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Shred Sisters
A wry and riveting debut novel about family, mental illness, and a hard-won path between two sisters
It is said that when one person in a family is unstable, the whole family is destabilized. Meet the Shreds. Olivia is the sister in the spotlight, but when her stunning confidence morphs into something erratic and unpredictable, she becomes a hurricane leaving people wrecked in her wake. Put simply, she has no brakes.
Younger sister Amy, cautious and studious to the core, survives Ollie’s bullying and outcast status throughout her school years. She dreams of winning a Nobel Prize and unlocking the mysteries of the mind. Amy believes in facts, proof, and the empirical world. Except none of that can explain what’s happening to Ollie, whose physical beauty and charisma mask the bipolar disorder that will shatter Amy’s carefully constructed world.
As Amy comes of age and seeks to find her place—first in academics, then New York publishing, and through a series of troubled relationships—every step brings collisions with Ollie, who slips in and out of the Shred family without warning. For all that upends and unsettles these sisters, an inextricable bond always draws them back.
Spanning two decades, Shred Sisters is an intimate and bittersweet story exploring the fierce complexities of sisterhood, mental health, loss and love. If anything is true it’s what Amy learns on her road to self-acceptance: No one will love you or hurt you more than a sister.
It is said that when one person in a family is unstable, the whole family is destabilized. Meet the Shreds. Olivia is the sister in the spotlight, but when her stunning confidence morphs into something erratic and unpredictable, she becomes a hurricane leaving people wrecked in her wake. Put simply, she has no brakes.
Younger sister Amy, cautious and studious to the core, survives Ollie’s bullying and outcast status throughout her school years. She dreams of winning a Nobel Prize and unlocking the mysteries of the mind. Amy believes in facts, proof, and the empirical world. Except none of that can explain what’s happening to Ollie, whose physical beauty and charisma mask the bipolar disorder that will shatter Amy’s carefully constructed world.
As Amy comes of age and seeks to find her place—first in academics, then New York publishing, and through a series of troubled relationships—every step brings collisions with Ollie, who slips in and out of the Shred family without warning. For all that upends and unsettles these sisters, an inextricable bond always draws them back.
Spanning two decades, Shred Sisters is an intimate and bittersweet story exploring the fierce complexities of sisterhood, mental health, loss and love. If anything is true it’s what Amy learns on her road to self-acceptance: No one will love you or hurt you more than a sister.
272 pages, Hardcover
Published October 1, 2024
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,543 reviews
October 31, 2024
This is one of those books where I feel compelled to specify that for me, a three-star review is not a bad review. I know three stars looks bad, like quintessential damning with faint praise stuff, next to rows of four and five stars. But I don’t usually finish, shelve as read, rate, or review books I don’t like, and I’m pretty ruthless about this, so if a book gets a three, it means I decided to complete it and it’s not a two and that already says a lot. I’d say that for me, three stars lies somewhere on the spectrum between “solidly liked it but a coupla things bugged me” and “thank you, next,” and the best interpretation would be something like, “just wasn’t quite my vibe.”
All that being said - I was a little let down by this book, but objectively there was nothing wrong with it. Though the story spans many years, it’s pretty spare and economical in its telling, remarkably and admirably so, which makes sense given that I think the author is a pretty notable editor and/or writing instructor or something like that. I think my objections were primarily twofold: first, the character of Ollie felt a little too much like an idealized portrait of mental illness, a bit shallowly characterized and manic pixie dream girl to me, with almost sort of a Pretty Woman-type situation going on - pretty curious if anyone else felt the same way. Second, with regard to protagonist Amy - I usually don’t mind “unlikeable” characters at all and like, bring on the depression, I’m familiar/a fan, but Amy was frustrating to me and often unpleasant and I struggled to empathize with her at times or to connect her own particular struggles to her family relationships (although she certainly had a lot of shit to deal with). Indeed, at times I was thinking that almost everyone in the book seemed kind of like a total selfish asshole, incapable of love, and even if this is an accurate depiction of humanity, it was depressing to dwell on and to spend time with these folks in a way that did not seem redemptive until perhaps the very end. I guess a third concern I had was that, especially given all the previous assholery, the end felt overly resolved and sunny in a somewhat facile and rushed way.
HOWEVER, and again, it bears repeating that I finished the book and there was never any doubt that I would. Good book, I am sure many will like it, but something about it was just a bit off for me and interfered with my ability to truly connect or care. Very technically proficient and great subject matter and themes, but did not pluck at my heartstrings as much as I’d hoped.
All that being said - I was a little let down by this book, but objectively there was nothing wrong with it. Though the story spans many years, it’s pretty spare and economical in its telling, remarkably and admirably so, which makes sense given that I think the author is a pretty notable editor and/or writing instructor or something like that. I think my objections were primarily twofold: first, the character of Ollie felt a little too much like an idealized portrait of mental illness, a bit shallowly characterized and manic pixie dream girl to me, with almost sort of a Pretty Woman-type situation going on - pretty curious if anyone else felt the same way. Second, with regard to protagonist Amy - I usually don’t mind “unlikeable” characters at all and like, bring on the depression, I’m familiar/a fan, but Amy was frustrating to me and often unpleasant and I struggled to empathize with her at times or to connect her own particular struggles to her family relationships (although she certainly had a lot of shit to deal with). Indeed, at times I was thinking that almost everyone in the book seemed kind of like a total selfish asshole, incapable of love, and even if this is an accurate depiction of humanity, it was depressing to dwell on and to spend time with these folks in a way that did not seem redemptive until perhaps the very end. I guess a third concern I had was that, especially given all the previous assholery, the end felt overly resolved and sunny in a somewhat facile and rushed way.
HOWEVER, and again, it bears repeating that I finished the book and there was never any doubt that I would. Good book, I am sure many will like it, but something about it was just a bit off for me and interfered with my ability to truly connect or care. Very technically proficient and great subject matter and themes, but did not pluck at my heartstrings as much as I’d hoped.
