The Opposite of Hallelujah

by Anna Jarzab

[Joséphine]

Once I started reading, I could not put this book down.

It is not normal to claim that a sister who is alive is dead. Yet this is exactly what Caro did. Caro denied Hannah's existence after she withdrew into a convent. It is that lie that plants the seed for the coming events and also the recounts of their childhood. Anna Jarzab also did a lovely job of tackling the issue how these two had to reconstruct their sisterly relationships after basically becoming estranged.

'The Opposite of Hallelujah' was a heart-wrenching novel as it grappled with overcoming terrible mistakes of the past that still overshadowed the present and the future, and with personal faith and beliefs.