Seven Sisters

Australian author Katherine Kovacic delivers on a powerful and provocative premise that explores grief, guilt, justice and vengeance in Seven Sisters.

“Each one met her eye, and in each face there was grief and understanding and something else – a reflection of the bleakness she saw whenever she dared to look in a mirror.”

Struggling to cope with her feelings of rage and frustration in the aftermath of her sister’s murder at the hands of her abusive partner, for which he received only a suspended sentence, Naomi doesn’t expect group therapy will be much help. She is stunned when Mia, her psychologist, introduces her to the five other members and learns that not only do they sympathise with her loss, but understand it. Like her, show more Gabrielle, Brooke, Katy, Olivia and Amy have each lost a beloved sister as a result of domestic violence, and similarly, the perpetrator faced few consequences.

Drawing inspiration from the classic film ‘Strangers on a Train’, the women all agree these men must be stopped, and carefully devise ways to exact justice in a manner that will seem accidental. No plan is perfect however and there are several very tense moments as each woman attempts to fulfil their task by creative, but plausible, methods. I enjoyed the suspense generated by each situation, especially when things threaten to go awry, and then a lone detective begins to grow suspicious about the string of deaths.

I sympathised with each woman, easily imagining the depth of their loss, and the anguish of knowing that the person’s responsible escaped serious repercussions. I can’t really fault them for their desire for revenge especially when the law has failed so badly at meting out justice. Kovacic addresses the moral issues thoughtfully, but honestly it’s hard to muster up any outrage for their actions. Though this is fiction, and I don’t condone murder, I indulge in a little revenge fantasy myself whenever I read in the news of yet another man who receives a ludicrously light sentence or none at all for an assault on a woman.

Compelling, bold and fast paced, Seven Sisters is a well written and exciting revenge thriller. show less

Based on a scenario developed by Patricia Highsmith and Alfred Hitchcock in Strangers On a Train.

The setting is New South Wales.

This plot will have you watching to see how the threads develop. You'll think about how Mia has put this therapy group together, and assessing what its success depends on. For each of the 6 women in this group, as well as Mia the therapist, have something in common - grief they haven't been able to get over.

Each of the characters is well drawn. Are there any weak links? Will they all be able to carry through their part?

Once you've finished reading, there are some reading questions provided on the final pages.