July 14, 2024
“no one will love you more or hurt you more than a sister.”
i sat down to read this and then ended up finishing it in a few sittings. ‘shred sisters’ is a raw story about the messiness of human relationships, of sisterhood and family dynamics, and the rippling effects of mental illness. all of the characters are well-crafted, especially the 2 shred sisters themselves, amy and olivia, and their polarity to one another. it’s a very poignant, touching novel, and i’m excited to read more of betsy lerner’s work after this!
thank you to betsy for kindly sending me a copy! ‘shred sisters’ comes out on 1st october 2024.
i sat down to read this and then ended up finishing it in a few sittings. ‘shred sisters’ is a raw story about the messiness of human relationships, of sisterhood and family dynamics, and the rippling effects of mental illness. all of the characters are well-crafted, especially the 2 shred sisters themselves, amy and olivia, and their polarity to one another. it’s a very poignant, touching novel, and i’m excited to read more of betsy lerner’s work after this!
thank you to betsy for kindly sending me a copy! ‘shred sisters’ comes out on 1st october 2024.
October 15, 2024
“No one will love you more or hurt you more than a sister.”
March 16, 2025
3.0⭐️
This is a good book but I didn’t like it. I have a difficult time empathizing with privileged rich people, even fictional ones. Frankly, I find their problems kind of boring. Try having all those mental health issues without wealth, youth, beauty and whiteness protecting you. If such was the case, this would have been a story about visiting Ollie in jail instead of at resort-like wellness centers.
This is a good book but I didn’t like it. I have a difficult time empathizing with privileged rich people, even fictional ones. Frankly, I find their problems kind of boring. Try having all those mental health issues without wealth, youth, beauty and whiteness protecting you. If such was the case, this would have been a story about visiting Ollie in jail instead of at resort-like wellness centers.
July 22, 2024
Went through this one so fast! I was especially gripped by the first half of the book, when the Shred sisters were both young and the tensions in the family were high - I couldn’t stop reading. I found myself thinking about Ollie on random moments during my day - that’s how real of a character she was. Towards the end a little too much happened to me, family tragedy and relationships followed each other up too fast - but other than that a beautiful, pure and honest novel that beautifully portrayed the impact of difficult family relationships and the impact of mental illness on those around us.
March 10, 2024
Such a deep and moving story. This shows the deep running issues between family, siblings and one's self. It's not a perfect story nor does it include perfect people, it is messy and has damaged bits but I think that's what made this so remarkable for me. The utter rawness of each character, flaws and all. Some may say it's "slow" for the first half for the story, however, I believe it is building the background and deepens the understanding for each of the main characters. As you watch them grow and development, it was truly eye opening. Many heart breaking moments as well. This makes you be more open minded, aware and understanding to those possibly dealing with mental illness, addiction or family problems. I enjoyed it.
I received this ARC from NetGalley and Grove Atlantic to read/review. All of the statements above are my true opinions after fully reading this book.
I received this ARC from NetGalley and Grove Atlantic to read/review. All of the statements above are my true opinions after fully reading this book.
August 27, 2024
Thank you to NetGalley and Grove Atlantic for an e-arc in exchange for my honest review.
I was very excited to read this book because of the themes of sisterhood and mental illness, but, unfortunately, it fell flat for me.
After a — in my opinion — very strong start, I quickly lost interest and found myself skimming the second half of the book. This was mostly due to how boring and, honestly, annoying and whiny I thought Amy, the sister whose perspective we’re reading from, was. I would have found this book much more interesting if we had spent more time with Ollie, the other and more complicated sister.
Instead, I was stuck reading about Amy’s day-to-day life and her struggles forming relationships with other people outside of her difficult family life and, while that might sound interesting, I thought it was ultimately all very shallow and nothing was explored in a way that was satisfactory to me.
I would have loved seeing more about both sisters in their therapy sessions and processing their trauma, but it all felt very superficial and like none of their deeper struggles were really addressed.
Overall, I just expected a lot more out of this book and was, ultimately, very bored by it.
I was very excited to read this book because of the themes of sisterhood and mental illness, but, unfortunately, it fell flat for me.
After a — in my opinion — very strong start, I quickly lost interest and found myself skimming the second half of the book. This was mostly due to how boring and, honestly, annoying and whiny I thought Amy, the sister whose perspective we’re reading from, was. I would have found this book much more interesting if we had spent more time with Ollie, the other and more complicated sister.
Instead, I was stuck reading about Amy’s day-to-day life and her struggles forming relationships with other people outside of her difficult family life and, while that might sound interesting, I thought it was ultimately all very shallow and nothing was explored in a way that was satisfactory to me.
I would have loved seeing more about both sisters in their therapy sessions and processing their trauma, but it all felt very superficial and like none of their deeper struggles were really addressed.
Overall, I just expected a lot more out of this book and was, ultimately, very bored by it.
October 22, 2024
Was I supposed to like Amy?
October 27, 2024
For a book about sisters it sure didn't focus on the relationship, ergo I just don't get the hype. I especially don't get the cover blurb's proclamation of "raucously funny". So many times I wanted to ask of reviewers, are we reading the same book? The story sped along like the view from a car window, not stopping to dwell on events large and larger, horrible and traumatic. Then, it just ends. The writing was smooth and refined, Lerner being a consummate editor and all, but the book just didn't have a point. Cannot recommend.
September 11, 2024
Despite this book being titled Shred Sisters it is narrated and dominated by younger sister, Amy. Thankfully so because Olivia (Ollie) would make for an unreliable narrator to say the least.
We begin the book quite early in the girls' lives and, despite the obvious love between them, Amy always seems to come out second best. It is the perennial complaint of all siblings perhaps that mum and dad have a favourite and Amy finds the fact that the favourite is Ollie even harder to take as Ollie's behaviour becomes more and more self-destructive when her bipolar disorder begins to take hold.
