The Pearl Sister (#4) by Lucinda Riley

The Pearl Sister is the fourth book in the Seven Sisters series and CeCe (Celaeno) is the star of the story.

CeCe is mad at Star. After doing everything together all their lives, Star has now decided she is in love and leaving CeCe to stay with him. Once firmly set on studying art, CeCe has left college as something just doesn’t feel right for her. Feeling abandoned and as though she is not good enough for the world, not just because she is not pretty enough, but also because her dyslexia makes her feel stupid, CeCe decides to pack up and head to Thailand. She has always felt better outdoors and in the open and she needs to breathe.
Once in Thailand she meets a mysterious stranger called Ace, but all too soon she realises that something is calling to her. A photograph left for her points to Australia, and it’s become an urgent need to answer where she comes from.
Australia is a bit of a shock for her, not just because she is expecting to be attacked by giant spiders at any minute, but the heat and the feeling of belonging is overwhelming. She meets Chrissie who helps her to start the investigation. What CeCe learns will completely change her future and show her where her love of art fits in.
Just how is she connected to Kitty Mercer, the intrepid young lady who overcame great hardships to become immersed in a pearling business and showed that love knows no boundaries?

I found it hard to relate to CeCe at the start of the story, but as you got further into her character you found a side to her that was far more appealing. I really enjoyed the journey through the outback and Kitty’s tale was rather amazing. I almost found the Ace/Thailand part a bit unnecessary—I know it was part of her growth, but there is almost a formula developing here. Sister goes looking for past, finds love (somehow and in some guise), finds they have some amazing connection to someone relatively famous, has something they are good at (writing/art/music etc.) and for the most part all turns out well. I’m almost waiting for something to happen so that there is not a happy ending somewhere (not that I wish it on any of them). I just want to read to find out how Pa Salt was able to find these girls and what connection he has to them as they seem to come from all over the world and are very diverse.

 Again, a great book to just read and not concentrate on too much. On to Tiggy’s story next (and the teaser already has me upset).

The Shadow Sister (#3) by Lucinda Riley

The Shadow Sister is the third book in the Seven Sisters series and is all about Star (Asterope), the third sister.

Star was always in her sister Cece’s shadow. CeCe spoke for her and made the decisions for her. After Pa Salt’s death, Star’s gifts from her father were a jewelled miniature panther and a letter from him. When she deciphers the clues in the letter, she lands up at an antique book store in London where she meets the unique Orlando, whose brother, Mouse, is a grumpy old thing and seems destined to make everyone as grumpy as he is.
Go back 100 years and we meet Flora MacNichol, a strong-willed young woman who loves animals and due to unexplained (to her) circumstances is forced to go to London to live with Alice Keppel, a British Society hostess. As Flora is introduced to her world and secrets are unlocked and love lost, she has to restart her life with the help of her friend Beatrix Potter. However, a snap decision made for the right reasons, could bring her future to a grinding halt.
Star now has the task of piecing together her part in this bit of history and deciding whether or not she will go back to being in the shadow or taking centre stage.

Out of the first three books this has definitely been my favourite—more than likely because of the link to books and Beatrix Potter. I mean who doesn’t love her books? Flora was quite the woman and some of the tough decisions she made were staggering. The fact that Alice Keppel was indeed a figure in history was very interesting and I think that no matter what moral decisions she made, her independence and freedom of thought for the time was quite revolutionary. The book has love, friendship, family, new beginnings and heartache rolled all through it. The book also resonated with me because it wasn’t a case of finding out the sister came from some famous line as in the two previous ones—it was more plausible.

There are so many hints that Pa Salt is not dead and I wonder if the author is just stringing us along. So far, I really haven’t liked the character of CeCe, so I’m keen to see where it goes in the next book as she takes pointe position. I’m getting into the flow of the writing now too, as it (forgive me Ms Riley) doesn’t take brain power and the need to remember a lot of info as you read. On to The Pearl Sister…