The Ugly Sister

Jul 09, 2012 Regina rated it 3 of 5 stars

I have mixed feelings about this book. In one side of the coin I loved Jane's writing style, it is so down to earth and easy to get into, but on the other side, I thought that the rivarly between the sisters was pathethic.

First, we meet Abi, who is thirty- eight, a single mother,part-time librarian who is not into material possessions and considers herself to be not so pretty and lucky in life. Then we soon meet Cleo, who is Abi's older sister,who was a very successful supermodel, but is now mar...more

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Mar 06, 2013 Komera Murchie rated it 3 of 5 stars

It may not have been the best story in the worth but it was an okay read.

Abi seemed a bit (sorry if I offend anybody) stupid. She was hung up on what happened in the past:
Not getting her degree, having to look after her parents by herself, Cleo not being the was she expected her to be. Cleo was a big part of her insecurities. She couldn't seem to be able to drop the past and just keep going forwards.

Abi was trying to make Cleo into something that she wanted. She was mad at Cleo for changing afte...more

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Apr 30, 2012 Steve lovell rated it 4 of 5 stars

Could there be a sister uglier than Cleo? How did she entrap the fetching, but all round good guy Jon – or Jonty as Cleo prefers to call him thinking it more hipster – a seemingly well-grounded, successful player in advertising? Would he have wanted a mere trophy wife – or couldn’t he pick her extreme ugliness. Sometimes mere males are blind to such female perversity! Cleo’s sister could, but kept ceaselessly hoping she was wrong, kept making excuses – to herself and others
Cleo, in her pomp, had...more Could there be a sister uglier than Cleo? How did she entrap the fetching, but all round good guy Jon – or Jonty as Cleo prefers to call him thinking it more hipster – a seemingly well-grounded, successful player in advertising? Would he have wanted a mere trophy wife – or couldn’t he pick her extreme ugliness. Sometimes mere males are blind to such female perversity! Cleo’s sister could, but kept ceaselessly hoping she was wrong, kept making excuses – to herself and others
Cleo, in her pomp, had been one of the world’s glitterati – a successful model known for her self-absorption, self-promotion and general all round bitchiness. Cleo once courted the paparazzi to provided constant fodder for the celebrity rags, but as she aged (beyond her twenties) she became no longer the ‘flavour’ and her cachet faded. She then retired to a pile on Primrose Hill to raise sprogs Tara and Megan, but finds being out of the limelight definitely not her thing. She sets about attempting to reignite her career and glory days, but who though is going to look after her girls – nobody in their right mind would work for such an ugly, demanding boss – except perhaps a non-English speaker. Enter her very much English speaking sister Abi, lured to the city for the summer from the boonies at Cleo’s invitation, nominally for the two of them to spend some quality time together after a period of semi-estrangement. Cleo soon discovers she is viewed as not much more than a resident baby sitter come taxi service whilst Cleo attends ‘go-sees’, and so the scene is set.
How will Abi cope with the precocious Tara threatening to follow in mummy’s footsteps, her own foray into the world of modeling, the growing feelings between her and Jon and her sister’s unceasing ‘ugliness’? What Fallon cobbles together out of all this makes for easy but compulsive reading. On first glance the premise would not have attracted this reader because of its perceived ‘Jackie Collinsness’, but having enjoyed the author’s previous effort ‘Foursome’ so much, I indulged and was delightfully rewarded. At one stage, though, I felt it veered a little too much into farce when a pretend boyfriend, the odious bookseller Richard – hopefully not modeled on hubby Ricky Gervais – was introduced, but the ship was soon righted and the author led us back into more believable waters.
After a series of more meaningful, weightier tomes, this was a salve to pleasure, and giving pure pleasure is not to be sneezed at.
(less)

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Apr 05, 2012 Danderma rated it 3 of 5 stars

From the writer of “Getting Rid of Matthew” comes the newest novel “The Ugly Sister”. The story of two sisters, Abi and Cleo, where Cleo is an international super model and Abi is the ugly duckling of the family. How Cleo’s beauty had driven them apart and how, on London summer, Abi was given the chance to come and share the life of Cleo and her family after being driven apart for over 20 years. Only when Abi finally arrives in Cleo’s life does she realize what a mess it was and begins to realiz...more

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Oct 05, 2011 Amanda rated it 2 of 5 stars

The Ugly Sister by Jane Fallon is an examination on how and to what extent a person's looks can affect them and those around them. I appreciated the message contained within the pages (that beauty is only skin deep and true beauty comes from within), but felt that Fallon rather over-emphasised the matter over the course of the novel.

