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A review by jimbowen0306
The Missing Sister by Elle Marr
2.0
I got given this free through the Amazon "First Reads" programme, and it reinforces what they say about things being worth what you pay for in life.
This books watches what happens when one half of a set of biracial twins (they are a mix of Asian and Scottish, but born and brought up in American) goes missing in France. One of the twins is your stereotypical East-Asian uber over achiever (no stereotyping there), while the other is looked down one because she's only doing a PhD in French history (so definitely no stereotyping of Asians in this book).
Another thing that made me feel uncomfortable about stereotyping in the book, was the denouement. It relies on the sisters being indistinguishable, despite not having see each other for years, and presumably having different haircuts and taste in clothes (we are told that the missing is very much the hippy from the get go, so there's definitely some racial stereotyping of people (including police officers) being unable to tell Asians apart going on here).
The nerdy, medicinal twin then barrels round Paris, trying to find her sister, making a series of emotional, and ill-thought-through decisions (that'll makes you wonder about how clever she actually is) in the process. As an example, she is told pretty quickly "not to trust anyone", but promptly trusts everyone, at one stage of another, except the police, the medical examiner, or anyone in authority. The only reasons for this is to reinforce the damsel in distress narrative, and for the story to last more than 30 pages.
Another thing that irritated me was the fast that her sister had been missing for weeks, but she decided not to go to help a week before college started. I know they only found a body then, but what's the first thing you do when your sibling goes missing? You go to help right? Not if you're a nerdy wannabe American medic apparently.
While I'm compiling this litany of issues I have with this book, the ended of this book was just plain predictable. I'd have had some considerable more... menacing, involving a more confused attitude to the sibling's relationship. One of the siblings is such a horrendous witch, that anything could, and should, have been done by her.
So, all in all a daft book, that only works if you're going to swallow a whole bunch of racial stereotyping, and dumb decisions wholesale.
In many was this book is the last in a series of "First Read" books that have put me off the programme altogether.
This books watches what happens when one half of a set of biracial twins (they are a mix of Asian and Scottish, but born and brought up in American) goes missing in France. One of the twins is your stereotypical East-Asian uber over achiever (no stereotyping there), while the other is looked down one because she's only doing a PhD in French history (so definitely no stereotyping of Asians in this book).
Another thing that made me feel uncomfortable about stereotyping in the book, was the denouement. It relies on the sisters being indistinguishable, despite not having see each other for years, and presumably having different haircuts and taste in clothes (we are told that the missing is very much the hippy from the get go, so there's definitely some racial stereotyping of people (including police officers) being unable to tell Asians apart going on here).
The nerdy, medicinal twin then barrels round Paris, trying to find her sister, making a series of emotional, and ill-thought-through decisions (that'll makes you wonder about how clever she actually is) in the process. As an example, she is told pretty quickly "not to trust anyone", but promptly trusts everyone, at one stage of another, except the police, the medical examiner, or anyone in authority. The only reasons for this is to reinforce the damsel in distress narrative, and for the story to last more than 30 pages.
Another thing that irritated me was the fast that her sister had been missing for weeks, but she decided not to go to help a week before college started. I know they only found a body then, but what's the first thing you do when your sibling goes missing? You go to help right? Not if you're a nerdy wannabe American medic apparently.
While I'm compiling this litany of issues I have with this book, the ended of this book was just plain predictable. I'd have had some considerable more... menacing, involving a more confused attitude to the sibling's relationship. One of the siblings is such a horrendous witch, that anything could, and should, have been done by her.
So, all in all a daft book, that only works if you're going to swallow a whole bunch of racial stereotyping, and dumb decisions wholesale.
In many was this book is the last in a series of "First Read" books that have put me off the programme altogether.