Sistersong - Lucy Holland (Book Review)

Set in a time when the Saxons are invading, Rome has left, and Britions are slowly converting to Christianity, three siblings are at the front of these changes.

Riva is the oldest of the siblings. Keyne is the middle child. And Sinne is the youngest of the three. All have their own personal struggles that are all linked. As the oldest, Riva is practical - she should soon be married to someone in order to secure an alliance for her father the King - but worries that the scars from a fire in childhood would prevent this. Keyne shuns femininity, preferring men’s clothing, and follows the old ways over the new Christian ways much to the Christian priest’s disgust. And Sinne thinks that her siblings are being too serious and prefers the stories of love and adventure she comes up with. Also in the mix are Myrdhin a travelling storyteller and Tristan, a mysterious warrior who saves Riva. Both them and Christian priest Gildas are all linked to the stories of the three siblings.

Sistersong is loosely based on a folk song - The Twa Sisters or The Two Sisters. The song is about two sisters who go down to a river, where the older one drowns the younger one over jealousy. Most versions will have the younger sister’s body wash up and be transformed into a harp which sings the story of how the older sister drowned her. There is sometimes a third sister, but not often. To say much more would be to spoil the story. Just know that when this song comes into play that the description of what happens next can be quite graphic.

I loved the setting. I’m not super familiar with this part of history a part from a few bits and pieces. I loved the perspective of the generation that is old enough to remember the old ways as new ways change them - Keyne remembers going to a grove for a sacrifice, followed by just going to the grove, and then eventually never returning to the grove. I also really liked the exploration of how Christianity adopts Pagan holidays and changes them in order to supersede the Pagan ways - oh we don’t celebrate that holiday anymore, we celebrate Candlemas which coincidently is the same time of year!. I also really liked the magic.

The downside to this era is there is ableism and transphobia. Riva worries that her scars are the reason why her parents haven’t found her a husband to marry and that because of that, she may be doomed to never marry. This sediment can be seen today sometimes, but it’s becoming less frequent of an idea. Keyne is goes on a journey of discovering who they truly are - but comes up against Gildas who one time orders Keyne to be stripped of their pants and masculine clothing and be forced into a dress like their sisters. These are meant to be of the era that Sistersong is set in where there is not the same language or understanding, but for some readers, they may find it confronting. I myself felt a lot of pain for Keyne when they’re forced into a dress - it’s something that I dealt with growing up in a Christian household that believed that women should wear dresses to special events and church.

I really enjoyed this book.