Due to the message she was conveying, it was hard to like a number of the characters within the pages. I'm used to more character growth in my chick lit novels, wher...more The Ugly Sister by Jane Fallon is an examination on how and to what extent a person's looks can affect them and those around them. I appreciated the message contained within the pages (that beauty is only skin deep and true beauty comes from within), but felt that Fallon rather over-emphasised the matter over the course of the novel.

Due to the message she was conveying, it was hard to like a number of the characters within the pages. I'm used to more character growth in my chick lit novels, whereas The Ugly Sister showcased some incredibly one-dimensional people. Cleo, one of the sisters, is the main culprit. I actually dreaded reading more about her complete self-obsession, and I wondered why on earth Abi would be so hellbent on trying to work on a reconciliation. Cut your losses, girl! (that's certainly what I would be saying to a friend if she was in the same situation as Abi...)

In addition to this, I felt deeply uncomfortable with one of the romantic frissons that takes place in The Ugly Sister. For me, it was immoral in many ways. Fallon tried to deal with it as well as possible, but I just felt that it was an unnecessary part of the story. All of the rest of the story could have been just as effective (maybe more so?) if that romance had been excluded.

I did like the children, and their journey through The Ugly Sister. It was delightful watching them regain a sense of childlike joy, and become as children really should be. I did like the idea of the elder, Tara, deciding not to follow in her mother's footsteps by becoming a model - but I think it might have been more empowering had she decided to become a model, but remain grounded about the realities of what beauty actually means for a person.

One aspect that I thought Fallon dealt with well was the idea of a single mother who has concentrated so much on the bringing up and development of her child that she has neglected her own development, and has no real idea how to fill her life when that child leaves. For me, this was incredibly realistic, and I enjoyed reading Abi's thoughts on how to deal with it, and the dangers of becoming stuck in a job that ultimately didn't fulfil.

This, however, was a small part of a novel that I found to be littered with flaws. I didn't like the characters. I didn't enjoy the breaking of the fourth wall during narrative. I didn't like the central romance. And I didn't like being bludgeoned by the message that beauty is only skin-deep (seriously, I've seen Disney being subtler on the same matter). So, for me, The Ugly Sister is a pass. It was only briefly entertaining and not really worth the price of entry. (less)

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Jun 16, 2012 Justlikethat rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: life, romance, women-s-fiction, contemporary

This book and I had a bit of a history before I actually started reading it. I noticed the cover in Asda and read the blurb, found it interesting but not enough for me to buy it. I noticed it again, several times, in Waterstones, on the internet, here and there until finally I thought I'm going to put my curiosity and peace and read it. I was rewarded.

I never put myself down as a person who would enjoy such contemporary fiction and women's fiction, but the characters are so wonderfully fulfillin...more

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Oct 02, 2011 Kerri Turner rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: chick-lit

I am a big fan of Jane Fallon's three previous books, and as such was really excited to read this one (so much so that I gave myself papercuts when snatching it excitedly off my husband who spotted it). Sadly, though, it falls short of her other books.

As with the first three, it is still a fun, fast-paced chick-lit read with engaging characters and challenging situations. However, the writing style is not only in the present tense (which can be awkward to read if not dealt with correctly), but a...more

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Oct 26, 2011 Radiya rated it 4 of 5 stars

I hate Cleo! I love Abi and Jon and Richard- I wish I had a best friend like Richard, minus a few aspects of him.
Really loved this book: it was funny at times but balanced enough with family drama to make you feel able to relate to the character's in the novel. It revolves around two sisters: Cleo, the eldest and a washed out supermodel and Abi, a kind of wanderer with not much to show but her awesome eighteen year old daughter Pheobe. Cleo's got the perfect London lifestyle complete with a beau...more

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Apr 06, 2013 Helen rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: fiction, from-public-library

