The beginning of the novel was okay but when it switched to Mia's "before" story, I hated the way it was written. I think it would have been better if Mia's POV had been given in the form of her diary entries. Mia was hard to like, so I started to skim her POVs. It was pretty obvious what had happened between her and Katie's boyfriend. Also that revelation about her father not being her real father but her uncle, and that her real father killed himself in his 20s ...bah! People go traveling for two reasons: because they are searching for something, or they are running from something. I enjoyed this book from start to finish. It was very easy to read, meaning I didn't have to struggle to get to know the characters, which can be a challenge when reading a book of this genre. I empathised with both Katie and Mia, and there were just enough supporting characters to make this a very believable story. I liked the concept of sisterhood and the realism that the author brought to the complex relationship sisters often have. Its a unique connection. That said, I was reasonably gripped and wanted to keep reading on. One of the biggest things I enjoyed about it was the travel element and the description of the places that the sisters has travelled. The author has been to all these places herself and it shows; her travel writing is very evocative. Also, ultimately, I just wanted to know how Mia had died as my curiosity had been peaked. I really enjoyed seeing both sister's POV chapters. Not only does it gives us insight into both of the women's thoughts and emotions, it helps to keep the story moving at a fast pace. Both women's journey in this book, is both a physical and emotional one. They are both learning things about themselves, their shared history, and about each other.

The Sea Sisters is a fictional story about two sisters, Katie and Mia. They were raised by their mother after their father left the family when the girls were still very young. Mia has always been wild, independant, drifting through life. Her older sister, Katie, sensible, popular, successful and down to earth. A good & engrossing read but somehow feel it fell short if its potential. The story focuses on the relationship between two sisters, Katie the "good sister & perfect daughter" & Mia an independent free spirit, who at the drop of a hat takes off to the other side of the world to go travelling, where she dies under mysterious circumstances. Katie on finding her sisters journal decides to copy Mia's journey & discover the truth behind her death. An interesting basis for a story if not wholly original....& I think that was what made me dissatisfied, the story was a bit predictable - for example, the reason Mia left so suddenly was blatently obvious from the start! I seem to be the odd one out with my rating but I couldn't bring myself to give higher than 2 stars. The writing was lovely but the story was weak. The coincidences were too great and the fact that Katie was reading Mia's diary only when she went to the same place was just too unbelievable! The fact that both Mia and Noah had damaged father/child relationships, damaged sibling relationships, guilt issues was too much for credibility.This book has many themes: love of a sibling, friendship, family, family secrets, romantic love, being brave, betrayal, misunderstanding, sacrifice and forgiveness. La gente viaggia per due motivi: perché cerca qualcosa o perché scappa da qualcosa. Nel mio caso sono veri entrambi. Clarke always keeps a travel journal, and was intrigued by what would happen if such a diary, with its ‘smears of sunscreen and grains of sand’, was read by someone else. What would it reveal about the writer? The plot of this reminded me of Sister by Rosamund Lupton - the relationship between Katie and Mia is similar (sensible older sister, flighty younger sister who is something of a bohemian spirit) and the basic outline of the plot is the same (the younger sister is found dead and it's ruled to be suicide; the older sister doesn't believe this can be true and sets out to discover what really happened). In fact, I think the two books are likely to appeal to the same audience - which perhaps accounts for the UK title being changed to include the word 'sisters' - but The Sea Sisters does something more interesting with the premise.

After their mother dies of cancer, Mia feels even more restless. She want to find her father and finally understand who she really is. So one day she just takes off with her best friend Finn to a long trip, little knowing that she won't return from this trip alive. Katie find it hard to accept her sister's death nor why she would end her life. When Katie finds her sister's travel diary, she decides to follow in her sister's footsteps. She hope to learn more about her sister's last months and perhaps find out what or who pushed Mia over the edge... There are some currents in the relationship between sisters that run so dark and so deep, it’s better for the people swimming on the surface never to know what’s beneath . . . This may be set in sunny places like Bali and Maui but underneath lies the darker story of two sisters...deeply moving" - StarTutto il racconto gira attorno a questo diario ed alle vite delle due sorelle narrate su due piani temporali differenti, così diverse, ma in qualche modo collegate proprio dal diario. The format of the story works well & Mia's sense of searching for who she is comes over well but while I liked the idea of Katie using Mia's journal as guide to following her journey, I found it a stretch to think she could be so disciplined in her reading of it - maybe she just has much more will power than me! By following Mia’s journey as well as following her journal a day at a time Katie starts to uncover secrets that may answer the questions that are causing so much pain. Katie's only clues lie buried within Mia's trusty journal, which she used to document her entire life. Katie decides to follow in Mia's footsteps, following the exact same route her sister did, to discover what lead her to jump from the cliff top. Whilst reading the journal, Katie discovers some devastating secrets, and questions - did she really know her sister at all?

