This was kind of a strange twist on a horror novel. It was ok but I struggled to finish it and had a hard time really getting interested.

I picked up this book because it said “if you like Jordan Peele’s…” and I love the twists in his film but I really don’t know what to say about this book. If I had to choose one word to describe it I would choose “random”. There’s so much going on that I had to reread certain parts just to understand and follow what was happening. The plot itself is good and the “twist” (if that’s what we are going to call it) was good too. But as a book as a whole I’m going to give it 2 stars. Maybe as a movie this story will hit its mark but I don’t think this book accomplished what it was aiming for.

Thank you #netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Unfortunately I did not finish this book. I was about 25% in and not connecting with the characters.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martins Griffin for the opportunity to read it.

This speculative horror novel had many things I loved, and other things that made me cringe. Neena Viel is a debut author, and I feel like her writing, and her novels will only get better with time. The weirdness worked, there were parts that truly had me on edge, and the dysfunctional family dynamics were perfection.

Speculative horror is not really my thing but I enjoyed this book and its emotional complexity. I liked the characters (ok maybe not Jaime) but found the story strange and hard to understand at times. It seemed as if the main character had fractured personalities. Overall a good departure from my norm.

This book took me so long to read. As a lover of horror and the eldest sister of two brother, I thought this book would be right up my alley. It was not at all what I was expecting and that was not a good thing. Unfortunately I found the first third of this book boring and drawn out. I just wanted to get to the spooky part. And then when I go there, I had so many retreats. I would’ve probably stopped reading if this hadn’t been an ARC through NetGalley.
Unfortunately, this was just not for me both storyline and writing style.
Thank you NetGalley and St Martin’s for contacting me for the opportunity to read this novel.

*Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this book in return for an honest review.*

Listen to Your Sister is a speculative horror book following three siblings who find themselves in a fever dream of the same event happening over and over again. Throughout the story, unexplainable events happen that surround Calle and project the fears she has about losing her brothers in horrible ways. The siblings have to come together to try to beat the fever dream by working together before they all die.

This book was wild and confusing at times but was crafted in a way that was also humorous and heart-breaking. Calle, Dre, and Jamie have been through their own hells growing up and realize that even though they can't stand each other most of the time, they are all each other has. This book dives into some hard topics such as racism, generational trauma, substance abuse, child abuse, police brutality, and systematic abuse in marginalized communities. These topics were hard to read about and uncomfortable, but also necessary for the story.

I enjoyed the relationship between Calle, Dre, and Jamie. They all have a strong bond, but they also drive each other crazy. They say things to each other that are hurtful but then realize that they have to work together to save their lives. The horrible experiences that they went through in this story bring them closer together in the end.

If you want a mild, comforting book with a soft, predictable ending, find a different book. I wanted more creepy books this year and Neena Viel delivered! I cannot recommend this one enough. This was a fun, nail biting read for me. It was dark, twisted, there were bits of humor sprinkled in, it was creepy. I would not be surprised if Jordan Peele starts reaching out to turn this into a movie.
Calla, Dre and Jamie were all lovable in their own individual ways. The different POVs kept each chapter fresh. Watching the way nightmares blended into reality and how each person became affected by them was fascinating.
Listen To Your Sister is a perfect blend of horror and dark fantasy. It’s imaginative and unlike anything I have ever read before. I look forward to more from Neena Viel. Thank you St Martins Press & NetGalley for the opportunity to read this phenomenal book!

Neena Viel’s Listen to Your Sister is a haunting and heartfelt story. Calla, the eldest sibling, experiences terrifying prediction dreams. When her brother’s involvement in a protest goes awry, the three siblings seek safety in a remote cabin, but their struggles are far from over.
The story balances supernatural suspense with deep emotions. The relationships between the siblings are complicated, but full of love. Viel keeps things tense and uses humor and tenderness that offset the horror.
This book is chilling and it stayed with me after I finished.

Calla has guardianship of her youngest brother. She is fighting to say above water, the nightmare is making it harder. She keeps dreaming that her 2 brothers are going to be killed & she can't do anything about it. When the youngest's action make them go on the run, they struggle to stay alive.

