It definitely took me a minute to get into this story. There’s a lot of trippy things going on at the beginning, and I had so many questions. I kept reading because I was intrigued, and I’m glad I did. Explanations start to trickle in and it brings the pieces together. Still very trippy, but I appreciated the high stakes and the commentary on being the oldest sibling/sister. I haven’t read a lot of horror, but to me, this plot definitely checks the horror box.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced eARC.

Debut Author -> Autobuy Author

I loved loved loved how weird this got! It was definitely equal parts family drama and horror, but I was just as invested in the sibling relationships as the nightmare horror. I had to put this book down a few times because I was so mad at the brothers' behavior, and also the immersive nightmare horror got so tense. I think the Jordan Peele comp is totally accurate, and I cannot wait to read more from Neena Viel.

4 out of 5 Stars! Thank you, NetGalley and St Martin's Press for this eARC of Listen to Your Sister by Neena Viel.

Wowza, this is my first book by this author and it did not disappoint! I got this when it was during "read now" and I'm so glad I did. The characters were people I could relate to and the eerie setting felt pretty real while I read this. It had a mix of some dark humor that I may have to admit that I weirdly enjoyed haha.

I also have to admit that it started out pretty slow and boring, but I'm really glad I stuck it through! As much as I hate that, I'm so glad that it went that way because it does build up the characters and their relationships with each other. Then add in a couple of plot twists and you got yourself a wonderful read! Very beautifully done! I will be keeping an eye on this author!

Viel is a mastermind and this book is a work of raw, terrifying, heartbreaking, resonating art. There were so many powerful and well written lines, I probably highlighted over half the book. Viel has such a way with words, evoking imagery and emotions that stick with you long after you read.

Thank you St. Martin's Press, St. Martin's Griffin, Netgalley, and and the author for a complimentary copy of this ebook. I am leaving a voluntary review. All thoughts and ideas expressed are my own.

"Listen to Your Sister" follows three siblings, Calla, Dre and Jamie. After losing their father in an accident, and having a mother who is unable to care for her children, Calla legally became guardian for her youngest brother, Jamie. Her other brother, Dre, promised to help but ultimately doesn't live up to that promise causing even more stress for Calla. After Jamie gets in some trouble, Calla's nightmares come to life in an intriguing way.

I feel like this book has an interesting premise but it also has a lot going on. I didn't feel that connected to it overall and by the end, I felt like I was just sticking it out only to see what happened and not being I was dying to know.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press for selecting me for this ARC. I think it was an interesting debut for sure.

Listen to Your Sister
by Neena Viel

5⭐️

The story explored generational/ eldest sister trauma and racism. I really enjoyed this book, the dialogue, characters and eerie setting of the story was all so enjoyable. Not only horror but comic with a big side of psychological trauma. I honestly felt like I was in the room with the main characters as Neena Viel set such an eerie and unjust setting.

Listen to Your Sister is an eerie and gripping mix of horror, family drama, and dark humor. The story follows Calla Williams, a 25-year-old who suddenly becomes responsible for her teenage brother, Jamie, after their parents disappear. Struggling with anxiety and terrifying nightmares about losing her brothers, Calla does her best to keep things together, but Jamie’s rebellious streak only makes things harder. When a protest gone wrong forces them to go into hiding at a secluded cabin, they soon realize their biggest dangers may not just be outside—but within their own fractured family.

Neena Viel does a fantastic job crafting a tense, emotional story that blends supernatural horror with the real fears of responsibility, loss, and trauma. The sibling dynamic feels raw and authentic, making their struggles relatable even when the horror elements creep in. The writing is sharp, filled with moments of suspense, dark wit, and unsettling imagery that sticks with you.

The pacing starts off slow, allowing time to develop the characters and their relationships, but things escalate quickly in the second half. Some readers may find the shift a bit jarring, but it keeps the tension high. The blend of psychological horror and surreal moments adds to the book’s unsettling tone, though it does require close reading to fully appreciate.

Overall, Listen to Your Sister is a unique and haunting story that delivers both emotional depth and eerie chills. If you love horror with strong family themes and psychological suspense, this one is worth picking up!

I saw the comparisons to Jordan Peele and immediately hopped aboard! And I’m not going to lie this one did it for me. It was (to put it frankly) insane? But in the best way possible. The way that the author writes the trauma/aftermath of the trauma into the characters is beautiful.

