The Foursome

by Christina Baker Kline

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Christina Baker Kline comes a boldly original reimagining of the astonishing true story of two sisters in nineteenth-century North Carolina — Kline’s own distant relatives — who married world-famous conjoined twins from Siam.

When Eng and Chang Bunker arrive in Wilkes County in 1839, they’re not just a curiosity—they’re a sensation. Everyone is eager to learn whether the salacious rumors about them are true. Within months, the twins have opened a general store, bought land, and begun building a plantation. Now, word has it, they’re looking for wives—and in a place that thrives on gossip and legacy, their ambitions set the community on edge.

Sarah and Adelaide Yates, daughters of a once-prominent local family brought low by scandal, are drawn into their orbit. Bold, beautiful Adelaide sees in the twins’ fame a chance to reclaim her future. Sarah, quiet and observant, isn’t so sure. When the twins’ lives become entangled with theirs, they must navigate loyalty, longing, and identity in a world where everything—including race, class, and gender—is rigidly defined.

Spanning five decades and unfolding against the backdrop of a fractured nation hurtling toward war, The Foursome is both intimate and a story of love and constraint, identity and reinvention. With piercing insight and emotional precision, Kline brings to life a forgotten chapter of American history and the complex, boundary-defying marriages at its center.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Audiobook, Historical, Book Club, Adult, Family

376 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 12, 2026

About the author

A #1 New York Times bestselling author of eight novels, including The Exiles, Orphan Train, and A Piece of the World, Christina Baker Kline is published in 40 countries. Her novels have received the New England Prize for Fiction, the Maine Literary Award, and a Barnes & Noble Discover Award, among other prizes, and have been chosen by hundreds of communities, universities and schools as “One Book, One Read” selections. Her essays, articles, and reviews have appeared in publications such as the New York Times and the NYT Book Review, the Boston Globe, the San Francisco Chronicle, LitHub, Psychology Today, Poets & Writers, and Salon.

Born in England and raised in the American South and Maine, Kline is a graduate of Yale (B.A.), Cambridge (M.A.) and the University of Virginia (M.F.A.), where she was a Hoyns Fellow in Fiction Writing. A resident of New York City and Southwest Harbor, Maine, she serves on the advisory boards of the Center for Fiction (NY), the Jesup Library (Bar Harbor, ME), the Montclair Literary Festival (NJ), the Kauai Writers Festival (HI), and Roots & Wings (NJ), and on the gala committees of Poets & Writers (NY), The Authors Guild (NY) and Friends of Acadia (ME). She is an Artist-Mentor for StudioDuke at Duke University and the BookEnds program at Stony Brook University.

Reviews

[Kristine · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Book begins about real-life Siamese Twins, Eng and Chung Baker. They have become a Sensation and People are So Interested in Meeting Them. This has afforded them a life of wealth and privilege. So, when they settle in Wilkes, North Carolina, they meet and want to marry Sarah and Adelaide Yates. So, on the surface this seems just an entertaining and different story, and it is, but there is so much depth beyond the surface of this book.

There is so much nuance and intimacy that Christina Baker Kline brings to this story. It examines an unusual family living life on a Plantation. The Book begins in 1839 and spans five decades. There is the beauty and struggle of family and children woven through the entire story that just was fascinating to read. Yet, always in the background is Sarah’s growing discomfort with slavery. Christina Baker Kline does such a delicate job presenting the characters reactions based on how life would have been at the time, but quietly presents the agony of this way of life.

I really loved this book. It is Excellent. Presenting such a unique story worked so well to explore so many other themes. Christina Baker Kline does a superb job that entertains, brings curiosity, love, heartache, and thinking of the choices that are made. She is in a class by herself. Highly Recommend this Book.

[Sadeqa Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Foursome by Christina Baker Kline opened my eyes to a moment in history I knew little about. Centered around conjoined twins married to two sisters, the novel explores the complexities of marriage, sisterhood, and raising children in the American South in 1839—a time and place where conformity was the norm and change was just beginning to stir. Kline weaves a beautiful tapestry of love, doubt, identity, and resilience in a world that left little room for differences.

[Wendy Darling · Rating 4 out of 5]

Exactly the type of historical fiction I enjoy.

