Anna Maxted A Tale of Two Sisters

A Tale of Two Sisters

Anna Maxted

Plume, May 2007, $14.00

ISBN: 0452288517

In London the Jewish sisters Lizbet and Cassie Montgomery seem to live reasonably contented lives. The attractive but a bit chubby Lizbet works as a columnist at Ladz Mag and lives with a nice boyfriend, product designer Tim. Glamorous beauty Cassie is a barrister married to BBC production assistant George Hershlag. Both seem contented and have a tight but also tense relationship between them because they always have competed with one another.

Lizbet raises the bar of the sibling rivalry when she informs their parents and her sister that she is pregnant. Whereas Vivica and Dad are euphoric with the thought of a grandchild, Cassie is angry as she has tried futilely for a year; she secretly prays for the worst. Her payers are answered when Lizbet miscarries. While Lizbet is despondent and depressed, Cassie feels guilty so trying to assuage her conscience she tries to be there for her sister.

Both come alive in different ways yet share in common a deep love for one another and at times a deeper sibling rivalry. Lizbet's emotional trauma is much more devastatingly than the series of woes that strike Cassie; her subplot comes across that much stronger too. Chick lit in design, A TALE OF TWO SISTERS is compelling, sad yet amusing look at sisters, rivals hitherto teammates always their for each other.

Harriet Klausner