Equal parts horror and family drama, this is a delightfully strange and creepy story about trauma--inflicted by self, society, and family--and recovery. It's original and authentic in how it portrays comingled love and hate between siblings. Definitely worth the read!

It is not a "cabin in the woods" book, despite the cover description. Frankly, I'm not sure how to describe this book without relying on that bit of misdirection, since it's a trope that horror fans can understand. There's magical realism and uncanniness to this story that are better experienced than described.

Listen to Your Sister was more unnerving than terrifying. It was also funny, provocative, and ultimately heart-mending. I am so glad I picked this book up! If you are in the mood for a fever dream of a story, this is the one for you.

3.75/5 stars

Thank you Netgalley for the advance audiobook and reader copy of Listen to Your Sister by Neena Viel in exchange for an honest review. I love how Viel showed how much our reality is shaped by perspective. You have three siblings who all remember events differently and feel like the others don't appreciate them. I totally related to this and my siblings. This book was really good and I'm going to look up Neena Viel for more books.

Listen to Your Sister by Neena Viel is a speculative horror novel that follows the Williams’ siblings: CeeCee, Dre, and Jamie. When CeeCee agreed to take guardianship of her youngest brother Jamie, she never dreamed it would be so difficult. Jamie never listens. He spends his time doing drugs, skipping school, and hanging with a rough crowd. CeeCee continuously puts her life on hold to bail him out of trouble. But when she tries to help, he never listens. Though her middle brother, Dre, promised he would help raise Jamie when the court took him away from their mother, he’s never around. He finds his life is more peaceful when he doesn’t answer CeeCee’s calls. And when he does answer, he never listens. Still CeeCee spreads herself thin trying to make sure they’re okay.

So when Dre and Jamie suddenly find themselves in worse trouble than anyone could ever imagine, of course CeeCee is going to step in. Of course CeeCee is going to borrow her boyfriend’s Prius to get them out of town. Of course CeeCee is going to find a creepy cabin in the middle of nowhere to hide them from their new visitors. Of course CeeCee is going to do whatever it takes to protect her brothers. But then trouble finds them anyway…in the form of a nightmare CeeCee has had for years. Can CeeCee continue to protect her ungrateful brothers? Especially when the biggest threat might just come from inside her mind?

I will say that the concept of this book was mind blowing. While reading the chapters leading up to when the siblings find themselves in the cabin in the woods, I had no idea the turn the story was going to take. This book does a great job exploring the lengths the eldest sister will go to in order to protect their siblings. And why is it that the eldest sister is responsible for everyone else’s happiness? For everyone else’s safety? The book also explores how this need to be right or be the protector may just cause someone to become their own worst enemy.

However I thought the actually story was too drawn out. It took me way too long to read this, because I was just getting bored. Each action sequence and subsequent dialogue about what just happened felt repetitive. I also had a hard time following many of the sequences just because the descriptions of the horrors the characters are facing was so flowery. It almost felt as if the author was going way out for gory horror (which a lot of times she hit on the head as far as shock factor goes), but it was just a lot and took away from some of the premise of the book, in my opinion.

I still enjoyed the concept behind the book, especially the conversations around race and family and would recommend this one for fans of gory imagery and shocking twists.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press via Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Listen to Your Sister by Neena Viel releases on February 4, 2025.

3.5 ⭐️ downgraded to a 3 ⭐️. Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for an advanced reader copy.

LISTEN TO YOUR SISTER is the debut novel from Viel, which deftly mixes mystery/thriller and horror. The story centers around Calla, her brother Dre and her teenaged brother Jamie, whom she has custody of. Calla is doing her best to keep her brothers safe but is plagued by recurring nightmares that something awful- and often violent and gory- is going to happen to them. When Jamie attends a protest and gets himself in major trouble, the siblings escape to a cabin in the woods but things only escalate from there.

The dynamics between Calla and her siblings is central, and as an older child I related to the role Calla played and in the invisible emotional burden that Calla carries on her shoulders. At times they were humorous and affectionate and their dynamics were relatable. However, it was hard to swallow the unfair way her brothers treated her as Dre and James were wilfully obstinate and ungrateful and seemingly unaware of all that Calla was doing to care for them.

