The Stolen Sisters by Louise Jensen is a thrilling work of art. I loved everything about this one, another #sleepstealer! Come and meet Carly… @Fab_fiction @HQStories

I’m delighted to be kicking off the blog tour for Louise Jensen’s The Stolen Sisters, another superb thriller from one of my favourite authors.

Louise joins me today to introduce us to one of the main characters in the book, but before we get started, here’s the blurb…

Sisterhood binds them. Trauma defines them. Will secrets tear them apart?

Leah’s perfect marriage isn’t what it seems but the biggest lie of all is that she’s learned to live with what happened all those years ago. Marie drinks a bit too much to help her forget. And Carly has never forgiven herself for not keeping them safe.

Twenty years ago The Sinclair Sisters were taken. But what came after their return was far worse. Can a family ever recover, especially when not everyone is telling the truth…?

Hello, Louise! 

Welcome back and huge congratulations on your new book! I adored it, yes, there were tears! Lots of tears! I’m so pleased you’re here to introduce one of your characters, can you tell us a bit about her, please?

Today, I’m introducing Carly Sinclair who is absolutely one of my favourite ever characters. She’s single because she’s scared to get close to anybody after the trauma of her past. She’s a child minder for her nephew, Archie, who she adores and she also buys and sells vintage things on eBay.

When did you create her?

All three of the Sinclair sisters came to me at the same time. Twins, Leah and Marie were the loudest, but Carly interested me the most. As the eldest she carries the heavy weight of guilt that her sisters were abducted when she was in charge of them.

Did you write the book to accommodate the character or the character to accommodate the book?

I definitely wrote the book to accommodate the characters. As a mother I never wanted to write about missing children, but these sisters wouldn’t get out of my head. I decided the only way I could write their story would be if they go missing in chapter one and in chapter two we learn they all survived and there was no sexual abuse.

What do you like most about Carly?

I love that Carly is so much stronger than she thinks she is. When she’s curled up in the back of the van after her abduction she refers to the shape her body makes as a comma, not the end, a pause. She’s so brave.

What do you like least about her?

Twenty years on she is defined by her trauma, her lifestyle solitary and she’s not living her best life. Carly won’t accept any help.

Did your early readers/editorial team like her to start with or did you have to change her in any way?

It was one of those rare books where the editorial team loved the story and the characters as it/they were written.

Does she have any similarities with anyone real?

Having experienced PTSD and mental health struggles myself there’s probably a little of me thrown in there.

What are your plans for her?

I want Carly to be happy, find love, make friends. To feel real joy because she deserves it.

Would you be friends in real life?

Absolutely!

I adored Carly! All the Sinclair sisters are wonderful!

Bookworms, if you want to know more about what happened to The Stolen Sisters, go and get your copy ordered now! It’s out on October first! 

My thoughts…

There is no doubt in my mind when I pick up the latest book by Louise Jensen, that I’m in for a real treat.

And The Stolen Sisters was no different.

A thrill-fest from start to finish.

I hate to say it as I feel as though I’m ‘cheating’ on Grace and Charlie (The Sister), but I think this might be my favourite book so far.

It isn’t hard to understand why Jensen’s books are so popular: her ability to weave a web of deceit and intrigue is unmatched. The way she masterfully takes us from past to present and back again, without missing a beat or taking the reader out of the story is stunning.

I know it isn’t an effortless process to write a book. Hours and hours of research, writing, editing, and proofing and that’s just to get the first draft done. But my god, the finished product Jensen puts out at such a consistently high standard is amazing. I’ve said it before and no doubt will say it again, if she could bottle and sell her talent, she’d be a gazillionaire!

One of the main things that’s stuck with me from this book is the relationship between the sisters; seeing how the dynamics change and move over the years, and how the emotions and feelings and responsibilities between them develop. I don’t have sisters, but Jensen’s insight into such a special type of relationship made me understand that bond on a deeper level than I ever imagined I could.

The Stolen Sisters is another stunning sleep stealer from Jensen and I urge you all to go and buy it now!

Hugest of thanks to the author and the team at HQ Stories for my ARC and spot on the tour. You can pop over to damppebbles to find out what Emma Welton thinks of this one today, and then follow the rest of the tour here:

About the author…

Louise Jensen has sold over a million English language copies of her International No. 1 psychological thrillers The Sister, The Gift, The Surrogate, The Date and The Family. Her novels have also been translated into twenty-five languages, as well as featuring on the USA Today and Wall Street Journal Bestseller’s List. Louise’s sixth thriller, The Stolen Sisters, will be published in Autumn 2020 by Harper Collins.

The Sister was nominated for the Goodreads Debut Author of 2016 Award. The Date was nominated for The Guardian’s ‘Not The Booker’ Prize 2018. The Surrogate has been nominated for the best Polish thriller of 2018. The Gift has been optioned for a TV film. The Family was a Fern Britton Bookclub pick.

Louise also has a penchant for exploring the intricacies of relationships through writing heart-breaking, high-concept love stories under the pen name Amelia Henley. Her romantic debut, ‘The Life We Almost Had’ is out now.

Louise lives with her husband, children, madcap dog and a rather naughty cat in Northamptonshire. She loves to hear from readers and writers.