Throughout the book we see Amy striving for perfection as Ollie spirals, calms then spirals again, each time managing to destroy a little more of her family's faith in her ability to recover.
I really liked this book. It is impossible to find fault with Ollie because of her mental health but it is also very easy to sympathise with Amy who constantly feels ignored. Both girls are interesting characters but I really liked Amy and her tenacity in her beliefs and willingness to succeed at everything she does.
This really is simply a long, hard look at family and the relationship between the sisters, but it is so well written that it feels like so much more. There are emotive issues dealt with, such as bipolar, divorce, drug abuse and adultery.
I'd definitely recommend this book.
Thankyou to Netgalley and Grove Atlantic for the advance review copy.
We begin the book quite early in the girls' lives and, despite the obvious love between them, Amy always seems to come out second best. It is the perennial complaint of all siblings perhaps that mum and dad have a favourite and Amy finds the fact that the favourite is Ollie even harder to take as Ollie's behaviour becomes more and more self-destructive when her bipolar disorder begins to take hold.
Throughout the book we see Amy striving for perfection as Ollie spirals, calms then spirals again, each time managing to destroy a little more of her family's faith in her ability to recover.
I really liked this book. It is impossible to find fault with Ollie because of her mental health but it is also very easy to sympathise with Amy who constantly feels ignored. Both girls are interesting characters but I really liked Amy and her tenacity in her beliefs and willingness to succeed at everything she does.
This really is simply a long, hard look at family and the relationship between the sisters, but it is so well written that it feels like so much more. There are emotive issues dealt with, such as bipolar, divorce, drug abuse and adultery.
I'd definitely recommend this book.
Thankyou to Netgalley and Grove Atlantic for the advance review copy.
April 10, 2024
There should be a genre of books for stories about sisters where one is responsible and one is completely out-of-whack—due to mental illness, addiction, or whatever. The voice of Shred Sisters is one of the best in this genre. Easy to read, goes down smoothly.
In a lot of this genre, everybody has enough money and housing, so the problems are first-world family dysfunction. Again, this is one of the best of these books.
I was never bored and enjoyed it . . . even though I get bored hanging out with this kind of dysfunction in real life. And that’s saying something. I never wanted to abandon this book, despite my bias. Very, very well done.
In a lot of this genre, everybody has enough money and housing, so the problems are first-world family dysfunction. Again, this is one of the best of these books.
I was never bored and enjoyed it . . . even though I get bored hanging out with this kind of dysfunction in real life. And that’s saying something. I never wanted to abandon this book, despite my bias. Very, very well done.
November 12, 2024
Tender, heartfelt, beautiful, propulsive. The story of two sisters and a family rocked by deep mental illness, the book centers the sister in the crosshairs of the wreckage, a POV not often seen. The book is deeply felt and realized, and the relationships of the characters are moving and devastating. I truly loved this so much, and connected with Ollie and her isolationist streak. A fave of 2024.
October 28, 2024
I really enjoyed the writing style, but I could not find any emotional connection to these characters. This book was just 'okay'. The content is something pretty close to my heart as well (mental health/addiction) but it was just so shrouded in first world problems that it didn't get to the heart of it for me.
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August 25, 2025« No one will love you more or hurt you more than a sister. »
May 16, 2025
No judgement. I just couldn’t put it down.
July 7, 2024
Imagine if Lorelai & Rory were sisters and grew up together at the Gilmore household - but significantly more chaotic. Shred Sisters is exactly that rebellious and nerdy duo in an upper middle class Connecticut family with many secrets. Honestly, I enjoyed the “no plot just vibes” story told in the perspective of Amy Shred (the nerdy sister). If you like reading about messy relationships, introverted narrator, mental health, and family dynamics, you’ll like this book.
Thank you to NetGalley & Grove Press for this e-arc in exchange for my honest review.
Thank you to NetGalley & Grove Press for this e-arc in exchange for my honest review.
March 23, 2025
This book felt so pointless and unnecessary. The topics of sisterhood, mental health, drug addiction and familial tension are all of interest to me, but the book chose to do nothing with them. Every single thing in this story is stubbornly surface-level and devoid of emotion, nothing is explored deeper beyond mere references to the aforementioned themes, and the story is intensely monotonous and tedious, so as a result I am left with what is the most boring book I've read in ages. 4/10
November 24, 2024
Book club book
Wasn’t a fan. Didn’t have message behind or any gripping turning points. Really just a story that was 200 pages too long (was 264 pages total lol)
Wasn’t a fan. Didn’t have message behind or any gripping turning points. Really just a story that was 200 pages too long (was 264 pages total lol)
February 17, 2025
this book suffered a bit because i read if in so many sittings — but always appreciate a story about sisters! also betsy lerner writes about mental illness very well, which i appreciate!!
October 16, 2024
Tale of two sisters - older one is an unabashedly wild Ollie and younger Amy, is a bookworm and an introvert. The novel takes us through their tough life and conflicts, focusing on Ollie's mental health, her refusal to take antidepressants and her frequent strife with her parents and Amy. I'd really wanted to feel for either of the sisters. The sticky point is the author kept pushing the narrative in such a rushed, methodical pace, there was little room to breathe, let alone any empathy.
January 20, 2025
Content Warning:
This is one of those books that starts off okay but gets more and more annoying the longer it goes on. I can't think of a single thing about it that I liked. I'm absolutely shocked at the praise this is getting. Even from a technical standpoint, this book does nothing for me.
What I liked:
1. When I got to the end of the audiobook and they thanked me for listening to the book. They SHOULD be thanking me. That was an absolute chore.
What I didn't like:
Where do I start?