While I was impressed by the writing and intrigued by the concept, I felt a little lost by the plot and the pacing- at times it was a slow burn and at others it was chaotic and overwhelming. I did like the mix of humour and surreal horror as this is a combination you don't often see. The body horror was done well too. I am sure that there are people who will enjoy this one so perhaps I wasn't the right audience for this novel but it just didn't work for me.

*Listen to Your Sister* by Neena Viel is a wild ride that blends horror, family drama, and supernatural terror, with a gripping story that keeps you on edge. Calla Williams, a 25-year-old guardian, struggles to protect her teenage brothers from their own self-destructive paths while battling nightmares that become all too real. The sibling dynamic is raw and authentic, filled with moments of humor and tension, while the horrors they face twist in ways you won’t see coming. The book weaves supernatural dread with deep emotional stakes, exploring family bonds, survival, and the monsters within and without. With its fresh, fearless approach to horror, this debut is a must-read, offering a chilling yet heartfelt experience that would make for a terrifying film adaptation.

Listen to Your Sister is exactly the type of book I would usually like. It had all the aspects. I especially liked an older sister taking care of her younger siblings. But this book felt so… disjointed. I couldn’t fall into it. I tried it as an audiobook, too, to see if it would help and it didn’t. It just wasn’t for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC! *Listen to Your Sister* by Neena Viel is a heartfelt exploration of family dynamics, love, and self-discovery. The characters are richly developed, with relationships that feel authentic and deeply relatable. Viel’s writing strikes a perfect balance between humor and emotional depth, keeping readers engaged throughout. This book is a compelling reminder of the importance of listening, understanding, and finding your voice within the complexities of family life.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio and St. Martin's Griffin for the gifted copy of LISTEN TO YOUR SISTER by Neena Viel!

LISTEN TO YOUR SISTER centers on Calla Williams and her two brothers. When their mother was deemed to be an unfit parent, Calla took in her younger brother Jamie and became his guardian. Jamie is sixteen years old and eager to improve the world around him, getting involved in protests and getting himself in trouble. Dre is the middle child who promised to help Calla with the parenting, but who hasn’t really stepped up until now.

When Jamie gets in trouble at a protest, the three siblings get in the car and go. Calla has long been plagued with nightmares of Jamie’s death where she can’t do anything to help, but she’s determined to make things go differently in the waking world. As those nightmares begin to plague them all, they soon learn they all should have been listening to Calla all along.

This book was very different from what I expected and I wound up with some mixed feelings. The synopsis mentions that there is a remote cabin AirBNB that is rented and that had me expecting a bit more of the house setting and possibly a haunted setting. In reality, we don’t get to that cabin until around the halfway point of the book and it winds up not being a big focus.

The first half of the book is focused a lot on the siblings, their character development, and their relationships. I think all of this was really well done. These are siblings who aren’t always nice to each other, but they do ultimately have each other’s backs. The horror elements begin to slip in here or there, but they don’t really take off until later in the book. When we get to the full horror mode it goes very fever-dream-esque and this isn’t a book that is going to give concrete answers to everything. After finishing I had to give myself a day or two to process before trying to put my thoughts into words.

I think this is very well written, though hard to really describe sufficiently. I would recommend this to those who don’t mind a few unanswered questions in the end. I think this would be great for a discussion group as well!

I was very excited to read Listen to Your Sister as the premise sounded fantastic - a struggling family, nightmares, and an isolated cabin.
I really enjoyed the first half of this book; I cared about the characters, and even though I am not into politics, I enjoyed the angle that they provided. There were also some spooky elements, which were well-written. However, at the 60% point, I really wanted to DNF. I found the nightmares very disjointed, and the plot seemed to lose its way.
This one didn't quite work for me. I was really hoping for more isolated cabin vibes than fever dream.

I am a pretty regular horror reader and this one had me spooked more than once. I enjoyed it SO much, it reminded me of something that would be made into a Jordan Peele movie in the sense that it brought the love of family and the lengths you’ll go to for them together with expertly written suspense. This was brilliant.