I do think it's funny that at a pivotal point, it was PEANUT SHELLS that meant the jig was up.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This was so good!
I had not heard of this specific set of Siamese twins from Siam (Thailand) who were sold by their mother to the circus.. they were attached by a band of flesh at the abdomen and were told by many physicians that if they tried to separate them only one would survive.
They were Chang and Eng Bunker.
This is a fictional account of their lives, after much research by the author who just happens to be a very distant cousin of the sisters.
This story is of how they amassed their fortune and made it to North Carolina, bought land and married sisters…Sallie and Addie. They had 21 children between the two couples.
This was so interesting.. how they lived, and this time in history.. before, during, and after the civil war.
I really like that the author didn’t sensationalize the story but put much thought into each of the foursome’s emotions.
This is my third book by this author and I have loved each one.

[Jill · Rating 4 out of 5]

THE FOURSOME
By Christina Baker Kline

An Intimate Look at an Unconventional Marriage

Christina Baker Kline’s The Foursome draws on the real-life story of the famous conjoined twins Chang Bunker and Eng Bunker, who first rose to fame touring before eventually settling in North Carolina. It was there that they met and married the Yates sisters, Adelaide and Sallie, going on to build an unconventional life together and raise a combined 21 children.

Told from Sallie’s point of view—the more hesitant sister, shaped by limited choices after a teenage scandal—the novel spans five decades and offers an intimate look at this unusual marriage and the bond between the sisters. It explores what it meant to step into a life that would always draw attention, and how four strong personalities navigated marriage, privacy, and family within such a complicated arrangement.

This is a quiet, character-focused story that finds tension in the everyday. The characters feel nuanced, carrying the weight of their choices in a way that makes an unusual situation feel real and intimate. Sallie often seems alone in her decisions, particularly when it comes to running the household and the plantation. She comes across as more empathetic than the others, who often appear aligned. I also felt that Eng frequently deferred to Chang, rather than standing firm in his own decisions.

I’ve enjoyed other books by Christina Baker Kline, and this one continues to show her strength in exploring complex relationships. Even more interesting—the sisters are distant cousins of the author. If you’re drawn to stories about sisterhood and complicated family dynamics—woven with themes of love, marriage, intimacy, identity, race, and gender inequality—The Foursome is worth reading.

Definitely a great pick for book clubs—it has plenty of layers to spark thoughtful discussion.

Thank you to NetGalley and Mariner Books for the eARC.

[Shantha (ShanthasBookEra) · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars "From #1 New York Times bestselling author Christina Baker Kline comes a boldly original reimagining of an astonishing true two sisters in nineteenth-century North Carolina—Kline’s own distant relatives—who married world-famous conjoined twins from Siam."

This true story is a reimagining of sisters in the mid-1800s who are distant cousins of the author. This is the sensational story of Sarah and Adelaide Yates whose prominent North Carolina family was brought down by scandal and gossip. They meet famous conjoined twins from Siam, Chang and Eng Bunker. They are wealthy land owners who have started a plantation and are looking to marry. Salacious and viscous rumors fly around but the girls still marry them as they have limited prospects from the family scandal.

What follows is a compelling and engaging story which brings to life events leading up to and just following the Civil War. It is an intimate look at an unconventional marriage and its inner workings exploring motherhood, loyalty, racism, and slavery. I loved learning about the antebellum South through the eyes of a plantation owner's wife. Christina Baker Klein writes with detailed precision for the era and emotional intelligence. This is a tale that is tastefully told with compassion and empathy. If you love historical fiction, I highly recommend adding this to your TBR for a unique look at this time period.

Many thanks to NetGalley, William Morrow and Book Club Girl for the gifted advance reader's copy. All opinions are my own.

[MaryannC Victorian Dreamer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set in the 1830's, based on the true life history of Chang and Eng Bunker, the famed Siamese twins who married two sisters and their complicated intertwined lives.
This was very well written told from the viewpoint of one of the sisters Sarah as she tells the story of her mistakes as a young woman with no prospects of marriage destined to live a spinster life with her prettier sister Adelaide. One day the sisters catch the eyes of the twins at a gathering where the twins are larger than life to the local town and are intrigued by their wit and charm despite the fact that these young men are also considered "freaks of nature" in their community and the world. Adelaide falls hard for Chang and has no qualms about marriage to one of these brothers, but must convince Sarah despite her deep misgivings about how she feels being married to a man who will be always be yoked to his brother. How would intimacy occur between her and her sister in the marriage bed, would they have children and could they be born with the same condition? And of course her parents and fellow neighbors, would they be accepted? Sarah in her fears and struggles is no match for her headstrong sister who convinces her that there is no other way for them to escape the harsh reality of their impending spinsterhood and ultimately accepts Eng as husband. What follows next in this mesmerizing read are the lives of these four people who navigate love, betrayal, children and their own personal sense of independence from one another.
It was a very interesting read, truthfully I did not care for Chang and Eng, not because of their physical appearance but because of their views and arrogance. They were smart, enterprising men who used what they were given to their advantage and tried to live life as normally as possible.

