Synopsis
A city’s haunted history and fairy-tale horrors converge for two women in an addictive novel of psychological suspense by a multiple Bram Stoker Award–nominated author.
Sisters Anna and Jennie live in a historic bungalow on the Chicago River. They’re tethered to a disquieting past, and with nowhere else to go, nothing can part them from their family home. Not the maddening creaks and disembodied voices that rattle the old walls. Not the inexplicable drownings in the area, or the increasing number of bodies that float by Anna’s window.
To stave off loneliness, Anna has a podcast, spinning ghostly tales of Chicago’s tragic history. But when Anna captures the attention of an ardent male listener, she awakens to the possibilities of a world outside.
As their relationship grows, so do Jennie’s fears. More and more people are going missing in the river. And then two detectives come calling.
They’re looking for a link between the mysteries of the river and what’s housed on the bank. Even Anna and Jennie don’t understand how dreadful it is—and still can be—when the truth about their unsettled lives begins to surface.
Review
A huge thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the eARC!
Palpably dripping with sorrow, mystery, and an atmosphere of malevolent confusion, Cynthia Pelayo’s latest novel, Forgotten Sisters, reimagines the classic tales of our childhood. Heavily relying on Hans Christian Andersen’s The Little Mermaid, this tale of mourning sisters living in Chicago is beautifully laced with a poignancy that is rather striking. Jennie and Anna live in a historic family home along the Chicago River following an unspoken incident that’s left them both in a state of seclusion and grief. Of course, the outside world is calling Anna towards a life beyond the confines of this strange, seemingly haunted home despite the ever-growing number of murdered men found in the river. This escalation of unease within the city of Chicago and Anna and Jennie’s home leads to a daunting, mysterious horror story, one that reckons the past with the present.
With Forgotten Sisters being the first work of Pelayo’s that I’ve had the pleasure of reading, I quickly understood why she is so highly regarded in the world of dark, crime fiction. The combination of horror and crime may seem like a natural convergence, but in truth, I have found the literal, concise nature of investigative narratives to (at times) take away from the haunting atmosphere of a true horror story. This is not something that Forgotten Sisters suffers from, and rather, this novel stands out for its effortless style of gritty, intentional storytelling, showcasing elusive killers and perplexing entities.
Another strength of this story is the ability for multiple settings to operate as characters themselves, namely Chicago as a whole, Anna and Jennie’s home, and the Chicago River. The histories of each and every one of these locations are more than rich, something Pelayo explores extensively, breathing life into the plot and adding a new dimension to this mystery. The detectives investigating the rising number of dead men being found in the river approach things from a logical, grounded perspective (as they should). However, we know from Anna’s perspective that otherworldly things can occur leaving the possibilities endless for who or what may be committing these heinous crimes.
Forgotten Sisters is a novel that thrives on the overall “feel” of the story. Pelayo writes with a sense of unnamed tragedy that creates an atmosphere of discernable unease. The odd occurrences around the house seem unnerving at first but then graduate to downright frightful when matched with Jennie’s strange behavior and dialogue. The closest comparison for this air of unnerving confusion instituted on both a micro and macro scale is Ian Reid’s novel, I’m Thinking of Ending Things. The great city of Chicago is plagued with violence at the hands of an unknown individual just as Anna begins to yearn for a life outside the one she currently lives. Simultaneously, her perception of her home becomes murky instituting a persistent, haunting atmosphere of unreality. Through this disorientation, Pelayo’s prose is nothing short of tragically gorgeous as we are taken on a downward spiral rooted in grief, loss, and terror.
Equal parts haunting horror story and riveting detective mystery, Forgotten Sisters functions on numerous levels of literal, real-world investigation compounded by disorienting, haunting circumstances. Pelayo crafts some of the most evocative, spell-binding prose to create a unique atmosphere of unsteadiness for each character matched with scenes of utter terror. Traces of childhood tales aid in creating the forces at play behind Jennie and Anna’s home that function in a way that is truly unmistakable. It succeeds on these levels of horror and investigation but also speaks to the poignancy of the past and the irreparable outcomes it delivers to the present. As vital as the river is to the city of Chicago, Cynthia Pelayo’s writing and unique voice is a clear fixture in the horror community, one that needs to be read.
Forgotten Sisters releases on March 19, 2024 from Thomas & Mercer.
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