"Listen to Your Sister" by Neena Viel is a dark, haunting tale about the lengths one will go to for the people they love and the damaging effects that love can have. Both cutthroat and tragic, “Listen to Your Sister” is a social horror with a dysfunctional family at its core. Bloodthirsty and gruesome, readers will be propelled into a world where reality and nightmares blend into a horrifying mixture.

Calla is twenty-five and a guardian to her brothers Jamie and Dre, which is a full-time job with Jamie bent on getting into mischief in and outside of school. At the same time, Dre, the middle child, is too busy doing his own thing to be involved in family matters. To make matters worse, Calla keeps having these vivid nightmares in which she tries to save her brothers from getting murdered—and fails.

When Jamie gets himself into trouble again, this time with the law, the three siblings find themselves on the run. Holed up in a creepy shack in the woods, they find themselves isolated and at the mercy of something that not only threatens their lives but their very reality.

Oh boy, was this a rollercoaster. From the family drama to being hunted in the night, this family cannot catch a break—especially from each other. The constant bickering and fighting felt like something that happens in every dysfunctional family that cannot seem to get along. For the Williams family, a lot of their inability to see eye to eye stems from a traumatic event they all share, and how they handle that trauma puts strain on their relationships. Not knowing what this event is, but seeing the effect it has on the family adds intrigue and suspense to the overall plot. A lot of this trauma is what contributes to the decisions the siblings make, ones that affect their mental health but also lead to fatal mistakes.

The horror aspect is incredibly well done. Reality is bent until it’s impossible to know what’s actually real. It plays on each character’s psyche, forcing them to confront the tragedy of their past or lose themselves in it. On top of that, the imagery (though gory at times) is quite powerful in its significance by forcing each sibling to grapple with feelings and events they’ve buried deep inside of them. While absolutely horrifying, these disturbing scenes add depth to the characters and the story.

Personally, the beginning did start a bit slow as the characters and their dynamics were introduced to set up the story. It seemed to take a while before any action occurred, but at the same time, it helped that the characters were striking and intriguing enough to stick with the story. There were also times, later in the story when the action was unfolding, that the pacing slowed when it needed to speed up due to too much detail. If some of that detail had been cut back, the tension could have ramped up and unfolded quickly.

“Listen to Your Sister” by Neena Viel is a dark, gritty novel not intended for the faint-hearted. Add it to your TBR’s now! “Listen to Your Sister” is expected to be published on February 4th, 2025.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press (St. Martin’s Griffin) for providing me with a copy of this e-arc and the opportunity to share my honest opinion in this review.

As an older brother, having a dream where your younger sibling dies is not uncommon, however, what is uncommon is having those dreams lived out in reality.

Calla is the older sister of Jamie and is the sole provider. With parents in the wind and an older brother who chooses to be involved when it's convenient for him, the responsibility of raising Jamie falls on Calla's shoulders. After an incident at a protest, Calla and Jamie flee to a remote cabin where they face a new threat beyond their wildest imaginations.

While I can't speak to the representation featured in the book, I enjoyed the themes that were explored (i.e. racism, privilege, and family).

However, I felt like the book was lacking in a few places. The pacing in the first half was very slow and it made it hard to feel engaged with the narratives. I also felt like there were a few instances where it was hard to follow what was happening and things weren't explained well.

Anyway, If the premise of the book interests you, I highly recommend checking this book out!

As always, Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin for the advance reader's copy

I had high hopes for this horror novel, but I started reading and had to stop because the language was too crass for me. I definitely hope it finds its readers!! I

3.25 ⭐️'s for me.
This was creepy and had some really gross scenes. I can recall one involving Dre that had me so grossed out. If you read this you will know what I am talking about. It was interesting how the book was set up and how Callas nightmares set the tone for everything. There were some points in the book that took me a little long to get through so it didn't hold my attention completely which is why it didn't get a higher rating.