[The Bookish Elf · Rating 4 out of 5]

In 1843, two sisters from a North Carolina farming family climbed into bed with their husbands, the most famous men in America: the original "Siamese twins," Chang and Eng Bunker, who were joined at the chest by a band of cartilage. They lived this way for more than three decades. Between them, they had twenty-one children. Christina Baker Kline, who happens to be a distant relative of those sisters, has spent years trying to imagine what such a marriage might have actually felt like. The result is The Foursome by Christina Baker Kline, a novel that resists almost every easy framing the premise invites.

What the Novel Is About (Without the Spoilers)

Sarah and Adelaide Yates are daughters of a once-prominent Wilkes County family whose social standing has been bruised by an unnamed scandal. When Chang and Eng arrive in town with their wealth, their international fame, and their unmistakable presence, the gossip is immediate. The bold elder sister Addie sees a chance to reclaim her future; the quieter Sallie, who narrates the book, hesitates, observes, and ultimately follows. From the wedding through the Civil War and into widowhood, the foursome shares houses, a bed, children, money, and a life nobody around them quite knows what to do with.

If you arrive expecting carnival sensationalism, look elsewhere. Kline is interested in the long marriage, not the spectacle.

Why Sallie Is the Right Narrator

Kline's choice to filter the story through Sallie is the smartest call she makes. Addie is too sure of herself to be a complicated narrator. Chang and Eng have already been written about for almost two centuries. Sallie, who in real life was buried in an unmarked grave away from the family plot, is a near-blank in the historical record. Kline fills that absence with a quiet, watchful, self-questioning voice. Sallie sees what others choose not to see. She helps Grace, the enslaved woman in her household, with small chores not because she is a heroine but because it eases her own conscience, and Kline never lets her off the hook for that distinction.

The novel earns its strongest passages when Sallie sits with her own complicity. That honesty is what makes the book more than a curiosity piece.

The Writing

Kline writes with a clean, controlled lyricism that suits both the period and the temperament of her narrator. Sentences are unfussy. Metaphors are carefully rationed. A few set pieces stay with you long after the book is closed:

The wedding-night scene, written without exploitation, with a strange tenderness around the impossibility of privacy in such close quarters.
The slow domestic dread of the Civil War years, when sugar disappears, then salt, then almost everything else, and Sallie and Grace cook side by side because they have no other choice.
The Leah-at-the-well embroidery Sallie picks up and puts down across the years, watching what she stitches become something other than what she started.

You can feel the author pulling back from melodrama on almost every page. That restraint is also, occasionally, the book's limitation.

Where The Foursome by Christina Baker Kline Wobbles

Read against its reception, you can see why most readers settle around four stars rather than five. A few smaller issues add up.

The middle softens. The years between the early marriage and the war stretch out. Domestic detail piles up, sometimes in ways that feel more researched than alive.
Addie is held at arm's length. Sallie's narration is bounded by design, which means we get Addie as Sallie reads her, and Sallie often reads her ungenerously. A reader can sense the missing book where Addie would speak for herself.
The moral reckoning is uneven. Kline is clear-eyed about slavery, and Grace is one of the more carefully drawn enslaved characters in recent historical fiction by a white novelist. But the brothers' slaveholding, and the suggestion that Eng may have fathered children with an enslaved woman, sit in the book with a weight the structure does not always fully absorb.
A few period beats land flat. The dinner-table conversations about Lincoln and secession feel a little rehearsed, the dialogue closer to documentary voice-over than living talk.

None of this sinks the book. It does mean a strong novel occasionally settles for being a sturdy one.

What the Book Gets Right

That said, the things this book gets right are not small things.

Sisterhood without sentimentality. Sallie and Addie compete, wound each other, separate, reconcile, and keep failing to become the kind of close their shared circumstance would suggest.
Marriage as an enclosure. The constant, structural lack of privacy in a four-person marriage becomes a quiet horror more affecting than any plot turn.
A grown woman's slow change of mind. Sallie does not have a revelation. She has years of small, accumulating disturbances of conscience, the most honest portrait of late-blooming moral awakening I have read in a while.
A historical curiosity treated as a marriage. Chang and Eng are not freaks here. They are not saints either. They are difficult, charming, ambitious, sometimes cruel men, and the book never asks us to pity or romanticize them.

