Sisters Like Us

What I love about Susan Mallery are her characters’ family relationships. Marriages that work. Siblings and mothers who irritate throughout the book until they learn a few hard-won lessons. Improbable couplings that end up right where they should when the improbable sorts itself out.

Such fun. I read this one as an audiobook.

Although this was the first Susan Mallery book that I have ever read, it will definitely not be the last. I enjoyed reading about the sisters and their different ways of approaching life, and I really enjoyed the character of Bunny, their mother. Harper is a strong, resilient woman with a creative and soft side. Stacey is a scientist with the organized and logical mind that you would expect to have a scientist to have. I will most remember the scenes in which Harper ends up taking on more work than she can do because she hasn’t learned the fine art of saying no, and the humor in the fact that Stacey is six months pregnant and hasn’t told her mom yet. It’s important that both the sisters have their own personalities, even though both were raised by the very demanding Bunny. I think readers of light romance will thoroughly enjoy this book since it is a light-hearted look at changes that a family undergoes and how they weather those changes. It has laugh-aloud parts and parts that may cause the reader to shed a tear or two, but for the most part it was a fun read. Not to be forgotten is Harper’s daughter Becca and her realistic look at growing up and getting ready to spread her wings.

Mallery is the best writer of relationships publishing today.

The well developed, realistic characters and their interactions make you want to read this book with a friend. Laugh out loud and experience Harper and Stacey and the way they manage their unique circumstances.

I highly recommend this book to fans of the genre.

I voluntarily read and reviewed a complementary copy of this book.

I love Susan Mallery’s books — her characters feel like friends going through situations I can sympathize with. She evokes a cozy, small town flavor to the setting that brings family interactions to life. Two sisters, a critical mother that neither can satisfy, children and dogs, a mix of husbands and boyfriends make this book interesting and enjoyable. This story is especially enjoyable in audio form.

Family relationships can certainly be complicated and the ones in this novel are quite convoluted. Harper Szymanski is divorced and barely keeping her daughter and herself afloat financially with her virtual-assistant business. Her mother’s constant criticism and unreal expectations take a toll on Harper emotionally as well. Her sister Stacey is a scientific genius working on helping MS patients deal with their disease and its effects, but feels very insecure and inadequate as her pregnancy progresses even though her husband plans to be a stay-at-home dad. Harper and Stacey stand firm together when their mother pushes them both to the edge. I loved this story of how both of these sisters grow in confidence and how they tackle the changes in their lives.

Susan Mallery does it again! From the very first paragraph I was drawn into the world of Harper, Stacy, Bunny (yep) and the rest of the family. They may seem like a dysfunctional family, because they are but they are loveable, likeable and you will laugh and want to cry right along with them. Bunny is Harper and Stacey’s mom, she harsh, very critical and thinks things should only be done one way! Becca, Harpers daughter is still trying to find her way after her parents divorce and her mom having to work for a living. Stacey is a genius, and still can’t believe she married the perfect man but also that she is pregnant! at 40! and is due within 2 months and still hasn’t told her mom! This was one of the best books ever, and I really enjoyed it. There was a few stories going on but they flowed so well together that is took no effort to keep up.

I very cautiously picked this book to read. In varying degrees I like almost all of the author’s books. That wasn’t the problem. I just wasn’t sure how I would like this story as it was explained. So I took a small risk and boy, am I glad I did. I LOVED, LOVED it!
Harper and her sister Stacey had wildly different stories but did have a least a couple things in common. One is there completely dysfunctional relationship with their mother. Even as they are in their forties it is still kind of crippling their lives. Bunny has these rigid standards that she totally expects her daughters to line up with. She loves them but uses manipulation and guilt at every turn. You’ll have to read the book to see if she ever shows any redeeming qualities as the story goes on.
I want to take a minute and mention a few of the starring people in the story. Since I already mentioned Bunny, here are some of the rest:

Harper- She is struggling so hard to just survive and provide for her daughter Becca. Her daughter has no idea how hard things are for her mother. And things just keep getting piled more and more on Harper’s plate. Her ex is no help either. He’s a barely there guy with his own kid. He just came across as entitled and selfish to the bone.

Stacey – was the smartest person in any room. But not that way emotionally. She often observed that she didn’t understand and often missed subtle cues socially. Most people just didn’t get her either. But she does feel blessed that her husband Kit does. She has a good marriage even though she is terrified of her pregnancy. She just knows she’s going to be a terrible mother.

Kit- is so excited that he is going to have a daughter with Stacey. He definitely was Stacey’s Rock and it was good to see how he did that. He IS someone not afraid to stand up for her and just let her be herself.

Becca- she’s feeling invisible. She’s been let down by her father and his promises too many times to count. Her mother is so busy with her business that she barely has time for Becca either. Of course, Becca has no idea how desperate the finances are and is just your typical teenager. But she’s not going to be clueless for too much longer. People start showing her this is her time to grow up a big. Lucas is the one that helps her the most in that area. He does care about her and he IS always there for her. He becomes like a surrogate father to her. He’s fond of her but he also doesn’t pull any punches.

Ashton- is Kit’s nephew and wow, he has had a rough life. But things are looking up for him now and he appreciates it a lot. He becomes part of the family, something he hasn’t had for a very long time.

Lucas- Now here is an usual character. He’s an experienced older man. He’s a detective and a chaser of seriously younger women. Not criminally young though. None of them lasting all that long either. Just flings, here and there. He has a lot of good qualities though and some of the conversations between Harper and Lucas are seriously funny. He helps her a lot but at one point he breaks the only one promise that Harper asked of him. At first I thought it was a misunderstanding. But no, it wasn’t, and it made me want to hurt him. Things work out but as in any good book, it’s gonna be rocky for a while.

Dean- he ends up being quite the friend and a huge help to her business. And help was definitely needed. Now, here was some smile-worthy conversations.

I’m not forgetting to mention that there are several canines added to the story. It’s a worthwhile addition.

So, to me this story was charming, emotional, with believable challenges and complex people. The people had depth and they drew me in.

GOOD BOOK

Susan Mallory never disappoints.

As always Susan Mallery delivers. A great book with great characters, I had a hard time putting it down.