This isn't the kind of book I usually read these days - I seem to have moved into more ghoulish things, on the whole - but I borrowed this one from the library for the wholly ignoble reason of having only recently realised that the author is the very same Jane Fallon who was in my class at school - not the convent school she talks about in all her publicity, but a rather more academic one she bailed out of early on. (Wonder if she disliked our form teacher as much as I did? Anyway, that's beside...more This isn't the kind of book I usually read these days - I seem to have moved into more ghoulish things, on the whole - but I borrowed this one from the library for the wholly ignoble reason of having only recently realised that the author is the very same Jane Fallon who was in my class at school - not the convent school she talks about in all her publicity, but a rather more academic one she bailed out of early on. (Wonder if she disliked our form teacher as much as I did? Anyway, that's beside the point, except that it was sheer curiosity that led me to try this!) Having said that is not relevant, perhaps it is - Jane has gone on to live a glamorous life, whereas I, her erstwhile classmate, am a (qualified) librarian, and that is partly what happens to the two sisters in this book - one becomes a supermodel, the other is a part-time library assistant (in a very obvious Cinderella role).

She's been described as writing "chick lit with an edge" (by the Guardian), and I rather like this description - yes, the story is at times a little unbelievable, and there are several things which don't quite work for me, but this certainly isn't a simple girl-gets-bloke-and-will-have-his-babies story (without giving too much away, she doesn't!) The protagonist is 38 and her sister is older, for a start. The relationship between the sisters is quite painful - and, again, struck a chord with me, as the "poor relation" theme raises its head from time to time in my own family, and many others, no doubt, though this example is a bit extreme. In some ways, despite their middle age and experience, the sisters come across as teenagers, still operating at the same level they did years before. (Only recently my mother (80+) described very similar rivalries and behaviour in an old friend which went on for many years, so it is not that far removed from reality!)

A fairly easy read, then: I enjoyed the setting of the book, mainly in London's Primrose Hill which I know a little; I liked the fact that Jane Fallon does not seem to have had her head turned by the world she now moves in; I also liked the "edge" (the lack of predictable outcomes). I felt the book fell down a bit in places, such as the sister's two daughters (delightful but they really did come across as being older than their supposed ages of 10 and 7), and, of course, being a librarian myself, I don't think she has got that bit quite right. OK, I do know it's an occupation people look down on - ideal therefore for the plain sister with no life to speak of - but it is still one for which you need to study and gain qualifications! You don't just "become a librarian" by going full time - and I would dearly love to know what local authority would allow its library assistants to disappear for a whole summer (nit-picking, I know, but believe me, it doesn't usually work like that!)

Overall, though, I enjoyed it. A "Woman-and-Home" type of book, although I don't think they serialise as much of this style of thing as they used to.(less)

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Apr 14, 2012 Karina rated it 2 of 5 stars

When part time librarian, single mother of one, "I've never felt attractive", Abi, finds herself homeless due to conflicting settlement dates (oops!), she is invited to spend the summer with her elder sister, Cleo (formerly Caroline before her supermodel career). Abi is anxious about spending the time with her sister, who she naturally hasn't gotten along with her since Cleo's big break, but eager to try to reconnect. She comes to discover Cleo is exactly as self involved as she remembers, Cleo'...more When part time librarian, single mother of one, "I've never felt attractive", Abi, finds herself homeless due to conflicting settlement dates (oops!), she is invited to spend the summer with her elder sister, Cleo (formerly Caroline before her supermodel career). Abi is anxious about spending the time with her sister, who she naturally hasn't gotten along with her since Cleo's big break, but eager to try to reconnect. She comes to discover Cleo is exactly as self involved as she remembers, Cleo's husband Jonty is not the conceited asshole she expected and Cleo's daughters have succumb to varying degrees of their mother's influence.

It's ironic that the back of the novel features a quote from the Daily Mail that calls The Ugly Sister "a great, intelligent read" because I honestly struggled with Fallon's prose. Perhaps it is Fallon's time working in television that has taught her to write in such disjointed third person that jumps between past and present tense with complete disregard for the flow. Fallon also tries to weave technology into the novel, shooting off texts and emails and playing video games on the Wii and Nintendo DS, with varying degrees of success. Mostly it just serves to make the novel all the more uncomfortable.

