Review: Sister to Sister
Reviewed by: Dionne Christian
Author:
Olivia Hayfield
Publisher:
Hachette
ISBN:
9780349423333
Date Published:
26 January 2021
Pages:
438
Format:
Paperback
RRP:
$34.99
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As the world became increasingly chaotic last year, solace was found in a number of books including one that was a good deal lighter than some I read. That book was Wife After Wife, Olivia Hayfield’s glorious reimagining of the lives and times of Henry VIII and his six unfortunate wives.
Hayfield (pen name of British-born, Auckland-based Sue Copsey) turned the historical chapter into a clever and witty contemporary story set in a modern media empire in the centre of London. The story was packed with romance and lust but also astute social commentary and a spattering of current politics to create a truly fun read.
In Sister to Sister, Hayfield returns to the natural sequel, the rivalry between Tudor queens Mary (Maria) and Elizabeth I (Eliza) and their Scottish cousin Mary (Mackenzie James), but uses a good deal more creative license to make their stories more relevant, identifiable and perhaps more satisfying than the history that inspired it.
Here, Henry VIII – aka media mogul Harry Rose – is not dead but has, because of a #metoo like scandal, been forced to hand over the reins of Rose Corp to his daughters. By keeping Henry/Harry alive, there’s a chance for counterfactual reflection about what Henry may have made of the ways in which his children ruled his kingdom.
Religious and deeply conservative, Maria vows to rid Rose Corp of sleaze; bright and breezy Eliza favours a new golden age of British TV drama overseen by her best friends Will Bardington and Kit Marley thus conservatism faces off against progression. I think we can all agree that that’s relatable to where we seem to have landed. Again.
It’s not all work, though; Eliza likes to play hard, too, so there’s romance when her head is turned by a childhood playmate and romantic rivalries abound. Eliza flits between London and Oxford, reflecting the “progresses” Elizabeth I undertook and allowing Hayfield to write some rich descriptions of town and country which may make readers who have spent time in the UK yearn to one day return.
The worrisome part of the book comes from Hayfield’s recognition of the fact that nearly 418 years after Elizabeth I’s death, whether a female executive intends to get married and have children remains a pressing concern for many. Does Eliza have to choose between love and career as Elizabeth did?
There’s a cast of characters listed at the beginning of the book but, once again, part of the fun is working out who’s who in this strangely familiar world. Certain sentences and turns of phrase are straight out of Shakespeare; there are amusing references to things like the humble potato – supposedly introduced to England during Elizabeth I’s reign – while one character works for Armada Corp.
The ingenious way Hayfield re-casts and contemporises the Tudor court gives her a chance to have some fun but there remain perceptive observations of modern life, from the influence of the religious right to the relationship problems caused by family dysfunction, which lift the story.
Sister to Sister perhaps isn’t as sharp as Wife After Wife, which had the added benefit of novelty value but it’s still an amusing, smart and oddly thought-provoking read with glamour and great heart. A working knowledge of Tudor and Elizabethan history isn’t a pre-requisite to enjoying it – but it might help to look up a little of the background.
Reviewed by Dionne Christian
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