Van Pragg weaves magic and the vicious desire for power in the dark tale, The Sisters Grimm. Half sisters Goldie, Liyana, Scarlet and Bea once played in the otherworldly Everwhere, a place accessed via their dreams. But when they turned 13, they were cast from the fantasy, forgetting who they were and instead finding themselves dealing with the mundane, jobs, dating, school and sicko bosses.

As their 18th birthday approaches, this past that has been taken from them reveals itself, so that their father, in some twisted power play, can set his daughters against his vast celestial army. In the mundane, they find each other, and uncover their connection, making this an outstanding story of sisterhood and the power of women. Though during some moments that empowerment is muddied as the manipulative men surrounding them rather easily fool them.

With Van Pragg’s first attempt into the epic fantasy realm, The Sister Grimm suffers from an overly speedy switch of narrator and too many points of view, striding from first person to omniscient. It makes it very difficult to understand who is telling the story, and more than that, offers the reader too little time with each character. While doing an amazing job at tackling real world problems with aplomb; such as sexual assault, violence and the caring of family with mental health issues, the story meanders too much, leaving the characters difficult to find a real connection with.

Through this, the prose and poetry of a lush fantasy world is delivered. Though a book cannot stand on worldbuilding alone, it does tease the reader into the pages. Yet far too often the quick POV jumps throw you right back out. There was a predictable enemies to lovers, back to enemies, romance, which is an all too common tendency in many Young Adult fantasies these days. Perhaps a more direct narrative would have fleshed this strange and unique story out into the fiery Phoenix it could be.

I received an ARC in return for an honest review. This was a bit of a hard start for me but once I got into the story I couldn't stop. Following the lyrical story of these four sisters and learning how without one the whole balance of the story would be impossible was great. It kept me guessing and rooting for the characters through the whole story. It teaches us that even estranged relationships keep the world moving and entwined.

I absolutely loved The Sisters Grimm. But -this book will not be everyone's cup of tea. In true Grimm fashion, the story is dark and twisted and will make readers uncomfortable.

I found the writing style to be classic and darkly whimsical. The story is told
In the format of a countdown to the sister's 18th birthday, through alternating point of view of each sister. Their demonic father, Wilhelm Grimm, sadistically forces his daughters and his soldiers together for a fight to the death.

The cover is stunning and the story within kept me fully entertained - although sometimes disgusted. I would expect nothing less from a book with "Grimm" in the title! Well done!

Thank you so much to Netgalley, Harper Collins and Menna van Praag for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinions.

I did love this story. I have read all of Menna van Praag's books and love her as an author. I think this may be geared more toward young adult than I'm use to but it was interesting and kept me hooked the whole time. I do have to say, I found the jumping from character to character, time period to time period a little difficult to follow but once you really get into the book it seems to flow fine. I feel if the set up had been a bit different, for example, chapters for each "daughter" and then a final conclusion chapter it may have been an easier flow. The story was captivating and rich with descriptions and characters, as her writing always is. I will always read any book by Ms. van Praag because she is such a gifted writer.. Thank you for the advanced reader copy for an honest review. It is well worth the read!

The Sisters Grimm is a great story about the power and magic of sisterhood. There are 4 sisters who always dreamed of another world, Everwhere, where anything was possible but as they grew up and older they started to forget each other and the magic within them. Now, as they near their 18 birthday they need to remember who they are and start to search for each other to survive The Choosing, a fight against their fathers soldiers. There are so many emotions within these four women’s stories that its hard not to fall in love with each of them. Each woman, Goldie, Liana, Scarlet, and Bea each have their strengths and their trials but together they are stronger.

During this book we switch between each sisters POV and one of the soldiers they will have to fight against. We get to see and feel as each of these characters learns, or rather, remembers just what they are capable of. We are also brought back to when they were children in Everwhere and just what brought them together or made them different in the first place.

They have 33 days to find each other and rediscover who they are and to find the strength they need to save themselves and each other.

One thing I did find both annoying and annoyingly effective was the way the POVs would switch just as I was starting to really get into and understand the character in that moment but bc of that I would find myself reading just “one more chapter” and then another and another.