Even if you can get past the writing style, a story that could have been beautiful is stunted and disappointing. The first half of the book is borderline boring as Abi struggles to tell her sister (and everybody else) what she truly thinks of them. When the action finally does pick up, it was so brief that I raced through the rest of the novel looking for more only to be disappointed. What little character development exists (and most of it is squandered on Cleo's children) is completely overturned when Abi, after a moment that should have seen her finally growing a backbone, decides Cleo probably needs her sister and sends her love and support afterall. I was furthermore disappointed by the apparent 'open ending', not just for Abi but for most of the supporting cast (many of which are stronger characters than Abi in the first place) who seemingly disappear into obscurity: this isn't my novel Ms Fallon, perhaps you should finish it.

I came to The Ugly Sister having not read any of Fallon's other work and unless she manages to write a less desperate to be relatable character and actually construct full sentences, I won't be starting soon.(less)

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May 29, 2012 Alyson rated it 2 of 5 stars

Please note - low mark partly reflects my dislike of chicklit - I should not have chosen this from the library. The plot was reasonable, although I found some of the writing repetative - she kept on reminding us how old the daughter was. I remembered it the first time thanks! Also several points were laboured again and again. I was also annoyed only a few pages in as the author has a very very negative view of librarians and libraries, and portrays a stereotype which is seriously out of date. Th...more

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Jan 07, 2012 Liz rated it 3 of 5 stars

I really liked this book. Its about these two sisters, Cleo and Abi. They havent really been in touch since an incident that happened when Cleo was 16 and Abi 13, but when Cleo invites Abi over, things start to change. In this book, one moment you think everything's okay and the next everything's all over the place. It becomes quite unpredictable. The only part i didn't like about it was when the book just ends when Abi is going for this new job thing, and it just ends there. Things between her...more

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Jan 16, 2012 Lynsey rated it 1 of 5 stars

Having liked Fallon's other books, I assumed that this one would be no different, even though the blurb on the back didn't inspire me greatly.
But in fact, I found it a chore to read and almost gave up twice. The only thing that kept me going was the big pay off at the end which was sure to happen; where the self absorbed older sister got her come-uppance. Except that it never happened. By the end of the book, nothing had changed. The younger, spineless sister was still so. So ultimately, this is...more

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May 01, 2012 Lthelibrarylover rated it 3 of 5 stars

The sister of model Cleo, Abi has always felt like she was the underachiever. After not speaking for years Abi is invited to stay at Cleo’s mansion over the summer break with Cleo’s husband and two kids. Abi is suspicious of Cleo’s intentions but will she be surprised to know that Cleo has changed into someone who cares about family after all the years of abandonment? You’ll have to read to find out.

This book takes a good look at how the realtionship between sisters and how it isn't always pret...more

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Jan 20, 2013 Sibilla rated it 3 of 5 stars

I am a little confused about this book. All in all it was a great read. Basically, the story revolves around two sisters. Abi is the younger one, has a daughter who is about to go to college. So the days in caring for her cild are almost over. Out of the blue, she gets an email from her older sister Cleo, to visit her for a few weeks. She takes her offer and finds herself being the new nanny for Cleo's Kids Tara and Megan. The Kids get to know their aunt and Abi also gets close to them and Clea´...more I am a little confused about this book. All in all it was a great read. Basically, the story revolves around two sisters. Abi is the younger one, has a daughter who is about to go to college. So the days in caring for her cild are almost over. Out of the blue, she gets an email from her older sister Cleo, to visit her for a few weeks. She takes her offer and finds herself being the new nanny for Cleo's Kids Tara and Megan. The Kids get to know their aunt and Abi also gets close to them and Clea´s Husband Jon.

Cleo is a model and wants to restart her career as such, but fails at it. It seems as well, that Cleo is not happy in her marriage. the communication between her and Jon seems not very healthy. Also Cleo expects Abi to fil in as a nanny, as they had their former nanny let go. But Abi doen´t want to be taken for granted, so she takes a part time job at a book store. Also, as Abi gets to know Jon more each day, the attraction between them seem to grow. They kiss, but Abi doesn't act on her feelings. She tells Jon, she has a boyfriend. In panic, she tells him that her boyfriend is Richard, the book store owner. But that is further from the truth.