Final Word

The Foursome by Christina Baker Kline is a careful, intelligent, sometimes beautiful novel that takes a story most readers would expect to be sensationalized and treats it with adult seriousness. It is also a touch long, occasionally too neat in its moral framing, and held back slightly by its narrator's habitual reserve. What it gives you, more than plot, is the texture of a marriage no one was ready for and a woman quietly becoming herself inside it. For readers who prefer historical fiction that values steadiness over surprise, this is well worth your time.

[Tara · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Here's the truth: even the most extraordinary life feels ordinary when you're living it."

Christina Baker Kline is one of my favorite authors. I love how she seemlessly blends beautiful literary passages and setting with accessible prose, and creates vivid characters that seem to step out of the page and into your life as you journey with them.

I was not sure how I would like this book, however, as it's a hard subject to tackle. Would the love scenes bother me? Could I empathize with a woman who let herself fall into a triple relationship that is the poster child for dysfunction?

But I should have had more faith in her. This isn't pretty historical fiction cleaned up for the masses, it's heavily researched, approached with care and intelligence and empathy, and even if she had to imagine much of it, the little pieces she got about their lives allowed her to capture, I think, what might be close to the real story of one of the sisters, Sarah.

By the end of the book, I felt that I had journeyed with Sarah throughout her adult life. The book isn't very long, so that is a feat in itself to span 5 decades. The twin brothers, Eng and Chang, are rendered with honesty and with both a critical eye and an empathetic one. They are as real as a a fictional author can make them.

She also tackles slavery and the twins' own struggles with identity and acceptance in a white culture. As someone who is mixed, I appreciated her depiction of the children (and there are many) and their challenges as well.

Mostly, I enjoyed Sarah awakening to desire, and desire beyond the obvious physical connection: "Living like this taught us how to be intimate. How to carve out private space in plain sight."

And her growing independence from the "Foursome": "I began to recognize the pleasure of arriving at an idea or an opinion wholly on my own."

If you can read without judgement, highly rec this.

[Lori · Rating 4 out of 5]

“People decide who they want you to be, and they are disappointed when you stay who you are. I haven’t changed. I’m just doing what I want now, is all.”

I kept seeing this book around, but didn’t realize that it was written by the author who wrote one of my favorite historical fiction books, THE EXILES. CBK can really write a beautiful story about history in such a relatable way. The Foursome is a fascinating story. Growing up, I had seen pictures of the conjoined Siamese twins, Chang and Eng Bunker and was mesmerized by them. This story is a look inside their marriage to the two sisters, Sarah and Adelaide. We hear the story from Eng’s wife, Sarah. Sarah is the quieter, more reluctant of the two sisters. I loved hearing the story from her perspective. I’ll be honest because I thought this was going to be weird and how in the world could they make this work. I think you know what I’m referring to. 😉 The author handles that topic with such care. As the story moves forward through five decades that kind of falls into the background and you are really drawn into the lives of these characters and the hardships they faced. I’m so glad I had faith in one of my favorite authors and gave this book a chance. It was so well done. Also, read her note at the end. She shares her personal connection to the two sisters in this story.

”Time doesn’t heal so much as teach you how to carry your sorrow.”

[Gail Nelson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well, I was looking for something different... This was definitely different. Found the premise a little inconceivable, but interesting nonetheless. Love her clear, easy writing...

[Paige · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!

This novel offers a fascinating and unexpected look at the lives of Eng and Chang, the famous conjoined twins from Siam, set against the backdrop of North Carolina during the Civil War. While the book description suggests a focus on romance or complex familial dynamics—elements that are certainly present—the story takes a surprisingly heavy turn into historical discourse regarding slavery and class. However, despite placing itself firmly in this volatile era, the narrative struggles to meaningfully engage with the moral weight of its setting. The author includes the reality of slavery, specifically through the character of Grace (an enslaved woman), yet fails to take a meaningful stance on it, or explore deeper. Sarah, the central character, notes the class differences between herself and Grace but merely muses on them rather than making a distinct point.

This passive approach to heavy themes becomes particularly glaring toward the end of the book. Once the Civil War ends, Sarah bemoans the difficulty of her life simply because the enslaved workers have left the plantation. The narrative presents this complaining as a matter of fact without critiquing Sarah’s lack of self-awareness or acknowledging the injustice of the institution itself. It feels as though the historical context was included for accuracy rather than to say anything meaningful. Similarly, while the book acknowledges the racism faced by Eng and Chang—including the use of offensive slurs—it depicts these prejudices without exploring why they are wrong or differentiating the narrative voice from the bigotry of the time.

