It's been awhile, but here we go. . .!

Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger

If you loved The Time Traveller's Wife, you will like this. I enjoyed TTW much more, but this one had some heart and intrigue to it too. Niffenegger doesn't stray from her fascination with the passage of lifetimes or the communication between the after-life and our reality in this one either. The basic plot is about two sets of twins. The older set comprises of one twin who has twins of her own. Their aunt--their mother's twin--passes away and mysteriously leaves them as her beneficiaries, even though they have never met, and with the one condition that first they must live in her apartment--ahem, flat--in London for one year.

Throughout their year there, the twins discover more about their mother and aunt; their individual selves; their odd-duck neighbors; and in between it all, the wrestle between their close (almost creepy) twin-sistership and each's independence. Meanwhile, the reader also catches a closer glimpse of the other characters through their own subplots. The ending is a bit of a tongue-twister for your head.

I read this book for a book club, so it was interesting to hear what the others in the group thought. One of my friends who read the book, and attended the meeting, is an identical twin herself. So, there were various moments the sisters shared in the book that she could very well relate to, moments that may not have meant much else to us non-twins.

Overall, the book was good. It had its slow points, but for the most part, it was a good read. I'd recommend it, but I wouldn't say it is a must to jump to the top of your reading list. If little else from the basic storyline, it does stimulate some thought to where we might go whenever we leave this physical reality. It also raises a great reminder that although two people can look identical, their different personalities can completely alter each's appealability. It confirms the notion that character and beauty truly come from within, creating an aura that envelopes and enhances whatever exterior we are housed in.

Along those lines, something my friend once told me has always interested me. She once said that growing up, and even now, the people who are drawn to her sister tend to be ones who may not feel the same way magnetism toward her, and vice versa. I have met her sister and they look exactly alike, but within minutes I could tell them apart.