But Richard plays along with it. Cleo is very curious about Richard and wants to meet him. She gets her way and they meet. Some day Abi finds Richard and Cleo in a precarious situation and it is clear, that they kissed. Abi is disappointed and encourages Cleo to tell Jon. Cleo doesn´t want to risk her marriage and tells her sister, she isn´t going to expose her affair to Jon. Cleo and Abi end up in a fight in which Abi decides to leave her sister.

This book is about finding the right path. Abi seems very moral, but also not like a risk taker. She is not someone who just acts, but thinks too much. That makes her only a dreamer, but never doing anything to go after her dreams, only in the end.

In the end it is revealed that Jon and Cleo get a divorce. Jon moves out of the house.
But it is not revealed if Jon and Abi get together or not.

I am a little disappointed, that Abi is always the rational one. She thinks a lot and always thinks about others first, and not herself. That makes her a nobel person, but also very boring. In the end, she gets stronger, but I would have liked to see a bigger transition, than is was revealed in the book. I also would have liked to see Abi to be romantically be involved with someone, not only Jon but with someone who gets her. I feel like the story only got to the surface and I would have liked to have another ending. I was a bit disappointed how it ended. But you can't always have a happy ending or an ending, which everybody can agree on. (less)

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Aug 29, 2012 Rosalie rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: relationships

As the title implies, this is a story about two sisters, one who is gifted with physical beauty and the other with intellect. Abi, the younger of the two sisters has spent her life in the shadow of her ‘stunningly beautiful sister’ called Cleo. She is actually called Caroline but she changed it to Cleo because Caroline sounds quite ordinary. Cleo was head hunted to become a model when she was 16 – with her rise to fame came the attitude to match with it too. As I read her story, she reminds me o...more

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Jun 13, 2012 Lisa (scarlet21) rated it 4 of 5 stars

Really enjoyed this book and could relate to some of the issues in it which were depicted with balance and thought.

When Abi was 13, her beloved sister, Caroline 16, was spotted by a model agency. Overnight their lives changed and Caroline became Cleo, famous model, darling of their parents and the fashion world, the perfect daughter, wife, mother.
Abi, on the other hand, got pregnant, dropped out of college and became a single mother working part time as a librarian, a disappointment to parents,...more Really enjoyed this book and could relate to some of the issues in it which were depicted with balance and thought.

When Abi was 13, her beloved sister, Caroline 16, was spotted by a model agency. Overnight their lives changed and Caroline became Cleo, famous model, darling of their parents and the fashion world, the perfect daughter, wife, mother.
Abi, on the other hand, got pregnant, dropped out of college and became a single mother working part time as a librarian, a disappointment to parents, a failure. Their worlds couldn't be more far apart, Abi in the countryside, Cleo in London; Abi struggling, Cleo rich, with everything she could want.
Finding herself alone and with no home for the summer, Abi accepts Cleo's offer moving in with them for a few weeks, unaware that Cleo is planning to use Abi as the Nanny whilst she pursues again the career she had retired from.
Abi gets on really well with Cleo's husband and daughter's but the old issues and hurts between them come to the fore and cause friction. Meanwhile, Abi finds herself falling in love with her brother in law whilst Cleo finds fun elsewhere and Abi has to make some serious choices and rethink her relationship and past with Cleo.

Very well written and although it has it's fun parts there are some quite serious matters at heart in this book. The whole sibling rivalry and parent-child relationship is looked at from different angles as well as the relationships between partners and how each character sees themselves through everyone else's eyes.
Abi and Cleo are world's apart in more than looks, Abi is a very moral person who thinks about others and puts herself out for them; Cleo is selfishness personified, she comes first and thinks of no one but herself but although she seems to have it all, is she as happy as Abi? It looks at what has made each sister as she is and whether in fact everything they have thought of as true in their past, actually is.
Quite a thought provoking book in its way, one which may make you question everything you thought you knew of your sibling relationships.

The ending seems a little odd at firt, in that you think it is going to carry on and you know how it is going to carry on..but it doesn't...it is the end of that part of her life and so the end of that story. Full stop. And why not. By then the book has said what it wanted to and you get the feelng it will continue on a different thread, quite rightly. But that's a different story. Far from being that the writer didn't know how to end it, I think it was perfectly intended to be like that.
I really enjoyed it and would go so far as to say it is her best book.
(less)

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Mar 07, 2012 Hsiau Wei rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: books-read-in-2012

like Jane Fallon's writing and this is one of the book that i think have an interesting storyline. I have been looking forward to read this book and although the plot is rather interesting but unlike previous book, Jane failed to develop the story further and i was rather dissapointed with the ending of the book.

