The Seven Sisters by Lucinda Riley is book 1 in the seven sisters series.
It's a simple story of seven adopted sister's finding out who and where they come from as their rich adoptive father has passed and left them each an envelope with a letter and some coordinates.
Each book is for a different sister, this one is about Maia D'Aplièse the oldest.
It's takes you on her journey from Switzerland to Rio to Paris and back and of course there's a happy ending.
It’s a dual timeline between now and years before whilst taking you on a wonderful sometimes heart-breaking ride to find the truth.
I must admit there are a few questions I'd like an answer to but there are 5 other books yet.
I'm definitely recommending this.
I would like to thank Pan Macmillan and Netgalley for an advance review copy of The Seven Sisters in return for an honest review.

I absolutely love this series, and have now read all the books twice (in Spanish) and this one three times, the final time in English. It is equally compelling in both languages. I can’t wait to read the final book in the series. I initially read this first book in Spanish, as I try to keep my language skills alive by reading in Spanish. When I read in a foreign language, it is essential that the book is well written and also gripping, as otherwise I lose interest. This certainly gripped me; the story is fascinating and I soon found myself looking up some of the places and history mentioned on Wikipedia, a sure sign that a novel has fully captured my interest and imagination. Even before had finished I was reaching for the second. All the books are different, as are the sisters. Each book is really three for the price of one; the story of the sister, the secret of her ancestors and the compelling mystery of Pa Salt and why he adopted the six sisters, or will that be seven? If you have not read any by Lucinda Riley then you are in for a treat, and if you have read the individual books once, do what I did and reread them all, one after the other!

A man called Pa Salt who is a billionaire has adopted 6 girls and named them after the seven sisters stars. They all discover that he's died and has been buried at sea before they knew he'd died. Maia is the first to find out about her story. Very different but enjoyable book

Actually listened to this on audible. Be warned that this is the first in a series. It’s a big investment because once you’ve read one, you’ll definitely want to read the rest.
It’s only when you read the second that you’ll realise how well woven into each prequel, the sequel really is. It’s a fascinating look into six ‘sisters‘ lives, who have all been adopted over the years by a rich single man and have never questioned their origins until his mysterious passing, forces them to search for a life they’ve never contemplated before.

This is the first book by Lucinda Riley that I have read, but it most definitely will not be the last. I loved The Seven Sisters and Maia’s story, full of intrigue, love, sadness, happiness , it has it all. It is beautifully written and slides effortlessly backwards and forwards from 2007 to 1928 . Wonderful read and highly recommended.

Another great read in the seven sisters books. This time we are on a wonderful journey to Rio. You can feel the heat and passion almost jumping out at you, a doomed love affair from the start there are always round it. The characters are to love/hate in equal measures. Lucinda has taken us on a knowledgeable world trip again and I can't wait to see where we will be going next and what other secrets are yet to be told.

I took a chance on this book, based on the fact that Lucinda Riley is one of my friends' favourite authors. It's not something that I'd normally choose to read, but I'm glad I did. It's a really interesting story of how one of six adopted sisters, Maia, finds out about her birth family after the death of her adopted father. He leaves her some clues to help her, which to be fair, are pretty vague, and she enlists the help of a Brazilian author (whose books she translates from Portuguese to French) who also happens to be an historian.
Luckily, he adoptive father was very wealthy, and she has no financial need to find her birth family, but it must be nice when she discovers that they are an old Brazilian family, who were once very rich, and are now just plain old wealthy.
Maia also has a secret of her own in her past, one that has made her shut herself away from the world, and this trip to Brazil appears to be the start of her healing herself.
It's a lovely story, and I think I'll be keeping my eyes open for the other books in the series.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my copy of this book to read and fairly review.

I really enjoyed The Seven Sisters and I can't wait to read the rest of the books in the series. It's such an interesting concept, to look at the history of six sisters and weave each sister's story with one of the ancestors during an interesting period of history. I thoroughly enjoyed reading about Brazil in the 1920s - it was fascinating.

An interesting intriguing read. Well written. Recommended. Looking forward to reading more from this author.

In its scope, ‘The Seven Sisters’ by Lucinda Riley reminds me of Eighties family mega-stories, paperbacks as thick as doorstops. This is the first in a series; the first five are already published. I recommend suspending your ‘instinct for the literal’ and throwing yourself into the world of the book. Some of the story set-up seems unrealistic – unbelievable wealth, mysterious father, beautiful adopted sisters – this is not a normal world. But I quickly became caught up in the historical story.
Pa Salt has died suddenly; he is the fabulously wealthy, secretive, reclusive adoptive father to six sisters whose origins are a mystery. Only when he has gone do they realise they should have asked him for information. Each of the sisters is given a clue and a letter. Also in the envelope is a triangular-shaped tile. ‘The Seven Sisters’ is the story of the eldest D'Aplièse sister. Maia’s clue is a map reference that takes her to a crumbling mansion in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil where she meets an enigmatic elderly woman.
The book came alive for me with the story, eighty years earlier, of Izabela Rosa Bonifacio. Izabela, daughter of a nouveau riche coffee merchant in Rio, is facing an arranged marriage. Desperate to see more of the world before she settles down to a stifling life of marriage to a husband she doesn’t love, she persuades her father and fiancé to allow her to travel to Paris with her friend, Maria Elisa, daughter of architect Heitor da Silva Costa. This section of the novel enthralled me; the design and sculpting of the Cristo sculpture for the top of the Corvocado mountain, all based on historical fact.
I connected with Izabela in a way I didn’t with Maia. Maia uncovers the story of Izabela with the help of Brazilian author Floriano Quintelas, whose latest novel Maia has translated into French. In the course of her research, Maia must face the shadows of her own past, her regrets and shame, in order to move on. I enjoyed Izabela’s story but at the back of my mind I queried its relevance to Maia; Izabela was too old be her mother. I missed a direct connection to Maia and this frequently took me out of the world of the story.
That connection does come but as the story finished I was left with almost as many questions as at the beginning. The last chapter is devoted to the second sister, Ally, with new mysteries for the second book in the series.
Read more of my book reviews at http://www.sandradanby.com/book-reviews-a-z/

