The Serial Killer's Sister by Alice Hunter

What would you do if your brother turned out to be a serial killer? Would you play a twisted game of treasure hunt to find and stop him from claiming his next victim?

What if his next victim was you?

I enjoyed Alice Hunter's book The Serial Killer's Wife so much that of course I got another book in the 3-book series. At first I thought all these books were connected in a sequel or something but they're actually standalone cases of people who are closely connected to serial killers which is so fascinating!

This instalment of Alice Hunter's literary genius blew my-freaking-mind. I finished it in 2 days!! And when I did finish the final page in bed last night, it took me a good 5-10 minutes to digest the chaos in the final paragraph. I only noticed about a third of the way through the book, the clever use of perspective and writing in the first\third person - very tactful and it tied everything together in the end!

Here's the main plot - don't worry, no big spoilers here!

Anna and Henry Lincoln grew up in an abusive household in Shaldon, England, until they were rescued and sent to a children's home which wasn't much better. They were both left with high-level anxiety and PTSD, but unlike her brother, Anna moved to Sutton Coldfield, grew up, married her sweetheart Ross Price and made something of her life working with children at a private school - helping them in ways she and her brother weren't when they were young and troubled.

We begin the story with Anna's peaceful life being turned upside down Stranger-Things-style by a detective informing her that her brother is wanted for 5 murders of women in different countries. They're being murdered on 2 dates of significance each year - Anna's birthday being one, the other being connected to a secret she and Henry swore never to talk about when they last saw each other 15 years ago.

Anna soon finds a written clue outside her front door, assumedly from Henry, with terrifying implications,

'You're not the only one with something to hide,

You're not the only one that's cheated and lied.

You're going to regret being the one who fled,

You're going to end up losing your head.

Tell-tale tit, your tongue shall be slit;

All the dogs in town shall have a little bit.'

This riddle is the first move of a game they played as kids in the children's home - although it takes on a sick note now there's dead women being used as clues - and Anna has 3 days to figure out Henry's latest riddle to stop him from murdering again. She has no choice but to play along; Henry's proved through violent means before that if Anna dares ignore him, someone she loves will pay the price.

Thanks to some creepily-sourced CCTV footage being posted to her private school's WhatsApp group, Anna's put on leave from her job. She's sent home so an incident can be investigated, leaving her with nothing but time on her hands to hunt down her long-lost brother.

To the review!

So this was a fantastic addition to Alice Hunter's already brilliant collection of novels written about people closely related to serial killers.

➕ I love that her style of writing remained consistent - easy to follow, mysterious and keeps you guessing - while the story itself didn't echo the previous books that follow a similar theme. In other words, I didn't feel like I was reading a version of The Serial Killer's Wife that has been put in a blender, rearranged and put back on a bookshelf.

➕ Another thing I loved was the dual timeline; learning of the clues Henry left and Anna's solving them through flashbacks of their childhood past was a brilliant way of keeping me turning the pages.

The book: 'All of a sudden, something clicks into place, and I remember a puzzle just like this one. How could I have forgotten?

I know how to solve it.'

Me: Wait. What? Whaaat?! *Turns pages furiously*

➖ Something I didn't really like about this book was how unbelievable the detective's actions are every time Anna goes behind his back, withholds evidence from him and blatantly wastes police time. It happens constantly and Anna is warned every time that if she keeps messing the police around she could have charges brought up, yet she carries on doing it and then gets told off multiple times (and in the same manner) by the same detective like a child... And then they just move on. It seems far-fetched to me that this would ever happen in any sense of the real world. It brought me out of the book a little and dulled the next couple of paragraphs until I became engrossed in the story once again. It wasn't a total deal-breaker for me, just a little jarring.

➕ I grew quite attached to Anna! The way her character was written is perfect and integral to this story. She begins as a strong woman who has, through all the adversity of her youth, made decisions, taken charge and created a happy life for herself and her husband, Ross. Her development throughout the book however takes her on a sharp downturn with the stress of her brother creeping into her life, his terrifying game of The Hunt being revived and her husband harbouring devastating secrets.

For this read, I have to give it a perfect 5\5! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Serial Killer's Sister was easy to follow without being easy to predict (I'd never have predicted the ending!!) So if you're looking for a book that'll keep you hooked, guessing and turning those pages, this is the one for you. Enjoy!

If you've read this already please leave me a comment letting me know if you'd worked out the ending, because it caught me way off guard! Thank you again to Alice Hunter for this brilliant piece of work. I look forward to reading The Serial Killer's Daughter. 😀