Despite these thematic misses, the technical aspects of the novel are undeniably strong. The writing is polished and the narrative style is engaging, making for a smooth reading experience. Sarah functions as an interesting anchor for the story; as an "outsider" within the unique family dynamic, she provides a compelling lens through which to view the struggles of those around her. Her perspective allows for a degree of empathy that enriches the character work, even if the social commentary falls flat.

A standout portion of the book involves Sarah’s time living with her Aunt Joan, who is delightfully portrayed as something of a gay icon. This section successfully fleshes out Sarah's character, teaching her the value of hard work and self-reliance. These lessons feel earned and result in a satisfying callback toward the end of the novel.

Unfortunately, the book overstays its welcome with an unnecessary epilogue. This final addition failed to establish new information or add value to the story, leaving the impression that the novel would have been stronger had it ended sooner.

Ultimately, this is a well-written historical novel held back by its reluctance to dig deeper into the serious subjects it introduces.

[Holly (hollylovesbooks1519) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you, Partner @marinerbooks @harpercollins and @netgalley for my gifted copy. Pub date 5/12/26.

#ChristinaBakerKline wrote an extraordinary novel inspired by her own family history. This character-driven coming-of-age novel is about two sisters who marry Siamese Twins in the 1800s. Their marriages are anything but ordinary, but they make the best of it and raise their two families together. This was a great read, especially if you love historical fiction. 4.5 stars!

[Maureen Grigsby · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely a 5 star read for me! This novel is a riveting look at the marriage of the famous conjoined twins, Eng and Chang Bunker. Their lives were largely lived in North Carolina from the early 1840’s through 1874. The other extremely interesting point is that the author was distantly related to the sisters who married the twins. I highly recommend this terrific piece of historical fiction!

[Tammy · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars. Excellent! The Foursome is based on a true story about the world-famous conjoined twins from Siam, Chang and Eng — who marry sisters Addie and Sallie Yates, the authors own distant cousins. How neat is that! This phenomenal story begins in 1843 Wilkes County, NC, as told by older sister Sallie, and spans their lives before courtship, to life on their own plantation, while parenting twenty-one children between them.
The community considered Sallie a fallen woman from an earlier tryst resulting in pregnancy, ruining her and her sister’s chance for marriage proposals. Even so she was still very reluctant to marry Eng (Addie talked her into it).. and had a hard time with their sleeping arrangement. Sallie became more assertive, and also openly questioned the morality of slavery (they owned slaves as did her parents). These thoughts/choices is what sets her apart from the three. Marrying Siamese twins shows the immense challenges they faced from a society that didn’t accept them.. prejudice + identity to name a few, just as the brothers had been exposed to their entire lives. Their marriages extraordinary, this fictional insight into their lives gives readers (to what felt true) glimpse into what that entailed in the 1800’s. It’s outstanding. Pub. 5/12/26

Much thanks to NetGalley and Mariner Books for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

[Beverly · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5⭐️

I love CBK’s writing. She has a way of bringing historical settings to life. I adored Orphan Train and The Exiles.

In The Foursome, she explores what life may have been like for two sisters who married conjoined twins in antebellum North Carolina.

You can probably imagine a salacious and uncomfortable plot line that would naturally take place. Kline handles it well even though I didn’t particularly enjoy reading about it.
Sallie’s narrative was well developed and I liked her character.

🤷‍♀️Why not five stars?
I wish this had been more focused. It switched gears around halfway through, and while I had no problem with the subject matter, it seemed like an odd shift.
Plot wise, this was very slow from around 35 percent to 70 percent.

Thank you to @netgalley for my ARC!

⚠️Profanity: 1/5 (mild and infrequent; perhaps 3-4 total)

Sexual: 3/5 (a couple of brief cracked door scenes- not overly descriptive, but not completely closed door)
Also, sexual assault is referenced multiple times.
Other- death of a child

❓This was an unusual piece of American history. What story has enlightened your knowledge of history?

[Alena · Rating 4 out of 5]

Based on actual historic figures, conjoined twins in the mid-19th century south. Check. Check. Check. Suffice it to say I needed no more encouragement to open this new historic fiction from popular author Christina Baker Kline. And I wasn’t disappointed.

Chang and Eng Bunker, better known as the famous Siamese Twins, were world famous and literally joined at the waist. We meet them through the eyes of Eng’s wife Sallie who tells the story of their courtship and unusual marriage alongside his brother and her sister and the 21 children they had between them.

