The Seven Sisters by Lucinda Riley

The Seven Sisters (Seven Sisters, #1)

by Lucinda Riley

Their future is written in the stars . . .

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, the elusive billionaire they call Pa Salt, has died. Maia and her sisters were all adopted by him as babies and, discovering he has already been buried at sea, each of them is handed a tantalising clue to their true heritage - a clue which takes Maia across the world to a crumbling mansion in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil. Once there, she begins to put together the pieces of where her story began . . .

Eighty years earlier, in the Belle Epoque of Rio, 1927, Izabela Bonifacio's father has aspirations for his daughter to marry into aristocracy. Meanwhile, architect Heitor da Silva Costa is working on a 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.

The Seven Sisters is a sweeping epic tale of love and loss - the first in a unique, spellbinding series of seven books, based on the legends of the Seven Sisters star constellation - Lucinda Riley showcases her storytelling talent like never before.

Reviewed by Leah on

5 of 5 stars

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Lucinda Riley is one of the best historical writers there is - in fact, she's one of the best writers there is, period. Ever since I read The Girl On The Cliff, I've been a fan of her work. I was chuffed to hear about her brand new series The Seven Sisters, especially since it means we're due SEVEN MORE BOOKS at least from Lucinda. WOOHOO.

I actually don't know anything about the history on which The Seven Sisters is based, but you don't need to to read the book, because it stands very nicely by itself. It's actually pretty freaking amazing, honestly. It's a mammoth read, over 600 pages, but a page is never wasted. That's what I love so much about Lucinda's books. A PAGE IS NEVER WASTED. I'm always concerned reading novels that long, it's a very rare occurrence, but I flew through the book in two days because it was so absorbing.

This first book is all about Maia, the oldest of the six (!) sisters Pa Salt adopted and brought to his home, Atlantis. Word is, he never found the seventh sister which is interesting in itself. After he dies, all six of the sisters return to Atlantis and are given a note about their origin; where Pa Salt adopted them from and this takes Maia to Brazil. I don't actually think I've ever read a book set in Brazil, but this one was amazing. It's not necessarily a country I want to visit (the crime, the drugs, the heat, etc) but Riley makes it sound so delightful that I've changed my mind, and would like to visit all the places Maia does.

As Maia searches for the story of her history, we go back in time to the 20s and meet the wonder Izabella. Izabella has such a fascinating story to tell. At first, I wasn't sucked into her story because I was more curious about Maia, but as Izabella's story progressed it just got so much more interesting. It was wonderful to slip back in time now and again to learn more about Izabella and her life as Brazilian royalty, pretty much.

I adored The Seven Sisters. It absorbed me wholly and fully, and Maia and Izabella's stories were so, so good. I was also very intrigued as to who Pa Salt actually was (in fact, I actually have a hunch, after a discovery Maia and Floriano make later in the novel but we will see how that pans out...) and what made him adopt so many children (again, I have a hunch on that related to who he was and it would make so much sense if what I think I know turns out to be true!). Lucinda Riley is one of the finest writers I've ever had the pleasure to read and I am so, so excited for The Storm Sister out later this year. The nice little bit we see at the end starts Ally's story off perfectly...

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  • Started reading
  • 29 May, 2015: Finished reading
  • 29 May, 2015: Reviewed