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Devoted Sisters
Elderly sisters Lizzie and May live quiet, ordered lives in the house in which they were born; their self-imposed seclusion and the unchanging predictability of their lives shielding them from the changing world beyond.
But the day comes when this protective isolation is broken; the world outside forces its way in. A stranger appears, unsettling them, bringing with him the threat of danger, upheaval and violence.
Fearful and alone, with all semblance of comforting routine wrenched from them, Lizzie and May are driven to desperation. Dark memories emerge from their buried past as the sisters gradually slip from reason into their own confused realities, within which even their former carefully regulated world seems only a distant memory.
"Alison Buck is an exciting and strong new voice in modern fiction. Although her stories feature powerful insights and express a female perspective on important issues and concerns, they successfully speak to readers of all genders, ages and beliefs. Dark, psychological drama, mixed with wit and delivered with a light touch that makes you care about the hopes and dreams of her characters.
Although, as a rule, she concerns herself with apparently quite normal, everyday characters, populating what appear to be quite normal and everyday surroundings, the events and dangers they encounter soon draw them away from the commonplace and lead them inexorably towards often frightening and sometimes bloody outcomes.
Alison's can be very dark, unsettling tales."
But the day comes when this protective isolation is broken; the world outside forces its way in. A stranger appears, unsettling them, bringing with him the threat of danger, upheaval and violence.
Fearful and alone, with all semblance of comforting routine wrenched from them, Lizzie and May are driven to desperation. Dark memories emerge from their buried past as the sisters gradually slip from reason into their own confused realities, within which even their former carefully regulated world seems only a distant memory.
"Alison Buck is an exciting and strong new voice in modern fiction. Although her stories feature powerful insights and express a female perspective on important issues and concerns, they successfully speak to readers of all genders, ages and beliefs. Dark, psychological drama, mixed with wit and delivered with a light touch that makes you care about the hopes and dreams of her characters.
Although, as a rule, she concerns herself with apparently quite normal, everyday characters, populating what appear to be quite normal and everyday surroundings, the events and dangers they encounter soon draw them away from the commonplace and lead them inexorably towards often frightening and sometimes bloody outcomes.
Alison's can be very dark, unsettling tales."
Paperback
First published October 18, 2010
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
March 12, 2012
Two elderly sisters, Lizzie and May, have isolated themselves from the world for many years. Lizzie is afraid of the dangers of modern living and May is fragile both in body and mind. They are bound together by a promise made to their mother. Lizzie must look after May, May must obey her older sister.
Alison Buck is fine and elegant writer and always able to get inside the mind of her characters. Gradually the sisters' relationship breaks down and we become aware that they are not 'seeing' the same things. They are hallucinating and becoming irrational in their thought patterns. Reference is made several times to the sisters growing their own cereal to add to bread - I put two and two together! The ending is dramatic but under the circumstances, believable.
Alison can write beautiful description and sinister, threatening nightmare. The juxtaposition in the same story is delightful. A jolly good read, this!
Alison Buck is fine and elegant writer and always able to get inside the mind of her characters. Gradually the sisters' relationship breaks down and we become aware that they are not 'seeing' the same things. They are hallucinating and becoming irrational in their thought patterns. Reference is made several times to the sisters growing their own cereal to add to bread - I put two and two together! The ending is dramatic but under the circumstances, believable.
Alison can write beautiful description and sinister, threatening nightmare. The juxtaposition in the same story is delightful. A jolly good read, this!
July 29, 2016
This book didn't live up to my expectations. It is about two elderly sisters Lizzie and May. Lizzie is trying to fulfil her promise to her dead mother to look after May who has always appeared a bit simple. Neither sister has any friends so the dialogue is purely their conversations with each other, often petty bickering and their internal musings. For me this became tedious, I didn't really care about either sister, Lizzie with her obsession with danger or May with her obsession with moths, the ending was a relief.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews