Kelly Thirsk is pushing Noah in his pram as she takes her twin daughters, Sophie and Isabella to their first day at school. Sophie is shy and does not want to go, but Isabella is excited about it. While Kelly settles the girls in the classroom, she leaves Noah in his pram just outside the door. When she leaves, there’s no Noah. Panicking, she sees that someone has moved him in the pram further down the hall. In his blankets, she finds a locket similar to the one she wears. It has the word “sister” scratched it. Her foster sister, Freya, was wearing it on the day she died. Kelly has not seen the locket in 15 years. Kelly is upset but cannot share this with her husband, Mitch, as he never knew about Freya. Mitch has been concerned about Kelly because she is exhausted with caring for the children and nursing Noah. In addition, Kelly nervous and has OCD which she tries to hide.

When Kelly was small, her mother would take in foster children who would stay for a certain period of time. The day that Freya arrived, Kelly was happy that she was her own age and wanted them to be sisters. But Freya was more “street smart” than Kelly. In addition, Kelly’s mother tended to fawn over Freya and ignore Kelly which hurt her deeply.

As Kelly becomes more certain that Freya is after her, she becomes even more anxious and her OCD symptoms increase. Her husband, Mitch, is trying hard to help and comfort her, but she finds fault with him.

I found Kelly difficult to understand. One thing she said stands out for me and sums things up pretty well: “I want to hold my anger to me.”

There appears to be a huge buildup to a huge let down in this story. I’m sorry to say that I found this book to be dark and depressing.

Copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

(Thank you to NetGalley for the free e-arc, all opinions are my own)

Like no story I've read before! Clarke creates a suspenseful and eerie atmosphere with her descriptive prose, and really connects the past to present events to highlight Kelly's trauma and relationship with her mother and foster sister. She also depicts OCD and anxiety disorders in a realistic way without sensationalizing it. Based in character development rather than a typical thriller, this is an underrated powerful novel. Some parts seemed to drag on a bit, but this story will stay with me for a long time.

We Were Sisters follows a woman named Kelly who is dealing with her past. Secrets from her younger years have stayed with her into adulthood. She feels that her past coming back into her life. She starts to panic and have anxiety that she never wanted to deal with again.

We get to see Kelly's perspective in the present and in the past. It added a great dynamic to the story that allows readers to get a sense of what she is feeling and the reasoning behind it. I loved this thriller because it kept me guessing and wondering what was going to happen next. I had the chills and goosebumps many times while reading. The ending was truly amazing and I never saw it coming . What a awesome read this was.

This was an OK book but it didn't keep my gripped like I had hoped. Not one of the best books I have read recently but just an OK book

We Were Sisters was a Class A read for me, written by new-to-me author, Wendy Clarke. This book created a whirlwind of emotions as I connected with many of the characters, experiencing all of their highs and lows.

This book was about a sisters' bond that couldn’t be broken in spite all the lies and deception that had occurred in the past. They were two souls who remained closely bonded through tragedy and heartache. Wendy Clarke's characterisation was perfect and there were people you wanted to hate but also felt empathy for in the end. I just never knew who could really be trusted or whose motives were pure. This book had so many twists that I never knew what was coming next and I couldn’t wait to get to the next chapter to find out. This book dealt with some difficult issues such as fostering, mental health and childhood trauma and it really highlighted the complexity of human relationships.

We Were Sisters was a jaw-dropping thriller that kept me on my toes, gave me chills and had a mind-blowing back-story, taking it to the next level. Well worth five stars.

I received a complimentary digital copy of this novel, at my own request, from Bookouture via NetGalley. This review is my own unbiased opinion.

3.5 stars

Despite not having read Wendy Clarke before, I was excited to bury myself into WE WERE SISTERS as it sounded positively enthralling! And it was...until the end.

We begin with Kelly walking her twin daughters to school for their first day, an anxious time for every parent, but for Kelly it is even moreso. Suffering from severe OCD and anxiety, Kelly finds herself counting cars, steps and everything in between to ensure her girls have the perfect first day as they walk with baby Noah in his pram. Isabella, a gregarious and outgoing girl, is jumping with excitement and exuberance at the new adventure whereas twin Sophie, quiet and withdrawn, is hanging tightly onto her mum in tears and is terrified the prospect.

Upon arriving at the school, there is the usual confusion and hubbub with finding the right class and introductions with the teacher and trying to prise Sophie from her, that when she walks back out of classroom Kelly finds that Noah's pram is not where she left it. Flying into sudden panic, Kelly searches frantically with teacher Mrs Allen's help, finding baby Noah happily gurgling in his pram at the door to the next classroom. Maybe Kelly went to the wrong classroom is the given explanation but Kelly is not so sure. Even more so when she reaches in to comfort her baby, she finds a locket beneath him. It's not her locket but an identical one...belonging to her sister Freya, who was wearing this very locket the day she died when she was a teenager.