Abigail or 'Abi' to all, is a rather down to earth character. At the beginning of the story, her sister invited her to stay with her in her mansion and she who thought that is an opport...more

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Feb 03, 2012 Abi Holligan rated it 4 of 5 stars

*May contain spoilers*

The Ugly Sister tells the story of a sibling difficulties, Abi Attwood considers herself the ugly sister, when her sister Caroline gets spotted at a young age to become a model, with a forceful mum who likes to boast about her daughters she pushes young Caroline into the modelling world, eventually Caroline re-invents herself as Cleo to make herself stand out and moves away to London to pursue her modelling career.
Abi is slightly envious and sad because she has lost her si...more *May contain spoilers*

The Ugly Sister tells the story of a sibling difficulties, Abi Attwood considers herself the ugly sister, when her sister Caroline gets spotted at a young age to become a model, with a forceful mum who likes to boast about her daughters she pushes young Caroline into the modelling world, eventually Caroline re-invents herself as Cleo to make herself stand out and moves away to London to pursue her modelling career.
Abi is slightly envious and sad because she has lost her sister, who she considered a good friend and a protector, but also Abi's mum always goes on about Cleo and how well she's doing, Abi never gets a mention.
She throws herself into studying to get a good career but at the age of 18 finds herself pregnant to her boyfriend, he gets scared and runs off leaving Abi a single mum, working part time at a library. She's still at this point 18 years later when Phoebe her daughter goes off traveling the world, when Cleo emails her randomly to come and stay over summer for 2 months whilst Abi is waiting to move houses.
Abi is surprised, she hasn't seen Cleo in years, or her husband of 12 years and their two daughters, Abi considers her options and decides to go, she wants to get to know her sister again, and with Cleo firmly out of the modelling spotlight, she's surely to be like the old Caroline, and not the Cleo who's bossy and selfish and harsh, isn't she?

The Good:
- The writing - I loved reading this book, the writing simply flew off the page it was so easy to get into. There wasn't really a time when I found myself bored.
- Abi and Cleo Attwood - Their relationship was so complex to read about, reading back to when they were younger and thinking Cleo is trying to help her sister, but once Cleo starts modelling she changes completely, more selfish, demanding, but obviously it's not her fault, she started from a young age and so this is all she's used to.
- Jon - such a great family guy, loving his wife, but wanting her to stay at home and stay what she had become, a mother and wife looking after her family.
- Abi, Jon, Tara and Megan - They seemed like such a perfect family and once Abi had changed Tara around to not always caring what she looked like and to be a normal 10 year old girl, it seemed like they should always be together, and Abi slipped into the role as Jon's wife and the girls mother quite easily.
- The complex relationship between Abi and Jon, it was obvious that something was going to happen between them, because of her change of opinion of him, he was so sweet and fatherly, totally opposite to what she imagined and reading about her thoughts towards Jon, I really felt for her when she pretended she didn't want him to be loyal to her sister even though Cleo did not deserve it at all.

The Bad:
- Cleo - she was a terrible sister, wife and mother. Even though Abi and Richard weren't going out really, Cleo didn't know that when she went out of her way to kiss him, how could she do that to her sister and husband, and like Abi I believed that it was a one off but obviously Caroline was long gone and Cleo was here to stay.
- The only main thing I found bad about it was the ending, it seemed to end abruptly, without really ending it. I don't think it's enough to have a sequel, I guess the author is leaving it, as make up what you want for this ending.(less)

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Jan 30, 2012 Sian Milne rated it 3 of 5 stars

Well firstly i am disappointed at how i have had to rate this book.
I loved it the entire way through but the abrupt ending totally ruined it for me.

I loved the character of Abi. There were moments where she had me laughing out loud especially the scenes with her nieces. I really liked Jon too, my only real issue with his character was where the whole book was written from Abi's perspective and I would have liked there to have been more depth and thoughts behind his character and his thoughts and...more Well firstly i am disappointed at how i have had to rate this book.
I loved it the entire way through but the abrupt ending totally ruined it for me.

