Sibs, by F. Paul Wilson

In the late seventies and into the early eighties, some practitioners of science fiction, like F. Paul Wilson, began to jump the starship and migrate to the rising horror genre. A decade or so later, horror was in the doldrums and some were moving on toward the suspense field.

Reasons for this are numerous. One was the unrelenting success of Thomas Harris's The Silence of the Lambs. This 1988 novel shook the pillars of publishing and hard suspense was suddenly in vogue. It didn't hurt to have a healthy distrust of psychiatry. Harris shot his creative wad with The Silence of the Lambs, and hasn't written a truly good novel since then.

I'm not sure of Wilson's motivations, but Sibs was a forerunner for a decade of medical thrillers. All of which are excellent novels. Paul's fiction is rich with believable characters, intricate plots, and just plain great entertainment.

I read Sibs in 1991. Quite a few years and books have come since then. I enjoy revisiting favorites from decades past. Some hold up. I see flaws in others. I'm happy to report that Sibs has improved with age.

Sibs opens with the suicide of a woman named Kelly who just had wild sex with two strangers she picked up in a bar. Kelly's sister, Kara, cannot believe her sensible twin sibling would engage in such irresponsible behavior. With the help of an ex who is a police detective, Kara begins her own investigation.

I doubt the plot of Sibs was wholly original back in 1991, but I hadn't read anything quite like it. Looking back now, I remember stories with similar themes. Stephen King, Sarah Pinborough, and even Harlan Ellison have books with related storylines that came well after '91. I like all of them, but Sibs is scarier and more compelling.

F. Paul Wilson is mostly known for The Keep and his long-running Repairman Jack stories. These are wonderful pieces of fiction, but he has written a number of excellent stand-alone novels. Sibs is one of the best. Wilson includes it in his History of the World chronology that documents his career-spanning Adversary Cycle, but you can read it on its own. And you should.

Written by Mark Sieber