🔪 Sororicidal Review: Sisterhood… but Make It Psychological Warfare ⭐⭐☆☆☆
⚠️ Trigger Warnings
Child abuse (physical & emotional)
Bullying / manipulation
Disability & medical trauma
Sexual content (including early experimentation)
Animal death
Toxic family dynamics
Psychological cruelty
👀 Why I Picked This Up
I’ve always been fascinated by sibling relationships—probably because I don’t have one. I’m an only child, so I’ll never fully understand that dynamic… but I do see it play out through my daughters.
They’re about two years apart. They love each other. They also occasionally act like tiny rivals in a lifelong competition no one signed up for 😅
So when I saw Sororicidal—a story about two sisters who are complete opposites and low-key at war—I was immediately intrigued.
And honestly? It started off feeling very real…
…but somewhere along the way, it lost me.
🚨 Spoiler Warning – Full Plot & Ending 🚨
📖 Plot Summary (FULL SPOILERS)
Sororicidal follows Mary and Margot Cussens, two sisters growing up in Edwardian Adelaide, and later into adulthood and old age.
🧒 Part One – Margot (Childhood)
Margot, the younger sister, grows up under the shadow of Mary—who is basically a master manipulator in pigtails.
Mary commits small, cruel acts that no one ever witnesses
Margot has a “wobbly foot,” making her physically vulnerable
The sisters create a secret world (Ruby Hedge) and a deeply unhinged “Hate Book” full of people they despise
Mary pressures Margot into disturbing rituals (including a literal blood ritual… because why not escalate early 😬)
Margot begins forming her own identity through a friendship with Nessy (daughter of the family cook), which includes early sexual exploration—but that relationship collapses after the Hate Book betrayal.
Meanwhile, Mary uses Margot as a subject for her art… and leverages that into her escape from home.
👉 Already, the dynamic is clear: Mary dominates, Margot internalizes.
🎨 Part Two – Mary (Adulthood)
Mary returns years later after living in Europe.
She reveals she never went to art school initially—she actually left for an illegal abortion arranged by her father
Margot is now married with a daughter (Christina), living a quiet, conventional life
Mary basically inserts herself into Margot’s home like an emotionally disruptive houseguest
Tensions escalate:
Mary paints a nude portrait of Christina (🚩🚩🚩)
Margot openly says: “I hate you” (honestly, fair)
Mary’s beloved dog, Pip, is poisoned in Margot’s garden
👉 This is where things shift from passive-aggressive to… actively destructive
🧶 Part Three – Margot (Later Years)
Now older, the sisters live together again in their decaying family home.
Margot finds brief emotional connection with Pamela, a midwife
Christina (the next generation) struggles in her own marriage but ultimately chooses independence
Margot tries—desperately—to hold onto connection, even physically restraining Pamela from leaving
👉 This section explores loneliness, aging, and generational cycles
🔥 Part Four – Mary (Final Years)
Mary is now an elderly artist living part-time in France.
She continues manipulating identity through art (literally painting over people’s faces… subtle 🙃)
Returns home to find Margot deteriorating physically
And then…
💥 THE ENDING:
Margot sets fire to Mary’s studio
Instead of reacting with rage, Mary calmly helps contain the fire
The sisters sit together… watching the destruction
👉 Not reconciliation. Not forgiveness.
👉 Just… acceptance through mutual ruin
🧠 Themes & What It’s Trying to Say
Sisterhood as both mirror and weapon
Identity shaped (and distorted) by others
Family as an “unendurable entanglement”
Love and cruelty existing side-by-side
It’s very literary. Very symbolic. Very… heavy.
🤔 My Thoughts (a.k.a. Why This Didn’t Work for Me)
I wanted to love this. The premise? Incredible. The psychological tension? Right up my alley.
But here’s the thing…
👉 I just didn’t feel anything by the end.
The characters are fascinating… but emotionally distant
The story is layered… but not especially engaging
The symbolism is strong… but also kind of exhausting
It felt like I was observing something rather than experiencing it.
And for a book about such an intense, intimate relationship? That’s a problem.
Also… I kept waiting for some kind of emotional payoff, revelation, or gut punch.
Instead, I got:
🔥 “Well… everything burned. The end.”
Cool cool cool.
👩👧 Personal Connection (and Reality Check)
There were moments that hit close to home:
Opposite personalities
Sibling tension
That subtle competition dynamic
But thankfully…
👉 My kids are not maintaining a hate diary and performing blood rituals in the backyard 😅
So yes—similarities end there.
⭐ Final Rating: 2 Stars
⭐ Great concept
⭐ Strong writing style
But…
❌ Emotionally disconnected
❌ No satisfying payoff
❌ Left me feeling… nothing
And that’s the worst crime a book can commit, honestly.
📚 If You Love Dark Family Dynamics, Try These Instead:
Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn
The Push by Ashley Audrain
We Need to Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver
The Sisters by Claire Douglas
Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng
💬 Final Thought
This is one of those books where I completely understand what the author was doing…
…I just didn’t enjoy the experience of reading it.
And when it comes to books about emotional devastation?
👉 I’d prefer to actually feel devastated 😅
Comments
Post a Comment