Unfortunately I had a hard time getting into this book. I had attempted multiple times and it just wasn't the fit for me.

I'll start of by saying this won't be too positive of a review because this book was just not my style. I am not a fan of 'Get Out' type movies, and this is what the vibe was. I had a hard time knowing what was really happening and what was a dream It was a creative take, but it fell flat with me..

Unfortunately, I didn't love this book as much as I thought I would. I actively disliked some of the POVs we got and that really hindered my enjoyment of the book. Unlikable characters are some of my fav POVs to read from but this one in particular was just bad and they were unlikable for no reason. The end of this book was also confusing and I feel like I need to reread it, knowing the end, to completely understand what was happening. There were moments that were actually creepy, though, so it definitely has good atmosphere.

This is a Very boring book. Took me almost a month to read it. And when I finished this book it didn’t make a whole lot of sense. Would not recommend.

I enjoyed the writing in this one, although it didn’t necessarily keep me as engaged as I would usually like. Some of it got a little too convoluted for me, personally. I enjoyed the over all story but I wasn’t drawn in by the “monster” or the plot twists. Thank you to Netgalley, the Publisher and the Author for the opportunity to read and review this prior to publication.

LISTEN TO YOUR SISTER is a haunting and complicated family drama that has tons of supernatural horror.

The novel is excellent at portraying the family dynamics of the characters. It feels as real as it can while also introducing traditional supernatural horror elements into the story. It's fantastic to see how the sibling's dynamics fluctuate throughout the book.

The entire story is built on tension. From the first chapter, I was captivated by an overwhelming sense of dread that lasted the entire book. Often times, though, it does feel a bit dizzying, which can contribute to the plot for some readers.

Thank you to Netgalley, and St. Martins Press for an eARC of this novel. Here are my thoughts!

Calla has a ton of stress on her plate. She is trying to keep her younger brother Jamie out of trouble since she became his legal guardian. Her other brother Dre seems to be doing his own thing despite Calla needing his help. After an eventful night, Calla decides to take her brothers to a cabin where her nightmares literally become the siblings’ realities.

I have a lot of thoughts about this novel. I’ll start with the things that worked for me. I loved these characters. The racism that these three must face on the daily and the expectations that are associated with that is gut wrenching and made me angry while reading. It made me want them to succeed and work together as a family even more. All three were individual and faced their own challenges which made each stand out.

The horror pieces were exquisite, from before the siblings get to the cabin and after. They were very intelligent but also made me physically flinch at times. The trouble that Jamie gets into at the beginning is one of te most gripping scenes I’ve read in a novel in a while. There are also levels to the horror which lead to a very complex and intricate read.

Now, this might be a me problem. There were a few times in the novel where I was lost. Jumping between the story lines and the multiple horror characters left me a little confused. I found when I had time to read in large chunks it was a little clearer to me, but that can be rare in my busy life. I think I picked up everything in the end, but I’m seriously considering a reread of this one as it’s quite the book!

I really wanted to enjoy this book but it felt like thoughts were thrown together with no connection. This lead to confusion and lots of disbelief, even in the horror aspect.

The narrators did a good job of portraying what was on the page, but there wasn't much they could do to change the disjointedness and disbelief.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press (St. Martin's Griffin), and Macmillan Audio for an advanced reading and listening copies of this book.

This was well-written and had some really great nuanced themes, but the two brothers were infuriating. I didn’t feel like their arcs grew satisfyingly or adequately and that Calla continued to sacrifice herself for their flippant bs.

Unfortunately, this book was a struggle for me. I really wanted to enjoy it based on the blurb, but I just couldn’t get into it. The creepy factor was definitely on point, but I felt like the storyline kept getting interrupted by side plots and the characters' internal dialogue. The idea of the creepy entity targeting the siblings was really intriguing, and I would have loved to see it explored more. However, whenever the internal thoughts or flashbacks kicked in, I felt like I was abruptly pulled out of the intense moments and thrown into a completely different situation. That said, I did enjoy the humor and satire among the characters, as well as their dynamic, which ultimately played into the big reveal.

*Thank you to Neena Viel, St. Martin's Press | St. Martin's Griffin and Netgalley for the ARC copy. I am freely leaving my honest review.