Review: Sisters of Blood and Spirit

SISTERS OF BLOOD AND SPIRIT
Sisters of Blood and Spirit #1
Kady Cross
Paranormal Young Adult
288 pages
Harlequin Teen
Available March 31st
Source: ARC from publisher for review

THE STORY (from Goodreads)
Wren Noble is dead—she was born that way. Vibrant, unlike other dead things, she craves those rare moments when her twin sister allows her to step inside her body and experience the world of the living.

Lark Noble is alive but often feels she belongs in the muted Shadow Lands—the realm of the dead. Known as the crazy girl who talks to her dead sister, she doesn't exactly fit in with the living, though a recent suicide attempt and time in a psych ward have proved to her she's not ready to join her sister in the afterlife.

Now the guy who saved Lark's life needs her to repay the favor. He and his friends have been marked for death by the malevolent spirit of a vicious and long-dead serial killer, and the twins—who should know better than to mess with the dead—may be their only hope of staying alive.

MY THOUGHTS
Sisters of Blood and Spirit is entertaining from beginning to end, making us instantly protective of Lark as she returns to school after a stint in a mental institution thanks to a split second desire to join the twin sister no one else can see. Her classmates pounce immediately, poking at her sore spot with relish, but just as soon as our hackles rise at their mockery her sister Wren intervenes in all her ghostly glory. From that moment on we can’t help but root for the pair of them, hoping they find their way to happiness despite the enormous odds stacked against them.

We spend our time split between the first person perspectives of both Lark and Wren, privy to the pros and cons of each of their lives as they prepare for a showdown with a spectacularly monstrous spirit. Lark can be quite abrupt at times, her blunt honesty and single-minded concern for Wren requiring a little getting used to both for us as readers as well as the group of classmates who approach her for help. It’s easy to look past her very to-the-point nature though given what we know of how’s she been treated by friends, family and strangers up until now, and we can do nothing but hope this new group is sincere in their desire for not only her help but also her friendship.

While there are a number of aspects of this story that are left unaddressed by the time we reach the last page, particularly the mystery surrounding Lark and Wren’s unusual bond, they’re the type of questions that give the story legs to stand on moving forward into the next book. The storyline regarding the haunting of Lark’s group of friends and the truly horrifying ghost responsible is wrapped up nicely (if a touch easily) by the time we reach the last page, ensuring we feel as though we’ve read a complete story instead of merely part of one. 

Overall, Sisters of Blood and Spirit is pure fun in a might-need-to-sleep-with-light-on-tonight kind of way, the relationship between Lark and Wren beautifully intriguing, and the promise of deepening friendships and romance in future books enough to have us counting the days until the sequel is in our hands.

Rating: 4/5
 

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This book was sent to me by the publisher free of charge for the purpose of a review. 

I received no other compensation and the above is my honest opinion.