Rapid Review: My Sister the Serial Killer

My Sister the Serial Killer

By Oyinkan Braithwaite

(Finished reading: 22/06/20)

3/5 stars

“It takes a whole lot longer to dispose of a body than to dispose of a soul, especially if you don’t want to leave any evidence of foul play.”

My Sister the Serial killer is female-centred thriller set in Nigeria. Korede is a nurse, she’s the sensible older sister who must always look out for her little sister Ayoola. Ayoola is a fashion designer, she’s beautiful and frivolous and always getting herself into trouble. When Korede receives another distress call from Ayoola, she knows what’s expected of her: bleach, rubber gloves, nerves of steel and a strong stomach. But this is the third boyfriend Ayoola has killed in “self-defence” and left Korede to clear up. And Korede begins to grow worried when Ayoola shows interest in Korede’s crush Tade, because saving one means sacrificing the other.

I loved the concept of this thriller. It was really cool to read about a female twenty-something serial killer instead of a female twenty-something victim for once. The female voices were so strong and prevalent throughout. I think many thriller novels are guilty of presenting women as either victims or sidekicks and I loved how this novel broke the mould. I especially loved the sister dynamic between Korede and Ayoola and how this drove the plot from beginning to end. It took this idea of a love-hate sisterly relationship and pushed it into much darker waters.

I also really liked that the novel was set in Nigeria. My knowledge of Nigerian culture is very limited, but Braithwaite presented a very rich and diverse representation of the country. It felt very genuine and fully part of the story. I think this context really influenced my views on the themes I was reading about, particularly when we learn more about Korede and Ayoola’s childhood and how this has shaped their relationship. It was so interesting to learn more about the culture. It almost felt satirical in places. I didn’t find it as funny as I was expecting it to be, but there is a definite lightness to an otherwise very dark story.

However, I found the plot kind of disappointing. I think the concept and the literary hype surrounding the book set my expectations very high, but unfortunately it didn’t quite live up to this. I wanted something clever, but I found the plot pretty predictable. It’s not exactly a plot-driven story, but for a thriller I was expecting a bit more shock-factor. The concept definitely drew me in, and the opening chapter got me well and truly hooked, but it went a bit downhill from here. I think part of the appeal of this book is that it is not hopeful but at the same time I think this is what left me unsatisfied. I can totally understand what the novel was trying to achieve, and I think it did this well, but it just didn’t get me fired up and so just left me feeling a little disappointed. It is a good novel that explores some super interesting themes, it just unfortunately wasn’t for me. But I’m really glad I gave it a read and it was great to read a thriller that broke the conventions. For this reason, I recommend giving it a read and you decide what you think!