Borrowed Book By: I’ve known about the Seven Sisters book series for quite awhile now, however, I haven’t had the proper chance to dig into the series – therefore, when I was approached by the publisher to considering being on the blog tour this February, I decided it was time to borrow the books via my local library! Although, as a member of the blog tour I was receiving the fourth release “The Pearl Sister” for my honest ruminations, I decided to back-read the entire series ahead of soaking into the newest installment – my personal preference is to read serial fiction in order of sequence; even if sometimes I find myself bungling the order, I love to see how the writer has set the stage for a series which becomes progressively engaging! To start at the beginning is the best way to see how they laid down the foundation for both the series, their writing style and how the characters first make their entrances into our lives.
I borrowed the third novel in the Seven Sisters series “The Shadow Sister” in hardback edition from my local library via inter-library loan through the consortium of libraries within my state. I was not obligated to post a review as I am doing so for my own edification as a reader who loves to share her readerly life. I was not compensated for my thoughts shared herein.
On how I felt after I read the second installment of the series:
As Star starts to reveal a bit of herself away from CeCe, we see an inverted woman who is introspectively private about herself – even around Ally, she holds back from sharing too much of what is currently on her mind. You feel for Star, truly, because for whichever reason she has chosen to keep mute about things which her sisters’ wish she would be more open about sharing with them. They would like to help her if she would only allow them into her world – I know her story is going to be one of the more interesting ones to read – to see what hides behind the silence but for now, I, chose to take Star at ‘hallo’ just like her sisters Maia and Ally. After all, sometimes you have to wait for people to disclose what they want to say in their own timing of disclosure. I do love seeing how the ‘next’ sister in line of the sequences to be read makes her own ‘entrance’ of sorts within the current time-line.
As Ally intuits more of the back-history of Anna’s life, she starts to realise a part of her own spirit was put on ‘hold’ over the years – the pursuit of her own musical interests, as she shares a passion for the flute just like Jens before her except she opted to take to the open sea instead. There was a reflection by Pa Salt which made quite a bit of sense when he was talking about how to encourage our children and how it is a fine line which route we give a loving nudge for them to take-on as their main thread of interest – especially if the child in question has multiple interests or passions. Ally, up until this point in her life hadn’t really taken a critical look at her personal life – of seeing if the choices she had made in her career of sailing was truly sustaining her happiness or if the absence of a relationship was giving her second thoughts. By the time she had met Theo, it felt like any missing piece of her life was finally found; which of course, made the course she was on to walk that much more despairing to read.
My heart surely was rejoicing watching all the pieces of Ally’s past knit back together in the present; she had a lovely tapestry of ancestral history co-merging into her living reality. The layers in which her past had influenced her present is quite interesting to see intersect, but personally, I loved how the secondary characters of Celia and Thom had such an impactful presence on her current life. Of course, having grown used to the process now well-established in the series, I knew I had to shift my own heart to focus on Star; as she was revealling a portion of what she needed to impart to us about herself in the ending chapter of The Storm Sister. As she did this, I mused to myself some of the clues I was picking up from past chapters were re-alighting to mind – of what Star hadn’t said or wasn’t willing to disclose might now have their day to shine a light on how the one sister no one felt they knew for sure was the one sister who intrigued me the most to become acquainted with next!
-quoted from my review of The Storm Sister
The Shadow Sister
by Lucinda Riley
Source: Borrowed from local library (ILL)
Synopsis on the Inside Flap:
Star D' Apliese is at a crossroads in her life after the sudden death of her beloved father - the elusive billionaire affectionately called Pa Salt by his six daughters, all adopted across the four corners of the world. He has left each of them a clue to her true heritage, and Star's leads her to an antiquarian bookshop in London, and the start of a new journey.
A hundred years earlier, headstrong and independent Flora MacNichol vows she will never marry. She is happy and secure in her home in England's picturesque Lake District - just a stone's throw from the residence of her childhood idol, Beatrix Potter. But when circumstances carry her into the home of one of Edwardian London's most notorious society hostesses, Alice Keppel, she finds herself a pawn in a larger game, forced to choose between passionate love and duty to her family. That is, until a meeting with a mysterious gentleman unveils the answers that Flora has been searching for...
