Sisterland: A Novel

Curtis Sittenfeld, New York Times bestselling author of American Wife and Prep, returns with a mesmerizing novel of family and identity, loyalty and deception, and the delicate line between truth and belief.

From an early age, Kate and her identical twin sister, Violet, knew that they were unlike everyone else. Kate and Vi were born with peculiar “senses”—innate psychic abilities concerning future events and other people's secrets. Though Vi embraced her visions, Kate did her best to hide them.

Now, years later, their different paths have led them both back to their hometown of St. Louis. Vi has pursued an eccentric career as a psychic medium, while Kate, a devoted wife and mother, has settled down in the suburbs to raise her two young children. But when a minor earthquake hits in the middle of the night, the normal life Kate has always wished for begins to shift. After Vi goes on television to share a premonition that another, more devastating earthquake will soon hit the St. Louis area, Kate is mortified. Equally troubling, however, is her fear that Vi may be right. As the date of the predicted earthquake quickly approaches, Kate is forced to reconcile her fraught relationship with her sister and to face truths about herself she's long tried to deny.

Funny, haunting, and thought-provoking, Sisterland is a beautifully written novel of the obligation we have toward others, and the responsibility we take for ourselves. With her deep empathy, keen wisdom, and unerring talent for finding the extraordinary moments in our everyday lives, Curtis Sittenfeld is one of the most exceptional voices in literary fiction today.

PRAISE FOR CURTIS SITTENFELD

American Wife

“A smart and sophisticated portrait . . . Sittenfeld has an astonishing gift for creating characters that take up residence in readers' heads.”—The Washington Post

“A gripping epic of public and private lives . . . a gem.”—Good Housekeeping

“The novel is a gift, a sweeping exploration of a woman's odyssey from obscurity to fame and the painful decisions she must make along the way.”—The Miami Herald

Prep

“Prep conveys the inner world of an entirely typical teenage girl with remarkable warmth. . . . One of the most tender and accurate portraits of adolescence in recent memory.”—San Francisco Chronicle

“Prep may be as addictive as M&Ms, but it's also a tart and complex tale of social class, race, and gender politics.”—The Boston Globe

“Hilarious . . . a richly textured narrative.”—The New Yorker

The Man of My Dreams

“[Sittenfeld] writes with humor, intelligence, insight and heart. She's also as good at sharp social satire as she is at tender mercies.”—The Boston Globe

“Pure, elegant prose; true, perfect dialogue; and emotion so searing it might just leave a scar.”—The Miami Herald