Review: The Sun Sister by Lucinda Riley

The Sun Sister by Lucinda Riley

Publisher: Atria Books

Pages: 656

Format: ARC 

Buy the Book: Amazon 

Goodreads:  Electra d’Aplièse is a woman who seems to have it all: as a top model, she has beauty, fame, and wealth. But beneath the glittery veneer, she’s cracking under the pressure of it all. The last straw comes when she finds out her father has died and she turns to alcohol and drugs to ease the pain. As friends and colleagues fear for her health, Electra receives a shocking letter from a complete stranger who claims to be her grandmother.

In 1939, Cecily Huntley-Morgan arrives fresh from New York to Lake Naivasha in Kenya for the exciting chance to stay with her godmother, the famous socialite Kiki Preston. But after a sheltered upbringing, she’s completely astounded by the hedonistic antics of the other ex-pats in the infamous Happy Valley set. Celia soon grows to love her stunning but complicated new home, and she even accepts a proposal of marriage from Bill Forsythe, an enigmatic older cattle farmer. After a shocking discovery and with war looming, Cecily feels isolated and alone. Until she meets a young woman in the woods and makes her a promise that will change the course of her life forever.

Kritters Thoughts:  The sixth in a series where each book focuses on a different sister in this unique family.  You definitely don't need to read these in order, but I do suggest at least starting with book one as it sets up the ins and outs of the family and then you can hop around the family if you choose.  I enjoyed reading them in order as it goes in birth order and I always wonder if there is something to do with how a person grows up depending on their birth order and size of their family.  

Electra is the baby of the family and has relied on her beauty for years and when her father dies she takes a stroll to rock bottom with alcohol and drugs.  Thankfully her friends and coworkers help her get on a path to healing while at the same time she meets her biological grandmother who has a story to tell her of her ancestry.  This story is told in the other storyline in the book.  Each storyline, Electra's and her family's past are both novel size, but expertly woven together to create this epic story.  

When I read a book that has dual narratives I can tend to lean towards one or the other, but not so in this one.  They are both weighted the same and have such fantastic characters to follow that there was no skipping one for the other!  Electra's family story starts with a white woman venturing to Kenya for a fun vacation that extends to more and it does take a bit to figure out where Electra's grandmother comes into the story, but it was so worth the wait!  

I don't want these books to end!  I wish there were many more stories than the seven told in the first book.  It is sad to know that this series will be ending very soon.  

Rating: absolutely loved it and want a sequel

 Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from Atria Books.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.