This one was interesting in its themes, but ultimately it didn’t work for me personally, due to some of the things the characters do.

First, I couldn’t find it in me to care much for the wealthy family who just throws money at very real mental health issues. And then the protagonist does something that infuriated me just as she was finding happiness in her life, and for such a stupid reason.

I really liked reading about the dynamic between Olivia and pretty much any other character, especially with our protagonist, her younger sister, Amy. There relationship is so tumultuous, due to Ollie’s rollercoaster mental health.

There just wasn’t enough of what was interested in to compete with the ways in which this book had me in an almost perpetual eye roll…

This deep, moving story drew me in and didn’t let me go. The blurb ends with the quote “no one will love you or hurt you more than a sister”, and that really sums up so much about the book so beautifully. Delving into the complexities of sisterhood, family and found family, mental health and more, the author paints such a touching story with relatable characters that my heart just ached for from start to finish.

This riveting debut follows two sisters who couldn’t be more different from the time they were young, which hooked me immediately as something I could absolutely personally relate to. I love my little sister, but everyone who knows us both would agree that we’re very different people with very different personalities. The sisters in this one, Amy and Olivia (aka Ollie), take this concept of differences between sisters to the extreme in such a bittersweet way. Amy is the studious, rule-following sister who is trying to navigate the world with her own ups and downs of “coming into adulthood”, while her sister Ollie has been the loud, boisterous, rule-breaker from the time she was young with no brakes on her wild life. Through the pages, we follow the family over the course of about twenty years, watching the sisters grow up and work through all of the complexities of family/found family, psych disorders, adultery, and so much more.

The prose was absolutely addicting, and I loved how the writing style just kept me flipping the pages. The author created such well-developed characters that it felt like I knew them - while I didn’t always agree with their choices and just wanted to shake both of those sisters at times, they were characters that I couldn’t help but root for. As I watched Amy and Ollie grow through the years, it was honestly a little eye opening and taught me valuable lessons of being more aware and open-minded about all of the hardships others may be going through. There are certainly more emotions and vibes than plot, but I was there for it all. My only criticism is that it was hard to stay in this messy, dramatic world for such a long time, but the story probably couldn’t be told any other way.

All in all, I really enjoyed this story of perfectly imperfect characters and how purely it illustrated such difficult topics with grace. I’m impressed with this debut, and I’ll definitely be on the lookout for more from this author! Thank you so much to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

“Shred Sisters” by Betsy Lerner is a poignant novel about two sisters, Amy and Olivia, who could not be more different. The book draws the reader in to the characters, especially Amy, and the Shred family struggles with Ollie and her mental illness. This was heartbreaking to read at times, but it is also a painfully honest portrayal of how mental illness and addiction can both strain families but also bring out incredible acts of love. I appreciated Lerner showing how having a mentally ill sister continued to affect Amy and her relationships. Definitely recommended. Thanks to Grove Atlantic and NetGalley for the eARC.

This book wasn't exactly my taste, but I think people other than me would like it. I think this book would especially appeal to older women with sisters. The story is long and winding, and there isn't much self-reflection from any of the characters. Like I said, I think this book isn't for my demographic but other people might like it better!

The two Shred sisters could not be any more different. Growing up, Oliva is outgoing, popular, and athletic, while Amy is quiet, studious, and mostly keeps to herself. As Ollie's behavior becomes increasingly erratic, Amy and her parents try to ignore it or make excuses for it -- until they are forced to confront Amy's mental illness and her need for help beyond what they can provide.

As Amy grows up, and her family grows apart, she makes a life for herself, first in university and then in publishing. But no matter where her life goes, she can't help but feel the ways it continues to be shaped by Ollie and their connection -- no matter how fleeting that linkage seems at any given moment.

This is a touching and insightful novel. It effectively explores interesting themes around sisterhood, parent-child relationships, love, and connection.

Highly recommended.

I love family novels and Shred Sisters is a tender and often funny look at a family who is broken apart when faced with mental illness. The protagonist, Amy, is the youngest of two sisters and through her eyes we see what it might be like to have a sibling who cannot break free from her manic episodes and depression. Amy has her own struggles and in this coming of age/young adult journey, figures out her own place within the family and also in the larger world. The writing is descriptive and strong, and the characters interact in emotional and difficult situations. This was a great story and I hope the author writes more novels and explores the lives of middle aged women.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance review copy of this novel.

As a younger sister, I loved this book. My sister is nothing like Ollie, but just the feeling that the other sibling has such an effect on how you live your life and view the world was so interesting. I felt for Amy throughout the story.