1. First of all, this book's title and marketing are incredibly misleading. The synopsis says this:
I find it incredibly interesting (is interesting the right word?) that the synopsis acknowledges that topics like sisterhood, mental health, loss, and love are complex. However, this book lacks even a smidge of complexity or nuance. The author's attempt at profundity is like getting hit in the face repeatedly with a sledgehammer. This isn't exploring anything in any depth. It's all exposition solely from Amy's insufferable point of view. We cover over 20 years of time in the course of 272 pages, most of that being sped through with very little fanfare or emotion. There were a few moments that did get to me, as someone who has loved ones who struggle with mental health and addiction, but it wasn't because of anything the author wrote. It was more my own sense of empathy at work.
I couldn't help thinking throughout the book that this feels more like the author's diary or memoir than a fictional story. I found an interview after finishing the book where she pretty much confirms that many of the moments in the story are autobiographical, although it's still a fictional narrative. She compares herself to both Amy (she's quiet and the 'good girl' and went to Columbia, just like Amy) and Ollie, as she also has a history of mental illness. She talks specifically about her struggle through her twenties with bouts of mania and depression, leading me to believe that she also deals with bipolar or something similar.
Also, I find the reviews raving about the sister relationship to be very strange. They are hardly together throughout the book, and when they are it's more a laundry list of things each of them said and did when they were together told in a very detached way. Why is this called Shred Sisters when it's solely from Amy's POV and Ollie is absent for most of it? Like, I get that her absence has a huge effect on Amy, but her sister didn't force her to make the shitty decisions she makes. And then at the end,
2. Speaking of Amy, rarely have I despised a character so thoroughly. I don't have to love or even like the protagonist of a book, but I'm begging the author to please...PLEASE...give me something. If you're going to make her an awful person, fine. But at least make her INTERESTING while making her awful. Amy was so incredibly dull. If I had to describe her as a color, it would be taupe. We're supposed to see her as the 'good girl' daughter, but some of her decisions are just as unhinged as she portrays her sister as being. Maybe that's my biggest issue. She seems to want the reader to think of her as being somehow better than Ollie, but really she's just the other side of the same coin. Ollie is just more blatant with her impulsivity. But if we look at Amy honestly, all she does throughout the course of this book is make crappy decision after crappy decision, based on little more than what feels satisfying in the moment.
3. Timeline fuckery. At a certain point in the book I was really starting to dislike it, but I thought maybe, just maybe, it was me being hypercritical. If you've ever heard of Bitch Eating Crackers, this was sort of the point I was at with the whole book and Amy in particular. However, I maintain that regardless of all that, this just isn't well done.
I was trying to determine at what point in time we're in, because the writing style almost has a stream-of-consciousness sort of feel and even though large stretches of time pass (sometimes literally from one sentence to another) we're never given a timestamp and rarely given any sort of pop culture reference with which to use as a temporal landmark. But then we do get some information, and it just becomes more confusing, because this timeline makes no sense whatsoever. This is where I get nitpicky, just a fair warning. (To answer the inevitable 'why are you like this'...I don't know. I just can't leave well enough alone I guess. 😂)
-Ollie and Amy's mother says something about being at the World's Fair as a young girl in New York City in 1939. She turns 41 earlyish in the book, which would put us in the early 70s most likely.
-There's a scene where Ollie is listening to a David Bowie song called Heroes which came out in 1977. Soon after we're told that Ollie is 15 and gets angry because her parents won't allow her to go to 'The Coliseum' in New Haven to see Eric Clapton play. The Heroes scene has already happened, suggesting this happens afterward, making it 1979. This would put Ollie's birth year at 1964, and Amy's at 1968, since we're told she's four years younger than Ollie.
-However, this timeline doesn't make any sense in a scene near the end of the book where Amy sees what she says is her favorite picture of her, her parents, and her sister. It's a picture of them supposedly from the 1964 World's Fair (which was open from April 1964-October 1965). But that can't be. Ollie would've been an infant/toddler and Amy not even a thought yet.
So already, this timeline is messed up, but here are a couple more instances of what I'm talking about.
-I admit that I cannot remember the exact context of this conversation, but it happens in the middle of the book, which takes place supposedly during the 1980s. Amy is talking to someone (possibly Mark? Or maybe is was the guy from the lab? I can't quite remember.) and one of them brings up something about their days being long and monotonous and compares their life to Groundhog Day. Now, if you've never heard of the movie Groundhog Day, first, what are you doing reading this review? Go watch Groundhog Day RIGHT NOW. But when you come back, I'll tell you that Groundhog Day didn't come out until 1993. At least 5 years after this scene in the book. I think it's actually more, because if I recall correctly this is around the time where it's mentioned that Ollie and their dad went to the theater to see Top Gun, which came out in 1986. It's just a flat-out anachronism that immediately took me out of the story. I'd been a little confused the whole time what time period we were in, but hadn't thought too much about it until this moment.
-Okay, last one. Thank you for bearing with me. Near the end of the book, it's 1989-90. We know this because there's a party where everyone is talking about the 'new hit show' Seinfeld. Amy is asked if she wants her Nissan Versa. It's a quick moment that wasn't at all important to the narrative. It could have just not been in there, but it was and I'm annoyed. I'm annoyed because the Nissan Versa wasn't manufactured until 2004, and didn't hit US markets until 2006. For those keeping track at home, that's at least 15 years AFTER this scene takes place. FIFTEEN YEARS. And I'm not saying this as a person who knows a lot about cars. But when I heard Versa I was like, "I thought that was a more recent make. I wonder when they started making Versas?" And I went and googled it. Took like five seconds.