It would seem far-fetched as a book premise if it weren’t, in fact, all true. These sisters married these brothers and bore all those children and lived through one of the most dramatic points in American history, the Civil War.

"It's strange how quickly my perspective changed, how fast my conception of normalcy was upended. It was like lighting a candle in a cave - suddenly, the way forward was clear. What had once been unimaginable became ordinary. What had been taboo became routine."

There is so much drama inherent in this story; I think it’s wise that Kline chooses a single, steady narrator. Sallie struggles to make sense of her own reality which allows the reader to come to terms with it as well. The strongest parts are about how hard it is to make this marriage work, the struggle to attain and maintain intimacy.

"In their own way, they understood something most people struggle to grasp: that family is both simpler and more complex than the neat lines society tries to draw around it."

Kline also tackles the conflict of slavery as the Bunkers owned multiple plantations and dozens of slaves. How could men who were owned and seen as property do the same thing to other human beings? The writing was less successful here. I know Kline has to address it, but it felt tacked on to the main story. Clearly it’s an issue that drove Sallie and Eng apart, but it deserved deeper exploration.

[Shannon (The Book Club Mom) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hands down, THE FOURSOME by Christina Baker Kline is one of the most unique and fascinating pieces of historical fiction that I’ve ever read. The fact that it’s based on a true story and involves the author’s actual family truly blows my mind. Check out this brief synopsis:

𝘍𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘕𝘦𝘸 𝘠𝘰𝘳𝘬 𝘛𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘳 𝘊𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘢 𝘉𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘳 𝘒𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘢 𝘣𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘭𝘺 𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘳𝘦𝘪𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘯𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘸𝘰 𝘴𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘵𝘦𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘩-𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘺 𝘕𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘩 𝘊𝘢𝘳𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘢 — 𝘒𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘦’𝘴 𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴 — 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘥 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥-𝘧𝘢𝘮𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘫𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘚𝘪𝘢𝘮.

To be perfectly honest, when I noticed that it was set during the mid-1800s, I turned my nose up a little bit. Mostly because I wasn’t in the mood for something so ancient—I wanted something more current. Well, let me tell you that this most certainly does NOT read the way I was expecting it to. Once I started reading, I found it extremely difficult to stop. The storyline is super exciting, gripping, and even a tad scandalous. It’s also one of the most interesting stories about sisterhood, brotherhood, and sibling dynamics that I’ve encountered in a while. These siblings and spouses lived a lifestyle spanning five decades that many of us could not even imagine! Their unique situation makes for a very addictive read!

READ THIS IF YOU ENJOY:

- Family drama and dynamics
- Sisterhood and brotherhood
- Motherhood and marriage
- North Carolina setting
- Mid-1800s timeline
- Civil war and slavery era
- Plantation lifestyle
- Character-driven novels

If you’re in the mood for a solid family saga with a good dose of American history, this is definitely it. I truly cannot recommend it enough. 4.5/5 stars for THE FOURSOME! It’s available now!

[Janilyn Kocher · Rating 5 out of 5]

An incredible read!
Kline deals with delicate topics like intimacy between the sisters and their conjoined husbands with sensitivity and pragmatism, not salaciousness.
This was such a riveting read that I found myself rushing back to it when I had to break away from my reading.
The author captures the voice of Sallie so well and depicts her emotions, struggles, and evolution in a compelling manner.
I kept thinking as I read that I could never have lived with such an arrangement so it was intriguing to read about two women who did.
I’ve only scratched the surface so readers must discover this exquisite read for themselves!
Be sure to check out her website for more info on the family and her research.
Thanks NetGalley, Edelweiss, Mariner Books, and Harper Collins for the advance copy.

[Aggie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This fascinating novel provides a deeply personal look into the post-global tour lives of conjoined twins Chang and Eng Bunker. While there are several fiction and non-fiction books about the world famous brothers, this novel stands out by exploring their lives on a much deeper, more personal level. By shifting the focus away from their global exhibition tours, the novel zeroes in on their adulthood as they settle down in North Carolina to build conventional families

While their lives were undeniably colorful, the story excels at exploring the human nature of living as an unconventional family. The author’s choice to use Sarah ("Sallie") as the narrator is a major strength. It brings an intimate flow to the narrative, allowing readers to feel Sarah’s initial reluctance and discomfort regarding their complex arrangement.

Through her perspective, the book beautifully illustrates the brothers' contrasting personalities: Eng was the calm, intellectual, and cooperative twin, whereas Chang was the dominant, volatile, and entrepreneurial brother who ultimately drove their financial success.