I was really drawn to this book because of the description and the cover. I am interested in reading books about sisterhood and the themes that come with it. However, I just couldn't get into this book. The writing was very minimalistic and concise, and the writer let the reader put things together, which I really appreciated. It didn't feel heavy handed or overly done. However, I skimmed most of it because I wasn't very interested in the story/characters and the characters felt underdeveloped.

Thank you NetGalley and Grove Atlantic for this ARC! Unfortunately, it just wasn't for me.

Despite this book being titled Shred Sisters it is narrated and dominated by younger sister, Amy. Thankfully so because Olivia (Ollie) would make for an unreliable narrator to say the least.

We begin the book quite early in the girls' lives and, despite the obvious love between them, Amy always seems to come out second best. It is the perennial complaint of all siblings perhaps that mum and dad have a favourite and Amy finds the fact that the favourite is Ollie even harder to take as Ollie's behaviour becomes more and more self-destructive when her bipolar disorder begins to take hold.

Throughout the book we see Amy striving for perfection as Ollie spirals, calms then spirals again, each time managing to destroy a little more of her family's faith in her ability to recover.

I really liked this book. It is impossible to find fault with Ollie because of her mental health but it is also very easy to sympathise with Amy who constantly feels ignored. Both girls are interesting characters but I really liked Amy and her tenacity in her beliefs and willingness to succeed at everything she does.

This really is simply a long, hard look at family and the relationship between the sisters, but it is so well written that it feels like so much more. There are emotive issues dealt with, such as bipolar, divorce, drug abuse and adultery.

I'd definitely recommend this book.

Thankyou to Netgalley and Grove Atlantic for the advance review copy.

I would like to thank Grove Press and NetGalley for access to the eARC of this title by Betsy Lerner.

While reading this book I realized Betsy Lerner is a master at transporting the reader to the moment being depicted without being weighed down in dense fluff. I really enjoyed this memoir like writing style despite being jumped around from one moment to the next, this was done without being jarring. The depiction of the characters felt extremely real, to the point where it could border on cringe but mainly because pieces of it were so relatable.

I found myself rooting for the realistic characters and being disappointed in them when they made choices I didn't support- The only reason I did not rate this book higher is due to the fact that I am not entirely sure what the plot was. It was more of being plopped into someone's diary at various points of their life instead of having story with a point. Maybe that is the point? The mundane and the experience of having family that can let you down is the story-

I look forward to other works by Betsy Lerner.

Shred Sisters lays bare difficult family dynamics and how mental health can unsettle these bonds. The characters felt real and raw. I enjoyed the development of the characters and their relationships over the course of the book. This is definitely a slow paced read that’s moving and deep. I would have loved to have gone into even more depth but I liked some of the unanswered questions, this made it more true to life and we could see from Amy’s point of view and her experience. Overall an interesting book that I think delivers on the important themes. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC. This is a voluntary review of my own thoughts.

I really, really enjoyed this. I thought this novel did such a good job of presenting the ripple effects of mental illness within a family without implying any sort of judgement on either the person experiencing illness or the family members that react and cope with it in a wide variety of ways.

I thought the style of this book shows particular strength for the author. The narration itself is pretty simple and to the point, there is very little embellishment or over the top descriptive language. Even so, I thought the development of every single character in this book was incredibly strong. I felt like I had a strong sense for the type of person every member of the immediate Shred family was, as well as the closely connected secondary characters. Also despite a story that didn't have much in the way of a driving story-driven plot, I still found this to be incredibly engaging and got through this at a pretty nice speed.

Looking forward to reading future works by this author.

I requested this from netgalley on a whim after hearing about it on a podcast and I was pleasantly surprised. Shred Sisters is the story of a dysfunctional family that centers around Ollie, the eldest sister who is often reckless and unpredictable. It is good from the POV of Amy, the other sister, and explores the significant impact that untreated mental illness has on all members of a family and their relationships. This story was character driven but so propulsive; I couldn’t put this down. Notably, the story highlights how things left unsaid can often be more harmful than words spoken and the unconditional (sometimes undeserved) love between family. Ultimately, I wished that the story had been a bit longer but overall I adored this and would recommend to anyone who:

🌵 Has ever had a loved one that struggled with mental illness
🌵Has ever felt overshadowed or neglected
🌵Enjoys reading about complicated family dynamics
🌵Comes from a family who lives in denial 🤣

I loved this book so much! It is full of empathy and love. It is a story how addiction and mental illness really affects the people who love you most. I think this debut is incredible and a must read!

