omg. excuse me while i cry. this was such a perfectly perfect and as an older sister, hit impossibly close. her writing is gorgeous and i found myself not being able to put this one down. captivating from start to finish dare i say!

I absolutely loved this book! Very easy read about 3 sisters who come together and reconcile relationships 1 year after the 4th sister dies. The author told the story of beautifully broken romantic and familial relationships, and the reality of navigating such situations. I didn’t love the description of sisterhood in the prologue (I felt very “only biological sisters understand true kinship”), but I sort of understand the narrative Mellors was trying to set. I also felt like the storylines for all of the sisters were resolved a little too quickly compared to the extensive character development earlier in the book. But, I can fair and say that might just be me wanting the book to be longer! Overall, enticing read that I would recommend to others.

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!

What if Beth still died, but Meg was a workaholic recovering addict, Jo was a boxer who constantly ran from her feelings, and Amy was a selfish party animal? That’s this book.

Overall, the book was well written but surface level. The characters read as caricatures of themselves, making exactly the self-destructive decisions you would expect them to make. I could not stand Lucky, but empathized with Avery and Bonnie much more. Wasn’t for me, but the author captured the sister relationship incredibly well.

Thank you to Random House for the ARC.

So i loved Mellors last book, Cleopatra and Frankenstein, and i felt very emotionally connected to that book. i can’t say i necessarily felt that with this one. i liked the setup, all our different sisters, and going through their lived and personalities, but i had time staying engaged. and near the end this felt pretty aimless and draggy to me. I don’t really know why, but this one just did not connect with me.

I loved this! The sisters were all so real and endearing in their own ways. I definitely will be recommending this to others!

Blue Sisters is exactly what it says in the description. Three sisters desperately try to navigate their grief while trying to also navigate their lives. All three girls have essentially blown up their lives, to different degrees, since the loss of their beloved sister. Now they must traverse the road of grief as well as the lesser traveled road of forgiveness. Mellors has written a beautiful piece on grief and the way it changes you and your life with this one. Each sister is battling their own demons on top of the loss they’re feeling. It’s a very real story. It happens every day. However, I can honestly say I wasn’t a fan of the rather inappropriate long term relationships the girls get into. A therapist who marries a former patient, a parental figure who watches one of them grow up only to pursue her later. I get that these relationships are probably a product of the lack of parental guidance in their childhood and teen years, but they seem to celebrated which I found almost disturbing. It almost broke the immersion for me. All in all, this is a solid story for the most part. Blue Sisters by Chloe Mellors debuts September 3, 2024.

Blue Sisters tells the story of four sisters: Avery, Bonnie, Lucky, and Nicky. Their lives have weathered addiction from childhood through adulthood, resulting in strained relationships with each other, their parents, and eventually the loss of Nicky.

Growing up, the sisters saw their father battle alcoholism and their mother check out. It was Avery that took charge in raising her sisters, but it was Nicky that held the beating heart of their family. After an accidental overdose, the sisters disband, grieving the loss in their own traumatic ways until a year after losing Nicky when their mother calls them home. She’s selling the apartment they grew up in, the apartment Nicky and Bonnie shared in early adulthood, the same apartment where Nicky died. One by one they return home to deal with the loss of Nicky and to say goodbye to the place they all called home.

This was my first by Coco Mellors and to say it was incredible would be an understatement. The characters feel real, their grief heartbreaking. Top five reads of 2024 so far!

As one of three sisters, this topic resonated with me. Although my situation is very different than the one discussed in this book I found many similarities. The author captures the dynamics of the siblings so well. Even though you may be raised by the same parents, your experiences can be significantly different. The order of birth, personalities, the relationship with each other and the parents make memories and lives so unique. I am often amazed at the very different ways my sisters and I remember the exact same experiences. If you have sisters I highly recommend this book!