I would give this book a solid 4 stars. I thoroughly enjoyed it and recommend it to be read at least once.

THE SISTERS GRIMM, tells the story of four young women who have forgotten their origins. As children, each of them visited Everwhere, a magical place ruled by the demon Wilhelm. But the girls don't remember Everwhere and as they approach their 13th birthday, the must rediscover their gifts or be killed. Heartbreaking, heartwarming and utterly magical, THE SISTERS GRIMM is a delight!

This is a dark and heartbreaking story mixing the struggles of mortal life with a fantasy twist that makes you question the lines of good and evil. The author did a great job of getting you intimately acquainted with all the main characters and the nature of Everwhere. I do wish there was more background on the world and reasoning behind the setup of the Sisters and Soldiers. The lack of information really made it challenging to root for a side as you really did not understand the consequences of their choices.

I struggled with the format of the book, it bounces between multiple timelines and points of view, some of the entries were only a paragraph long before hopping to the next POV so it was very distracting and hard to stay immersed. Normally if I am sucked into a book it only takes me days to read while this book took me several weeks and I really had to push through to finish. I also struggled with the level of sadness in the book, it seemed that each girl only encountered more loss and there was not a lot of positive outlook, even in the end. The synopsis leads you to think this story is much “fluffier” than it truly is.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins Publishers for a copy of The Sisters Grimm in exchange for my honest review.

This book was just okay for me. I was really interested in the concept of this book, but the way this story was told was not for me. It's told in a sort of diary format, switching character perspective in the middle of each chapter, and that often threw me off and made it hard to really connect with any of the characters, or care what they were going through. I didn't really find any of the characters likable in any way either.

The plot was also very confusing, and hard to follow. The addition of Leo's character seemed to make things more confusing rather than clear anything up for me. I also didn't really find him that compelling of an antagonist, he was a bit cookie-cutter in that regard.

With how disconnected I was to everything else in this book, it shouldn't be a surprise that I also found the magic confusing. I suppose had I cared about either the plot or the characters this part of the book would have made more sense to me.

I can't really say one way or another if this was a "bad" book, just that it wasn't for me.

This story begins immediately by radiating magic and a sense of enchantment. It even suggests to the reader that they have magic within themselves and yes, I’m already looking for it!
This tale starts with Goldie, who works in a hotel cleaning rooms but steals from the occupants on the side to make extra money for taking care of herself and her little brother Teddy. While working at the front desk she meets Leo, an attractive son of a well to do guest and this is where things start to get complicated.
Goldie is one of several young women who are a Grimm. This means that they can visit the Everwhere, although it is difficult to remember it exactly. Leo, however, is a Soldier and works against the Sisters Grimm. Although, in this case it is unclear how he will handle the situation with the attractive Goldie.
I love the relationship between the Sisters Grimm. It’s an enchanting intertwining of kindred spirits. They have very individual qualities but also aspects that intrinsically link them. As they reach age, (18 years old), their powers slowly emerge but it is yet to be determined if they are good or evil. Just as the Everwhere has both touches of good and evil, the Sisters Grimm can lean either way as well.
I highly recommend this beautiful and magical book. It’s incredibly unique and will pull you in with its gorgeous enchanting details.
Thanks for reading my review and happy reading!!!

The Sisters Grimm has such an interesting premise and the author pulled it off perfectly, especially the world building and cast of characters. I touched on this before but this novel submerges the reader in a landscape so imaginative and detailed that the information of the world building/plot never feels forced, and is never difficult to understand or picture in one's mind.

I would highly recommend this book!

I really wanted to love this book, but unfortunately, I never connected to the characters. To me, it seemed like abusive/violent situations were used to drive the plot along, but the characterization remained completely transactional and surface-level. I pains me to write a negative review of a galley book, but I had to force myself to read it. This one just wasn't for me.

I didn’t care for this book. It is well written but just not too my taste. The change between characters and then the everwhere was awkward and I couldn’t quite figure out what was going on.

