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My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite

Meeting date: January 22, 2019 ;
Star rating: 4.5/5 stars

Korede is bitter. How could she not be? Her sister, Ayoola, is many things: the favorite child, the beautiful one, possibly sociopathic. And now Ayoola's third boyfriend in a row is dead.

Korede's practicality is the sisters' saving grace. She knows the best solutions for cleaning blood, the trunk of her car is big enough for a body, and she keeps Ayoola from posting pictures of her dinner to Instagram when she should be mourning her "missing" boyfriend. Not that she gets any credit.

Korede has long been in love with a kind, handsome doctor at the hospital where she works. She dreams of the day when he will realize that she's exactly what he needs. But when he asks Korede for Ayoola's phone number, she must reckon with what her sister has become and how far she's willing to go to protect her.

Sharp as nails and full of deadpan wit, Oyinkan Braithwaite's deliciously deadly debut is as fun as it is frightening.

Comments and questions from attendees:
  • Is there a reason Ayoola is a serial killer? Can that be explained? Does it need to be explained?
  • We didn't like Ayoola as a person. She is spoiled, sheltered, and selfish, but is she naive? NO! She totally understands the world and how it works.
  • It's easier to believe Korede's perspective in this book.
  • Altruism doesn't exist for the sisters, both have selfishness.
  • Could Korede have prevented the situation if she had just answered yes to "Do you like this man?"
  • Korede resents Ayoola, but we don't think she does at the end. Maybe she understands?
  • There's a sisterly bond between Korede and Ayoola, but their bond is more - their shared experience of abuse binds them even tighter.
  • Rivalry and love are norms for sisters.
  • Why do women blame the "other woman" in complex relationships with me instead of the man?
  • We (as humans) believe pretty people when they tell us something. Why?
  • Ayoola definitely has some traits of a psychopath: manipulative, entitled, selfish, self-centered
  • Is there a sisterhood among women? Does that sisterhood explain Korede and Ayoola's relationship further?
  • Ayoola needs Korede, but Korede needs Ayoola too.
Lowest rating: 4
Highest rating: 5
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