I think what annoys me the most are these last few that are easily fact-checked. When did Groundhog Day come out? Oh, 1993? Well then we probably shouldn't use that reference for a scene taking place in the mid-80s. And when was the Nissan Versa created? Not until 2006?? Well that's a super easy thing to change considering they say it in one sentence in the book and it has next to no importance. Thank goodness for google making it easy to make sure we don't sound like total boneheads! 😒
The fact that not a single person at any point in the writing/revising/editing/publishing caught these anachronisms is unreal to me. And just to be clear, while I was trying to pay attention to different references to try to orient myself throughout the story, it wasn't until the Groundhog Day comment that I really went back and looked at the years things came out. I wasn't TRYING to hate this book. Actually, I was trying to connect with it, which was why I was paying attention in the first place.
Other odds and ends:
1. In the very first scene of the book, we're told their dad was on the couch in his den when her sister crashed into a picture window behind their living room couch and it shattered, Olivia getting injured in the process. Amy says she was nervous to wake her father. Is their house like, a mansion? Because I guarantee you, if I was upstairs in my room with the door closed, I would still be able to hear a window shattering downstairs.
2. Amy talks about her mom having to read them each a story before bed and that Ollie liked adventure stories while Amy liked quieter stories like Charlotte's Web and Black Beauty. She then says that despite that, their collective favorite was when they mother would read them Great Expectations because she did the voices. I'm sorry, but what? Great Expectations? What? Listen, I've read Great Expectations and while I thought it was fine, it would never, not in a million years, be a book I would read to my kid as a bedtime story. Not really because of any of the content, but just the fact that we're talking about children. It feels like such a pretentious choice. Like they're just so classy and above it all that they don't want to read what those other kids are reading. I'm sorry. No. There are so many other books it could've been if they'd wanted to go with a classic but still something a kid would enjoy. Little Women, Anne of Green Gables, A Little Princess, The Hobbit, The Jungle Book, 10,000 Leagues Under the Sea.
3. Near the end of the book, Amy says that Ollie squeezed her so hard that the bruises didn't show up until the next day. This just struck me as a strange thing to say. There are a lot of instances where bruising doesn't show up right away, but I'm not sure how more pressure would equate to delayed bruising...I don't pretend to know much about the subject and I wasn't sure exactly how to word the inquiry on google, but it felt like she was trying to get across that her sister's grip was really strong and just didn't think about what she was actually saying.
If it feels like I'm picking nits, I am. But if this book was better, there wouldn't have been as many nits to pick. Bottom line is I don't like this book, the writing style, or the characters. I won't be reading from this author in the future.
This is one of those books that starts off okay but gets more and more annoying the longer it goes on. I can't think of a single thing about it that I liked. I'm absolutely shocked at the praise this is getting. Even from a technical standpoint, this book does nothing for me.
What I liked:
1. When I got to the end of the audiobook and they thanked me for listening to the book. They SHOULD be thanking me. That was an absolute chore.
What I didn't like:
Where do I start?
1. First of all, this book's title and marketing are incredibly misleading. The synopsis says this:
Spanning two decades, Shred Sisters is an intimate and bittersweet story exploring the fierce complexities of sisterhood, mental health, loss and love. If anything is true it’s what Amy learns on her road to self-acceptance: No one will love you or hurt you more than a sister.
I find it incredibly interesting (is interesting the right word?) that the synopsis acknowledges that topics like sisterhood, mental health, loss, and love are complex. However, this book lacks even a smidge of complexity or nuance. The author's attempt at profundity is like getting hit in the face repeatedly with a sledgehammer. This isn't exploring anything in any depth. It's all exposition solely from Amy's insufferable point of view. We cover over 20 years of time in the course of 272 pages, most of that being sped through with very little fanfare or emotion. There were a few moments that did get to me, as someone who has loved ones who struggle with mental health and addiction, but it wasn't because of anything the author wrote. It was more my own sense of empathy at work.
I couldn't help thinking throughout the book that this feels more like the author's diary or memoir than a fictional story. I found an interview after finishing the book where she pretty much confirms that many of the moments in the story are autobiographical, although it's still a fictional narrative. She compares herself to both Amy (she's quiet and the 'good girl' and went to Columbia, just like Amy) and Ollie, as she also has a history of mental illness. She talks specifically about her struggle through her twenties with bouts of mania and depression, leading me to believe that she also deals with bipolar or something similar.
Also, I find the reviews raving about the sister relationship to be very strange. They are hardly together throughout the book, and when they are it's more a laundry list of things each of them said and did when they were together told in a very detached way. Why is this called Shred Sisters when it's solely from Amy's POV and Ollie is absent for most of it? Like, I get that her absence has a huge effect on Amy, but her sister didn't force her to make the shitty decisions she makes. And then at the end,
2. Speaking of Amy, rarely have I despised a character so thoroughly. I don't have to love or even like the protagonist of a book, but I'm begging the author to please...PLEASE...give me something. If you're going to make her an awful person, fine. But at least make her INTERESTING while making her awful. Amy was so incredibly dull. If I had to describe her as a color, it would be taupe. We're supposed to see her as the 'good girl' daughter, but some of her decisions are just as unhinged as she portrays her sister as being. Maybe that's my biggest issue. She seems to want the reader to think of her as being somehow better than Ollie, but really she's just the other side of the same coin. Ollie is just more blatant with her impulsivity. But if we look at Amy honestly, all she does throughout the course of this book is make crappy decision after crappy decision, based on little more than what feels satisfying in the moment.
3. Timeline fuckery. At a certain point in the book I was really starting to dislike it, but I thought maybe, just maybe, it was me being hypercritical. If you've ever heard of Bitch Eating Crackers, this was sort of the point I was at with the whole book and Amy in particular. However, I maintain that regardless of all that, this just isn't well done.
I was trying to determine at what point in time we're in, because the writing style almost has a stream-of-consciousness sort of feel and even though large stretches of time pass (sometimes literally from one sentence to another) we're never given a timestamp and rarely given any sort of pop culture reference with which to use as a temporal landmark. But then we do get some information, and it just becomes more confusing, because this timeline makes no sense whatsoever. This is where I get nitpicky, just a fair warning. (To answer the inevitable 'why are you like this'...I don't know. I just can't leave well enough alone I guess. 😂)
-Ollie and Amy's mother says something about being at the World's Fair as a young girl in New York City in 1939. She turns 41 earlyish in the book, which would put us in the early 70s most likely.
