Sisterhood By V.B. Grey

‘Sisterhood’ is the latest book by V.B. Grey

It is 1944 in war-battered London. Freya and Shona are identical twins, close despite their different characters. Freya is a newly qualified doctor treating the injured in an East End hospital, while Shona has been recruited by the SOE. The sisters are so physically alike that they can fool people into thinking that one is the other. It’s a game they’ve played since childhood. But when Shona persuades her twin to swap roles to meet her Polish lover, he is angered at being tricked. Then Shona proposes a far more dangerous swapping of roles. At first Freya refuses but finally she agrees, with consequences that threaten not only the happiness but the lives of both sisters. Forty-five years later in November 1989 Freya, now aged 69, is watching television with her daughter Kirsty. Freya is gripped as she witnesses crowds of Berliners attempting to knock down their hated Wall. This sight stirs memories of her own and her sister’s war, especially the tragedy of the Warsaw Uprising – memories that she has never shared with anyone. Even if she wanted to reveal them now, she can’t. She’s suffering from a brain tumour and is unable to speak although her reason is unimpaired. And this is what she’s thinking: if they succeed in knocking down the Wall, what secrets will come tumbling through? If her own were revealed, it would be devastating for all those close to her, especially her daughter, Kirsty.

Today I spent my head with the latest historical offering from Isabelle Grey. An inspiring and gripping story about twin sisters who were wanting to make a change during the Second World War.

The story is written in the past and present tense and seen through the perspective of mother and daughter Freya and Kirsty. Freya’s narrative is from 1944 during the Second World War and Kirsty is set in 1989. Freya has a terminal brain tumour and is unable to speak, whilst Kirsty is dealing with her mother’s impending death, her husband wants to return to his native home in Australia and move the family over. Then a man turns up wanting to meet Shona, who was Freya’s twin sister and wants to know more about his mother.

The man in question, Tomaz sparks a new interest in Freya’s mother and Kirsty discovers that her mother wasn’t quite the woman that she was lead to believe and was actually a pioneering trailblazer who sacrificed her life during the war.

This story is a powerful one, it’s beautifully written and descriptive and really engages the readers attention. Freya is a fascinating character and her relationship with her twin Shona, is beautiful to read. Both women are determined and help those less fortunate during the war, Freya is a newly qualified doctor and Shona is an SOE operative and the pair of them can use their jobs to help those in need in Poland.

The story is set against the Poland’s battle of resistance and it makes for fascinating reading as the two put their plans into actions along with Shona’s Polish boyfriend called Leo.

It’s obvious that the story is well researched and is actually based on events led by Isabelle aunt. The dual narratives are intriguing and as Freya can’t speak in the present tense, it’s wonderful to hear her story and version of events. As Kirsty delves deeper into her mother’s life, it gives her a new understanding of her mother’s behaviour and brings the pair of them closer.

A thought provoking story about family, lies and mystery, ‘Sisterhood’ is a stunningly written book about the female dynamics during the war and the women who quietly worked away, making changes for their country.

You can buy ‘Sisterhood’ from Amazon and is available to buy from good bookshops.