Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing this audiobook for review consideration. All opinions are my own.
Everything Eliza Ramsey believes about her life is about to come crashing down. For now, she is enjoying a sleepover with her niece, unaware that her carefully knitted-together professional and personal life is about to unravel. Tomorrow, when her sister disappears on the anniversary of the mysterious plane crash that killed their parents and seriously injured the girls, every secret will begin to come loose—one thread at a time. Will Eliza uncover the truth in time to protect her family, or is it already too late?
Master of suspense and bestselling author Hank Phillippi Ryan returns with Mother Daughter Sister Stranger, an emotional psychological thriller that will keep readers on the edge of their seats. Blending tragedy, family drama, and escalating tension, this novel keeps both the heroine and the reader guessing until the final pages. It is a story about secrets that refuse to stay hidden and the danger of trusting the wrong person with what you treasure most.
I give Mother Daughter Sister Stranger 4 out of 5 stars. I could not put this book down and stayed up late to read it in one sitting. I am not usually a fan of psychological thrillers involving children, but this story has a gripping plot. Every time I thought I had figured out who was behind the disappearance, the book upended my theory. I did struggle with one major plot point surrounding the disappearance of Eliza’s sister—no spoilers here—but given that she is a mother and someone who has long valued the annual remembrance ceremonies, I had difficulty believing how easily she made certain decisions. I also had questions about the adoption-related plot points. These concerns did not change the overall impact of the book for me, but they were significant enough that I wondered whether the author had personal experience with, or had deeply researched, those aspects of the storyline.
This would be a fantastic choice for a thriller or suspense book club, with plenty to discuss around the sisters, family secrets, and the emotional fallout of the central mystery. I would also recommend it to readers who enjoyed One Big Happy Family by Jamie Day, Ask for Andrea by Noelle W. Ihli, or The Heiress by Rachel Hawkins. Readers sensitive to discussions of plane crashes may want to approach with care.
Mother Daughter Sister Stranger releases on September 1, 2026, and is available for pre-order through our Bookshop.org store.
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What I’m Reading
- Current print book: The Last Murder, George R Dekle Sr
- Current audio book: Lincoln’s Autocrat, MR William Marvel
- Book I’m most looking forward to: The Magic of Chamomile Cottage, Heather Webber
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