I am late to this party at this point, but I wanted to show up anyway.
As a child, I loved the tale of Baba Yaga. I don't know if it's because the book I read from back down looked similar, or just some ineffable artistic mastery, but the moment I saw the cover of this book I thought of that beloved tale, and I went into it expecting something similar. I wouldn't say that it ended up being quite that - the comps are on point in terms of the tone and attitude the story brings to its subject matter - but I can't say I'm dissapointed. This is a chilling, utterly bizzare book that touches on some heavy, dark themes in an artful way, but does not quite manage to go all the way for me.

❛𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐬𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐚𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐧𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐬. 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐝.❜

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**sʟɪɢʜᴛ sᴘᴏɪʟᴇʀs**

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It took a bit for crazy shit to happen lmao but once it did I was hooked!

The book is about three siblings & weird shit that happens in a dream world starts seeping into the real world because of the sister, Calla.

Calla, the oldest, takes custody over Jamie, the youngest, when their father dies & their mother is unfit (she's emotionally & physically abusive) to take care of the kids. Dre, the middle child promises that he'll help Calla with their brother, but he often blows her off.

When she reaches her breaking point because of her brothers shit starts to get real 👀

It was an interesting read! The movies that came to mind when I was reading this book were Split (2016) & Us (2019). I haven't seen the movies but I know a bit about them, and bits & pieces of them reminded me of Calla's doppelgangers.

𝙩𝙧𝙤𝙥𝙚𝙨/𝙩𝙖𝙜𝙨:

- eldest daughter trauma
- racism
- doppelgangers
- feminine rage
- sibling bonds
- comic relief
- touch her brothers & you die
- multiple POVs

Calla’s dreams aren’t just dreams. They’re changing things for her and her brothers in ways they can’t ignore. With the story shifting between the three siblings, you get a real sense of how their world is twisting as the supernatural starts creeping in. It’s a good mix of family struggles and eerie tension, and it draws you in without trying too hard.

Thank you Netgalley for the e-arc.

I really wanted to like this book but unfortunately I had to DNF because it just didn't work out for me. I will try again to read it when I'm in the mood for a thriller and hopefully I can change my mind about it.

**Review: *Listen to Your Sister* by Neena Viel – A Bold, Nightmare-Fueled Exploration of Family and Fear**

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨ (4.5/5)

Neena Viel’s *Listen to Your Sister* is a whirlwind of family drama, social horror, and nightmarish terror, blending humor, heart, and surreal horror in an unforgettable debut. Fans of Jordan Peele’s films, *Stranger Things*, and *The Other Black Girl* will find much to love in this genre-defying novel that balances biting social commentary with a gripping supernatural horror story.

At its core, *Listen to Your Sister* is a story about family—specifically, the strained, loving, and often frustrating bond between Calla and her younger brothers, Jamie and Dre. At just 25, Calla is exhausted from holding her fractured family together, acting as guardian to rebellious 16-year-old Jamie while Dre, the middle child, conveniently distances himself from responsibility. To make matters worse, Calla is plagued by horrifying nightmares in which she watches helplessly as her brothers die over and over again. When Jamie gets caught in the chaos of a protest gone wrong, the siblings flee to a remote cabin—a setting straight out of a slasher film—where Calla’s nightmares bleed into reality in terrifying ways.

Viel’s writing is a standout feature, effortlessly balancing sharp, witty dialogue with unsettling, dreamlike horror. The sibling dynamic is the heart of the book—raw, messy, and painfully real. Calla is a phenomenal lead, carrying the weight of her family’s burdens while struggling to keep herself afloat, and her brothers, while infuriating at times, feel equally well-drawn and complex. The interactions between them feel lived-in and natural, making their emotional journey as gripping as the horror elements.

And *oh, the horror*. *Listen to Your Sister* does not hold back—there are moments of body horror, surreal nightmares that twist reality, and a growing sense of dread that builds into an explosive climax. Viel takes big risks, crafting a fever-dream narrative that occasionally spirals into chaos, but the sheer creativity of the horror keeps it compelling. At times, the nightmare sequences become so abstract and disorienting that they risk losing their emotional weight, but Viel’s tight grip on her characters ensures that the reader remains invested.

If there’s one flaw, it’s that the pacing falters toward the middle. The transition from grounded family drama to full-blown supernatural horror feels slightly abrupt, and some of the later horror sequences can be difficult to follow. However, the novel’s climax and resolution deliver in a deeply satisfying way, making any narrative hiccups feel minor in the grand scheme of things.

