams is a highly recommended debut psychological thriller about a dysfunctional family.

Dr. Irini Harringford is in denial, but she has been scarred for life by her abandonment at the age of three. At that time, her parents gave her to her aunt and uncle to raise, but kept her seven-year-old sister, Elle. Irini has spent her life wondering why her parents kept her sister and never visited her. Why did her parents give her to an aunt and uncle who didn't want her or lover her. And why did her parents and her aunt and uncle try to keep her sister Elle from finding her?

Could she have been given away because she is is not perfect, but walks with a distinct limp from a dysplastic hip and a leg that never developed properly. This caused Irini to experience plenty of name calling and bullying as a child. In fact, the first time Elle found and contacted Irini over the years, it was when she protected her from a bully. Elle viciously attacked him. Still, even though Elle has found her over the years, they are not close. In fact any contact with Elle is mark with odd, sometimes violent, behavior on Elle's part and Irini has tried to stay hidden from her.

Now Elle has found Irini after 6 years with no contact. She called in the middle of the night, telling Irini that their mother has died and that she must come to the funeral. Irini, frightened by what Elle might do and still wanting some answers, goes home to Scotland for the funeral. But once there things don't seem to quite add up and she is still not getting any answers as to why she was given away and it seems that there is another plot afoot that Irini hasn't a clue about and might not figure out until it is too late.

If You Knew My Sister is a nail-biting, well-written, dark, creepy, and twisty thriller with a Gothic vibe to it. Unsettling or disturbing scenes abound in the narrative, enough that you would think Irini would never have left for Scotland, or certainly should have run home much sooner than she does, not that that would provide any comfort. Obviously, Elle has issues and an agenda that no one might guess. Actually, Irini herself might have some hidden issues that she needs to confront.

Additionally, I had a a few minor thoughts about the plot. The reason Irini was given away doesn't seem all that shocking or surprising, and I would have thought she would have instinctively known the reason why after she first met Elle. She does realize that she needs to avoid Elle. Irini's boyfriend, Antonio, is unlikable right from the start. Finally, the events at the end seemed a little forced and rushed to me, rather than flowing naturally from the story. Setting all that aside, If You Knew My Sister is a satisfying thriller and I do highly recommend it for those who enjoy psychological thrillers with a Gothic feeling.

Disclosure: My review copy was courtesy of St. Martin's Press.

http://www.shetreadssoftly.com/2017/10/if-you-knew-my-sister.html
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2154208326
https://www.librarything.com/work/20162239/reviews/147133153
https://twitter.com/SheTreadsSoftly/status/919679465789280257

Thanks to Netgalley for my copy.

Three and a half stars.

Irini is estranged from her parents and older sister.She was given away to her aunt and uncle when she was 31/2years old and has no idea why or the circumstances behind it.

She is working in London as an anaesthetist when her sister calls her from Scotland to inform her that her mother is dead. Elle the older sister insists she needs Irini"s support even though they have had no contact for six years.

Irini returns to her birthplace and soon becomes embroiled in family drama and past secrets.

None of the main characters are likeable. Irini believes she is unlovable and tolerates her Italian boyfriend Antonio living with her and even allowing him free use of her bank account.Elle is narcissistic and mentally unstable. She is cruel and manipulative but is she dangerous?

This is a solid debut novel but is a rather strange slow burner. The final 25% is better paced but my quibble is why Irini didn't return to find the housekeeper for some more background and answers.

The other thing that bothered me is if there was a fire in a medical facility why are there still records of patients files there years after?