I didn’t think she could top Cleopatra and Frankenstein. I really didn’t.

I was sadly mistaken. Blue Sisters is pure mastery. As a sister myself, this was one of the most honest takes on sisterhood I’ve ever seen reflected in a novel.

5. Freaking. Stars. Keep going, Coco!

I thought this book was fantastic. I especially loved her writing style and I had already highlighted several sentences by the time I finished the first chapter. I instantly knew this book was going to hit different. You feel for and root for each sister through every battle they face while they’re already trying to handle going through a tremendous loss. They are messy and lost but I couldn’t help but adore each sister.

Honestly, I might be biased because I love a good story about sisters (Practical Magic, Little Women, etc.), they are complicated relationships unlike any other and I absolutely loved how this book expressed sisterhood.

It is heartbreaking and I absolutely cried but I loved every page and couldn’t get enough of it. I will be recommending this to my two older sisters…and also everyone else, let’s be real.

This is my first Coco Mellors novel and I will absolutely be reading her debut ASAP.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publish Group for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Posted on Goodreads on 9/3/24.

I wanted to binge Blue Sisters in a day, but my emotions wouldn’t let me. From the first line of the book I was hooked and teary eyed “A sister is not a friend. Who can explain the urge to take a relationship as primal and complex as a sibling and reduce it to something as replaceable, as banal as a friend?”.

I read Blue Sisters over the course of 15 days because it hit too close to home withthe emotional complexity’s of feeling like you’re not whole without your sister/s. But I digress because it’s too early for me to get emotional. 🥹

A little synopsis:

This is an ornate character study that
delves into the emotional complexities of grief, addiction, family dynamics, and sisterhood.

We follow the lives of three sisters a year after the passing of their beloved sister Nicky. We have Avery a strait laced lawyer who lives in London with her wife. Bonnie a boxer turned bouncer who lives in Los Angeles and Lucky a supermodel who currently resides in Paris. After a year of partial estrangement Avery, Bonnie, and Lucky find themselves in childhood home in New York. While they clean out Nicky’s belongings, their strained relationships, and secrets come to light.

@cocomellors did not disappoint!! Blue Sisters is stunning!! Truly unforgettable characters 🦋

also thank you NetGalley for a digital arc of this lovely novel!

As a girl without sisters, I sometimes find it difficult to relate to stories of them but that wasn't the case with Blue Sisters. This heart wrenching story of addiction and family was captivating and not just a bad girls, behaving badly as I expected.

Such a complex story. Three sisters come together on the one year anniversary of their sister's death from an overdose. Each sister has their own demons, personal pain, and secrets, yet those secrets might just be from themselves. As they sort through the remnants of their lost sister's life, the sisters' reflections shows the multi-dysfuntionality of their homelife that carried over into their adulthood. Simply put, they were a mess. Character driven, this is not a feel-good story of hope or optimism but rather the quest for acceptance of yourself and a desire to better yourself away from self-destructive behaviors. Personally, I felt this book was just okay although it kept me reading. While there was positive growth for the sisters, I didn't care enough about their characters, not even empathy, to have it made an impact. True to their surname of Blue, I felt they were just sad. Worth the read, but not something I would grab first. Many thanks to #netgalley #bluesisters #cocomellors for the opportunity to read and review this book.

This was a tender and heartbreaking look at the dynamic between sisters. There was such in depth characterization of the sisters as individuals that I felt like I knew them. There was also strong development of their relationships, not just as a group but individually. The dynamics between the sisters were well built and realistic. Throughout this book I laughed, I cried, and I want to both shake and hug each of the sisters. Beyond the character development, this book takes a in-depth and raw look at grief and addiction. This book was beautifully written and incredibly powerful, especially as someone who has sisters.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House - Ballantine Books for this eARC!

This was such a poignant story about grief and how it effects all of us differently, especially within families. At its core, this novel is about the dynamic between sisters and how vital family (chosen and blood) can be.

Blue Sisters tells the story of what life looks like for three estranged sisters after their sister dies. This is a story of how different sisters can be and how generational trauma can effect everyone around you not just those within a family.

I thought this was an incredible book. This was so well written and filled with so much emotion, it will stick with me for a long time. I highly recommend.