I very much enjoyed this and the comparisons to Jordan Peele make sense. Many horror novels are about trauma and confronting trauma and this one is no different, but it has an energy and a viewpoint that felt original and fresh. The characters are interesting and nuanced; nothing is black-and-white here, everyone is messy, but the author represents these characters with a loving and careful hand that really forces the reader to confront some of their assumptions about "bad" vs. "good" guys. This book is also both extremely dark and very funny. Overall, just a very good read and I expect this to be on a lot of best-of-2025 horror lists.

Man that was absolutely wild but dope in the best way. This is a debut!? I cannot *wait* to read more from Viel in the future. I hope she continues to write.

It’s not the easiest book to summarize (or read, tbh) but it pays in spades if you like surreal, weird horror. In Listen to Your Sister we follow Calla who has custody of her younger (by a decade) brother, Jamie. Her father died years previous and her mother is unfit to parent a rock. Her other brother, Dre, is supposed to be supporting them emotionally and physically but tends to shirk his familial obligations for selfish reasons. Jamie is in the thick of life on the streets and gets involved with some very heavy crime. It’s during this time he meets a mysterious girl who ensures his safety in some particularly precarious situations. Dre has a similar encounter and the brothers decide against consulting Calla for advice. Things spiral and the second half goes off the rails entirely when the siblings travel to a derelict AirBnB.

I loved the first part and honestly the second part only made me adore the book more. The first half is a bit of a slow burn as we come to know the Williams’ siblings. The characters are so realistically flawed with the trauma they’ve undergone and yet the bond between siblings is so incredibly dense and there is this unexpected humor woven throughout the story.

The second half of the book is straight weird horror/fever dream. It injects reality into the intangible and books that feel like an acid trip will always hit that mark for me. I came to love the Williams’ siblings and felt so deeply invested in their tale. If you’re into weird horror in the vein of Clay McLeod Chapman that will have you wondering WHAT WAS THAT?! when you finish, I’d definitely recommend this one. It can be a harder read at times and not the most accessible. The plot structure is mostly linear but we revisit memories often and at times recollections are not what they seem. Anyways, loved it, highly recommend to the weird fiction crowd. Can’t wait to read more Neena Viel moving forward.

I was not sure how I felt about this book for the majority of the time I was reading it. I really enjoyed the writing, the story, and felt it was a unique concept. However, it also often felt very scattered and chaotic. It wasn't until the last 1/4 of the book that I was able to figure out whether I liked this one or not, but the ending ended up being fantastic and worth the chaos to get there.

Calla is the guardian to her young teenage brother, and her other brother, Dre, while a part of their lives, can't help her be a guardian to Jamie. Calla is struggling--balancing her job, her flailing love life, and the very real challenges of being a guardian to her reckless and willful teenaged brother. When Jamie gets in trouble at a protest, however, things change, and suddenly their lives are in danger. And not only from the Nightmare that Calla has been having her whole life.

The siblings have to go on the run, and tensions between the three of them run deeper and start to become something tangible they must address in order to survive.

I really liked the idea of this book, and the naturalistic manner the author has in describing the siblings troubled lives while retaining their humanity and reality, and the challenges of growing up in a broken home, with no safety net. But I found the story getting away from me as the book progresses into the more fantastical. However, this was entertaining and I would read something else by this author.

What in the world did I just read? This book was everywhere! It felt like the entire cast of characters was on one communal acid trip! I appreciate the opportunity to tandem read this crazy story. Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press | St. Martin's Griffin, and Neena Viel for the ARC of this book.

The story follows a sister forced to care for her younger brothers. Due to family trauma, she has created multiple versions of herself to help save and protect her troubled siblings.

I believe that if I were to listen to or read it again, I would be able to give it a higher star rating. The first time I experienced it, it was quite a mind trip. It was entertaining and even emotional, but definitely TRIPPY!

I am voluntarily leaving this review of my own accord.

This book started out strong, and I kept waiting for the eerie element when the family arrived at the cabin. Instead, the story just went a little haywire, and it just didn’t land well for me. It was an enjoyable read but not my favorite I’m sorry to say.

My thanks to the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book.