Book Review: My Sister, The Serial Killer

The first page of the book.

Book Review: My Sister, The Serial Killer
By Alexis Mercer

The title threw me for a loop. I’m not much for serial killers. But when Book Club names a book, I read it. So My Sister, The Serial Killer, by Oyinkan Braithwaite arrived, and I tentatively opened to the first page.


No wasting time. The reader jumps right in to the meat of the story told from Korede’s point of view. She is a nurse in St. Peter’s Hospital in Nigeria. She is practical, responsible, and mature. She is also in love with a doctor in the hospital, Tade.

Ayoola is the younger sister: beautiful, carefree, the golden child from birth. She has also killed three men she was dating - leaving Korede to clean up, both literally and figuratively, the mess.

Flashbacks and memories of the sisters’ childhood are interspersed throughout the chapters, revealing details of what has made the girls who they are today. Stories of their father, since deceased, and their mother, who favors Ayoola to this day without hesitation.

Despite the straightforward start and direct jump into the action, the plot takes many turns and unexpected twists. My attention was held captive the entire novel. I could not have anticipated the outcome or how the reader get there if I had 100 tries.

This book was not an example of “don’t judge a book by its cover,” but instead “don’t judge a book by its title.” I would have been missing out on an entirely original, intriguing story had I not given it a try thanks to Book Club.

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