I love fairy tales and their retellings, so I expected this to be a book I'd give all 5 stars to. Unfortunately it was a bit of a let down because of the way it was told. The shifting POVs and timelines made it a particularly unenjoyable read, it felt very disjointed and jarring. I think if they had not came so quickly it would of been better but as they were it made it very difficult to settle into the story.

I would definitely read more by this author though because there were some very good parts to this book and it could of been great if told with a bit more finesse.

I was not a fan of this one. All of the characters were flat, the world was boring and it seemed like the author threw in abuse as a way to try to make you feel something instead of actually giving anyone a personality.

"Once upon a time, a demon who desired earthly domination fathered an army of dark daughters to help him corrupt humanity …"

After finishing The Sisters Grimm, I took some time to gather my thoughts and process everything that this book stands for. This is definitely one of those books that will stay with me for a while.

“She’s like a firework never lit, a flower that never blooms, a baby that’s never born.”

There is something deeply beautiful about this story by Menna Van Praag; a story of four girls who are from various walks of life, each struggling in different ways yet they are more alike than they could ever know. Each girl is gifted with elemental magic and although they’ve known each other for years and are ‘sisters’, they have no memories of their time together until they come together again in the dream-like world of Everwhere.

The Sisters Grimm is gorgeously written and so beautifully descriptive; it is a slow book to start and then a hard book to put down! It’s worth the set-up time to get to know the girls, their history and what they’re going through, who they love and what their fighting for. The story-line is magical and tight with characters that I quickly became invested in.
Although The Sisters Grimm is classified as fantasy, it has real world dilemmas and issues; I really liked the strong message of hope, sisterhood, and unity.

A big thank you to NetGalley, Harper Collins Publishers – Harper Voyager, and Menna Van Praag for providing me with The Sisters Grimm in exchange for my honest review.

I wanted to like this book. The idea is clever, but I just can't get past the rapid changes in perspective and time shifts. It took me almost half the book to keep the characters straight in my head. It's too much work for leisure reading.

I tried, I really did! I am not one to abandon a book lightly, especially one with a plot summary that drew me in like this one did (I am a sucker for fairy tale/myth reimaginings that focus on female characters) but it took me weeks to get even a few chapters in and I just can’t make it any further.

The characters seem flat, and it’s hardly surprising given how quickly and without warning we switch between their POVs. I just couldn’t keep track of them or the threads of the plot and, more tellingly, I was not compelled to pick the book up between reading sessions. I had to DNF this one.

I was familiar with Grimm's Tales as a child and this was so different but a page turner, keep you on your toes read.
The fours sisters, Goldie, Bea, Liyana, and Scarlett don't know who they are or the powers that they have. At the the age of 13 they go to Earth and have no memories of their first years. They have approximately one month to remember all so they can save their lives on their 18 birthday.
The story constantly changes back and forth and each is in a crisis or disturbing situation.
The author did a fantastic job with this novel. You won't regret picking this up to read.

Thank you to Publisher and NetGalley for the eARC

In the world of this novel, certain women are Grimm Sisters, capable of powerful magic and feats. They don't always known who they are until provoked or threatened. A group of men hunt and kill these women. The author provides a set of Grimm sisters from various backgrounds and follows them through their trials in regular life and their awakenings into their powers. I found the writing a bit plodding and pedestrian--setting up a woman named Scarlet--who the author tells us used to be called Red--being hunted by a Mr Wolfe is rather tired, don't you think? There's lots of diversity on view, but it feels like lip-service--pen-service, if you will--and none of the characters are anything but flat paper cutouts who tick off the boxes on some list. There's so much better out there--you can give this one a miss.

This was really interesting. Each of the characters is loosely based on a girl from the Grimm fairy tales. On their eighteenth birthday, 4 girls need to choose between good and evil. If they choose evil, they will live and be pawns of their father. If they choose good, they must fight their father and likely die in the process. There are other characters to help them along the way, but ultimately they need to help themselves and each other. I like fairy tale retellings, but this was definitely next level. I definitely recommend it.

I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.