I loved the character of Abi. There were moments where she had me laughing out loud especially the scenes with her nieces. I really liked Jon too, my only real issue with his character was where the whole book was written from Abi's perspective and I would have liked there to have been more depth and thoughts behind his character and his thoughts and feelings. Her nieces were adorable and made me smile when reading, was fab to read their character development. Now Cleo (what a cow?!) was every bit how I thought she would be, spoiled, vain, self-obsessed and basically just a bi**h!. Unfortunately she doesn't get any better throughout the book and in the beginning I really wanted Abi to grow a backbone and tell her what's what.

Now the love story part - its actually a very small part to the book and usually I really would have frowned upon it but nothing actually happens and trying to be a good sister Abi denies how she feels about Jon and refuses to do anything with the feelings. This part of the book could have gone wrong but it was written extremely well and tactfully and it really made me feel for them. Cleo was a cow to Jon and she most definately didn't deserve him.

I think what also made me love this book was that the sisters grew up in Ashford, Kent where I also grew up and them talking how various places there and the town really bought back memories for me :-)

This was the first Jane Fallon book I have really enjoyed, I have read more of hers in the past but so far I would have to say this was my favourite.

My only real critism is that the ending was extremely abrupt and it didn't even feel like an ending. Maybe that was the point because the characters were all starting afresh but it would have been nice for the story to have been a little longer.

7/10 from me, would have been an 8 if not for the ending.(less)

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Feb 06, 2012 Leah rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: for-review, books-read-2011

Jane Fallon is an author I’ve enjoyed before. I remember picking up Getting Rid of Matthew a few years back now and I really enjoyed the fresh take on affairs, how Helen was trying to get rid of Matthew, the man she was having an affair with rather than trying to take him from his wife. I then read Got You Back which was even better, I really loved that one. I somehow skipped Foursome, though I have it on my shelf, and so when I got a proof copy of The Ugly Sister I dove right in, hoping for som...more Jane Fallon is an author I’ve enjoyed before. I remember picking up Getting Rid of Matthew a few years back now and I really enjoyed the fresh take on affairs, how Helen was trying to get rid of Matthew, the man she was having an affair with rather than trying to take him from his wife. I then read Got You Back which was even better, I really loved that one. I somehow skipped Foursome, though I have it on my shelf, and so when I got a proof copy of The Ugly Sister I dove right in, hoping for something in a similar vein to her first two novels.

The Ugly Sister is interesting. I’ll give Fallon that. I like books about sibling rivalry and done right it can be a brilliant read however for the entire time I was reading The Ugly Sister, it felt off-kilter somehow. The writing style was off with a mix of third-person present and past tense and it’s as if Fallon couldn’t decide which worked better (for the record, if you’re writing in third-person, past is always best), the characters were awful people (awful people!!!) and the plot was contrived at best. I don’t know what I was expecting, but what I got wasn’t it. There was barely any sisterly bonding of any kind, which I suspect is expected, really since Abi and Cleo are as far apart as the North and South pole, but when there’s a novel about sisters you expect some forward-movement, some break to happen in their relationship, some acknowledgement they were/are sisters and there was none. They never even really had it out because Abi was miles too meek to actually say anything, ever.

What really got my goat was Abi herself. Cleo is billed as being a cow. That’s a given. But, boy, Abi is a nightmare herself. She’s hardly an angel and her cop-out that the only reason she never “did” anything with her life was because she could never, ever top Cleo’s achievements was petty. I understand that sisters compare themselves to each other to some extent but to blame your sister because you couldn’t get off your lazy bum to get a better job or make a better life for yourself is ridiculous. I’m surprised it wasn’t Cleo’s fault Abi got pregnant. I mean the novel just read like two thirteen-year-old teenage girls slugging it out over who could prove their life was better/more fulfilled. At times, I couldn’t comprehend how Abby could be the mother of a fully-grown daughter because she acted as if she herself was the daughter at times.