[Robin O'Bryant · Rating 5 out of 5]

A historical novel based on the true story of the author’s distant cousins, Sallie and Addie Yates, who married famous 19th-century conjoined twins Chang and Eng Bunker in North Carolina. The story spans five decades, from 1839 through the Civil War era.

This is a MUST READ! I’m immediately making it one of my staff picks and will be hand selling it like crazy. I started a few days ago and have alternated between the audiobook (which is fab) & reading (also fab)-- which also means that I've basically been reading it non-stop since I started. Absolutely a 5-star read! I didn’t expect any less from Christina Baker Kline, who also wrote one of my favorite novels,"The Orphan Train."

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting take on conjoined twins Chang and Eng Bunker, the sisters they married and the twenty some children they have. I liked it but the Civil War section seemed overly long.

[Aria Scanlon · Rating 3 out of 5]

well this was interesting

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

Picked this up knowing nothing about it (I assumed it was a contemporary novel, forgetting that I know what Christina Baker Kline writes) which was perfect. This is the story of Chang and Eng Bunker, the original Siamese twins (from Siam) who emigrated to the United States and settled in western North Carolina in the 1839. They are looking for suitable wives who are willing and maybe happy to live in close company with these men who are truly never alone. Told through the voice of Sallie, who was buried separately from the other 3, Kline imagines a rich life, not necessarily ofSallie's choosing. As farmers in North Carolina, the Bunkers had many slaves to manage their large properties and help with their large families (between them, there were 21 children and possibly a few more born of slaves. This book continues through the Civil War and its aftermath which changed so much about how wealthy Southerners lived their lives. So much is packed into this novel, I am excited to hear the author speak about this amazing book.

[Lyon.Brit.andthebookshelf · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book Report: The Foursome by Christina Baker Kline

The Foursome is the kind of historical fiction that reminds me exactly why I love the genre.
Based on the true story of Chang and Eng Bunker (the famous conjoined twins from Siam) and the sisters they married.

Christina Baker Kline brings to life a fascinating chapter of history I knew absolutely nothing about before picking up this book. As soon as I started reading…I called my mom to ask if she'd ever heard of them... and she had! It made for such a fun conversation and reminded me how much I love books that spark curiosity beyond the page.

This one started a bit slower for me (not in a bad way…but in a slow down…settle in and let the story unfold kind of way) Once I reached the halfway point…though…I couldn't put it down. I wanted every detail about this family…their marriages…their struggles and the complicated world they navigated.

Spanning decades…The Foursome explores identity…family…love…belonging and the ways people carve out lives for themselves despite society's expectations. The author's note left me even more amazed by the real history behind the novel and now I'm eager to find some nonfiction about Chang and Eng and their remarkable family.

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[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating story based on the lives of the author’s distant cousins who married the famous Siamese twins.

[Jennifer Sakash · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set in 1800's North Carolina, based on actual relatives of the author and the origin of the term "Siamese twins". A thoughtful and respectful imagining of how these four people might have learned to live together, and all the complications involved with that "strange arrangement". I especially appreciated the description of the sisters becoming new mothers together.

Also explored are the injustices of slavery, and the civil war that was fought over it.

Interesting to learn the author has a home on Mount Desert Island in Maine, where I will be visiting for the first time this fall.

[Kris · Rating 5 out of 5]

I went into this with the typical curiosity of how could someone be married to a conjoined twin. This book is so much more it explores sisterhood, family, & the antebellum South. Interesting to view how the war progressed on the Confederate side & how some Southerner's views changed & some did not.

[Amy]

Listen to Chistina Baker Kline on the Book Gang Podcast NOW! The True Story Behind The Foursome with Christina Baker Kline is now streaming. Click here to tune in or stream wherever you get podcasts! If you love the show, please consider joining my Patreon.

***
FAVORITE BOOK OF THE YEAR ALERT! I started and finished Kline's novel in a single day, but it has occupied my mind every day since I read this entrancing story of conjoined twins who found fame and fortune, and then an unlikely love story with sisters in the late 1800s.

Chang and Eng were Siamese-American conjoined twins who were connected at the chest by a band of cartilage. Sold at the tender age of eight by their mother, they toured internationally as a circus spectacle before deciding to settle in North Carolina, where they hoped to find wives and grow their family.

Adelaide and Chang have, it seems, instantaneous chemistry upon meeting, but the prospect of their marriage comes with complications. The couple would be engaged in an interracial marriage, which was certainly controversial at that time (more so between Black and white people), but there was also the greater risk of Addie being accused of bigamy if Eng didn't have a partner of his own. Pressure mounts on Sarah, her sister, to step up and marry Eng, not only to protect her sister's reputation, but also because a pregnancy out of wedlock has already tainted Sarah's reputation, making her future prospects unlikely in her small town.