I really enjoyed this book!! I thought it was a beautiful depiction of a complicated sisterhood, and really appreciated the commentary around mental health and family dynamics. It felt extremely meaningful in how we got to see how the family trauma that started in childhood as minor things, could escalate to impact someone’s life so greatly, especially in how they form relationships. It did take me a little bit to initially get invested in the story but it really did keep getting better. I will likely be picking up a physical copy when it releases!

Really beautiful story of sisterhood, female friendships, and how intrinsically linked families can be. I can't wait to get a hard copy of this when it releases!

I loved this book and it's one of my top 5 reads this year. I just couldn't put it down. There are so many layers here: family drama, sisterhood and parenthood, marriage, mental health, etc. I really liked how almost every new chapter was full of twists and turns. The only thing that confused me was how Amy made almost every situation about herself. Sometimes it was reasonable, but only sometimes, so I would say I expected more in her character development. But it didn't change the overall feel of the story.

Thank you so much Grove Atlantic and NetGalley for this ARC. Out October 1st, 2024.

Rule-following, high-achieving Amy Shred would be the golden child in many families, but in her own she spends her childhood playing second fiddle to her beautiful, rebellious, and charismatic older sister Ollie, who commands the attention and indulgence of their parents. But Ollie's high spirits turn to volatility as she approaches adulthood, and she only avoids justice system involvement for her sticky fingers because her parents help divert her to a psych hospital. A few years later, when Ollie has stopped flinging herself against the bars of her cage long enough to figure out how to get to go back home, she's there only briefly before stealing money and taking off, leaving her parents and sister reeling in her wake. Just a teenager, Amy is of course not mature enough to understand how to cope with the trauma she's experienced, but neither are her parents, and the seeds of their family unraveling are planted deeply enough to take root and grow. The story follows Amy as she becomes a person wary of human connection, afraid of risk-taking and leaving herself open to hurt. The sundering of her parents' marriage leaves its own wounds, as do Ollie's occasional resurfacings, never predictable except that they will end abruptly and probably with Ollie in possession of someone else's cash, or at something valuable she can pawn. Lerner creates a well-realized, realistic portrait of the trajectory someone like Amy might take: she is not quirky, not damaged in a cute way played for laughs. She struggles to form and sustain relationships both platonic and romantic. She resists therapy for a long time, dismissing it as useless after its failure to make a difference for her sister. Lerner skillfully avoids the cliched plotlines and character beats one might expect: the harm Ollie causes Amy is largely indirect, but no less damaging for being so. Amy is beautifully realized, sympathetic despite not always being likeable. I'd picked this up because I assumed it was going to be a book about Sisterhood Feelings (one of the few areas I'm susceptible to heart-string tugging) based on the description, but I enjoyed it despite it being something else entirely. Ollie and Amy spend very little time together, actually, after their childhood, though the impact of being Ollie's sister never stops resonating for her. It is decidedly not "big-hearted", and whether that's a positive (like it was for me) or a negative depends on what kind of book you're looking for. If you're looking for a clear-eyed character study, this is a very solid read.

Olivia and Amy’s stories cannot be told without one another. This is a really well done story of sisterhood, mental illness and family. I found the first of the three parts to be the most engaging. The third part went far enough into their futures to give me closure on both of their stories. The book does a great job showing how just different siblings can be and yet their stories will always intertwine and their impact will always linger.

No one will love you more or hurt you more than a sister. This is an early statement in Shred Sisters which very much encompasses the scope of this novel about two sisters- Olivia (Ollie) and Amy. Ollie, the eldest sister is beautiful, spoiled, and has no brakes. Amy, the younger sister, is small, introverted, and a people pleaser. Much of the book is written from Amy's perspective which of course skews the narrative. Amy notices the imbalanced preference her parents, particular her father gives to Ollie. They forgive her bad behavior over and over again, while provide little attention and positive reinforcement to Amy's low drama and impressive academic achievements. Ollie is finally hospitalized for an extended period, but it does not make a lasting different on her mental state (she's clearly bipolar), and she continues to upend the family's structure, causing a rift between the parents. The chaos in Amy's childhood and continued struggles with Ollie reverberate in Amy's relationships- both friendships and romantic relationships. She finds herself struggling to speak up for herself and opening herself up, continuing relationships that are unhealthy, and sabotaging others. I really enjoyed this story of how mental health challenges affect an entire family. As a mentioned before, as this is told from Amy's point of view, impressions of events are going to be subjective, and we do not get her parents or Ollie's perspectives. Much of the book is quite slow in plot movement, while the latter portions move the plot forward so quickly, it appeared rushed and underdeveloped. Overall, I enjoyed this one.

Thank you to Grove Atlantic for the advance reader copy in exchange for honest review.