Trigger warning: References to rape

So this was just okay to me. I think the biggest reason why I couldn't give it more than 3 stars was that the whole big just got so bogged down in the Russia plot, the sister dealing with a serial killer case (yep) and then the heroine's constant repetitions to herself to keep a secret that I just didn't care in the end about any of the characters after a while. There were some bright spots, but a couple of things that happened stuck in my craw (the outing of two men via video was gross to me and it being hailed as great was not okay) and I just felt myself getting annoyed. Also too many of the characters in this book sounded similar to previous Lamb characters in "Such a Pretty Face" and "If You Could See What I See". I read this immediately after "My Very Best Friend" and felt let down.

"The Language of Sisters" follows Toni Kozlovsky. She and her family immigrated from Germany after escaping from Russia decades earlier. Toni is a crime reporter and has two sisters, Valerie and Ellie. Valerie is a prosecutor and Ellie designs pillows that are sought after. We find out that Valerie is happily married with two children. Ellie is newly engaged to a man that her family finds wanting. And Toni is dealing with a devastating loss. When Toni realizes she can't keep up with writing about crime, she seeks to get a job at a new magazine that will take about people's homes. While dealing with this Toni is fighting to not get into a relationship with one of her neighbors while also remembering her family's past in Russia and the secret she was told to keep by her parents.

Not too much to say here except I found Toni lackluster. Her romance with Nick also sucked. There was nothing there to grab onto. We hear how great he is, but since Lamb only references them sleeping together and him discussing books in a general way with her, I had nothing else to go on. The men in most of Lamb's books tend to not be very developed, and Nick was not. We also have the whole thing with Toni and her sisters able to "talk" to each other in their heads. Toni needed a lot of hand holding and help and I get that with her past everyone was trying, but I thought she needed therapy.

We have the usual eccentric characters in this one though they are all Toni's neighbors on the dock where she lives on her tugboat. And of course her family. I was able to keep the family straight for the most part. Though the twin sisters and them being hyper sexual got old quick. Same with Ellie and her need to breathe in a bag and talk to herself and her heart like a character that did something similar in "Such a Pretty Face."

The writing was okay, but the story took way too long to be told. The parts going back and forth to her family in Russia took forever to get to and then I was just bored after a while. It takes a while to get to Toni's father and grandfather being taken away and then what befalls the family after that.

The setting of Oregon was good, we have references to places or people from her other books that was nice to read about.

The ending was kind of ridiculous (sorry) with the whole serial killer case and the fallout from that. And I thought the trip back to Russia didn't seem quite realistic either, but what do I know, I have never traveled there. ( )

The Language of Sisters by Cathy Lamb
Like the story line enough to want to read this but it's over 450 pages long.
Russian parents come to the US with their three daughters and they open a restaurant. What I like about this is although it's about a Russian family it could easily be a Portuguese one(my nationality) as there is much that upsets the mother. Oregon, what a lovely area.
One daughter wants to marry an Italian and that sets off her creating new dishes for the restaurant because she is that upset.
Antonio is asked to fix all the problems-she's a reporter/writer. Love the understanding of the language between the sisters as it's a family trait. You know when another is hurting or happy.
At times I am lost as to what era we are in as the book goes back to Russia, then to present then back to when they first arrived. So when Toni writes a resignation letter I'm not sure where we are as she goes to work for the next week. Hot romances and work situations.
Kind of funny that one sister is a lawyer and is charge of bringing those to justice and her teaches the twins about self defense and they bring it to class for show and tell and the teacher gets upset when she explains how to get out of trunk of a car if kidnapped. It is useful information...
Lots of drama and action from them all. Chapters go back in time so we can understand what happened in Russia before they came to the US. You wonder what will become of the wedding that is being planned as everybody is fighting over everything. So many secrets. X ending didn't see it ending like this.
X read but just took too long.
I received this review copy from The Kensington Books and this is my honest review ( )

I can't remember the last time I had such fun reading a book. Not that this is all sweetness and light, though there is plenty of that too. A Russian family, Christians in a dictatorship, escape from Moscow where they were in danger, making a new life in Oregon, secrets they carry with them. There is so much humor, food with unusual names, descriptions of decorating and homes, life living on a tugboat, and one large, loving and unusual family.

