The Sisters Sweet: A Novel

Harriet and her identical twin sister, Josephine, have been raised to go on stage, fulfilling their father’s thwarted dreams. When their young talents prove insufficient, he devises a plan to harness them together and present them as “Siamese twins.” The family’s fortunes rely upon the girls’ success, and they comply for years, singing and dancing their way to certain fame. But Josie has bigger plans for herself and breaks free in a shockingly public way, leaving Harriet and her parents to struggle with the scandal she leaves behind. Harriet does her best to be a dutiful daughter, hiding her adolescent forays into temptation. Slowly, she learns that her own desires count, too. Set in the early decades of the twentieth century, when vaudeville—and then, Hollywood—were in their prime, The Sisters Sweet is a beautifully written and carefully constructed novel, full of insight and compassion. I marked so many passages of gorgeous writing. Elizabeth Weiss is a writer to watch for, and I’m already eager to read what she creates next.