Despite having a wonderful relationship with her husband Mitch, Kelly feels she cannot share her fears or concerns with him for fear that he may think she was delusional. Instead she tries to focus on Noah and enjoying time with him while helping the girls adjust to school.

But then things start to become rather sinister. Noah's pram and the locket was only the beginning of more terrifying things to come for Kelly that she can't explain. Symbols drawn in the condensation on the window; waking to find the back door wide open; things being moved or appearing from nowhere; newspapers not ordered are delivered with her horoscope or Freya's circled. It all begins to get too much as she starts losing time whilst Noah lays screaming and she stares into nothingness. And then there are the nightmares. Of the Gemini tree in the woods near where Kelly grew up; of finding Freya hanging from that tree.

When she tries telling Mitch, as predicted, he thinks she is imagining things. She hasn't been herself lately and the pressure with three month old Noah is making her delusional. That's what he thinks anyway. But Kelly knows different. And no amount of counting is helping to ease her anxiety.

Parallel to the present day, we have Kelly's story from her childhood to unravel, which is not a happy tale at all. As an only child, her mother takes in foster children in an effort to find "the perfect child" that will make her husband happy. A dysfunctional concept, to say the least.

On her 8th birthday, Kelly wishes for a sister which comes true just moments after blowing out her candles with the arrival of the strange and elusive Freya. Kelly's mother busily fusses over the new arrival whilst simultaneously dismissing her daughter and ordering her around. Her parents are fostering the 10 year old but Kelly still refers to Freya as her sister for which her mother continually admonishes her. But ever since her arrival, Freya has remained silent refusing to utter a word. But Kelly doesn't let that dissuade her. She is just happy to have a sister at last and hopes that this one stays. However, Kelly's childhood is not a happy one and is somewhat dysfunctional...so it was no surprise that things were inevitably going to go wrong.

Then when tragedy strikes, Kelly's life falls apart. For her, it is so unspeakable that she moved away and now keeps that chapter of her life firmly closed. Not even Mitch knows the story...but we are privy to her memories as we watch both stories unfold.

Told in the past and present from Kelly's perspective, we discover that both Kelly and Freya hold a minefield of secrets between them. The mystery surrounding their past is intriguing and as the story unfolds their secrets gradually come to light, sending shockwaves throughout the tale.

I found myself becoming impatient with Kelly almost from the start. Actually, from the second page. Her constant counting drove me mad. I don't know how someone with OCD really copes with their condition as to an outsider it really is frustrating. And I guess I found Kelly frustrating throughout much of the story and yet I also empathised with her. She was an unreliable narrator which added to the mystery surrounding her and Freya, as well as her parents. It left you wondering what really happened and was Kelly really seeing it all for what it was? Or was she just imagining things? I switched between liking and disliking her throughout, she was that frustrating. But I can tell you, from the beginning, I did not like or trust Freya. AT ALL. Everyone else just sort of blended into the story, as well as being mostly unlikable. In fact, I'm not sure I like anyone particularly in this story.

A tense and complex plot that showed promise, WE WERE SISTERS is thoroughly engaging throughout but I was disappointed to find it fell a little flat by the end. I felt there had been so much tension, so much build-up, so many questions that by the time I reached the end it was all a little anti-climatic. I was like, really? That's it? The ending really didn't do the rest of the story justice, in my opinion, because the rest of it was so sinister and atmospheric it was really an enjoyable read. I guess I felt a tad cheated at the end. As someone else described it, the ending was kind of more "Oh" rather than "OHHHHHHHH!!!"

I did guess some of the reveals and with others I was way off but as always it never ruins the story for me. I just enjoy the ride. But in this case, as shocking or as heartbreaking as some of the reveals were, the end result - in my opinion - just didn't live up to the rest of the story. But don't let that deter you. WE WERE SISTERS is an intriguing and engaging story which I did enjoy for the most part.

I would like to thank #WendyClarke, #NetGalley and #Bookouture for an ARC of #WeWereSisters in exchange for an honest review.

I ALWAYS love a suspense-filled book! This one kept me guessing. It was a sad story, in part, because of the abuse and neglect that was involved in the characters’ past, but it definitely kept me guessing until the end!

Highly recommended if you like this genre!

Thank you for my review copy via Net Galley!