First a big thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine Publishing for the e-copy. Of this book. This may be one of my favorites of the year. Even though I am not a big fan of long chapters I loved Mellors writing style. These characters became real to me, I connected with all the sisters. This one hit close to home as it deals with the death of a sibling to addiction and the thought of “could I have done more?” The novel is about 3 sisters in the year after they lose a sister to addiction and how the deal with the death in different self destructive ways.

This book was such a breath of fresh air in a recent book slump. I love Mellors’ writing style, the character development over plot, and the simple take of what is sisterly love, truly. Each of the sisters have their own faults, flaws, and vices, and they’re grappling with what it means that one of their own died. It’s a book about grief, addiction, family trauma, isolation, but also about togetherness, familial bonds, and love. I loved it.

Thank you so much to Random House - Ballantine and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review. This book is one of my absolutely favorites of 2024 and an absolute pleasure to read. Blue Sisters will be published September 3, 2024.




Instagram review posted 9/3/24

Goodreads review posted 8/31/24:

Happy publication day to Coco Mellors and Blue Sisters!

——

”Look at an umbilical cord—tough, sinuous, unlovely, yet essential—and compare it to a friendship bracelet of brightly woven thread. That is the difference between a sister and friend.”

I worship at the altar of Coco Mellors. Which is appropriate, because every word she writes feels like a benediction. She writes with equal measures of honesty and compassion. This was such a gorgeous story about sisterhood, womanhood, ruining your own life, and then finding your way back to the people who are still in your corner no matter what.

”No matter how many people Lucky surrounded herself with, part of her was always swimming alone through a wide, dark lake. The only time she ever felt that there was someone in the water with her was when she was with her sisters.”

If you loved Cleopatra and Frankenstein, you will get the very same vibes from this book. The characters in Blue Sisters and their experiences are completely different, but the tone and the themes feel so similar that it was like stepping right back into that world and just meeting different people who lived there.

”None of us really know what another is going through until that person feels able to share the truth of their lived experience.”

Mellors’ characters are deeply flawed; their personal failures, regrets, addictions, and fuck-ups are on display. And yet, redemption is never out of reach for any of them. From the title characters to the minor characters hanging around in the background, everyone in her stories is offered a second shot at forgiveness, recovery, and restoration.

”She was home, the only one she knew, not because she always lived in it, but because it always lived in her.”

——

A huge thank-you to Coco Mellors, Ballantine, and NetGalley for an advance digital copy to review.

Blue Sisters by Coco Mellors is a melancholy story about a family of sisters ravaged by addiction to a variety of substances and emotions. Mellors intertwines the history of the Blue Sisters - Avery, Bonnie, Nicky and Lucky - with their reaction to the one year anniversary of one of the sister's deaths. I often found myself wanting to reach through the pages to shake some sense into the sisters as they chart a path to self-destruction, but of course addiction does not work that way, and each sister had to reach her own version of bottom to swim back up. Thank you to Random House, Ballantine Books and NetGalley for the e-arc.

Blue Sisters by Coco Mellors
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

🩵Happy Pub day to this beautiful book ! I’m not sure what it is about this book but when I saw it on NetGalley my gut was like you need to request this book just trust me lol. So I requested it and I actually got approved lol. Let me just say that my gut was not wrong.

🩵Blue Sisters is about how these 3 sisters grieve over their sister Nicky over time and how losing her changed their lives forever. Grief demands to be felt and you can’t outrun forever. I really felt like Coco Mellors did an amazing job with the detail. It was very easy to feel like I was in the same room with these characters. I could relate to them so easily. As some of you know I lost my brother in the beginning of the year. When grieving there is no end date. It may all eventually get lighter but that takes time.

🩵I highly recommend this book ! I absolutely enjoyed it! Bring your tissues for this one readers ! Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this digital review copy in exchange for my honest review !

Blue Sisters is about the four Blue sisters. They grew up in a small apartment in NYC. One year ago one of the sisters died. While the sisters have struggled with this loss they have also had other struggles. The family apartment has sat empty since Nicky’s death and it’s time to clean out and sell the apartment. Each sister has issues they are forced to face as they gather back at the apartment from around the world.

This book was amazing and this is coming from someone who does not like reading character driven books.

I found myself in tears over the grief that the 3 sisters carried through out the book and how messily they navigated it. I found this to be so powerful and relatable to us non-fictional characters out here in the real world.

