Amity & Sorrow by Peggy Riley
Thank you to Netgalley for my advance reading copy. Release date February 11, 2014.
I have to admit, I didn't look closely enough at the cover of this book before I selected it. The cover is a big draw for me so that would be highly unusual. Based on the title, I figured this was a story about sisters and I like to read about sisters, since I have two of my own. Family dynamics can be interesting.
I started to read and thought, "What did I get myself in to?' But then I couldn't stop reading. Amity and Sorrow are sisters raised in a religious cult. Their father, Zachariah, and leader of the cult has proclaimed himself "God". Amaranth, the children's mother, leashed the girls together at the wrist, packed them in a stolen car and started driving in order to escape, . They end up on Bradley's failing farm somewhere in Oklahoma when she crashes the vehicle into a tree. A new world they have been sheltered from opens up in different ways for each of them.
I don't want to reveal any more of this story because I love to read a book that surprises me. Amity & Sorrow revealed something unexpected on each turn of the page. The author tells this emotional story by moving from the present to the past and back again. The characters were full of emotion, each having processed life in the cult in a different way. Riley expertly broke down the rules followed in the restricted cult by exposing the sisters to books, television, and a way of life they knew nothing about.
Amity & Sorrow pulled me in and never let go. I was so invested in this story, I didn't want it to end. This is not the kind of storyline I would choose to read but the author brought it to life for me in a highly creative way. Brilliant.
Thank you to Netgalley for my advance reading copy. Release date February 11, 2014.
I have to admit, I didn't look closely enough at the cover of this book before I selected it. The cover is a big draw for me so that would be highly unusual. Based on the title, I figured this was a story about sisters and I like to read about sisters, since I have two of my own. Family dynamics can be interesting.
I started to read and thought, "What did I get myself in to?' But then I couldn't stop reading. Amity and Sorrow are sisters raised in a religious cult. Their father, Zachariah, and leader of the cult has proclaimed himself "God". Amaranth, the children's mother, leashed the girls together at the wrist, packed them in a stolen car and started driving in order to escape, . They end up on Bradley's failing farm somewhere in Oklahoma when she crashes the vehicle into a tree. A new world they have been sheltered from opens up in different ways for each of them.
I don't want to reveal any more of this story because I love to read a book that surprises me. Amity & Sorrow revealed something unexpected on each turn of the page. The author tells this emotional story by moving from the present to the past and back again. The characters were full of emotion, each having processed life in the cult in a different way. Riley expertly broke down the rules followed in the restricted cult by exposing the sisters to books, television, and a way of life they knew nothing about.
Amity & Sorrow pulled me in and never let go. I was so invested in this story, I didn't want it to end. This is not the kind of storyline I would choose to read but the author brought it to life for me in a highly creative way. Brilliant.
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