The Ugly Sister just didn’t work for me at all. I got bored of Abi, bored of Cleo, bored of the so-called rivalry. Bored of Abi “wanting to say” all of these things, but never getting the courage to actually say them for God’s sake. I liked the way Fallon portrayed her affairs in previous novels but Abi hankering after her brother-in-law was borderline gross. We’re hearing how she’s blushing/stuttering/making a fool of herself while Jon was still oblivious. All Abi was missing was a peep hole, to make her the ultimate stalker. Neither sister was better than the other and none of the characters – bar the kids – were characters I cared about or wanted to know more about. They were all terrible people, and the whole novel just left a bad taste in my mouth. Coupled with the amateurish writing (Fallon can write so much better; either that or my memories of her first two novels are wrong) it was a recipe for disaster for me. Never mind the ugly sisters, this book was somewhat ugly. (Despite it’s rather attractive cover, I will admit.) Here’s hoping Fallon does better with her next effort. I hope she gets back to her days of Got You Back and Getting Rid of Matthew.(less)

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Oct 11, 2011 annelise rated it 1 of 5 stars

This is the kind of book that gives chick-lit a bad name. The usual drippy protagonist who has no self-confidence. The narration was weird, sometimes the reader is addressed directly, and sometimes the tense changes, making it confusing and a little bit disjointing. The ending was also odd, seeming to cut off in the middle of a scene.

I had been looking forward to reading Fallon's other novels but after this, I don't think I can bring myself to pick another one up.

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Jan 23, 2012 Amanda rated it 2 of 5 stars

Gobbling up paper books lately, especially since my e-reader app has mysteriously broken. Need to get to the library.

This was darker-than-normal chick-lit fluff. Enjoyable, easy to read, middle of the road. My biggest problem was that I couldn't identify fully with the protagonist, nor understand her decisions or whinging. Also had difficulty with the unresolved, too-sudden ending.

Ready to get back to the 19th century I think.

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Jul 28, 2012 Beth rated it 3 of 5 stars

Its not quite four stars and i would give it 3 and a half if i could.

This book was a very interesting read and I liked how the main character - Abi - was not after a man but a purpose AND desperately trying to keep the family together.

However the ending was a tad disappointing and a slightly "oh that’s It "but with a hint of inspiration.

It did make me physically laugh out load though.

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Feb 09, 2013 Jamie rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: adult, contemporary, female-mc, realistic-fiction, saw-it-coming, sisters, smells-like-sex, title-love, unfinished-bidnez, wtf-ending

I really enjoyed this one. Wasn't quite what I'm used to reading and it was a welcome break from the monotony.

I can relate to Abi so much it's scary. Maybe everyone with older sisters feels this way? It certainly made me feel better about our relationships.

It was quite sad to have reached the ending. I felt like there must be more to the story, I hope there's a follow up book in my future.

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Apr 22, 2012 Tia rated it 4 of 5 stars

My only thought is WHAT THE HELL? It ended so abruptly I nearly crapped myself. I read this book just for the heck of it, I wasn't even interested in it but I read it anyway and I liked it, a lot. However I wanted so many different things to happen! Abi should of hooked up with Jon and it should of been longer. GAH!! It was so good but the ending is killing me!

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Mar 08, 2012 Becky Vowles rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: drama, love

I knew I would enjoy this book, having read a couple of Jane Fallon's previous novels.... this one was as good as I expected it to be, nice light reading with a bit of a twist.... I have to say that I was a little disappointed at the lack of closure offered by the ending; it didn't feel as though the story was complete, rather as though it just stopped, a shame, but overall enjoyable.

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Apr 01, 2013 Janet rated it 4 of 5 stars

Finished listening to this on my ride in to work. Loved it! The "less attractive" sister of a top model goes to stay with that sister and her family for the summer hoping to rekindle the fun relationship the sisters had before the model was "discovered".

I loved the narrator of this book. Wonderful voice! British, but not Downton Abbey type accent.

Highly recommend this book and it has a great ending!

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Jul 04, 2012 Helena rated it 3 of 5 stars

I would have given this book four stars, but the ending was so abrupt that I felt as though the author just stop writing. I am hoping there will be a sequel so that I can find out what happened to Abi and Jon and the girls. Aside from the ending this was a quick, read with some humor thrown in.

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Nov 03, 2011 Aileen rated it 5 of 5 stars

I can’t say too much about the story in this book, without giving it
all away and spoiling it. I have read nearly all the books by this
Author they are always easy to read and follow, this one certainly
didn’t disappoint, I couldn’t put it down, I would definitely recommend.

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