Star's voyage of discovery takes her deep into Flora's remarkable story, and into her own past. But the more she uncovers, the ore Star begins to question herself and her place in the world. What is her purpose? Where is her home? And will she finally step out of the shadows of her sisters and open herself up to the possibility of love?
Places to find the book:
ISBN: 978-1-4767-5994-4
Also by this author: The Seven Sisters, The Storm Sister, The Pearl Sister, The Moon Sister
Also in this series: The Seven Sisters, The Storm Sister, The Pearl Sister, The Moon Sister
Published by Atria Books
on 18th April, 2017
Format: Hardcover Edition
Pages: 512
Published By: Atria (@AtriaBooks)
{imprint of} Simon & Schuster (@simonschuster)
I *love!* finding videos by authors who love to engage with readers about the inspiration behind their stories – this truly is a wonderful way to find yourself immersed even further into the settings as by catching small glimpses of the characters your reading about – you start to re-align what you’ve read with what they are seeing with their own eyes whilst feeling thankful the author took a very immersive path into the heart of this book series!
The Seven Sisters Series: of whom are Maia, Ally (Alcyone), Star (Asterope), CeCe (Celeano), Tiggy (Taygete), Electra and Merope – the series is based on the mythology of the Seven Sisters of the Pleiades – interestingly enough, this is a constellation in close proximity to Orion*.
The Seven Sisters : Maia’s Story (Book One) | (see also Review)
The Storm Sister : Ally’s Story (Book Two) | (see also Review)
The Shadow Sister : Star’s Story (Book Three)
The Pearl Sister : CeCe’s Story (Book Four) | Synopsis *forthcoming review 1st of February, 2018!
Available Formats: Hardcover, Audiobook, Paperback and Ebook
Converse via: #SevenSistersSeries
#whoispasalt ← I advise not visiting the second tag on Twitter as it tends to reveal a few things ahead of reading the stories themselves.
About Lucinda Riley
Lucinda Riley is the #1 internationally bestselling author of sixteen novels, including Hothouse Flower and The Seven Sisters. Her books have sold more than ten million copies in over 30 languages. Lucinda divides her time between West Cork, Ireland, and Norfolk, England with her husband and four children.
Photo Credit: Boris Breuer
on where we alight within the third installment:
Blessedly, Ms Riley increased the time within Star’s story to where she has already come and gone from Atlantis – she is back in her London flat with her sister, CeCe and having found inspiration from Tiggy’s suggestion of writing down her emotions she’s begun to do this in earnest. I should have picked up on this sooner, as not every writer is an extrovert; Star has a very introverted and shy personality (at least as it has been seen thus far along) – owning to how well she might find writing as a vessel to carry her thoughts outward from her heart and into the world.
Star and CeCe remind me of the twin sisters I used to know whilst growing up – there were three pairs of twins, actually – each of them I observed had the same issue Star was starting to realise she had herself with CeCe. At some point, one of the twins would wake-up and realise, she wanted to disentangle herself from the other twin; to step out of her shadow, live a bit freer and more independently rather than continue to be in each others’ bosom as they say. Star was finding the comfortable closeness she was used to with CeCe was not going to sustain her anymore; she craved having her own space, living her own life and even if that hurt CeCe in the short term, she was trying to find the courage to remain strong in her conviction. This was a moment for her to take a risk and see if she really could find a place in the world where she could live as ‘Star’ rather than as the sister attached to the hip of CeCe.
I knew their Ma had welcomed one of the sisters back between their first return to Atlantis and the other sister’s return trip home after going aboard to find her roots. What I couldn’t recollect tonight was if it were Star or CeCe! This is one blessing I’ve had this week in reading all the stories back to back – I’ve kept most of the continuity in the forefront of my mind and memory. Even though originally I was going to read the first three novels spilt over three months (one per month) – this personal readathon of mine has been wicked lovely! Rightly so, Maia was still in Brazil at this junction in time which meant Ally had not yet gone off to discover Theo. As I read Star mentioning CeCe was the sister with dyslexia, I had to go back to my thoughts on The Seven Sisters to note how I was genuinely confused as previously it was stated Electra had the learning difficulty.