The claustrophobic nature of this foursome takes readers through many uncomfortable turns, including their wedding night, when the twins have ways to shut down their brains when one twin engages in bedroom activities, leaving the sisters stranded, nowhere mentally to go. Kline doesn't shy away from the choreography of these moments, but pulls us into the discomfort of both the more intimate ones and those that operate on a bigger scale, where the sisters have strong, differing opinions on religion, war, and slavery.

Unable to resolve their own differences, the sisters grow their families on separate properties where the twins had fathered 21 children (in total) and grow their farm where they employ a "few dozen" slaves and side with the Confederates despite their own experiences, essentially, being enslaved as children and enduring exploitation.

As the church begins to identify more with white nationalist themes, Sarah returns to her Quaker roots as she mourns the loss of children and awakens to the horrors of slavery in ways that change the trajectory of her life. Opening the story prologue with her viewpoint, Kline writes, "Whose story is this to tell? I think most would agree it isn't mine. I'm not the hero or the villain, the pursuer, or even, really, the pursued. I'm just the one who went along. But maybe the story doesn't belong to anyone. Maybe it's a question of who has the nerve, and the need to tell it." Stylistically, it’s so cohesive because Kline’s choice to tell it from only one sister's viewpoint, in a linear timeline divided into parts, always moves the story forward and resists dual timelines and viewpoint shifts that could create choppy waters with this booming cast.

This story was inspired by the author’s own family history and the intriguing question she kept pondering: Why would two conventional young women in rural North Carolina choose to marry conjoined brothers from Siam (now Thailand)? She delivers an astoundingly well-researched novel that is as page-turning as it is eye-opening. It's a phenomenal, larger-than-life tale that would be a perfect book club pick for any group! You must tune into Book Gang to hear Christina's story. It is one of my favorite conversations I've had the opportunity to host on my show!

[Tulip_OnTheTBR · Rating 5 out of 5]

Visualizing the Impossible: A Strangely Fascinating, Flawless Risk

First things first, hands down, this is one of my favorite reads of 2026! Christina Baker Kline took a massive risk on this strangely fascinating, yet incredibly captivating story; one that transpired over five decades and landed so f**king well! I was hooked from beginning to end and could not put this book down!

The pacing was perfection and the prose beautifully written; a story of this depth can often feel dense, but this was so easy to digest. Reading this book felt like a summer stroll through the countryside, a nice breeze across the face, eyelashes fluttering in the wind, sipping a cold glass of sweet iced tea...such a delight. 🍹

As a native North Carolinian, I was taken in by the setting. Having visited Wilkesboro in my adolescent years, I could easily visualize the foothills with the Blue Ridge Mountains as the backdrop; I felt a startling connection in a distant way...🏔️

The dynamics between Eng and Sallie, and Addie and Chang, defined The Foursome in every sense, yet the story reached far deeper: a journey into individuality, growth, human judgment, and the harsh realities of slavery. Baker Kline wove every thread together seamlessly, presenting a juxtaposition that proves two truths can exist at once, even when they appear entirely at odds. And no character was left behind, not even the 21 children. I did not have to question, "What happened to this person?" or "What became of that?"

One of the supporting characters that I fell in love with was Auntie Joan. I’m a bit of a rebel who loves a misfit character that challenges the status quo; she was my SHE-RO! ⚡ I loved her grit, determination, and unapologetic audacity to not give a damn about what anybody thinks.

I also loved the author's choice to tell the story through Sallie’s perspective. It allowed for a deeper connection to her internal conflicts and the insurmountable weight she carried; had the narrative shifted to include Addie’s view, I believe it would have diluted the impact in a way that failed to move the story forward.

The Aftermath 🌷:
I am giving this book a RAVING 5 STARS!!! Not only do I need a copy for my personal library, but I am also compelled to share this story with folks near and far; it offers so much for the imagination in the healthiest possible way!

When you read this book, do so with an open heart, a sound mind, and a thirst for a rare glimpse into the not-so-distant past. This is a uniquely weird, yet fulfilling opportunity, to immerse yourself in a "one of one" time in history. Be ready to receive the vast possibilities this "Foursome" has to offer. It’s immersive, provocative, and consequential; a cinematic masterpiece that deserves a movie adaptation. 🎬✨

Publication Date: May 12, 2026

Thank you to NetGalley, Mariner Books, and Christina Baker Kline for the e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.