Two sisters. Ayoola is the beautiful one. She designs her own clothing line, which she successfully models on YouTube. Other females turn invisible next to her and she demands the full attention of any room she enters. Her natural inclination is to believe that everything and everyone will behave in a manner that serves her needs. This is not completely delusional. With her beauty and charm she can – quite literally – get away with murder.
Korede is the plain, sensible, older sister who has always been overshadowed by Ayoola. Even their own mother does not hide her clear preference for the younger daughter. Korede works as a hospital nurse and in the family home she cooks and bakes. And occasionally she cleans. Whenever Ayoola has caused her most recent boyfriend to depart from this earth prematurely, Korede is the one who turns up to scrub the floor, remove the bloodstains and get rid of the body.
The opening chapter is a factual, deadpan clarification of where in the process of cleaning up after a murder you should apply bleach to maximise efficiency. Korede has this cleaning process down to a fine art because as she states:
It takes a whole lot longer to dispose of a body than to dispose of a soul, especially if you don’t want to leave any evidence of foul play.
My Sister, the Serial Killer has been labelled feminist satire. I am not sure exactly what that covers, but it might be more appropriate than the thriller/mystery/crime/horror labels, which in my opinion are highly misleading. Honestly, I don’t think this novel can be put into any well-defined box.
The dynamic between the two sisters is central. Korede, whilst not happy with her position as body disposer, seems to have accepted the state of affairs. She is after all meant to look after her little sister. This fragile equilibrium is disturbed though when Tade, with whom Korede is in love, falls for her sister. Clearly this poses a dilemma for Korede. Never mind the jealousy and hurt, she now faces the very real risk of Tade being next in line to be wrapped in sheets, transferred to the trunk of her car and dumped into the river.
“How was your trip?” “It was fine … except … he died.”
Serial killing is serious business, but dark humour is setting the tone. The chapters are short and snappy. The author writes in a minimalistic, rhythmic language which suits the story. Protagonists and minor characters are all well drawn, each with a different set of flaws and weaknesses. Most are fun to be around, but do not rank highly on the likeability scale.
The Nigerian setting appeals to me. I have always loved Africa and this story brought me right back. The mother feels like a typical African mama. Korede’s demonstration of how to bribe a policeman is a proper parody. A trait I connect with Africa is the extreme level to which people take family loyalty and obligations towards their family and these themes are central in this fun and rather unique novel.
My Sister, the Serial Killer was shortlisted for Women’s Prize for Fiction 2019 and longlisted for the Booker Prize 2019.
Title: My Sister, the Serial Killer [2018]
Author: Oyinkan Braithwaite
Format: Audiobook, narrated by Weruche Opia
Genre: Fiction
I’ve read a little about this book and decided it wasn’t quite my thing. But you’re making a good case for giving it a try!
I downloaded this one on impulse (‘daily deal’ from a well-known audio provider ) without knowing much about it. I think that helped me enjoy it, because I did not – like some people – expect a thriller or some deep insight into the mind of a serial killer.
Wonderful review! You’ve raised my interest but I think I’d still be missing hearing about their motivation and all that in the end. I find a female serial killer quite original and not something I read a lot about so that would be more to my interest. At least I gather the story is kept light, even when it’s dark humour.
Yes, we don’t get any insight into the mind of Ayoola. I agree that angle would have been interesting, but it is just a different kind of book. Korede is the narrator of the book and she is as puzzled as anyone regarding her sister motives (there is a hint in their family history). Ayoola is an interesting character though, on the surface she is innocent and somewhat childish, but occasionally she just happens to get rid of her boyfriends.
I really want to read this one and you’ve reminded me of all the reasons why! I think I may have picked it up on a Kindle deal and need to check. I loved reading your thoughts and it sounds like such a quirky, unique read!
Yes, I think it is rather unique, at least I wouldn’t know what to compare it to. I really hope you get to read it and that you will enjoy it! 🙂 Best read with an open mind without any preconceptions about which direction a story about a serial killer ought to go.
I totally agree that this one defies categorisation. It’s definitely a fun, snappy read, but I like that there’s more going on beneath the surface regarding its look at sisterhood, loyalty and trauma.
Yes, there was definitely a lot going on below the surface. Still, I was surprised to see it on the longlist for Booker, I thought it would have been too much of a lightweight (but then again, I don’t always understand which books make the list). What did you make of that?
I felt the same way! I enjoyed the book very much when I read it, but thought it would be considered too commercial for a prize that normally promotes itself as very literary.