My Review of the shadow sister:
Star had learnt of the anguish Ally was experiencing through the headlines in a newspaper but what was truly afflicting her right now was how fate and destiny were swirling into her path. She wasn’t as determined as her other sisters to sort out her ancestral mystery of origin but at the same time, she couldn’t help but notice she was becoming more curious about the clues Pa Salt had entrusted with her especially as the book shoppe she was intending to visit had already entered her life twice. Star was still emerging into her skin, still trying to sort out ‘who’ Star was and what she wanted to do with her life (away from CeCe). She had a level head about her but her guilt for CeCe was quite intensive; she had come to her sister’s rescue as a child but never felt willing enough to let CeCe fend for herself at a point in time where she could have moved forward with her own life separate from her sister’s. In this, you start to see the arduous hardship being inflicted on her soul because at her heart, Star doesn’t encourage negativity nor does she like to be the inflictor of pain. She’d rather take the high road without expressing her own thoughts rather than trying to express herself as she would run the risk of someone (especially CeCe) of misconstruing her intentions.
Part of her journey towards understanding herself had been to take a cooking course but even here, we observed her not finding the will to self-advocate for herself in a situation where one of her peers had the upper hand in regards to who truly made which part of the dish they were being judged. You have immediate empathy for Star – she spent her whole life not having to defend herself because the alternative worked for her – she could handle where her path led. Now? In her twenties her life felt like she had only half lived it up until this point – where letting CeCe control both their lives was gnawing on her ever last nerve and how she couldn’t quite imagine why she had allowed things to get this far afield. There is an observation mentioned in the story-line – of how Star feels like she’s trapped in a marriage not of her choosing except of course, she isn’t a lesbian nor is she wed to a man; she’s co-habituating with her sister. I think for Star, the lines had blurred the two girls together too much over the years and this was partially due to how CeCe hadn’t properly addressed why she needed Star so wicked close to her without too much absence.
I loved when Star lamented a book shoppe was her personal oasis of joy because this is how I feel amongst stacks of lovelies (ie. stories!) in which I haven’t yet read or are the current treasured friends already on my shelf but are in different editions than the ones I already own! I can become lost inside a book shoppe inasmuch as I can a library! These are treasured places in my life – where I get the pure excited giddiness of a bookish soul about to find her next story which might become a beloved read! (such as this series has felt all week long!) Each of us has a singular place where we find a niche of joy and happiness; a place which speaks directly to our soul and our sense of self – a place where we find we can re-fuell after the world feels a bit heavy on our shoulders. Books have a way of transporting us away for a spell outside our living realities to another person’s life – wherein we step into their shoes, live a lifetime on their experiences and recollect ourselves to re-face the world from whence we left it. Other times, stories tickle our funny bones or give us a championing uplift of spirit right in line with the perennial joys of our ordinary lives. Stories enlighten us, they entertain us and they deepen our empathy for the people who are our neighbours; as they seek to make the world feel a bit closer, a bit smaller and far more accessible than to keep us all feeling distant from one another. You get pulled inside because of how writers have this incredible gift of using their words as keys to how others think and feel outside our own experiences whilst giving us a cardinal eye view of different cultures, traditions, religions and customs near and wide. In essence, to read is to celebrate our humanity – in all its wonderful glory.
Blessed Star found a book shoppe which believes in the ready enjoyment of literature! Not every Indie book shoppe believes you can simply select a book off their shelf, sit in one of their comfy chairs and dig into the book which enchanted you as you found it awaiting your eyes and heart! I love the shoppes which understand booklovers and the immediate needs we have to pause our ‘life’ to see if we want to take a leap inside a story right then and there or if we simply want to ‘sample’ the style of the author before we make our purchase selections. The worst shoppes I’ve stumbled into want the bottom-line sale, insist you don’t loiter in the stacks and wish you’d knew what you wanted as soon as you walked in. To me, they miss the point behind why we linger in the aisles and rows; why we dig so heartily into a bargain bin and how come our eyes dance with potential glee in what we might find down a shelf we hadn’t visited in awhile. We have to sense out what calls to our mind and heart; finding books to read (either fiction or non) is a process – this book shoppe Star was inside celebrates this and I champion all the lovely shoppes who uphold the tradition!
