Names My Sisters Call Me: A Novel

By Megan Crane

This is the story of the Cassel sisters: serious, dependable Norah, beautiful, flighty Raine and cute little Courtney. Just weeks before Courtney’s birth, their father abandoned the family for a new life out west (only to die suddenly weeks later.) While their mother mentally “checked out” for a while to mourn the loss of her husband, the sisters dealt with their loss the best they could.

Fast forward twenty-eight years later: Norah is bossier than ever, Raine has fled to San Francisco to find herself, and little Courtney is newly engaged. Courtney and Norah haven’t spoken to Raine in six years, after she singlehandedly ruined Norah’s wedding and ran off to San Francisco with Courtney’s first love, Matt Cheney.
Courtney desperately wants her family reunited for her upcoming wedding, so she decides to reach out to Raine with a surprise visit to California. But Courtney is the one surprised to discover that nothing has changed in all these years: Norah and Raine still can't get along and her feelings for Matt Cheney seem as strong as the day he left her.

If you thought your family was complicated, you will probably appreciate Names My Sisters Call Me, a light read that won’t make you think too much, perfect for a lazy day at the beach. Crane seems to understand the ever changing dynamics of family relationships, as well as both the joys and frustrations of having sisters. Her portrayal of the way their father’s absence emotionally scars the sisters, leaving a gaping hole in their family forever is realistic and powerful. An interesting, occasionally moving story about families.