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

Words cannot describe how much I LOVE this book. I loved "Cleopatra and Frankenstein", and as soon as I saw Coco Mellors had a new book I HAD to jump on the possibility of reading it early. I already plan on selling this book until I am BLUE in the face.
There was not a single letter that was placed into this book without purpose, and that is what I adore about Mellors' writing. It is just so lyrical and poetic that it all just flows effortlessly.
Okay, this is a book about four sisters who grew up in NYC. Fast forward, they are all grown up now and the story picks up on the one year anniversary of one of the sister's deaths. What follows is how these women's lives are entangled and how they are similar and yet so very different. It delves into parental issues and addiction and fertility issues. It is just one of the most beautiful books I have ever read and I know it will stick with me until the day I die.
I have no idea how Coco Mellors managed to write a book better than Cleopatra and Frankenstein, but she did it. Everyone needs to read this book, even if you are an only child. It is just utter perfection.
Thank you thank you thank you so much to NetGalley, Coco Mellors, and the publishing company behind this title for allowing me to read this early.

Blue Sisters
Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Random House for this arc in exchange for an honest review!

The characters are so beautifully and humanly constructed that you feel you're reading either their thoughts or their diary.

This novel portrays the lives of the Blue sisters, each one unique and utterly different from one another. The story starts on the one year anniversary of Nicky Blue and how each one of the other three sisters cope with losing the sister that seemed to be the glue between the four.
This story is one of grief, growth and learning how to live in spite of their upbringing. I deeply felt for each one of them, you end up understanding their problems and rooting for them to get better. Isn't that what we all strive for? Being better, whatever our problem might be.

This is my first Coco book and I can't wait to read another and another and another one.

“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?”

Blue Sisters details the lives of each of the four ‘Blue’ sisters and the complicated relationship between siblings. The story takes place one year after Nicky’s death, as Avery, Bonnie and Lucky struggle with their grief. The writing is beautiful and Coco Mellors does a wonderful job of crafting intricate characters. While I enjoyed Blue Sisters, I don’t know if I adored it as much as Cleopatra and Frankenstein. The book started off strong, but I often struggle with long chapters and I didn’t feel as motivated to pick it back up in the middle. However, I did enjoy the character development and the relationship between the sisters. As the quote above states, the relationship between family, particularly siblings, is complex and one that does not dissolve as easily as a friendship. Overall, this was a wonderful book that I would recommend to readers who enjoy character-driven stories.

4.25/5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I loveeee Coco Mellors. Cleopatra and Frankenstein is one of my favorite books of all time. Unfortunately, I don't think Blue Sisters *quite* lives up to that one for me, but I did still enjoy it. I love any books about sisters and sisterhood, and this was no exception. I didn't personally connect with any of the sisters as much as I wanted to; usually I can identify with one character and I look forward to reading their POV, but this wasn't the case with this one unfortunately. It did drag a little in the middle, but I'm still glad I read this, and would recommend it to others.

Mellors’ first book left me wanting a bit more but this book delivered!!!! So good, so sincere, so emotional. Would recommend!!!

**4.5 STARS!!**

WOW. This book was so different from many others that I have read and I absolutely loved it. This is a story about sisterhood, grief, love, addiction, and finding yourself, and it is deeply moving in its own special way.

Each sister was so interesting and intriguing to read about, and I loved the alternating POVs for each of them. It was such an interesting look at the familial component of addictions, the complexities of having, and losing, sisters, and learning to love life again after dealing with tremendous loss and hurt. The characters are all so flawed, but are also so easy to love, and I think that's really due to Coco's ability to write about flawed individuals exceedingly well. I found this book to be truly beautifully written and very, very captivating! It really felt like each woman was a real person that I knew and could connect with. If you're looking for something new, refreshing, and different, I highly recommend this book.

Thank you, as always, to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for providing this ARC for me to read and honestly review!

“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?”

Blue Sisters opens with this compelling line and follows the lives of four sisters in the aftermath of a tragic event that ultimately challenges how they will continue to forge together as close siblings. Coco Mellors does a masterful job with this character study of Avery (the oldest and most know-it-all protector), Bonnie (the stoic second-born) Nicky (the middle-child dreamer), and Lucky (the youngest rebel). A devastating loss exposes the unique bond sisters share, how grief manifests differently in each person, and how we continue to redefine ourselves around the edges of those we love most.

