After a tragedy strikes the family, Lia Milthorpe discovers a peculiar mark on her wrist. Even so, that is not the only strange thing happening within her wealthy home. Her twin sister, Alice, has already grown distant, but the discovery of a mysterious book may explain it all as well as raise more questions. Odd as it seems, she and her sister are part of an ancient prophecy. Though the parts they are to play within it are quite potent, it seems that their sisterhood will be torn apart as their individual free will turns them against another. Their opposing desires will have them working in opposition of the other as Lia begins to find allies she can trust in this unique and eerie Victorian-based story.
Though this is the second time I've read Prophecy of the Sisters, I may have actually enjoyed it more than the first, which is quite a compliment since I already really loved it.
One of the first things that caught my attention while reading this book was Michelle Zink's writing. It's fantastic! And the characters she created were so natural. Oftentimes, different characters of a novel tend to have rather extreme characteristics that make them stick out in a more forced way, but Michelle Zink is better than this. Prophecy of the Sisters had characters that were well-defined without extreme qualities. Because of this, I loved reading about these characters - even Alice, who creeped me out at times.
Since this is a Victorian novel, I would have expected it to fall under a certain mental catagory I have made when reading books that take place in older periods of history. It's not that I have anything against books that take place further back in time, because I actually love that - especiallly the Victorian era in which Prophecy of the Sisters was written for. My problem is the way that some authors handle it. They really want to make sure that the reader gets the correct feel of the time period by babbling nonstop about the time period. It comes to a certain point where I don't want to read about wagons anymore; I want plot. Michelle Zink did not do this. The 1800's felt so natural in this book, and I praise Michelle Zink for this in addition to her other great writing skills.
Prophecy of the Sisters has a generally creepy/mysterious vibe to it, but it isn't generally gloomy either. It's actually quite adventurous and fun as it is evenly paced. That's not to say that there are no dark matters in this book, because their are plenty. The paranormal elements are hair-rising and the times of tragedy are filled with sorrow. Throughout the entire reading experience, something is always happening as Lia tries to solve the mysteries of the prophecy. But, the climax is still ever-present despite the consistent pace.
I was really intrigued by the general concept of this book, with twin sisters battling against the other as well as the prophecy being a mythological version of the Bible's apocalypse. The times of darkness readers will encounter within the plot is kind of scary, and I liked that. Besides, the bits of magic, like all magic, made me happy. But more than anything, I loved the eerie elements, especially the freaky medallion. I can't say much about this without spoiling anything; I'll just tell you it's cool.
Really... there's not much left to say. No complaints whatsoever. Prophecy of the Sisters is an impeccable novel and I will definitely read the next two books in this trilogy, as this first novel has proved to be greatly written and one-of-a-kind.
4.5/5 Stars
Zink, Michelle. Prophecy of the Sisters
New York: Little, Brown and Company
2009
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