For some reason this book genre reminded me very much of 1970s/80s novels by Judith Krantz and Sidney Sheldon. It is well written and I really did want to like this book but I found it oddly unsatisfying. There was too much flowery romance for me I'm afraid;. it is also very long so I'm sorry but I got bored with it in the end. This is a pity as I.m sure it will provide a very satisfying read for others.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I really liked the story of Maia and the descriptions of Brazil and the dual story line of her great grandmother. A very good read!

This is the first book in a series. The book's main character, Maia, is the eldest of the six adopted daughters of 'Pa Salt'. When he dies unexpectedly each of the girls travels back to the house where they grew up in by Lake Geneva to learn the funeral of their father has already taken place and they are each left something that will help them trace their origins. Maia's journey/story is the first to be told, we learn a little about each of the sisters through her but I believe each of them tells their own story in books which have since been written (or have still to be written).
Maia's search for her roots takes her to Brazil where she finds love and some answers to her questions when she learns of her parentage and her links to both Brazil and France.
I enjoyed the book - which I felt was more of a romantic novel than a historical one, but thought it was overly long - at times I lost a bit of interest and skimmed over paragraphs because it had got a bit tedious. I will, however, read the others in the series to find out about their backgrounds and hopefully get an answer as to how/why Pa Salt adopted them and is he really dead?

I loved this book and couldn't put it down, reading into the wee small hours. I like Maia and found her journey fascinating, as with all the sisters who had been adopted by Pa Salt. It's certainly different from my usual reads, but I was hooked. I've now read The Moon Sister and will read the others. What a talented writer Lucinda Riley is. Will read more after these.

Epic!
A beautiful romantic tale setting you up for the books to follow.
Brilliantly written, it tells the story of the first sister but with an underlying story of who Pa Salt was and why the other sisters have been adopted. I loved the story of Maia, her trials and tribulations as she discovered her ancestry, as did we. The parts of the book set in Rio and Paris kept me gripped and I couldn’t put it down. I can’t wait to read the next one!

This is the first book in a series, so not much happens apart from setting the scene and revealing the main characters. Lots of questions are asked, such as why he chose to adopt them all in the first place, and then why did he chose to get buried at sea without the daughters there. There are no answers in this book, it purely wants to hook you to read the next one....

3.5 stars

Not my usual choice of genre, but I was lured by such an interesting premise. Six sisters, adopted and raised by a wealthy entrepreneur - each are named after the star constellation of the same name and the books themselves are loosely based on the legends that ancient cultures have ascribed to this constellation.

When Pa Salt dies each of the sisters are left a note and some co-ordinates to help them search for their origins if they so choose. This first book is Maia, the oldest sister’s story and, as you can imagine it’s no ordinary story.

This, for me, was a hot chocolate on a winters day sort of a book, I enjoyed it, it made me smile, I felt safe in Lucinda Riley’s hands - I felt fairly certain of how things were going to turn out. It did not challenge me though and that’s ok, hot chocolate doesn’t challenge, it’s safe, secure and certain- which this book is, but it’s a bit too safe, secure and certain and I found my attention started to wander (it is quite long).

Still an enjoyable read, thanks to Netgalley for providing an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I so wanted to enjoy this book as the premise of following 6 intriguing family histories appealed to me. However I found it so slow moving and so simplistic I failed to finish the book

I heard about this book through @netgalley...and now I'm hooked so I'm going to have to read the rest in the series from @lucindarileyofficial!

The Seven Sisters is a modern interpretation of the mythology behind the Seven Sisters constellation. Each book references a different sister and the story builds up.

This is the first book in the series and we learn about the family set up and then focus on Maia, the eldest sister.

The sisters have been adopted by Pa Salt, a wealthy businessman who has never married (as far as I know from book one!). When Pa Salt dies, all of the sisters return to the family home and our journey begins. Each sister is given a personalised letter in Pa Salt' s will. Maia is given clues to her birth family.
We travel to Brazil and also Paris in the twenties. The contrast between the old and new world cultures really help to enhance the story. The imagery used really brought the places and the emotion to life. The love stories weaved throughout are realistic and gripping.

The overarching takeaway for me in this story line is that you need to sometimes look back to see where you have come from and what has made you the person you are today. Once that has been acknowledged,  you need to challenge yourself in the future and learn from your past.

Overall I loved it...and I'm off to buy the second book!

Thank you to @netgalley for the opportunity to review.

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I loved this book.
Well written and engaging it reeled me in and left me wanting to read the next book!