I took a keen eye on the bloke in the book shoppe myself; he wasn’t like others his age – most thirty-something blokes are not as literary-minded as he is (so refreshing!) but it was also his spontaneous nature which appealed to me most! Most blokes like things in a set schedule or don’t defer to when life brings you an unexpected person into your day – the ways in which he off-set Star’s social anxieties was a nod towards his respect for her introverted nature. She, herself was more at ease by his acceptance of her quirks; if she felt like she ought to be quieter, he allowed it. Mind you, the bag lunch he collected from the neighbouring restaurant (whose menu wickedly rotates each day!) smelt divine!
Laughing with the mirth of joy! I love how relatable Orlando is (the book shoppe bloke) – even I understand his attention deficit issues – how he gets inspired by this or that, flutters round topics and sometimes loses himself in something entirely different than what he set out to do! I even have this issue with stories I wish to read! I get so wicked happy for the discovery of stories or the random ones I find along my journey, I sometimes forget the ones I’m already intending to read! Of course, sometimes I think my short-term memory likes to jumble things up a bit, too – my long term remembers but in the shorter expanse of days? I think I ought to take better notes! lol Who wouldn’t like Orlando? He’s bookishly geeky, charmingly intellectual — dear my! Is this the second time I’ve fallen for a ‘book boyfriend’ save the first who is Mr Darcy? Hmm. Perhaps, I have,..
At this point, I was full of smiles in pure contentment,.. for when Star reflected being bourne of the wrong era and Orlando lamenting is disdainment for modern technological communications taking over analog outlets, I knew I had found two characters who I could not only relate to but they were long lost kindred bookish spirits! Says the girl who still loves postal letters and has a keen start on collecting vintage typewriters which still ‘work’ and clack their keys into her heart. These two would love hosting a ‘type-in’ and using the food in the neighbourhood as an enticement to get the typosphere together!
Not since I was so readily entrenched inside the lovely British serial Two Fat Ladies which took-on the food centric adventures of two wonderfully talented cooks who loved to travel in their motorcycling sidecar and cook for people – had I found such a delight in watching someone cook everything from wild game to comfort foods! Star truly was starting to blossom into her own skin – finding her spirit taking flight and her soulfulness of self emerging as if she had been hibernating the rest of her life whilst hugged tight to CeCe.
Despite his socially awkward mannerisms, Orlando’s brother did provide Star with the back-story on Flora MacNichol she was seeking to find – within the pages of his own notes, she was starting to discover Flora was a woman out of time, for she lived in the early Nineteen Hundreds, at a point in time where girls’ were groomed to be ‘coming-out’ to the world in search of a well-matched marriage. She, instead took to the natural environs on her family’s estate, caring for the animals and in this regard, I could well see why she was an equal match for Beatrix Potter who was behind a lot of the natural reserves in England. A friendship would surely be in wont of need for both women who had such a healthy appreciation for the natural world and the creatures who charmed their heart with a lot of happiness.
It is through this journalling of her life (of sorts) we start to see how her life emerged forward – of how the contrast between her own heart’s desires to be a gamekeeper of sorts for her animals and the intentions of her family to see her happy despite the contrary ways in which they were focusing more on her sister than her own affairs therein; she was finding herself feeling conflicted. The one beau of choice her parents would agree upon was a neighbouring chap who was quite the dolt with social graces but he had surprises in store for her as well; such as taking her off-guard and having a few interests which she never felt he’d entertain the notion of much less have in common with her. He was a puzzle that’s for sure and oft-times I think most girl’s like Flora could claim the same about the opposite sex. She in truth, reminded me so much of Star – she was keen on intellectual pursuits but she liked her private space (away from others) just as much. She had a mind not set to the priorities of her age but rather, she followed her own intuition and tried to live at a pace which suited her best. All of this had me reflecting back on Star, who like Flora was a step outside her generation, too.
