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May 07, 2011

oliviasbooks rated it:

This reads like a perfect mixture of Hilary McKay and Jane Austen. (Style-wise and situation-wise. For instance, doesn't "Almighty Lou" remind you of Lady Catherine?) I had a lot of fun with the story, the characters and the writing - especially the effortlessly witty, but natural dialogues - and I want to get my hands on How to Say Goodbye in Robot even more than before now.
As the description already reveals, "The Confessions" are told from different points of view. I More...

2 comments like (7 people liked it)

Jan 13, 2012

Debbie rated it:

Someone has done Something to seriously disturb the almighty Sullivan matriarch (who is actually called Almighty by her family), and she is threatening to disinherit the whole family unless that person confesses. Because no one knows which crime has brought on this threat, sisters Norrie, Jane and Sassy each submit a written confession to Almighty.

The book begins with Norrie's confession, then goes to Jane's and then to Sassy's. In other books with multiple narrators, I've often become More...

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Jan 02, 2012

Eileen rated it:

I had high hopes, since I had found How to Say Goodbye in Robot really compelling, and so of course this didn't quite live up to them. The plot is reasonably intriguing, albeit a little unrealistic, and the three main characters sufficiently sympathetic and relatable, but there just isn't enough at stake here for me. The whole "losing the family inheritance over nothing" business is not something that practically anyone in the target audience would ever have to worry about; maybe if More...

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Nov 13, 2011

Rachel rated it:

We have Confessions of the Sullivan Sisters by Natalie Standiford. The Almighty (what they call their grandmother) has been deeply offended by one of them. She says that if they give her an apology by the New Year she will reinstate them in her will. The family is dependent on her money when she dies, and they don't want the Almighty to give all her money to Puppy Ponchos--an organization that gives dogs ponchos who don't have them. The three girls write confessions to the Almighty. And boy do More...

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Oct 03, 2011

kate.o.d rated it:

It is Christmas and Lou Almighty is very upset with the Sullivans. One of them has offended her and if she does not receive a written confession and apology by New Year's Day they will all be removed from her will, and therefore cut off from her substantial inheritance. The family - Ginger, Daddy-o, St John, Sully, Norrie, Jane, Sassy and little Takey - get together and decide who it could have been to offend their fearsome grandmother so much. Unanimously, they decide it must be one of the girl More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

May 09, 2011

Jodi rated it:

I had been reading a lot of dystopian/depressing things lately so I figured it was time for a fun, light read. Confessions of the Sullivan Sisters had caught my eye awhile back so I set it aside in my "want to read" pile. It definitely met my requirements of a light, non-thought provoking read. However, it sadly wasn't as much fun as I thought it was going to be.
The premise had potential - the Sullivan's area a very wealthy, old-money family who have never had to face any sort o More...

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Apr 05, 2011

Shannon rated it:

I hover between 2 and 3 stars on this one. Three teenage Sullivan sisters are writing letters to their grandmother, a Baltimore society maven nicknamed Almighty, to confess their sins. The confessions are an attempt to apologize for the wrongs the girls have made against Almighty who has threatened to disinherit the family if the one who offended her does not apologize.

The book is told in basically 3 parts - one for each sister's confessional. The first sister was engaging and well More...

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Apr 01, 2011

Jodi rated it:

I had been reading a lot of dystopian/depressing things lately so I figured it was time for a fun, light read. Confessions of the Sullivan Sisters had caught my eye awhile back so I set it aside in my "want to read" pile. It definitely met my requirements of a light, non-thought provoking read. However, it sadly wasn't as much fun as I thought it was going to be.
The premise had potential - the Sullivan's area a very wealthy, old-money family who have never had to fac More...

0 comments like

Mar 31, 2011

Whatchyareading added it

Raise your hand if you have a crazy family. No, not the “OMG my Mom drives me bonkers” kind of crazy; I’m talking the about your family is so ridiculous they’re practically caricatures of real people. Yeah, that’s a large contingency of my own kin, so when my sister (crazy in her own right) hands me a book about a grandmother who is called Almighty, brothers named St. John, Sully and Takey, and the parents are known as Daddy-O and Ginger respectively, I knew I had to give this a shot.

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Mar 07, 2011

Hannah rated it:

This book totally earned five stars! It was an amazing book, with three different sisters stories. With their grandmother, "Almighty" Lou, on their families backs, they were sworn to secrecy, but now they have to open up, and tell their grandmother their stories. All of the teenage girls are worried that their grandmother might cut the whole family out of her will if they do not come clean with the "crimes" they committed. One girl guilty of love and romance, another guilty o More...