While I sailed through the first 150 pages, I found myself struggling with some of the characters (particularly Lucky) in the second half. Addiction - in all its forms - is a common theme. I ended up liking Bonnie the most and recently read an interview with Mellors who said she did the most research for her character. It definitely showed.

Read if you enjoy and/or can relate:
Strong character development
Sisterly love
Grieving a close family member
LGBTQ representation

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC.

4.5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

ARC provided by NetGalley in an exchange for an honest review.

"Blue Sisters" by Coco Mellors is a heartfelt novel that explores themes of grief, addiction, and family. The book is told from three points of view. Each chapter shifts from sister to sister, diving into how their lives have been affected not just since the death of their sister Nicole, but also since their difficult childhood, growing up with a distant mother and abusive father in the heart of NYC.

Guarantee this is going to be a NYT Best Seller come September. Mellors does an incredible job of captivating the reader, making us forget we’re even reading at times. The dialogue, the banter, the backstory, were all so detailed and beautifully written. I loved that each sister took a completely different track in life, yet all came together again to share their struggles and unrelenting love.

You don’t want to miss this one!

Coco Mellors you have done it again. Blue Sisters feels like coming home to a family you never knew you had.
 
This story follows the Blue Sisters Avery, who is a former addict and now lawyer living in London; Bonnie, who is a boxing champion escaping her life in LA; Lucky, who is the youngest and rebellious one thriving in her modeling career; and Nicky, whose loss all sisters struggle with differently.

This is a heartbreaking and heartwarming story about loss, sisterhood, addiction, recovery, regretting motherhood and unconditional love. It’s about losing every piece about oneself just to become a complete different version of yourself. It’s navigating daily life while struggling in silence.

I loved everything about this story and i can’t even believe that these characters are so real. I felt a piece of myself in each of these characters and miss the Blue sisters already.

Thanks you NetGalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review. A must read for 2024!

"Blue Sisters" by Coco Mellors is a beautifully crafted novel that delves into the depths of sisterhood, love, and self-discovery. Mellors' elegant prose and keen insights into human relationships make this book a captivating and emotionally resonant read.

The story revolves around the bond between two sisters, whose lives are intricately intertwined yet uniquely distinct. Mellors excels in developing their characters, making their struggles, joys, and growth feel authentic and deeply moving. The dynamics between the sisters are portrayed with sensitivity and nuance, capturing the complexities of familial ties.

Mellors' writing is poetic and evocative, painting vivid scenes that transport the reader into the world of the Blue Sisters. The narrative is both poignant and uplifting, filled with moments of introspection and revelation that resonate long after the last page is turned.

"Blue Sisters" is not just a story about sibling relationships; it is a profound exploration of identity, resilience, and the enduring power of love. Coco Mellors has created a novel that is as thought-provoking as it is heartwarming, making it a must-read for anyone who appreciates rich, character-driven stories. Highly recommended for those seeking a novel that touches the soul and inspires reflection.

Thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Stories about family dynamics are some of my favorites, especially when it comes to sisters. Unfortunately many of them are simple, with stereotypes like “this one’s bossy! This one’s nice! This one’s a brat!” But Blue Sisters is a shining example in the genre; it’s a thoughtful look at truly complex characters dealing with a grief that many can’t imagine (but I, I’m sad to say, have dealt with myself). It’s so well written that there were certain passages that as I read I had to stop and be like “DAMN that was good.” I really enjoyed my time with the Blue sisters and never wanted it to end. The ending is satisfying, but I admit I’m curious about the alternate direction the author considered taking the story that she mentioned in the Acknowledgements.

I’m definitely strongly recommending this to everyone when it comes out and will be thinking of this story for weeks to come ❤️

sisters forever!!!!!!!!!! this was so excellent i could (and did) cry. i loved all 4 of the girls, and was genuinely sad to have missed time with them between the regular text and the epilogue. recommended for spice girls fans!

posted on my instagram account @i_declaire_bookruptcy