-There's a scene where Ollie is listening to a David Bowie song called Heroes which came out in 1977. Soon after we're told that Ollie is 15 and gets angry because her parents won't allow her to go to 'The Coliseum' in New Haven to see Eric Clapton play. The Heroes scene has already happened, suggesting this happens afterward, making it 1979. This would put Ollie's birth year at 1964, and Amy's at 1968, since we're told she's four years younger than Ollie.
-However, this timeline doesn't make any sense in a scene near the end of the book where Amy sees what she says is her favorite picture of her, her parents, and her sister. It's a picture of them supposedly from the 1964 World's Fair (which was open from April 1964-October 1965). But that can't be. Ollie would've been an infant/toddler and Amy not even a thought yet.
So already, this timeline is messed up, but here are a couple more instances of what I'm talking about.
-I admit that I cannot remember the exact context of this conversation, but it happens in the middle of the book, which takes place supposedly during the 1980s. Amy is talking to someone (possibly Mark? Or maybe is was the guy from the lab? I can't quite remember.) and one of them brings up something about their days being long and monotonous and compares their life to Groundhog Day. Now, if you've never heard of the movie Groundhog Day, first, what are you doing reading this review? Go watch Groundhog Day RIGHT NOW. But when you come back, I'll tell you that Groundhog Day didn't come out until 1993. At least 5 years after this scene in the book. I think it's actually more, because if I recall correctly this is around the time where it's mentioned that Ollie and their dad went to the theater to see Top Gun, which came out in 1986. It's just a flat-out anachronism that immediately took me out of the story. I'd been a little confused the whole time what time period we were in, but hadn't thought too much about it until this moment.
-Okay, last one. Thank you for bearing with me. Near the end of the book, it's 1989-90. We know this because there's a party where everyone is talking about the 'new hit show' Seinfeld. Amy is asked if she wants her Nissan Versa. It's a quick moment that wasn't at all important to the narrative. It could have just not been in there, but it was and I'm annoyed. I'm annoyed because the Nissan Versa wasn't manufactured until 2004, and didn't hit US markets until 2006. For those keeping track at home, that's at least 15 years AFTER this scene takes place. FIFTEEN YEARS. And I'm not saying this as a person who knows a lot about cars. But when I heard Versa I was like, "I thought that was a more recent make. I wonder when they started making Versas?" And I went and googled it. Took like five seconds.
I think what annoys me the most are these last few that are easily fact-checked. When did Groundhog Day come out? Oh, 1993? Well then we probably shouldn't use that reference for a scene taking place in the mid-80s. And when was the Nissan Versa created? Not until 2006?? Well that's a super easy thing to change considering they say it in one sentence in the book and it has next to no importance. Thank goodness for google making it easy to make sure we don't sound like total boneheads! 😒
The fact that not a single person at any point in the writing/revising/editing/publishing caught these anachronisms is unreal to me. And just to be clear, while I was trying to pay attention to different references to try to orient myself throughout the story, it wasn't until the Groundhog Day comment that I really went back and looked at the years things came out. I wasn't TRYING to hate this book. Actually, I was trying to connect with it, which was why I was paying attention in the first place.
Other odds and ends:
1. In the very first scene of the book, we're told their dad was on the couch in his den when her sister crashed into a picture window behind their living room couch and it shattered, Olivia getting injured in the process. Amy says she was nervous to wake her father. Is their house like, a mansion? Because I guarantee you, if I was upstairs in my room with the door closed, I would still be able to hear a window shattering downstairs.
2. Amy talks about her mom having to read them each a story before bed and that Ollie liked adventure stories while Amy liked quieter stories like Charlotte's Web and Black Beauty. She then says that despite that, their collective favorite was when they mother would read them Great Expectations because she did the voices. I'm sorry, but what? Great Expectations? What? Listen, I've read Great Expectations and while I thought it was fine, it would never, not in a million years, be a book I would read to my kid as a bedtime story. Not really because of any of the content, but just the fact that we're talking about children. It feels like such a pretentious choice. Like they're just so classy and above it all that they don't want to read what those other kids are reading. I'm sorry. No. There are so many other books it could've been if they'd wanted to go with a classic but still something a kid would enjoy. Little Women, Anne of Green Gables, A Little Princess, The Hobbit, The Jungle Book, 10,000 Leagues Under the Sea.
3. Near the end of the book, Amy says that Ollie squeezed her so hard that the bruises didn't show up until the next day. This just struck me as a strange thing to say. There are a lot of instances where bruising doesn't show up right away, but I'm not sure how more pressure would equate to delayed bruising...I don't pretend to know much about the subject and I wasn't sure exactly how to word the inquiry on google, but it felt like she was trying to get across that her sister's grip was really strong and just didn't think about what she was actually saying.
If it feels like I'm picking nits, I am. But if this book was better, there wouldn't have been as many nits to pick. Bottom line is I don't like this book, the writing style, or the characters. I won't be reading from this author in the future.
September 8, 2024
Shred Sisters
⤷ ⭑⭑⭑.𝟱 𐬹 ੈ ˖
⋆𖦹.✧˚ 🥀 gain perspective through Amy Shred's journey as she and her family struggle with the aftermath of events brought on by her troubled and unpredictable sister, Ollie. despite excelling academically, Amy finds it difficult to build meaningful relationships with people due to the emotional scars inflicted by her own family.⋆.˚ ᡣ𐭩 .𖥔˚
we witness the ups and downs throughout her journey in life from childhood to adulthood- be it challenges in her personal life, the ups and downs of her romantic relationships, the pain of losing loved ones, or the complex dynamics of her family.
hey, they are all flawed characters. but truth be told, everyone is flawed. Amy longs for her father's affection, her mother's validation, and her sister's love. some of her actions were questionable, and yes, i'm talking about the Josh incident. but i imagine she did it hoping it was her trying to save Ollie.
i came to appreciate the story, it was not what I expected, but in a good way. it took me a while to process my thoughts after finishing this book, and i don't think i could express my feelings in words. but i commend Betsy Lerner for this complex yet impactful storyline, which shows how a single crack can shatter something as delicate as a family's bond.