Finding herself extracted from her family’s home and placed into the role of tutor for someone named Alice Keppel stung as Flora never felt her mother would betray her in such a large way as this – to choose her future without the consideration of what Flora might want for herself in that regard – yet, what could you do? If you were in her position you’d have to bite down the anger and face what would come tomorrow. In a different way, I could see how this was contrasting against Star’s predicament with CeCe – perhaps, this Keppel woman would provide a leeway of an exit for Flora to find her own way as much as Orlando was providing the catalyst for Star.
Rather true to life, sometimes what feels at first as a blessing can turnt into something rather obtuse and different. Where Flora had felt her life was starting to become a bit better than what her recent past had afforded to feel about her future, she was blindsided yet again by a change of fortune; this time by her unknown birthright upending her resolve. In this vein, she was like her descendant Star (although not yet confirmed) who knew nothing of her past nor of how she was aligned by birth into a family’s line – Flora could only rely on her wits to see her through the adversities her life would present to be overcome. It was here in those uncertain hours she once again turnt to Beatrix Potter – of whom had helped her out of a jam when she had no one else to bequest her animals too. Herein, Ms Potter helped her find refuge out of despair and a second chance at living amongst nature and the blissitude of a farm life.
Meanwhile, Star was finding trying to find your ancestral past was not always as keen of an adventure as one could desire – she was marred by hidden histories, secrets which took forever and a day to surface and misunderstandings which sought to disrupt the friendship she had formed with Orlando. She had felt close to his family, even to young Rory who despite never having heard sound in his life lived fully through how his Mum endeavoured to give him all the opportunities a boy his age could want to have without the prejudices (of others) hindering his growth. Star was in the thick of everything afflicting this family (past and present) but it was how she had to seek to find a calm resolve out of the chaos which challenged her the most as it was not in her nature to find herself in the midst of confrontations; in fact, it was the complete opposite of her innate reflexes.
Inspired by Flora and encouraged by her own heart to learn the truth of her own blood-line, she forged ahead even without understanding how she could resolve the past. The interweaving layers of this one are emotionally thicker due to the overwhelming angst of what all the women in Star’s family had to endure; straight down to her own Mum! You truly feel for these women – who through each generation had to continue to overcome such intense odds! The beautiful part about having Beatrix Potter in the story is how what I had known about her was lovingly etched into Flora’s back-story; a person who encouraged a woman to live and to seek out love no matter the costs or fears of heartbreak. After all, to love is to risk and without risk we are each only half alive! And, this was truly what allowed Star to be set ‘free’ – by researching her ancestral line, she unexpectedly found herself, found purpose in her life and allowed herself to ‘fall’ for the first time in love with someone she never felt she’d feel attracted too because she never gave herself the freedom to ‘live’ away from CeCe.
A note on the threads of Adoption within the novel:
I admit, I was thankful this sister’s story led to a happier restitution in regards to her birth story as Maia and Ally had quite a reckoning of truth awaiting each of them as they unravelled theirs. For Star though she had more to learn not just about her origins but about herself – she truly had finally found the time to focus on who she was inside and out. I think this was the main purpose behind why Pa Salt hadn’t let his daughters take these adventures until now; they weren’t ready to seek out the truth of their past because they weren’t yet ready to take a critical look at their lives. Each of them were coming-of age to the brink of where they could honestly understand themselves better and recognise the beauty of why Pa Salt raised them on Atlantis.
Each of these novels is a lift of joy to be reading – especially for those of us who are considering Adoption and for having a family of adopted children in our futures. They are such beautiful tomes of adoptive joy bursting through the past and the present – I can imagine they would be beloved reads for all adoptive families and lovingly would find a place in their family libraries! I know one day I shall have the full set on my own bookshelves awaiting the day to be shared with my own children. As these are stories boys and girls should read who are seeking forever families and find their adoptive parents gave them a home they never knew they could have whilst encouraging them to remember who they are and who their families were prior to their second chapters beginning anew.