3 comments like

Mar 05, 2011

Lsprouse rated it:

Just finished Confessions of the Sullivan Sisters. It is a good teen read for girls. It is about a very wealthy family from Baltimore that centers around the matriarch, Arden Louisa Norris Sullivan Weems Maguire Hightower Beckendorf, a.k.a. "Almighty." Almighty wields all the power in the family because she has all the money. The story begins on Christmas day when Almighty announces that one of the Sullivans has greatly offended her and she wants a written apology by New Year's Eve More...

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Feb 27, 2011

Karen rated it:

For all of the girls who love the Pretty Little Liars and Gossip Girls books, this one's the better written, better plotted book for you. Norrie, Jane, and Sassy Sullivan live in an enormous house in Baltimore with their idle rich parents (Daddy-O and Ginger) and three brothers. Their family has vast amounts of money, but the person controlling all of the funds is their grandmother, whom they call Almighty. Almighty has been married 5 times, and just lost her last husband, so Christmas at her More...

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Feb 20, 2011

Lesley rated it:

This book had a lot of the things I liked about How To Say Goodbye In Robot: characters that are just eccentric enough without tipping over into cartoons, good mix of humor and sadness, and problems that are not your typical YA book problems. Plus it had something Robot didn't: the kind of big, rich family I loved fantasizing about as a kid that you can join vicariously through fiction. I'm actually not sure if it would appeal to Gossip Girl fans because the girls are (relatively) well-behaved, More...

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Feb 07, 2011

Jennifer rated it:

Cool premise. An uber-rich grandma says she will write everyone out of her will if the grandkid who has wronged her does not step forward and write an apology. What comes next is the 3 sisters write their versions of overlapping (not totally the same) stories. I like the voice of the teens, they are all unique and get to be themselves, I like the discussion of that kind of blue blood world, and I like the way each teen sees things pretty black and white but through the confession process begins More...

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Jan 29, 2011

Michelle rated it:

Confessions of the Sullivan Sisters is a story told from multiple points of view. One each for the three sisters and some commentary from their eccentric grandmother Almighty for additional flavor. On the whole the girls live a high-class wealthy lifestyle, the only problem is it’s all by Almighty’s hand. This means that they must tow the company line in order to maintain the life to which they’ve become accustomed to. Of course, Almighty is more than aware of this fact and manages to exert More...

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Dec 26, 2010

Val rated it:

This book is about an extremely rich family. The grandmother, Almighty, learns she isn't long on this world, and she has been hurt by someone in the Sullivan family. She is changing her will so that the whole family is written out of it. The Sullivans include Almighty's son, his relatively lazy wife, and their 6 children, 3 boys and 3 girls. They decide that it must be one of the girls, ages 15, 16, 17, who caused her to write them out of the will, so each of the girls writes a confession to the More...

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Dec 08, 2010

Reader rated it:

The Sullivan family is at the top of the Baltimore social ladder. Sisters Norrie, Jane and Sassy attend an elite private school, and enjoy all the privilege and freedom that their almost absentee parents Ginger and Daddy-o provide, until a Christmas dinner at their grandmother's ("Almighty Lou") could change everything. Almighty announces that one of the sisters has offended her, and unless one of them confesses and apologizes, the whole family will be cut from her inheritance, and a More...

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Dec 06, 2010

Kelly rated it:

Norrie, Jane and Sassy Sullivan are trust fund kids. Their grandmother–known to everyone as Almighty–gathers the family (the girls, their parents and three brothers) and says that one of them has offended her so much that they’re all going to be cut out of her will. She refuses to say who or why, but says that if the guilty party writes a confession, she’ll consider reinstating them. Each of the sisters is convinced that she’s the one responsible and the book is made up of their confessions. More...

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Oct 16, 2010

Hayden rated it:

I didn't realize until my hold for this book came in that it was by the author of How to Say Goodbye in Robot. Yay!

Each of the three Sullivan sisters has committed a crime against Almighty, their rich and powerful grandmother. She threatens to cut the entire family out of her will, leaving all of her vast estate to Ponchos for Puppies (the most ridiculous charity on earth), if the offending culprit does not make a full confession. Each of the sisters assumes her own guilt and writ More...