I'm pretty conflicted on this book. Initially I enjoyed the premise: Mia sets off traveling after the death of her mother and dies whilst in Bali, a country that was never on her original route. The authorities tell her sister Katie, her only remaining family, that she committed suicide but her sister knows this cant be true and tries to retrace her steps using Mia's travel journal to uncover what really happened. This book is a perfect summer read. It’s emotional and moving and set in beautiful sunny locations – California, Maui, Australia and Bali. Swimming at Night’ is the debut novel by author Lucy Clarke and focuses on the relationship between sisters Mia and Katie. They have a complicated relationship and are often at loggerheads with their rivalry. They maybe sisters but they are very different personalities, Mia is very much living for today whereas Katie follows a more accepted lifestyle of hard work and building friendships. During their childhood they had a strong bond and were the best of friends but as they matured they drifted apart and argued. Despite their differences Katie’s world is crushed when she learns that her sister Mia’s body has been discovered in Bali in an apparent suicide. Although they have not been close for a long time Katie is positive that Mia would not take her own life. So much so that she makes the decision to travel to Bali to retrace Mia’s journey and uncover the truth. Con queste parole inizia il diario di viaggio di Mia, la cui morte a Bali, durante questo viaggio, viene annunciata dalla polizia inglese alla sorella maggiore Katie.At first I didn't like any of the characters and I was really hoping that it would change and that they would become more complex as the story unfolded. But as the story continued, and more characters entered the story, I just found that none of them appealed to me at all, and this made the story feel almost stagnant. I also grew a little tired of all the plot "twists" which, in my mind, were all lazy, easy options for trying to add drama into the story and ended up verging on the ridiculous as it emerged that eventually they'd all ended up sleeping with each other. What she discovers changes everything. But will her search for the truth push their sisterly bond – and Katie – to breaking point? A tender and intricate meditation on sisterhood and family, Swimming at Night is an accomplished debut. With a deft hand, Lucy Clarke weaves a deep and compelling story that is as much about what binds us together as it is about what tears us apart. Perfectly capturing the impossibly complicated love of siblings, this is a rich and moving story that lingers long after the book is closed." - Lisa Unger, author of Heartbroken and Beautiful Lies Katie’s carefully structured world is shattered by the news that her headstrong younger sister, Mia, has been found dead in Bali – and the police claim it was suicide.

It’s a thrilling and perceptive debut which captures the complex relationship between sisters and loss at its rawest. Trust us, you won’t be able to put it down." - Cosmopolitan As Katie travels to Bali, the chapters alternate between her experiences and Mia’s entries in the travel journal. It’s an interesting device, which in fact was the inspiration behind Lucy Clarke’s debut novel. Clarke is a compulsive traveller herself – her husband is a professional windsurfer, and every winter the couple spend as much time as possible abroad. Swimming at Night is a breath of fresh air. This book is like swimming at night beneath the stars. While I tended to lean more towards Mia, I still loved Katie as well. The reason that I loved Mia more was because she was a wild child. She threw caution to the wind and just acted on impluse. Just for the record I am more like Katie, however I want to be a little more like Mia. This is why I did love Mia. I could live vicariously through Mia. Just like Katie did by reading and expericing everything and place that Mia went on her travels. It was great getting to see Katie open up and let loose. I felt like I really got to know the two sisters. Essential reading if you have a sister, as Clarke has totally nailed the complexities of that relationship. It’s perfectly paced (tense right up to the end)... and you’ll want to quit your job and go travelling." - Heat A beautifully written story about the bond between sisters and the secrets they keep to protect one another. Clarke creates two very realistic sisters, Katie and Mia, who are different in almost every single way. Katie, the older sister, is beautiful, ambitious and living a very straight-edged lifestyle. She has a loving fiance, a good job and knows exactly what she wants. Her younger sister Mia is aloof, spontaneous and feels as if she is living in her older sisters shadow. One day, she decides enough is enough and books an around the world trip with her childhood friend Finn. Unfortunately, one terrible night Mia is found dead at a notorious suicide spot in Bali. The local police consider it a cut and dry case... What lead Mia to do such a thing?Katie’s world is shattered by the news that her headstrong and bohemian younger sister, Mia, has been found dead at the bottom of a cliff in Bali. The authorities say that Mia jumped—that her death was a suicide. As the book begins, older sister Kate receives news that her younger sister, Mia has been found dead at the bottom of a cliff in Bali. The sisters had very little communication since the day Mia suddenly announced that she was going on a trip around the world. This trip appeared to come out of the blue with Mia convincing her best friend, Finn to quit his job and travel with her.