Review: Good but not spectacular
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 07 20, 2013
Jenn Foor's Twinsequences should come with a warning label: major drama ahead. This book is a hybrid of mystery, thriller and romance, providing a reading experience similar to watching a daytime soap opera. With a premise as outlandish as twin sisters conspiring against each other to ruin the other's life, Twinsequences is a continuous mind game, making me question every character's motive and turning everyone into a potential threat. Like the protagonist, Willow, I was unsure of whom to trust as the plot became more convoluted, never quite knowing for certain what would happen next.Twinsequences takes sibling rivalry to a whole new level, pitting Willow against her twin sister, Ivy, who's managed to hide the fact that she's a vindictive psychopath until she summons her sister back to their hometown under false pretenses. Willow hasn't returned home for four years. What other reason could she have to stay away than a guy? Her high school crush and Ivy's current husband, Stoshua Wheeler, is caught in the crosshairs of the sisterly feud, which escalates exponentially as the story progresses. Maybe it was the strange name or maybe it's because I wasn't sure which sister he was loyal to, but it took me some time to warm up to Stoshua. As a hero, he is a bit of a grey area right up until the end, with an uncomfortable position at the head of a twisted love triangle.With its numerous plot twists and shocking revelations, Twinsequences is definitely a page-turner, keeping me guessing until the very last page. While I enjoyed the book overall, I don't think it lived up to its full potential. There are times when the plot seems to be scatterbrained, as if the characters are waiting for one plan to be thwarted so that they can move on to the next ill-conceived plan. I almost wish the novel could've taken place when the twins were in high school, not just because that seems to be their current level of maturity, but because I would've liked to know more about how Ivy became the person she is today. The series title, Twisted Twin, suggests that Ivy may be getting her own novel and I hope that the author delves further into her backstory and that she redeems herself in terms of her relationship with Willow.