Book Review: My Sister's Voice

Thanks to my day job, I am slightly overdue to share my book review on Mary Carter's latest novel, My Sister's Voice.

From marycarterbooks.com: What do you do when you discover your whole life was a lie? In Mary Carter’s unforgettable new novel, one woman is about to find out. . .

At twenty-eight, Lacey Gears is exactly where she wants to be. An up-and-coming, proudly Deaf artist in Philadelphia, she’s in a relationship with a wonderful man and rarely thinks about her difficult childhood in a home for disabled orphans. That is, until Lacey receives a letter that begins, “You have a sister. A twin to be exact…”

Learning her identical, hearing twin, Monica, experienced the normal childhood she was denied resurrects all of Lacey’s grief, and she angrily sets out to find Monica and her biological parents. But the truth about Monica’s life, their brief shared past, and the reason for the twins’ separation is far from simple. And for every one of Lacey’s questions that’s answered, others are raised, more baffling and profound.

Mary weaves a fascinating story that quickly drew me into the lives of Lacey Gears and her twin, Monica Bowman. The mere thought of learning of an unknown adult sibling's existence, let alone an identical twin felt so real through each sister's perspective. A Deaf sister, a hearing sister and the processing of that vast difference in conjunction with being raised so different - abandoned versus privileged.

While each sister grew up separated, Mary did an excellent job of joining the puzzle pieces of Lacey and Monica’s long forgotten memories of a brief childhood together. Lacey’s front half of the blue horse toy served as a puzzle piece that haunted her throughout her life and only until Monica entered her life was Lacey then able to understand the true significance behind that haunting blue image.

I found it fascinating that Lacey’s biological truly were the rich, loaded parents that who abandoned their young daughter. However, the plot twists lead to even more exciting discoveries of what happens behind the closed doors of the influential Bowman family.

Each character stands on her own and made me want to learn about her past shaped her present and influenced her future. The real life feel that even after being separated for more than twenty years, old patterns and feelings established as children can immediately return. Beyond the bonds of sisters, the underlying twin psychology was captivating, especially as twins run on both sides of my family. These sisters explored their bond through the good and the bad and Mary beautifully conveyed both sides of that bond such at I truly felt like I knew Lacey and Monica; I was invested in wanting to see their relationship evolve.

My Sister’s Voice is definitely a good read that you won’t want to put down.