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Oct 14, 2010

Kari rated it:

The Short Version:
With three different, well written voices, a flamboyant and entertaining family set up, and confessions that are both amusing and surprising, Confessions of the Sullivan Sisters lays everything of this rich family out for the reader, holding nothing back. Despite the few qualms I had with the ending, the overall feel is a great read with a smooth mixture of depth and lightheartedness. This is not just rich brats throwing a fit, but teens muddling through and balancing a f More...

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Sep 27, 2010

K rated it:

My favorite part of a Natalie Standiford book (okay, sure, there’ve only been two) is the kooky characters. They feel completely authentic, like they exist outside of these pages. Not in an I-recognize-that-caricature kind of a way, but in a way that feels like the books are just glimpses into their everyday lives. This is just one story of many from them, they’ve had adventures before and they’ll continue having adventures after. Not every quirk is explained and scrutinized for the reader or us More...

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Sep 02, 2010

Jennifer rated it:

The Good Stuff

* The style of writing is perfectly suited for the story. It sounds like it is actually being written by teenage girls
* Delightfully eccentric and lovable characters
* Nothing stereotypical about the characters (The rich people are not horrific like in most stories)
* Reminded me of the books I read as a teen
* Light, optimistic and downright funny at times
* The sisters are delightful and would love to be friends with them
More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Aug 29, 2010

Jaclyn rated it:

I thought I loved How to Say Goodbye in Robot, but this was even more my kind of story. At first I was a little dubious...rich people, yawn. But I quickly realized these were not just rich people. These were ECCENTRIC, FUNNY rich people. Which is a whole other matter. If you've ever read Nancy Mitford's stunning and hilarious novels, that will give you an idea of what you're in for. Except this is Baltimore, not England. (And of course it's not as witty as Nancy, NO ONE IS, but that is okay.) Th More...

0 comments like (4 people liked it)

Jun 01, 2011

Annie rated it:

Overall: A charming, eccentric and observant read. A gem of a book.

THE STORY AND ITS CHARACTERS

This book focuses on the lives of 3 sisters, who live in a huge old Baltimore house. We meet their friends, their brothers, their parents (Ginger and Daddy-O) and their vices. Yes, each sister has a confession, one confesses to love, one to pride and one to murder.

You’d think this novel would be darkly dangerous, another Pretty Little Liars, but it’s not. It’s More...

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Jul 13, 2010

Mark rated it:

Having *loved* Standiford's last book (_How to Say Goodbye in Robot_), I was anxious to read this one, about the inner workings of one of Baltimore's richest and most powerful families. Almightly Lou, grandmother to the Sullivan children, and head of the family, calls the Sullivans together to let them know that someone in the family has wronged her, and must make amends immediately. The consequences will be dire: the entire family will be cut out of Almighty's will, if there is no apology. T More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 04, 2011

Denise rated it:

Sins of the Sisters..., January 4, 2011
Light, quick read with not much substance. The entire Sullivan family is informed on Christmas Day that they have been cut out of Arden Louisa Norris Sullivan Weems Maguire Hightower Beckendorf's will. Shocked and horrified, the family can't believe what they are hearing. One of them has really done it this time -- and the family knows she is serious. Even though there are 6 children in the family, the book centers on the letters written by the 3 Su More...

1 comment like

Dec 12, 2010

-k The Lady Critic rated it:

When I first started to read this book I had my doubts that I would enjoy it. But since I received it through Good Golly Miss Holly’s ARC tour and I had to send it along to the next stop, I knew that I had to at least give it a try and finish it even if I wasn’t completely into it. After all, there are only so many woe-is-me-the-poor-little-rich-girl stories that a person can read without being completely sick of them.

This book is separated into five parts. The first and the last se More...

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Jul 21, 2010

Jenny rated it:

I loved Natalie Standiford's How to Say Goodbye in Robot, so I was very excited to get a chance to read her new book (due out in September) Confessions of the Sullivan Sisters. First, this book is very different from the other one - but I liked it a lot. It was a really fun read.

The Sullivans are an extremely rich Baltimore family - but they have all their wealth because of their filthy rich grandmother whom they call - Almighty - and boy does she live up to that name. She announces More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Feb 27, 2011

Serena rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

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Oct 12, 2010

Liza rated it:

I rarely read books this vapid. The concerns of the Sullivans even started out on a sore note. They learn that their grandma is going to cut them out of the will, and they suddenly assume it’s the girls’ fault. However, the reader is not given any reason why being cut out of the will is a bad thing. Yes, Grandma has all the money, but there’s no discussion of what poverty would be like, what they would have to give up, or any changes that would be made. Suddenly, the girls just start confes More...

3 comments like (5 people liked it)

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