Review of THE SHADOW SISTER by Lucinda Riley

 3 Stars 

As I indicated in my review of the previous book in The Seven Sisters series, these books have become my audiobook guilty pleasures:  pure escapism that allows my easily distracted mind to wander.

Six girls were adopted by Pa Salt, an ultra-wealthy man.  After he dies, each daughter is given a letter and a clue to her true heritage.   Each daughter’s journey is the subject of a novel.  The Shadow Sister is the story of the third daughter Star. 

Her search leads her to an antiquarian bookshop in London owned by Orlando Forbes where she eventually takes a job.  He and his brother Mouse are in possession of the journals of Flora MacNichol who lived in the Lake District, next door to Beatrix Potter.  Flora is brought to London by Alice Keppel, a socialite and mistress of King Edward VII.  As Star looks into her connection to Flora, she also connects with the Forbes family. 

This third book follows a similar pattern to the previous two.  We are given the story of people from the past who have a link with at least one well-known historical figure; the past is usually revealed through old letters or journals.  There is romance both in the past and present, usually employing the love-at-first-sight trope.  The characters may not be aware of the attraction, but the reader will know as soon as characters are brought together that a romantic relationship will develop.  I guess the author should be given credit for including bisexual and lesbian characters, though they are not developed to any real extent. 

As with the previous books, the historical narrative often overshadows the present storyline.  The author must be applauded for her research.  I certainly knew about Beatrix Potter but I wasn’t familiar with Alice Keppel.  I did some further reading and discovered that through her younger daughter, Alice Keppel is the great-grandmother of Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, the former mistress and second wife of King Edward VII's great-great-grandson King Charles III.

What the book does lack is character development of the protagonist.  From the first two books, the reader knows that Star is quiet and has lived in the shadow of her sister CeCe.  They even developed a form of sign language to communicate, and it is obvious the two have a co-dependent relationship.  Not much new is learned about Star in this book, except that she is a good cook.  She supposedly wants to be a writer, but she never writes and, in fact, never reads. 

The reader is supposed to see growth in Star as she gains confidence and breaks away from CeCe, but the extent of her personal growth is questionable.  Her behaviour towards her sister, never actually discussing her wishes with CeCe, makes her seem selfish.  And her great reveal to Mouse is laughable.  She is living in the 21^st century, isn’t she?  I had thought that I’d like this sister the most, but that wasn’t the case. 

As I stated at the beginning, I’m listening to these books.  What I really disliked about the narration in this one is the accent given to Star.  It is so annoying that I was grateful that Star speaks so little.  And the voice given to CeCe is equally grating.  I’ve just downloaded the next book, The Pearl Sister, which is CeCe’s story.  I hope a different narrator is used.

Great literature this is not, but if I shut off my analytical and critical brain, I can be entertained.