**Final Verdict:** *Listen to Your Sister* is a stunning debut that blends dark humor, psychological horror, and deeply personal family drama into a novel that is as thought-provoking as it is terrifying. Neena Viel is an exciting new voice in horror, and this book is a must-read for fans of socially charged, character-driven horror with a surreal, nightmarish twist. If you love horror that makes you think *and* makes your skin crawl, you’ll want to listen to your sister—and pick up this book.

"Listen to Your Sister" is a deep, emotionally complex horror story of three siblings, black in America, trying to survive. As the eldest, 23-year-old Calla has taken on guardianship of her 16-year-old brother, Jamie, after their family falls apart - a dad dead from a life of vice, and a mom who has rejected her children at every turn. Although she has the nominal assistance of the middle brother, Dre, everything in fact falls upon Calla's shoulders to deal with. The rent, the bills, the crappy job, a younger brother that just can't seem to stay out of trouble.

All of this "normal" life, if you can call it that, quickly turns sour as the siblings begin to experience visions - a strange young girl, an even stranger granny, paintings dripping blood. And when Jamie runs into trouble with the cops after a protest rally turns deadly, the siblings escape to a cabin in the woods that has to be the worst thing that's happened in print since Kirsty decided to play with the puzzle box and summoned the Cenobites. There are a lot of surreal scenes of blood, gore, and human excrement flying around, as well as the requisite broken bones, sliced flesh, and punctured limbs. And it all comes down to the three siblings to try to figure out what is really going on and how to survive the Nightmare that's been created.

There's a lot to process here, almost too much. I enjoyed the story of the strong siblings, but I also became annoyed at them at the same time. Calla was too self-sacrificing, Jamie too much of a boo-hoo, self-entitled prick, and Dre was too much just neglecting everyone but himself. The Nightmare was also a mess, and truthfully, I'm glad when it ended. I'm sure the siblings did as well.

For a debut novel, the author deserves my hearty congratulations! Kudos! She also deserves a better book cover - it's too "Cabin in the Woods" and less the psychological Nightmare head trip that this story was really about.

My thanks to Netgalley, the publisher, and author for the arc.

Unfortunately, this was not for me. The first few chapters really drew me in but then I feel like it took a different route that left me disappointed. The horror aspects were a little cheesy which put another damper on the story for me.

This book was a marathon of scary things! If that’s your thing, you’ll love it I would’ve preferred some slower building spooky moments, but that’s just my preference! Solid writing and good character development.

Listen to Your Sister by Neena Viel is a nightmare about nightmares. I did not like this book, and sometimes I hide that fact to the end. But Listen to Your Sister never gelled with me. The back half of the book was way better than the first half. The premise of the book was very solid and a great idea. The premise is an older sister, 24, who is raising one of her younger brothers, 16, and has helped and given up a lot for the other brother who is 23. So she has sacrificed a lot. Every time she sacrifices a demon is born that rests in her head, but something happens in this book that releases them all. It has a great premise it was one of the reasons I picked the book. I ended up hating most of the characters, Jamie and Dre feel like caricatures rather than characters. At the midway point is when they start to get developed but it is way too long. I did like Calla the sister character and found her the only redeeming quality of the book. I had a hard time picturing the words and actions of the characters. Most of the book is a nightmare come to life. Dream logic is a very hard thing to get right and make sense. This book has no rules whatsoever. I almost feel like the author has ADHD because there were so many tangents. There's a scene at the end where a character is in water and drowning and I kept forgetting he was in water because there are flashbacks in the middle of a dream that is a real nightmare. The book is all about the trauma of an uninterrupted life and would Calla's life be better without her brothers. The themes of trauma are throughout but the writing lets down the themes. Listen to Your Sister was an ambitious debut for author Neena Viel. I wanted to like this book but did not connect. I received Listen to Your Sister from Netgalley and St. Martin's Griffin. Listen to Your Sister was published on February 4, 2025.