Thank you to NetGalley, Grove Atlantic, and of course, Betsy Lerner for providing an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. Please remember that this opinion is my own. The book will be published on October 1st, 2024 ♡
༘˚⋆𐙚｡⋆𖦹.✧˚
𐙚 pre-read: my first arc! i'm soo looking forward to this. i may relate to this book as someone with a sister who I think outshines me at times. can't wait ~
⤷ ⭑⭑⭑.𝟱 𐬹 ੈ ˖
⋆𖦹.✧˚ 🥀 gain perspective through Amy Shred's journey as she and her family struggle with the aftermath of events brought on by her troubled and unpredictable sister, Ollie. despite excelling academically, Amy finds it difficult to build meaningful relationships with people due to the emotional scars inflicted by her own family.⋆.˚ ᡣ𐭩 .𖥔˚
we witness the ups and downs throughout her journey in life from childhood to adulthood- be it challenges in her personal life, the ups and downs of her romantic relationships, the pain of losing loved ones, or the complex dynamics of her family.
hey, they are all flawed characters. but truth be told, everyone is flawed. Amy longs for her father's affection, her mother's validation, and her sister's love. some of her actions were questionable, and yes, i'm talking about the Josh incident. but i imagine she did it hoping it was her trying to save Ollie.
i came to appreciate the story, it was not what I expected, but in a good way. it took me a while to process my thoughts after finishing this book, and i don't think i could express my feelings in words. but i commend Betsy Lerner for this complex yet impactful storyline, which shows how a single crack can shatter something as delicate as a family's bond.
Thank you to NetGalley, Grove Atlantic, and of course, Betsy Lerner for providing an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. Please remember that this opinion is my own. The book will be published on October 1st, 2024 ♡
༘˚⋆𐙚｡⋆𖦹.✧˚
𐙚 pre-read: my first arc! i'm soo looking forward to this. i may relate to this book as someone with a sister who I think outshines me at times. can't wait ~
November 16, 2024
"No one will love you more or hurt you more than a sister" is a wry aphorism that appears late in this debut novel. Over the course of about two decades, there is much heartache for the Shred family, but also moments of joy. Ultimately, a sisterly bond endures despite secrets, betrayals, and intermittent estrangement. Through her psychologically astute portrait of Olivia ("Ollie") and Amy, Betsy Lerner captures the lasting effects that mental illness can have on not just an individual, but an entire family. There is inherent repetition to descriptions of mental illness and addiction; Amy, too, sometimes seems trapped in bitterness and self-sabotage. Nonetheless, Lerner has achieved a vivid and emotionally involving family tale peopled by convincing characters.
See my full review at BookBrowse. (See also my article on Grove Press.)
See my full review at BookBrowse. (See also my article on Grove Press.)
November 18, 2024
This is not a novel, it reads like a poorly written memoir.
July 13, 2025
This story was so addictive at the beginning, bringing us to a family with two very different sisters - the shy, reserved Amy and the intense, flighty Olivia. But as the story progressed, my patience with Amy grew thinner and thinner, and I didn't feel I really got the story the blurb was offering.
I was hoping we'd see Olivia's side of the story, because while she could leave devastation in her wake, I felt like I could almost understand why she left her uptight family so many times. But I felt for most of the second half she faded into the background until the end.
Amy is an extremely difficult character to like. She constantly seen as rude, dismissive and judgemental by everyone around her, and she's also emotionally unavailable in her relationships. At the end, she came across as selfish, and jealous of the life her sister had carved for herself.
I was hoping we'd see Olivia's side of the story, because while she could leave devastation in her wake, I felt like I could almost understand why she left her uptight family so many times. But I felt for most of the second half she faded into the background until the end.
Amy is an extremely difficult character to like. She constantly seen as rude, dismissive and judgemental by everyone around her, and she's also emotionally unavailable in her relationships. At the end, she came across as selfish, and jealous of the life her sister had carved for herself.
September 26, 2024
Rating: ★★★☆☆
A thank you to the author and NetGalley for providing me a copy of the book in exchange for an unbiased and honest review.
”No one will love you more or hurt you more than a sister.”
Shred Sisters follows Amy and Olivia Shred in a bittersweet story of sisterhood, mental health, loss and love as they discover the road to self-acceptance.
⟡•—— ・ ₊˚👩🏻🤝👩🏼‧₊˚. ・ ——•⟡
Shred Sisters possesses a very intriguing concept and writing - it’s almost written like Amy’s diary as we get to unravel how the mental illness of her older sister affected Amy as the youngest in the family.
I think Lerner did a wonderful job at portraying the effects, trauma and self-denial of dealing with a family member who is both destructive and unstable. I could feel Amy’s internal rage and sadness at being put through the pain of losing both of her parents to the constant care of her older sister and how it affected her adult self and relationships.
The main reason why i think it didn’t quite do it for me was because i started reading this novel with the expectation that, by the end, we would be greeted with a happy conclusion to Amy’s story - which did not happen. Olivia didn’t repent for all of the things she took from her family and Amy remained denied of an apologize from both of her parents. Maybe that was the whole point of the book - it’s definitely quite a realistic ending.
A thank you to the author and NetGalley for providing me a copy of the book in exchange for an unbiased and honest review.
”No one will love you more or hurt you more than a sister.”
