The Sisters of Berlin by Juliet Conlin
Berlin 2014. The 25th anniversary of the fall of the Wall, and the city is gearing up for a celebration of unity and liberation. But, beneath the surface, are those for whom the divisions and allegiances of the past remain close to home.
In her hushed and leafy corner of Berlin, Nina’s life is a comfortable, conventional one – until her younger sister Marie, a free-spirited writer, is attacked and left for dead. For Nina, Marie’s brutal demise – and that of her unborn child – tips her own carefully controlled life into a nightmare. Stonewalled by official incompetence and subterfuge, Nina begins to realise that her sister’s past and the secrets of the once-divided city are connected in unimaginable ways.
As she seeks out justice for Marie, Nina becomes caught in a tangle of obsessions, lies and hidden truths that threatens to destroy her marriage, her livelihood and all that she holds dear.
Author Bio
Juliet Conlin was born in London and grew up in England and Germany. She has an MA in Creative Writing from Lancaster University and a PhD in Psychology from the University of Durham. She works as a writer and translator and lives with her family in Berlin. Her novels include The Fractured Man (Cargo, 2013), The Uncommon Life of Alfred Warner in Six Days (Black & White, 2017), The Lives Before Us (Black & White, 2019).
Review
The Sisters of Berlin was an engaging read that dealt with the fall out of a brutal attack on a family member. I really enjoyed it. It evokes memories of being in Berlin and watching the fall of the wall in 1989.
The characters were well rounded and I really enjoyed the characters of Nina and Marie. I actually liked that you didn’t see the narrative from Marie’s viewpoint as it meant you found out information at the same rate of Nina. Anyone else get flashes of a parent/child relationship of ‘The Gilmore Girls’ vibe??? Nope just me then!
The narrative was well paced - I think some of the conversations between Nina and the detective could have been cut as they didn’t really give us too much information. I did realise who the ‘person’ was way before the end of the book but it was good to see that character from that viewpoint as it highlighted their creepy behaviour.
This was a good quick read which was highly enjoyable. You should give it a bash!
Buy Link
http://blackandwhitepublishing.com/shop.html
Publisher
Black & White Publishing was founded in 1999 by Managing Director Campbell Brown and Publishing Director Alison McBride. Since then, the business has grown into one of Scotland's leading independent publishers with over 300 books in print across a variety of genres. Committed to publishing the best books from the most talented writers in the UK and beyond, some of our bestselling authors include Daniela Sacerdoti, James Robertson, Estelle Maskame, Nick Alexander, Richard Gordon, Alex Norton, Millie Gray, Sally Magnusson and Tony Black. We produce an extensive range of titles, including general non-fiction, biography, sport and humour, as well as selected fiction, young adult and children's books.
This year, we've started an exciting new alliance with PGUK who now provide sales representation for our titles, and GBS continues to distribute our books. Our eBooks are distributed by Faber Factory. Over recent years, our range of fiction has grown following recent eBook successes such as Daniela Sacerdoti's Glen Avich series, which has sold nearly a million copies to date. These new alliances and our e-book successes are helping us shape and develop the list in new ways to bring more exciting new titles to both local and global markets.
