dnf. i just couldn’t get through it.

The Sisters of Straygarden place creates a beautiful, atmospheric world in which sisters unravel a mystery. It is an odd, eerie tale with strange characters and happenings. I loved the delicate relationship between the sisters and even the slow-burn of the tale. However, don't expect a wild adventure. This one would be great for the child that loves to immerse themselves into another world.

The Sister of Straygarden Place was such an amazing and magical story to read. It was about three sisters living in a palace where everything was done for them by the house itself – magically. From cooking delightful dishes for the girls to dressing them up in the most stunning dresses, the house did it all, plus it cleaned the house and did the dishes for them too. It would’ve been the perfect house to get into during this quarantine, am I right?

However, there’s a twist. You must give something up in order to live in this house, something that you always needed. The house will steal something vital from you in exchange of its services, and it’s their choice of what they get to keep. They can take away your sleep, your scene of taste, your peace, your sunlight, your ANYTHING, and you can’t get out of the house. So the story revolves on solving the missing parents of the sisters and how things take a tough turn when the oldest sister Winnow grows mysteriously ill.

This book was fun to read, and as it’s a middle grade book, I never expected to go through such an emotional roller coaster while reading it. The book, in a way, taught us that patience and courage can overcome all hardships if we gave it a shot.

I was hoping for a deeper connection and trustworthiness between the three sisters though, which I couldn’t find until later. But that matter did not bother me once the story began turning mysterious and I got introduced to many interesting characters on the way – like Tutto, a hippopotamus who TALKS and lives in a library and reads out stories to you, and Droomhunds who are cute little doggies who help the sleep deprived sisters sleep at night and stay with them all the time, entertaining them and loving them unconditionally.

A very peculiar and imaginative story that I’m sure middle graders would love. 3/5 stars.
“People are like stories if you give them enough time to reveal themselves.”

Hayley Chewins is back! Her 2018 novel, The Turnaway Girls, was one of the best books I'd read that year, so I was excited to read her newest, The Sisters of Straygarden Place. The Ballastian Sisters - Winnow, Mayhap, and Pavonine - have lived in the house by themselves after their parents left seven years before, only a note telling them to "sleep darkly" left behind. The house takes care of their basic needs - food, clothing, shelter - but they cannot leave the house, lest the tall silver grass take them. Winnow grows tired of waiting and ventures outside, leaving 12-year-old Mayhap to take care of their youngest sister, Pavonine, and figure out how to heal 14-year-old Winnow. As Mayhap discovers more about the house and the history of the magic within it, the mystery deepens. Readers will love this gorgeous, dark fantasy written with prose that's almost lyrical, magical. Hayley Chewins writes like Neil Gaiman, where the words just caress you, wrap themselves around you, and when you're fully under their spell, tell you stories that will leave you wondering. In a world where dogs crawl into your mind to help you sleep and the grass tempts you to come outside so it can take you away, The Sisters of Straygarden Place is truly magical reading.

Review originally published 9 Oct. 2020 at Falling Letters. I received a free copy from the publisher via Netgalley.

- Did not work for me at all

What. I’m not even sure what just happened. This one started off so strong, so spooky. But the resolution just didn’t make sense? I feel like the author just pushed out a forced happy ending. Meh