A note on Equality in Lit:
A young boy who is deaf is part of the supporting cast whilst Star and CeCe shared their own personal language made out of ‘signs’ they created together. It’s a unique perspective from two different angles of insight about how sign language can become incorporated into one’s life. Similar to the other inclusions of diversity and equality within the series, these inclusions were also organically interwoven into the tapestry of the present background of where the story is set and vibrantly brought to life. Nothing ever feels forced in this series but stitched together as authentically as you might stumble across the people and places yourself IRL adventures.
I had picked up on the clues about Shanthi’s sexuality even before it was mentioned by her – (bisexuality) and I had wondered if Star might be as well. There were little nudges here or there which eluded to her sexuality might not be as easily to decipher as she felt it might be to herself; however, there is a section where Shanthi draws Star out into an open conversation about the subject. It was wonderful to see both women talking openly about their more intimate natures and the views they both had on the topic.
Their sexuality was not the only ones being revealled as Orlando’s sister hides her partner, Helene for most of the novel; which I could understand as there is a greater truth ebbing out of the shadows here within her own thread of story involving the young boy Rory. In each instance, the characters are honoured by the openness in which Ms Riley has approached their secrets to be handled. She gives them the ability to dictate how they want to disclose their sexualities but also how they realise by doing so, they might be alienating themselves from those they trust and love.
on the historical writing styling of lucinda riley:
I’ve been speaking a lot about the author’s depth of perspective in her historical narratives thus far afield in the series but also how she grounds you on the sisters journey into each of their ancestral research – where the ‘historical bits’ thrive most; however, the Contemporary aspects of her novels are equally a treat for readers who like seeing the current world presented with a flair for observational nuance. This time round, it is London which is lovingly brought to life and reflective of a modern day city which has shed some of it’s non-technologic origins in favour of a faster paced lifestyle wherein some places (such as the book shoppe Star happily finds her niche of purpose) are still holding onto the slower pace of where living and work co-exist at a rate of eased enjoyment.
Having friends who live in and round London, I had a good foundation of the goings-on of the city itself, however, since Star and Orlando are as wickedly bookish as I am, I appreciated their eyes on London as they entreated into the places where others might overlook. Even as we first started to see the references reflecting an interest in Beatrix Potter, I felt were well suited to the natural course this installment was taking to highlight Star’s ancestry and birth origins. It seemed right for her to have this kind of a past and to have met Orlando at the point in which she did as he too, liked unravelling mysteries which require a bit of sleuthing vs having all the information at hand.
A short note on the continuity of the series & development of the Seven Sisters:
This wasn’t the first time I had noted key similarities between the ancestors and the sisters of whom held within their own personalities the living composites of their ancestors. It spoke to the curious ways in which we can each find commonalities in our own lineages – what then, is of our own instinctive natures and what is inherited? What is an interest we developed ourselves whilst we were experiencing life and what could potentially have become re-affirmed after someone in our past had already made the same curious discovery themselves as being important to them? How is what we are defined and observed? Is all of life simply how we internalise what we experience or is it something more? Something perhaps which is not easily defined by our own observations but felt closer to how our soul views our time on Earth!?
- to read more about the Mythos behind the characters, view this lovely Introduction!
whilst reading, i was listening to #pandoraradio:
As you might have noticed throughout the past few years, I’ve been talking about #amlistening to music whilst I #amreading – it has started to thread through my readerly tweets as well (being a social reader) as I like to give credit where it’s due especially as I’ve been trying out different (free) online platforms for listening to music. Each time I’ve ‘switched’ to a new platform is due to either a major buffering issue or I simply moved on to seek out a more balanced listening experience. Generally speaking, I do like to highlight how I listen to music as I might in effect help another reader find a space online they can trust to help give them a better reading experience.