Thank you for writing this profound second chance at family, love and forgiveness in this beautiful, gripping, heartfelt and inspiring novel!

This was a masterfully written tale of love between sisters and how family dynamics affect our lives. I was invested in these characters and the story from the first chapter. I highly recommend this read!

This book is beautifully written and filled with many memorable quotes that stand out. While the storyline felt a bit repetitive in the first half, it gained momentum as it progressed, The portrayal of the sisters’ bond was truly touching, serving as a powerful reminder of the unbreakable connection between sisters,

This Review will begin running on my Goodreads profile and TiredEyesReading Substack. It will begin running on 9/3 and stay up in perpetuity. Please see links below in the link section.

Family, Grief, and Addiction - 'Go Lightly'
I’m a sucker for dysfunctional family dramas and Blue Sisters by Coco Mellors squarely hits the target. Mellors wastes no time getting us into the action of this sibling drama by opening the novel at the 1-year anniversary mark of a death in the Blue family. Told through the perspective of the three surviving sisters, Avery - the eldest, Bonnie - a middle child, and Lucky - the youngest, what unfolds is a raw and frigid dissent into the dynamic between these sisters who are forced to face their relationship to each other, their relationship to themselves and the relationship to the sister they lost. One line from the book best sums it up “A sister is not a friend.”

Mellors sticks to an uncomplicated method of storytelling, having each sister get their own chapter. There she can gives us a deeper look into the past and present of each of individual sister. With the use of memories and inner monologues, Mellors sheds light on their individual psyche, often telling us what the characters want to say, versus what they actually say. This also goes to the heart of the addiction that plagues this family - what is unsaid could be so helpful to each of the sisters, but bitterness and current grief stops them from communicating. Hence the addiction - drugs, alcohol, smoking, stealing - all replace what truly needs to be said to begin to heal.

I found the most moving and effective pieces in this novel is when the sisters interacted with the people that surrounded them and not so much their inner monologues. For example, in the final act of the novel, Avery travels to where her parents now live, out of New York City, and has a confrontation with her Mother about their upbringing and her Mother’s lack of parenting. In this very pivotal scene for Avery and her mother, it ends with her mother saying, “Listen to me,” she said. “I want you to really listen.” She put her mouth next to Avery’s ear to speak in a fierce whisper. “You are not that important.” That was really a powerful moment!

Mellors is not inventing the family drama, nor has she revolutionized it with Blue Sisters, but I can most definitely see this book being adapted into a riveting mini-series that would be a terrific watch with the right cast.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group -Ballantine Books for providing me with an advanced readers copy. Blue Sisters by Coco Mellors is out widely on Tuesday, 9/3. Pick up your copy wherever you buys books. #netgalley #bluesisters

This was a very interesting read, however I don't think it was fully for me. This is told from alternating POVs--3 sisters who are trying to navigate life and their relationships with each other after their sister's passing.

I found all 3 of the girls to be very interesting characters, and I didn't at any point feel like any one of their storylines were underwhelming compared to the others. It flowed between them very seamlessly, which is something I find many multi-POV books struggle with.

There are MANY heavy topics tackled in here, and I found that they were handled very delicately (very mindful, very demure), and the reader gets to know pretty much every detail of what made these women who they have grown to become, which is so special.

The sisterhood themes are STRONG, which is perhaps why I struggled a bit to connect to this book. I enjoyed reading it, but couldn't quite relate to this aspect as an only child myself, and that was something extremely prevalent and focused on. I think if you have sisters, this one could impact you far more than it did me.

Overall: 3.5 stars, rounded up

Thank you so much to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Wow this was so sad and inspiring and heartfelt and amazing. I loved every second of it. I don’t have any sisters but through reading this, I could feel what it’s like to have a love as strong as sisters do. I can’t wait to read more from this author.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC.

“As long as you are alive, it is never too late to be found.”

Coco has done it again. Another book that broke me and gave me hope. This book literally makes me want to call my siblings and tell them I love them.

You have three sisters who each have their own shit going on. Literally when I read their POV’s, I felt like I could relate to each one of them. Seeing the way they grieve for their sister broke my heart.

This book had me feeling so many emotions. I’m literally staring at the wall and processing everything I read.

Thank you to Netgalley & Random House. This book releases today and best believe I’ll be grabbing a physical copy.