I fell in love with this family, all of them and found myself wishing I could be part of them. The neighbors on the pore, living in various types of house boats. Old Daisy, wonderful, slowly losing herself to dementia but such a quirky unusual and loyal person. The three sisters and their unique and unusual bond, the secret surrounding their adopted brother. Love the tone of this book, the message that anything cam be overcome with loving friends and a loving family.

Yes, sometimes it is a bit schmaltzy, a bit sweet, predictable even but it didn't matter. The characters and the humor, sometimes laugh out loud funny, overcame all the things I usually avoid in a book. A good story, a feel good story, a book that leaves you with a good feeling. How special is that? ( )

A special thank you to Kensington and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. What a beautiful cover!

Cathy Lamb renders another heartfelt story of family and secrets -THE LANGUAGE OF SISTERS. An engrossing family saga linked by blood, marriage, and long-held secrets and special sisterly bonds.

Meet the Kozlovskys. A huge loving family. They had survived. They have endured much hardship in Moscow.

Their father barely so, their mother only through endless grit and determination-- but they are here in Oregon-a noisy family who does not talk about what happened back in Russia, twenty-five years ago.

It is best to forget. Their parents have told them many times. The things they hide. After all, they are Americans now. Could they cover their past?

Toni Kozlovsky, (Antonia) the narrator lives on a dock in a marina in Oregon with other people who live on houseboats. She has a three story yellow tugboat with red rails and trim and a red door. She wanted to live on the water and a friend of her fathers retired and moved to Miami and her she was.

She renovated and rented a slip on the dock and settled in her thousand square feet of space. She needs her space from things going on in her life. She also keeps things in her other side of the house (a shelter with a door) which locks away her past.

She is presently a crime and justice reporter. Valerie an attorney, and Ellie is engaged to an Italian. Their parents, who own "Svetlana's Kitchen" and a group of wonderful aunts, uncles and lots of cousins.

Three sisters: Toni, Valerie, and Ellie grew up in Communist Russia. The girls have a special gift of being able to hear each other in their heads. (A gift from their mother).

It may be rare, and it comes in emotionally intense times, when they are worried, scared, in danger, falling apart, or conversely when something perfect happens to all of them.

Some say they are making it up and only think they each other since they are sisters, best friends, and are in tune with each other. They know the truth.

From the Sabonis line, like genes, through their widow’s peaks. From the Romanovs, to Lenin, Stalin, Germany’s invasion, the siege of Leningrad, the Cold War, they have heard one another.

“Passed from mother to daughter. Father to son. Sisters and brothers, we hear each other. It’s a gift. It’s a curse.”

American Russians. They had lost it all. They came here worked hard, stayed sane, and they are better people for their experience. They fight, love, drink, and laugh.

A secret keeper. For twenty-five years. Can she unburden herself?

From quirky characters, good food, wine, wit, fears, laughter, secrets, siblings, friends, a blue heron, Daisy (loved her), a DEA agent, a restaurant, and Nick. There is also the adopted brother, Dmitry- he came to live with them in Moscow.

They have shared secrets and joys and it’s the language of brothers. and the language of sisters.

What a beautifully written story told with humor and compassion! You will cry and laugh. Loved the column titled “Living on a Tugboat: and the love connection. A "must read" for lovers of family sagas.

An ideal choice for book clubs and group discussions (guide included).

JDCMustReadBooks ( )

I loved this book! I loved everything about it - the characters, the story line, the love and the wonderful sounding Russian foods that were discussed. Cathy Lamb has done it again and written a book that with characters who won't soon be forgotten. This book has a little bit of everything - mystery (what was the secret that no one was supposed to discuss?), drama (will the trial end without Valerie being hurt or killed?), love (will Toni learn to love again?), food ( what will be special be named at Svetlana's Kitchen tonight?). Most important of all it shows the love and connection between sisters and the entire Kozlovsky clan. The book made me laugh (I loved Svetlana and the food she cooked) and it made me cry (the things that happened to the family before they emigrated from Russian were difficult to read) but it was full of a fantastic family that I loved reading about and will remember long after the book is finished.

I highly recommend this book!

(Thanks to NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.) ( )