The Winter Sister is a dark mystery/thriller. Author Megan Collins accurately captures the effects of grief on a family, particularly that of Sylvie, a teenager whose old sister, Persephone, is murdered. Fifteen years later, the murder remains unsolved, and the characters are haunted by the murder and lack of closure.
There are twists upon twists in The Winter Sister with assumptions changing as facts slowly unfold. Lies and half-truths vie with the few known facts about the murder and shift endlessly as do potential perpetrators and their motives.
I was intrigued because this is a retelling of one of my favorite myths, that of Demeter and Persephone. Here, Demeter takes her grief to new heights and retreats completely from her remaining daughter, Sylvie, and turns to alcohol and drugs. Sylvie spends her time floating through life as a tattoo artist. When she returns home to care for her cancer-ridden mother, clues are slowly revealed; assumptions broken like balloons. Now, forced to be at home, Sylvie tries to solve the mystery of why her sister died and who did it. She and her mother also have to deal with guilt from their treatment of Persephone.
This book, despite its darkness, ends on a beam of light. Rather than Persephone arriving from Hades to bring spring to the world, Sylvie is reborn as she solves the mystery of her sister’s death.
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