Plot Summary: Jamie is in trouble at High School for smoking weed on the campus. Calla his guardian and sister has to attend a meeting to discuss his future. Jamie was found with a large bag of weed, the school was worried about him dealing. Jamie blames the school for being racist. Calla has to keep explaining that she is not the mother but the sister. Dre Calla's other brother comes into the meeting covered in flour from work, he cops on the weed being his to have the weed not go into custody. Jamie gets suspended which messes Calla's schedule up with work. Jamie doesn't care that he's ruining Calla's life. She asks him to return home a stay there and also asks Dre if he can help out which he brushes off. Jamie instead goes to a rally against the police. He is in charge of the van and giving weapons to people. Chaos happens at the rally where the van that had explosives blows up next to the police station. Jamie was out of the van investigating something strange. An officer chases him down and they start fighting the police officer has his gun on him. Before Jamie can act the officer is shot by a little girl. Jamie is freaked out and thinks no one will believe a little girl did this. Dre has a break in his place and is close to dying when a mysterious person enters the room and helps him. Dre can't remember what happened but is found in blood with a bloody baseball bat in his hands. Calla who was worried about Jamie being out tries to sleep and dreams of both instances like she was there. The brothers finally go to their sister and she gets an Airbnb cabin deep in the woods to lay low. But at the cabin, they learn they are not as safe as they thought as we learn more about Calla's dreams.

What I Liked: Calla was a great character. I liked all the layers that she had. I enjoyed her flashback scenes and how much she sacrificed for her brothers. I liked what the story was trying to say about trauma manifesting. The ending was focused and fixed some of the writing at the end. The book doesn't hold back, and the characters do go through hell with no one being safe. The premise of the story is great.

What I Disliked: The tangents are distracting. There are too many Sponge Bob references at odd times. This book loves its Sponge Bob and Anime references. When they worked it was lovely when something was randomly compared to Sponge Bob it did not work. Not enough explaining of what is going on there are instances where weird things happen that I would have to read a couple of times and sometimes still not know what was going on, and then a character would later explain what was going on and they would explain it where it made sense. The setting of a cabin in the woods did not make sense, since all the dreams take place in Florida. The mom of Calla, Dre, and Jamie is estranged but they could have gone back there, and it would have made the book better. Jamie was not written well, it takes so long for his personality to show that he felt like a cliche. I knew the author was black, but Jamie felt like a white person trying to write a black character, I hate to say. Jamie does get a personality eventually but way too late.

Recommendation: I did not enjoy this book at all. I still feel like the premise is very clever. I wanted this book to be good. Most debut authors over explain but this book did not explain enough and I was left lost on most of it. The writing style reminded me of Tamsyn Muir who will throw out random references but make them work. I will not recommend my followers to read this book. Where I did not like this book there are reviewers that I follow who do. I will say this book had the unfortunate honor of being the book that I read after James by Percival Everett. Which is one of the best books I have ever read.

Rating: Listen to Your Sister by Neena Viel I rated 1.9 out of 5.

Thank you to Netgalley for the advanced copy of this book.

First, I want to say that this book was well written. But, this book wasn’t for me. It started off slow and then became somewhat confusing keeping up with all the different versions on the main character. I did finish but was actually excited that it was over. I won’t say it was a bad book. It just wasn’t meant for me. I would try another book by this author.

Neena Viel's debut novel, "Listen To Your Sister," is a masterful blend of familial drama and supernatural horror that grabs readers from the first page.

The protagonist of the story, Calla Williams, is a determined young woman juggling personal struggles while fiercely protecting her two younger brothers—Dre, the unreliable dreamer, and Jamie, the reckless troublemaker. Their bond is tested as eerie and malevolent forces begin to haunt them, forcing the trio into a desperate flight for survival. Viel's portrayal of sibling dynamics adds depth and relatability, grounding the terrifying events in a deeply emotional core.

The novel’s pacing is relentless, pulling readers through a sequence of haunting, bloodcurdling encounters that blur the line between reality and the supernatural. Viel’s staccato prose and evocative atmosphere create an almost cinematic sense of dread, making every twist and revelation both gripping and unsettling. While the exact nature of the malevolent forces remains elusive, this ambiguity heightens the tension and leaves readers questioning what’s real.

"Listen To Your Sister" is set apart by its ability to balance visceral scares with profound themes of family, identity, and sacrifice. Viel weaves a tale that is as emotionally impactful as it is terrifying, culminating in a haunting exploration of familial love and the lengths we go to protect our own. This novel is a must-read for fans of psychological horror and suspenseful storytelling.

The narration of this was stellar. I loved listening to it. Listen to your sister is pretty heavy when it comes to language and violence. It's also more than what you read at the surface. It's actually very well written, social horror. There are a lot of deeper issues at work here.


If you're cool with weird fiction and enjoy books that are more than the obvious words on the page, then I definitely will recommend it!

I received a copy in exchange for an honest rebiew.