The Majesties - Tiffany Tsao

This is my first rave review of 2020 and for good reason. The Majesties is a brilliant read, unraveling the story of two sisters and their ultra-rich Chinese-Indonesian family.

Estella and Gwendolyn Sulinado are sisters from a well-known family in Jakarta. They are beyond close, pretty much doing everything together. But things are not what they seem. Behind the wealthy facade is a family full of secrets, the kind that causes Estella to poison everyone at a family birthday party. Gwendolyn, being the sole survivor and lying in a coma, tries to regain consciousness and figure out why her sister committed such an act. It’s during this fight for survival that the sisters’ story unfolds, leading to surprises and secrets laid bare, including the discovery of a family photo that changes everything.

The Majesties is a compelling novel about what happens when wealth corrupts from within. The author tells the sisters’ story through Gwendolyn’s perspective and it’s both interesting and frustrating, particularly when it comes to Estella’s life. At times, I wanted to scream at her when she marries her husband, a boorish, horrible man who does his best to separate the sisters and puts Estella through the ringer. But as I kept reading, the reasons for Estella’s act became crystal clear and I wondered what took her so long to do it.

What I love most about this novel is the relationship between the sisters. I’m very close to my younger sister (even though she sometimes makes me want to rip my hair out) and the reactions Gwendolyn had to Estella’s decisions mirrored my own feelings. I too was enraged when Estella stayed with her husband even though he was terrible. And I also became frustrated with her after she refused to join Gwendolyn in her business venture. But my emotions came out in full force whenever the family used its wealth or influence on the sisters. I felt their helplessness when they were faced with either making themselves happy or being manipulated by their family. Money may have been able to buy a lot of things, but real freedom for the sisters was not one of them.

The Majesties will be released on January 21 so make sure to order a copy or hit your local bookstore or library once it’s published. I highly recommend it.

I received an advance copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Where to buy: Amazon Barnes and Noble Indiebound

Tiffany Tsao, author of The Majesties

Photo courtesy of Simon & Schuster. For more information about Ms. Tsao, go to tiffanytsao.com