What readers think of The Flower Sisters, plus links to write your own review.

Thank you to NetGalley and RB Media/recorded books for the audiobook of, The Flower Sisters

Narrated by a cast of readers: Jim Frangione, Andrea Gallo, L.J. Ganser, Laura Knight Keating, Christina Moore, Graham Winton

A compelling debut of a coming-of-age/historical fiction read; told in twin storylines fifty years apart.

The cover of this book is so beautifully done and that is what caught my eye for this book. Also, when I read it is a Fannie Flagg of the Ozarks. I absolutely loved listening to this coming-of-age/historical fiction story. Rose, the grandmother is hysterically funny at times and there are laugh out loud moments in the story. You’ll find yourself rooting for Daisy, who is a fifteen-year-old inquisitive and endearing young lady. This has a well rounded cast of characters that you will enjoy. I’m excited to see what this author does next. Kudos to, Michelle Collin’s Anderson, on her debut novel that brings this story to life with her descriptive writing. A great book for book clubs.

To me this novel is in the same vein as Fannie Flagg’s books, as well as, Jan Karon’s, The Mitford Series.

Touching on, family, forgiveness, secrets, lies, sadness and grief, love, and friendship.

I enjoyed Flower Sisters in that it explored a relatively unknown historical event ie the fire in the dancehall of this small town. Like others, I enjoyed the characters but some of the plot seemed unrealistic, particularly the "discovery" and story by Daisy about an event that affected so many people originally. I did like the character of Rose. I would read another book by this author to see if maybe these kinds of issues are avoided.

I enjoyed The Flower Sisters. Anderson does a good job of making the small town of Possum Flats come alive. Her characters are good people but flawed, as most of us are. She also provides hints in the first chapter to have the "surprise" not be an out-of-left-field surprise. I appreciate that. I plan to pass this on to a friend who enjoys reading but doesn't want to be overwhelmed by depth. I would not recommend it for a book club, unless your book club is more social than analytical.

Based on an actual dance hall explosion in Possum Flats, a small Missouri town, era 1928, "The Flower Sisters" explores the impact of such an event on its three main characters. The book is told through the eyes of one of the twin sisters, Violet and Rose, her playboy turned fundamentalist minister date, Dash, and her 15-year-old granddaughter, Daisy. Anxious to with travel her man to California, the granddaughter is plonked in this small town by her hippie mother. One problem however, Daisy has never met her grandmother. Bored and miserable, this high school student obtains an internship at the local newspaper. While assigned to the paper's morgue detail, Daisy begins her investigation and writes detailed articles about what really happened that night of the explosion. While Daisy's findings shocked the town, this reader found it hard to believe that she could author such a profound expose of this event.

This easy-to-read book is filled with well-developed characters, each revealing their story in alternating chapters. Often people in this small sleepy town have different views and are not always what they appeared to be. Since the author dropped several hints earlier in the pages of her book, the story's twists were not a surprise to this reader. This not only is this book a story of secrets and regrets, but it's about finding the truth, your family and most of all that place called home. I think second paragraph from page 333 says it all. It begins with, "Maybe home is something you can't run from, a place you find yourself searching for even after you think you've gotten away. . . (Spend a moment or two to reread it and see if you agree)

I had a mixed reaction to The Flower Sisters. I loved the two main characters, Daisy and Rose Flowers, and I found the story to be movingly told. In places, the plot seemed slow and the author provided more grisly details than I personally prefer - but the ending of the book was beautiful and made me glad that I had taken the time to finish it. The writing was crisp, and each of the characters was drawn very vividly. I believe that book clubs would find a great deal to discuss, as the characters and plot are complicated. In places I found a few of the plot points implausible, but yet I keep thinking about the book days after I finished it. The overall question that the book explores is how catastrophic events affect us long into the future, and the book approaches this question with grace and sensitivity.

The Flower Sisters by Michelle Collins Anderson was an Advance Reader's Edition that I received in March 2024. The story was inspired by the Bond Hall explosion of April 13, 1928, in the author's hometown of West Plains, Missouri. The cause was never determined, but Collins used poetic license to conclude what triggered the dance hall explosion, which killed thirty-nine townspeople in fictional Possum Flats, Missouri. Collins' short fiction has appeared in several journals, reviews and anthologies. This is her debut novel.