Shred Sisters follows Amy and Olivia Shred in a bittersweet story of sisterhood, mental health, loss and love as they discover the road to self-acceptance.
⟡•—— ・ ₊˚👩🏻🤝👩🏼‧₊˚. ・ ——•⟡
Shred Sisters possesses a very intriguing concept and writing - it’s almost written like Amy’s diary as we get to unravel how the mental illness of her older sister affected Amy as the youngest in the family.
I think Lerner did a wonderful job at portraying the effects, trauma and self-denial of dealing with a family member who is both destructive and unstable. I could feel Amy’s internal rage and sadness at being put through the pain of losing both of her parents to the constant care of her older sister and how it affected her adult self and relationships.
The main reason why i think it didn’t quite do it for me was because i started reading this novel with the expectation that, by the end, we would be greeted with a happy conclusion to Amy’s story - which did not happen. Olivia didn’t repent for all of the things she took from her family and Amy remained denied of an apologize from both of her parents. Maybe that was the whole point of the book - it’s definitely quite a realistic ending.
August 5, 2024
When you save an anticipated book for as long as I saved Shred Sisters, what you're left with as you begin is a knot in your stomach. Can the pages you’re holding live up to what you'd like them to be?
In the case of this novel, the answer is yes.
Amy is the youngest Shred sister, always in the shadow of her enigmatic, larger than life older sister, Ollie.
Beautiful, erratic and unpredictable, Ollie destabilizes her family unit, slowly and then overnight, when she is eventually sent to stay at a psych unit. Everyone in her family approaches loving Ollie differently, each desperate to make her stay and change, and each unable to do so, over and over again.
What results is a divergence, where we follow Amy as she sets off on her own path...or is it?
Shred Sisters is an intimate portrait of someone who is always one part removed from themselves, in the face of dealing with someone who requires so much of their time and energy. Though there are heavier themes, such as mental health, forgiveness and acceptance, it is unexpectedly (and beautifully) funny. Moments of insight, written poetically, are followed up by one-liners, written with a cool, deadpan delivery.
I loved this novel for how it dug apart sisterhood, unafraid to get its fingernails dirty. Afterall, nobody leaves a family clean.
(Thank you to the publisher for an early copy, in exchange for an honest review)
In the case of this novel, the answer is yes.
Amy is the youngest Shred sister, always in the shadow of her enigmatic, larger than life older sister, Ollie.
Beautiful, erratic and unpredictable, Ollie destabilizes her family unit, slowly and then overnight, when she is eventually sent to stay at a psych unit. Everyone in her family approaches loving Ollie differently, each desperate to make her stay and change, and each unable to do so, over and over again.
What results is a divergence, where we follow Amy as she sets off on her own path...or is it?
Shred Sisters is an intimate portrait of someone who is always one part removed from themselves, in the face of dealing with someone who requires so much of their time and energy. Though there are heavier themes, such as mental health, forgiveness and acceptance, it is unexpectedly (and beautifully) funny. Moments of insight, written poetically, are followed up by one-liners, written with a cool, deadpan delivery.
I loved this novel for how it dug apart sisterhood, unafraid to get its fingernails dirty. Afterall, nobody leaves a family clean.
(Thank you to the publisher for an early copy, in exchange for an honest review)
October 26, 2024
This book read almost like a script - everything was so quick, punchy, and moved along fast. Lerner doesn't waste words on frivolous details. She tells the story with brevity, and yet, somehow, nothing is left to question!
Superb story-telling, and the kind that makes you worry about the characters. What's going to happen to Ollie? Amy? The parents? Josh? (oh, dear, Josh) Marc - um, Courtney, hmmmm. Those people I didn't care about - they could go . . . (haha, well, no spoilers)
Well done, Betsy Lerner!
Superb story-telling, and the kind that makes you worry about the characters. What's going to happen to Ollie? Amy? The parents? Josh? (oh, dear, Josh) Marc - um, Courtney, hmmmm. Those people I didn't care about - they could go . . . (haha, well, no spoilers)
Well done, Betsy Lerner!
December 9, 2024
i’m for sure in the minority but this didn’t work for me. besides the timeline & writing/story errors, i was just bored. i understand the pattern of mental illness/addiction etc well, but this didn’t seem to have much to say other than having a baby will cure you. no thank you
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 30, 2024
An engaging and moving exploration into the complexities of sisterhood, family, and mental illness. Amy, the quiet, fact-focused narrator, tells the story of her life alongside her sister Olivia (Ollie), who’s everything Amy isn’t—outgoing, bold, and full of defiance. Their family dynamics are messy, with a strict mom calling the shots and a dad who takes on the enabler role. (What a surprise!).
Amy grows up stuck in Ollie’s shadow, watching her sister’s rebellious behavior spiral. Ollie’s defiance lands her in a mental health facility their mom likes to call “The Place.” But things don’t magically get better. Ollie’s erratic behavior continues into adulthood and she disappears for long stretches of time, leaving Amy to make sense of it all.
In the second half of the book, Amy finds that she is struggling with her graduate research, personal relationships and balancing her career in publishing. This novel is raw and real, tackling how mental illness affects not just one person, but an entire family. It’s heartfelt, emotional, and offers a hopeful yet honest take on healing and the strength of sibling bonds.
Amy grows up stuck in Ollie’s shadow, watching her sister’s rebellious behavior spiral. Ollie’s defiance lands her in a mental health facility their mom likes to call “The Place.” But things don’t magically get better. Ollie’s erratic behavior continues into adulthood and she disappears for long stretches of time, leaving Amy to make sense of it all.
In the second half of the book, Amy finds that she is struggling with her graduate research, personal relationships and balancing her career in publishing. This novel is raw and real, tackling how mental illness affects not just one person, but an entire family. It’s heartfelt, emotional, and offers a hopeful yet honest take on healing and the strength of sibling bonds.
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