Sister of Mine

Set in the small Canadian town of St. Margaret’s, Petrou’s riveting debut finds Penny Grayson, the book’s eloquent narrator, and her younger sister, Hattie, sharing their family home after the death of Penelope’s abusive husband, Buddy, in a fire. Penny, the director of the town’s day care center, and Hattie, who works at the beauty salon, have settled into a relatively comfortable routine. However, the delicate balance of their lives changes when a handsome stranger, Jameson Leung, comes to teach at the local school. For the sisters, his arrival “was like the moon dropped out of the sky and broke open like an orange.” Soon they’re competing for Jameson’s affections. The women’s complicated relationship—made up of shifting emotions of rage, jealousy, guilt, grief, and profound love—is repeatedly tested. Meanwhile, the question of what really happened to Buddy hovers over the novel. The plot may be a tad melodramatic, but it moves swiftly toward the shocking answer to that question. Readers will be keen to see what Petrou comes up with next. Agent: Martha Webb, McDermid Agency (Canada). (Aug.)