The Storm Sister by Lucinda Riley

Last summer I randomly bought The Seven Sisters and I fell in love with it. When I learned that it was going to be a series of seven books, I was excited and, of course, impatient. I reached out to Simon and Schuster Canada about reviewing The Storm Sister and since they're awesome people, they sent me a copy. Thank you Simon and Schuster Canada!

The general premise of these books is that there are six sisters who were adopted as babies by Pa Salt. Pa Salt has sadly died and has left each sister a clue to where they were adopted from and their heritage. The Seven Sisters followed Maia and her roots to Brazil. The Storm Sister follows Ally to her roots in Norway, where she finds she may be related somehow to a famous composer.

The thing I love about these books is that essentially, you get two stories in one. Ally is struggling to come to terms with some losses in her life and how to move on in 2007. The other perspective is of Anna and Jens in the late 1800s/early 1900s, who may be somehow related to Ally. I love the dual perspectives and the history involved in Anna and Jens story. Despite not being alive in the same time period, I found some similarities between Anna and Ally and their circumstances.

Riley weaves such an intricate story within a story and really leaves you needing to know if Ally is related to the famous Anna and Jens. Switching between the two time periods is effortless and even if you know nothing about classical music, you won't find the story hard to follow. In fact, you'll probably learn a thing or two.

I love all the characters in this story. Ally is (so far) my favourite sister and my heart broke for her on more than one occasion. I like how you get glimpses of the other sisters, but you don't get to fully know them until their own story is written. I want to know more about the secondary characters such as Ma, who has been the girls' guardian alongside Pa Salt. I figure those details will slowly come out as the series progresses.

I highly recommend this series. I've rated both books 5 out of 5 stars. I would advise starting with The Seven Sisters, but I don't think you absolutely have to. Why wouldn't you, though, when both stories are so good? This is definitely a series you want to get hooked on.