The book cover shows a young woman dressed in the style of the time with a hat tilted so that it keeps her identity a mystery. This helps introduce 'Identity' and 'Secrets' as two themes of the book.

Daisy is the main character and driver of the novel. She is a precocious, determined fifteen-year-old. Her mother, Lettie, who lives the life of a free spirit, left Daisy with her grandmother Rose as Lettie drives off with her latest boyfriend. Lettie was described as "a violent storm that swallowed you and spit you out." Grandmother Rose was the funeral director of Flowers Funeral Home and had a twin sister named Violet. Daisy looked forward to a boring summer at Grandma Rose's home. When Daisy learned that her family was affected by the explosion fifty years earlier, she wanted to learn the whole story. Mr. Fence, the editor, allowed her to pursue her project after initially refusing to have the town subjected to her questions. The townspeople were not ready to talk about it.

The book is a character-driven story with various people revealing their stories with alternating perspectives. Possum Flats was a small, sleepy town with family secrets that crossed generations. People were not always the people they wanted to be or who others thought they were. There were a few twists in the story - a couple were major surprises.

The descriptions of most characters were of their actions and personalities. The physical details were limited. Mayor Watson had been hiding secrets from his wife, Ruby Rae. He was an example of "The truth always comes out."

Dash Emmonds was popular in high school and dated Violet, among others. He just wanted to have fun in high school. He later suffered from survivor's guilt and had a huge career change. His grandson Joe was a joker and the high school quarterback and a love interest for Daisy.

Hazel was the postmistress who saw all the letters that Daisy sent to her mother in hopes of a reply. Hazel knew everybody and their business. She was a stunner who also dated Dash.

Daisy's discoveries shocked the town and had a profound effect on the people. It seems almost impossible that a young teenager could author a major story that is good enough for a newspaper and also possess the skills to interview all the people.

The Flower Sisters told a story of the present, the fifty-year-old past, and the unpredictable effect of sudden decisions, small-town tragedy, and the ways family connections change.

I received The Flower Sisters as an ARC to review. The story is set in the small town of Possum Flats, Missouri in dual timelines of 1928 and 1978. The central event affecting both timelines was the disastrous explosion at the local Lambe's Dance Hall in August of 1928 that killed dozens of young people. Among the dead was one of the Flower sisters, identical twins Violet and Rose, who were very different in personality.

In the summer of 1978, fifteen-year-old Daisy Flowers is left in Possum Flats by her hippie mother. She's to stay with her Grandmother Rose, the local funeral director. A miserable, bored Daisy talks herself into a job as an intern at the local newspaper, and then into a "Today in History" column. In the paper's back issues, she discovers stories about the explosion and is shocked to learn that one of the victims was Violet, the twin sister her grandmother has never mentioned.

Daisy is determined to tell the story of the explosion by talking to survivors and victims' families, who don't want to talk to her. Her questions cause problems for those who have have spent fifty years hiding the trauma, guilt, and the secrets of that night. Additionally, in the Bible Belt town, many people felt at the time that those who were killed while dancing to Jazz had it coming for their evil ways.

The prologue, set in 1928, describes the events of the night at Lambe's in the voices of Violet and her boyfriend, Dash. The chapters alternate between Daisy, Rose, Dash, now a fundamentalist minister, and the other survivors, whose memories provide the 1928 timeline. Daisy's newspaper column for each story was included afterward.

I really disliked Daisy in her first several segments. She seemed self-absorbed, over-confident, and insensitive to the concerns of those she was determined to interview for her big "scoop." The author started out by overdoing her 70's teen persona. I fleetingly thought of skipping her segments, but kept on in hopes that the character would show some growth.
Rose was a hoot; strong, outspoken and finding humor in sometimes awkward situations. Rev. "Dash" Edmonds was zealous and humorless. I guess as he was supposed to be. The other characters, the survivors and Daisy's coworkers, were well-developed.

The stories of the survivors were told in a effective way, slowly revealing the story of the night of the explosion. I didn't care for the ending, which seemed out of sync with the rest of the book.

The Flower Sisters is a story of secrets, regrets, and remembrances, of finding truths, family, and home. I would recommend it.

A page turner from beginning to end. As I read, I experienced the actions of the different characters. The writing was vivid and colorful. While reading, I was able to imagine scenes and hear the voices of the different characters, A good read.