I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. Thank you NetGalley.


We Were Sisters was such.. an easy, quick, easy to follow book. It was a page-turner. It was unique and hard to put down. the characters were well-developed. the storyline was quckpaced.

We were sisters

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this advanced copy.

If I could give this book three.seven five stars I would. I was hooked from the beginning and I really thought I had the twist figured out twice before finding out I was so wrong. Not everything is as it seems, and not everyone’s story is what you think it is. I wish the ending was played out a little bit more. I was picturing this novel as a movie or tv series and the ending was a little too abrupt for me.

All Kelly wanted when she was younger was a sister and a mum & dad who loved her.
There was quite a few foster children but none stayed very long until Freya came and Kelly thought she had got the sister she had always wanted . But it was not to be.
Years later Kelly is married with twin daughters & a son . Strange things keep happening is Kelly imagining it or is someone trying to tell her something.
This story is told by Kelly in the past and the present.
Thanks Netgalley

We Were Sisters is a thriller full of betrayal, self-doubt, and mystery. Author, Wendy Clarke, takes us on a journey of loneliness that ends in death, or does it?

I was immediately drawn to this novel because the cover is amazing! It looks so spooky yet beautiful at the same time. The description gave me goosebumps. I couldn’t wait to dive in and get to know everyone and see how this thriller would surprise me.

Unfortunately, I had a challenging time with this book. I found no redeeming qualities in any of the characters, even the kids were unlikeable. None of the characters had any redeeming qualities. There was so much angst and friction that it was difficult to keep reading.

I figured out the twist early in the book and the ending just fell flat, however, I could not reconcile it with the rest of the novel at all. I will say that the suspense and thrill did ramp up toward the end, but the ending did not fit so I felt let down.

As such, I award We Were Sisters 3 out of 5 stars. If you are a hardcore fan of thrillers you may not enjoy this one but as someone who is coming into the genre for a good beginner read, this novel is a good one.

A good solid psychological thriller. Lots of twists and turns as the book goes on, chapters left on cliffhangers etc. The book moves between the past and present which allows the reader to understand Kelly's fears and anxieties, I think it was possibly a bit let down by the ending only because the book had built it up to be so much more. But a good solid read that comes reccommended.

A good unique story with dark undertones. This covers mental health, disfunctional families and the stress of a mum with young children. Some great twists and surprises along the way.

I loved this thriller! It kept me in suspense through most if not all of the book! I couldn’t stop reading! I kept trying to guess the twists but was surprised by them! This read had me really stressed out waiting for it all to be unraveled. Definitely a page turner! And I’ll be checking out the other novel by this other for sure! I loved that the author showed a real side of motherhood and I felt a kinship with the protagonist as a mother myself.

We Were Sisters by Wendy Clarke was a slow read for me and it didn't grip me like "What She Saw" sadly however, I did enjoy this book.

Kelly has a perfect life, Twin girls and a new born boy called Noah.She's happily married.

Its Kelly's twin daughters first day at school. She ushers them into their classroom, whilst leaving the pushchair with her newborn in out side the classroom. When, she turns to where she has left the pushchair, the pushchair is gone! her heart racing and fear come over Kelly.
Kelly searches for Noah, and finds him and the push chair parked in front of a different classroom! Kelly reaches to check and comfort Noah and she finds something tucked beside his blanket. A small locket that belonged to her sister Freda. A locket she has not seen for a very long time. Since the day Freda died.

Who put the Locket that belonged to her Sister Freda in Noah's pushchair?

As a few day pass........Kelly’s perfectly-ordered life begins to unravel Secrets come out...............

Big Thank you to Bookouture and Netgalley for my advanced copy of this book to read.
All opinions are my own and are in no way biased.

Book Review
I loved the blurb on this book when I first read it. I was completely intrigued by it.
This book will grip you from the onset.
It's a fast paced, engrossing and emotional read...
You know reading it, I was almost on tenderhooks wondering what her character Kelly was up to and if she was going to do something to her sister .
Then again her sister Freya was an equally complex character, a troubled young girl...
I found it quite a strange relationship between the foster sisters.
Oh but it was such a dark read I thought.
I could almost feel the hairs standing on the back of my neck as I turned the pages wondering.
I could feel something was about to happen.
I did love the dual timeline of present day Kelly and Kelly growing up.
It gave me such a great insight into her life..
I was particularly interested in the fostering aspect of the storyline.
The subtle way the mother treated Kelly differently to Freya, everything given to Freya was that little bit better wasn't it...
I couldn't help wondering why she did that...
But why does Kelly want to forget her past. Why has she never spoken to her husband even about what her life was like growing up 🤔🤔
So many questions...
Really enjoyed this one...
Well worth taking the time to check it out..

