The Story Sisters by Alice Hoffman
Purchased

A dark family saga of three sisters and their mother Annie. Elv, Claire and Meghan Story are very close almost eerie in thoughts and looks, though they are plagued by sadness and tend to live in a make believe world. As children the girls spun fairy tales, even creating their own language but an encounter of sexual abuse sends Elv spiraling into years of drug addiction and painful self-abuse. Tragedy and death befalls the family—heartbreaking and beautiful, an unforgettable story of sorrow and love.

This is by far my favorite from Alice Hoffman; the characters had so much depth and intrigue I found myself unable to put down. I cried a lot reading this, it’s so sad yet told so exquisitely I couldn't help but feel lost in the novel while reading it. The book is a story of loss told through physical, mental and emotional death. I was drawn to Elv the oldest sister, even during her downward spiral and mindless addiction to drugs, the stories within her were fascinating. I am not one for spoilers, but I must share my favorite scene in the book which wont give anything away. When Elv meets Lorry, (the twisted train wreck of a man who sweeps her away) I realized I wasn't even half way through the book and almost did a back flip because now thrown into this family saga was going to be a heart pounding or breaking love story.

The normal setting but the magical events just sucked me in. I loved that Hoffman wove real life family issues throughout the sister’s fairytale world making this novel read almost like a fairytale itself with the beautiful descriptions of Paris and the magic world of faeries and knights.