Lately, I’ve been finding Pandora a better app per se for those of us who use Win10 – as it works well in the ‘background’ whilst we’re #amblogging (for instance) whilst it’s easy to manipulate as well. The app is lovely for those of us who have an eclectic mood for music whilst owning to the fact we listen to a variety of songs or classical selections depending on what we’re doing – for instance, I listen to a heap of Rock Alternative or Pop selections for actively tweeting, reading my Twitter feeds or commenting on blogs; conversely, when I’m reading, I’m generally seeking out Classical selections. I used to only be able to listen to Ambient and Trance Electronica (courtesy of my favourite “Hearts of Space” website (hos.com) but it’s a subscription based site and I had to let it go a few years ago) when I am reading – apparently, I’ve evolved!
I listen to a particular brand of Country music (mostly Outlaw Country or variants therein for Contemporary artists with a few Classic Country selections thrown in for good measure) for the Marjorie Trumaine Mysteries I love reading – but in regards to my mainstay for reading? I have the tendency not to be able to listen to ‘words or lyrics’ and have a keen preference for chords of music which might hint towards popular hits but are classical in nature of delivery.
This is why finding a new station like “Classical for Studying” has been such a huge benefit to me whilst reading the #SevenSisterSeries! It has the epic vibe of Broadway Musicals and Sound for Motion Picture interspersed with selections I’d appreciate out of my Electronica roots – it has this cinema-tropic vibe too – of something larger than the music itself as it develops this musical backdrop to the words within Ms Riley’s series. Thereby curating it’s own musical thread of ‘place’ and intuitively works like an organic soundscape for my reading hours! (that’s the best part!)
One bit to note is most of all the musical offerings which aided my soundscapes for this series is the fact I predominately was drawn inside the pieces played by wicked brilliant violists and/or cello players! In fact, all-in I knew my ears were savouring all the spots where a violin entered into the fray – I found new artists to follow & appreciate whilst recognising I think I have always been drawn to the violin. Perhaps initially because of my grandfather but afterwards? There is something quite incredible about the instrument’s vocalisation of emotion and the craft of how it reflects the humanistic journey.
Reader Interactive Question:
What are your favourite reasons for dipping into a story which ‘shifts’ through time – happily residing in dual timelines of both the present and the past whilst engaging you in a multi-generational saga which expands and contracts through the experiences and journeys the key characters are undertaking throughout the story itself?
If you’ve been reading the Seven Sisters series,
What encourages your heart whilst reading this kind of Historical Fiction?
UPCOMING this week:
[more ruminations about #TheSevenSisters series!]
leading into my blog tour featured review for #ThePearlSister on the 1st of February!
{SOURCES: The book covers for “The Seven Sisters”, “The Storm Sister”, “The Shadow Sister” and “The Pearl Sister”; the author photograph of Lucinda Riley and the author biography were provided by the publisher; all of the Press Materials as well as the inside flap blurb is being used with permission of Simon & Schuster. Tweets embedded due to the codes provided by Twitter. YouTube videos featuring the author Lucinda Riley talking about the Seven Sisters series was embedded due to codes provided by YouTube. Post dividers by Fun Stuff for Your Blog via Pure Imagination. Blog graphics created by Jorie via Canva: Book Review Banner using Unsplash.com (Creative Commons Zero) Photography by Frank McKenna, 2018 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge and the Comment Box Banner.}
Copyright © Jorie Loves A Story, 2018.
I’m a social reader | I tweet my reading life
This first tweet is the start of a *thread on Twitter where I quite literally micro-blogged my journey reading this novel “The Shadow Sister”.
Entering my 3rd #SevenSistersSeries novel: Star's story (w/in The Shadow Sister) – it has become a tradition to watch @lucindariley's video intro per each book I #amreading. Star's story is the one I was most keen on uncovering due to her quiet nature. 📺💗https://t.co/FMi1MSrbtZ
— Jorie Story 📖🎧 (@joriestory) February 1, 2018
#JorieReads | the #SevenSistersSeries
The beautiful part about having #BeatrixPotter in the story is how she was lovingly etched into Flora's back-story; a person who encouraged a woman to live and to seek out love. | The Shadow Sister 📚💗@lucindariley https://t.co/tu4L9UeyMD
— Jorie Story 📖🎧 (@joriestory) February 1, 2018
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