I received this book for free from Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tour in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
The Seven Sisters by Lucinda Riley
Published by Atria
Publication Date May 5, 2015
Source: Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tour
Genres: Historical Fiction
Goodreads
Maia D’Apliese and her five sisters gather together at their childhood home, “Atlantis”—a fabulous, secluded castle situated on the shores of Lake Geneva—having been told that their beloved father, who adopted them all as babies, has died. Each of them is handed a tantalizing clue to her true heritage—a clue which takes Maia across the world to a crumbling mansion in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Once there, she begins to put together the pieces of her story and its beginnings.
Eighty years earlier in Rio’s Belle Epoque of the 1920s, Izabela Bonifacio’s father has aspirations for his daughter to marry into the aristocracy. Meanwhile, architect Heitor da Silva Costa is devising plans for an enormous statue, to be called Christ the Redeemer, and will soon travel to Paris to find the right sculptor to complete his vision. Izabela—passionate and longing to see the world—convinces her father to allow her to accompany him and his family to Europe before she is married. There, at Paul Landowski’s studio and in the heady, vibrant cafes of Montparnasse, she meets ambitious young sculptor Laurent Brouilly, and knows at once that her life will never be the same again.
In this sweeping, epic tale of love and loss—the first in a unique, spellbinding series of seven novels—Lucinda Riley showcases her storytelling talent like never before.
First Impressions
The Seven Sisters is the first book I have read by Lucinda Riley and this introduction entered with a bang. It immediately grabbed me. Despite not knowing anything about astrology and certainly not the seven sisters, Riley drew me in with a lush story. This included defined characters and a vivid backdrop of Rio de Janeiro. Therefore, it was not hard to be taken in.
Impressions While Reading
The Seven Sisters is told in two parts. Maia, the eldest sister searches for her biological family retracing steps back several generations with the reader following a “Genealogy Roadshow”. To be honest, Maia was a bit disappointing. As a character she had so much potential and just let it go to waste, Therefore, I was very frustrated.
I much preferred the second part of the novel. This featured Maia’s Great Grandmother Izabella during the 1920s. There was a liveliness and passion to Izabella’s story that quite frankly reminded me of Titanic. Like Rose, Izabella was caught in conformity wishing to be free of the necktie around her. She dges away from her Cal, Gustavo, who while not as attractive was just as smug and irksome. Laurent, was the Jack of the story of who she never fully let’s go of. It was quite the threesome. With the culture of Rio de Janeiro and 1920s Paris not to mention the creation of the statue of Christ the Redeemer, it infinitely held my attention.
Final Impressions
Overall, The Seven Sisters was a very good start to what could be an interesting series and look forward to reading of the other sister’s journeys.
Praise for The Seven Sisters
“A brilliant page-turner, soaked in glamour and romance.” -The Daily Mail
“Riley launches her most ambitious andexciting writing project to date…?a labyrinth of seductive time-switchstories, the enchanting brand of novel writing which has made Riley one of thebest women?s fiction authors on the market? An epic start to an epic series.” -The Lancashire Evening Post
The Seven Sisters Available at
Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Books-a-Million
IndieBound
About the Author
Lucinda Riley was born in Ireland and during her childhood travelled extensively abroad, particularly to the Far East to visit her father.
Moving to London she became an actress working in film, theatre and television. Five years ago she designed and built a house on the island of Koh Chang in Thailand, where her father had purchased land many years before. Her passion for history combined with her love of travel, and Thailand in particular, inspired her to write her novel Hothouse Flower, published by Penguin in November 2010.
She currently lives in Norfolk and France with her husband and four children.
For more information please visit Lucinda’s website. You can also find her on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Goodreads.
More Titles from Lucinda Riley
The Orchid House
The Lavender Garden
Girl on the Cliff
The Italian Girl
The Midnight Rose
The Seven Sisters Blog Tour Schedule
Monday, June 1
Review & Giveaway at Peeking Between the Pages
Spotlight & Giveaway at A Novel Review
Tuesday, June 2
Review at Just One More Chapter
Spotlight at Let them Read Books
Wednesday, June 3
Review at Always With a Book
Review & Giveaway at 100 Pages a Day
Thursday, June 4
Review at Book Nerd
Review at The Lit Bitch
Saturday, June 6
Interview & Giveaway at Bibliophilia, Please
Sunday, June 7
Spotlight & Giveaway at Teddy Rose Book Reviews Plus More
Monday, June 8
Review at Oh, for the Hook of a Book!
Tuesday, June 9
Review at CelticLady’s Reviews
Review at Ageless Pages Reviews
Wednesday, June 10
Spotlight & Giveaway at Passages to the Past
Thursday, June 11
Review at She is Too Fond of Books
Friday, June 12
Review at A Novel Review
Review at A Literary Vacation
Spotlight & Giveaway at To Read, or Not to Read
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