Admittedly, this is a little bit of a lower rating than I was hoping for. We Were Sisters was well written and was truly interesting. There was quite a bit of suspenseful bits that left you trying to work out what was going to happen. However, the story fell a little too flat for me. There were a lot of great twists and turns, plus surprises and fast-paced, nerve-wracking parts. There was just a bit that could done with a little more "whoa".

Kelly as a main character was unique in how she was raised and how she used counting as a coping mechanism. I wish that it had dug a little bit deeper into why she felt the need to be so "pleasing" all of the time. It is like she never wanted to rock the boat -- it was a little too forced feeling for me. I love the idea that she had twins and that the girls were polar opposites in personality. Freya, she was interesting. I wish that she had played a bigger role.

I think what let me down the most was towards the end. There was another plot twist that just did not hit the mark. It felt thrown in at the end and just meh. I would have loved to have seen that played up and really honed in on. Not to mention, I wish it had been a little more diabolical or sinister.

In the end, I really did enjoy this read. It was quick and did keep my attention! I would have loved to see a little more character development in the supporting characters and a little more "oomph" on the plot twists.

It's the first day of school, and Kelly is walking her twins to class. She leaves baby Noah in his stroller by the door for just a moment so she can say goodbye to the girls. When she leaves the classroom the stroller is nowhere to be found. After a few minutes of panic, he's quickly found at the door of a nearby classroom. Kelly then discovers a locket hidden in the stroller. A locket she hasn't seen in years. It belonged to her sister Freya, who was wearing it when she died.

So begins the promising story of Kelly, whose life begins to fall apart from that moment on. I felt like it was slow and didn't really go anywhere. The story was more focused on Kelly's unraveling mental health than the actual end point, which fizzled out.
But I will say this. Her husband is an idiot and without spoiling too much, when someone cuts someone out of their life, you don't get to decide to include them anyway.

*I was given a copy of this book by Netgalley in exchange for my review. 3/5

I read and enjoyed Wendy's debut novel 'What She Saw' and I couldn't wait to read her follow up novel. The wait is over because Wendy's second book called 'We Were Sisters' was released on 8th August 2019. Overall I did enjoy it but more about that in a bit.
I wasn't quite sure to make of Kelly at first and even now after having finished reading the book, I can't say that I took to her at all. I think that Kelly's personality and behaviour can best be split into two groups - Kelly as a child and Kelly as an adult with a firm line down the middle. I hope that makes sense. Child Kelly lives with her two parents but they don't have the happiest of family lives, as there is definitely some tension between the parents. Kelly's mother fosters children and Kelly has seen a long line of foster children come in and out of her life. I got the impression that Child Kelly was a bit jealous of the attention that the foster children got and she feels that to a degree she is ignored and that her needs are not a priority for her mother. Her father seems rather distant. Another foster child called Freya comes to stay with the family. Something happens which changes Kelly from being a child and becoming an adult. Adult Kelly is paranoid, extremely security conscious, extremely hands on with the children, she suffers from mental health problems and she has obsessive compulsive disorder, although she has managed to hide that from her husband, who can't seem to do anything right in her eyes. Adult Kelly experiences some unsettling moments and she is left wondering if they actually happened or is her mind or somebody else playing tricks on her.
It took me a while to get into this book but that has more to do with the fact that I was tired when I started to read the book and can't be taken as a criticism of the author. Once I got into the story, I had to keep reading to find out just what had happened in the past to make Kelly the person she is today and whether or not she is losing her mind or is somebody playing tricks on her. I would say that after I reached the half way point of the story, I seemed to race through the last half of the book. I became increasingly desperate to find out how the story ended and what the truth of the matter really was and as my desperation increased, so did the speed with which the pages were turning.
'We Were Sisters' is well written. The author certainly knows how to grab your attention from the start and keep it throughout the story. The story starts off slowly but much like a snowball rolling down a hill, the story gathers momentum and the level of tension greatly increases as a result. That's how I felt at any rate. Wendy has created a cast of characters who are scarily life like.
In short and overall I did enjoyed reading 'We Were Sisters' and I would recommend it to readers who enjoy psychological fiction books. I will definitely be reading Wendy's future work. The score on the Ginger Book Geek is a well deserved 4* out of 5*.

I've read a few books by Wendy Clarke and We Were Sisters lived up to my expectations! It's clever and fast paced and offers plenty of unexpected twists and turns. I sometimes feel I read too many books in this genre, but this one was a standout!