With three conflicting narratives, each with their own unreliable narrator, figuring out which sister the voice of the killer in this novel is will be a challenge. 

Trigger warning for: CSA, animal abuse/mutilation (only discussed, no actual animals are harmed in this novel), body mutilation, killing, rape (mentioned), medical gaslighting 

I enjoyed the beginning of this book, as we learned and explored each of the women’s perspectives and histories, but as the story progressed I felt at times that the author was intentionally muddying their narratives to try to make the resolution at the end more “dramatic.” I kind of figured out which was the voice of the killer from the start, if only because only one character didn’t have so many red herrings that made me mentally go “well it can’t be that one it’s too obvious,” but even with the ending I felt like the timeline and explanation kind of fell apart at the end. 

By the ending of the novel I was confused about both the timeline, as well as the actual crimes committed when they were children, as so much of this book focuses on hiding specific details to keep the reader guessing that I think the author forgot that we (as the reader) aren’t privy to the same information if she hasn’t written it down. As we follow each sister - one, with false memories of being abused by her grandfather, one obsessed with her grandfather’s house and needing to purchase it, and the other with fond memories and hating their sister with the memory issues - we are slowly able to piece together the entire story of their past. Except…each of them has some conflicting narratives, memory lapses, and pieces that don’t add up. 

And then by the ending, we’re still left with some questions about their actual past. We find out where the one sister’s false memories come from, yes, but we’re never given answers for questions that are even explicitly asked in the novel. Why do they spend so much time at their grandfather’s house? What exactly is going on? We’re given some nuggets of information in the literal last chapter or so, but nothing that fully closes the holes in the narrative during the rest of the novel, and that made the ending feel incomplete. 

(Also. Not fully related, but, uh. An “intact hymen” isn’t an indication of virginity, nor do you need to bleed during your first sexual experience to prove you were a virgin. Strange inclusion to have in this book.)