The Moon Sister

The fifth installment in Lucinda Riley's Seven Sisters series follows Tiggy (Taygete) D'Aplièse, one of six sisters adopted as babies by a mysterious wealthy man they call Pa Salt, who recently died. The sisters were raised at Atlantis, the family's lakeside estate on Lake Geneva. Pa Salt left each daughter a letter with clues to her biological origins, and Tiggy's letter directs her to Sacromonte, a hillside neighborhood of cave dwellings in Granada, Spain, where she must find a woman named Angelina.

In November 2007, Tiggy, a zoology graduate passionate about animal conservation, interviews for a temporary wildlife consultant position at the Kinnaird estate in the Scottish Highlands. The estate's new owner, Dr. Charlie Kinnaird, a cardiac surgeon who inherited the 40,000-acre property after his father's death, wants to settle four endangered Scottish wildcats and explore rewilding the land. Tiggy feels an immediate connection with Charlie but learns he is married with a 16-year-old daughter, Zara. She accepts the position and moves into a cottage shared with Cal MacKenzie, the estate's gruff but kindhearted manager.

As Tiggy settles in, she forms bonds with the small community at Kinnaird. During the Christmas holidays, she meets Charlie's wife Ulrika, a cold and beautiful woman who immediately dislikes her, and befriends Zara, who shares Tiggy's love of nature. On Christmas Eve, Tiggy encounters a stranger outside the lodge whom Charlie greets with unmistakable hostility. The man, Fraser, the son of Beryl, the estate's housekeeper, has returned to Kinnaird for unknown reasons, and Margaret, Tiggy's former employer, warns Tiggy to stay away from him.

Zara introduces Tiggy to Chilly, an elderly Romani man living in a cabin on the estate. Chilly recognizes Tiggy instantly, calling her "Hotchiwitchi," the Romani word for hedgehog. He tells her he was destined to guide her home to Sacromonte and begins recounting the story of her grandmother, Lucía Albaycín, a legendary flamenco dancer born in a Sacromonte cave in 1912.

The novel alternates between Tiggy's present-day story and a historical narrative spanning Lucía's life. Lucía's mother, María, was married to José Albaycín, a charming but irresponsible guitarist who exploited their daughter's extraordinary dancing talent. At age 10, Lucía performed uninvited at the 1922 Concurso de Cante Jondo, a prestigious flamenco competition at the Alhambra, and electrified the audience, earning the nickname "La Candela" (The Flame). José took Lucía to Barcelona to perform, leaving María and their sons behind. When their son Felipe died of a lung disease contracted in prison, María traveled to Barcelona to deliver the news and discovered José living with another woman. She ended the marriage in all but name and returned to Sacromonte, unknowingly pregnant with her last child, Pepe.

Over the following decades, Lucía rose to international fame. She fell in love with Agustín "Meñique" Campos, a gifted guitarist who became her partner onstage and off. When the Spanish Civil War erupted in 1936, the troupe escaped Madrid and fled to Lisbon, where Lucía charmed her way into performing at a café and arranged for María and the teenage Pepe to be smuggled out of war-torn Granada. After years of touring the Americas, Meñique, longing for domestic stability, gave Lucía an ultimatum: marry him or he would leave. Lucía refused, unable to abandon her career. After Meñique departed, she discovered she was pregnant with his child but refused to tell him. Lucía returned to Spain and gave birth to Isadora, Tiggy's mother. She left the baby in María's care and resumed performing, dying of a heart attack onstage in Baltimore at age 39.

Back in the present, Tiggy's life at Kinnaird grows complicated. Zed Eszu, a billionaire who runs Lightning Communications, takes an aggressive romantic interest in her, sending extravagant gifts and offering her a dream job running a wildlife charity. Tiggy learns from her sister Maia that Zed dated Maia at university and hurt her badly, and she later discovers he also dated their sister Electra, revealing a disturbing fixation on the D'Aplièse sisters. Ally, another sister, warns that Zed's father's yacht was spotted near Pa Salt's boat during his private funeral. Tiggy turns down the job, and Zed threatens to buy Kinnaird and convert it into a resort.

Tiggy spots a rare white stag on the estate, which she names Pegasus. One night, while watching over the animal, she sees a shadowy figure with a rifle. Shots ring out, killing Pegasus and grazing Tiggy. Cal rescues her, and she is helicoptered to the hospital, where Charlie discovers she has myocarditis, a serious inflammatory heart condition. Ulrika visits and demands Tiggy leave Kinnaird, accusing her of pursuing Charlie.

Tiggy discharges herself and flies to Granada, fulfilling Pa Salt's instructions. In Sacromonte, she finds Angelina, a bruja (healer and wise woman) who is her cousin, and reunites with Pepe, Lucía's brother and Tiggy's great-uncle. Angelina teaches Tiggy the bruja arts, including herbal medicine and hand-healing, while secretly treating Tiggy's heart condition with herbal tonics.

Angelina and Pepe reveal the remaining family history. Years after the family settled in Lisbon, María visited Sacromonte and learned from Micaela, the community's bruja, that her sons Eduardo and Carlos had been killed by Franco's Civil Guard. Micaela had saved Eduardo's infant daughter, Angelina, and raised her as the next bruja. Lucía's daughter Isadora eventually married Andrés, a payo (non-Romani) boy, and after nearly two decades became pregnant with Tiggy. Andrés was killed in a moped accident before the birth, and Isadora died the day after delivering Tiggy. Pa Salt visited Angelina, adopted the baby, and promised to send her back one day.

During a ceremony with Angelina, Tiggy senses Chilly's death in Scotland. Charlie and Tiggy's pregnant sister Ally track her to Granada. Ally goes into premature labor and delivers a baby boy in Angelina's cave, naming him Bear. Hospital tests confirm Tiggy's heart has improved. Charlie kisses Tiggy, but she pulls away, insisting it is wrong because he is married.

After convalescing at Atlantis under the care of Ma, the sisters' devoted guardian, Tiggy returns to Kinnaird with Zara. Charlie reveals the full crisis: Ulrika wants a divorce and is in a relationship with Fraser, who is Beryl the housekeeper's son and Charlie's illegitimate half brother. As the old laird's eldest son, Fraser has a legal claim to the estate, since Charlie's father died without a will.

Tiggy recognizes Fraser's distinctive hat as matching the shadow she saw the night Pegasus was shot. Cal finds the hunting rifle in Fraser's barn. Tiggy confronts Fraser: She knows he killed the stag and nearly killed her, and she offers a deal. If he drops his claim to Kinnaird and leaves the country, she will not go to the police. Faced with the threat of prosecution, Fraser agrees and departs for Canada.

With the estate secured, Charlie takes a sabbatical from medicine to restore Kinnaird. He confesses his love for Tiggy and asks her to stay as his partner. After visiting Chilly's grave on the estate, Tiggy decides to remain. Cal discovers that a dying hind has given birth to a pure white calf, the son of Pegasus. Tiggy revives the weak newborn with her healing hands, and the calf is moved to a remote croft for protection. Fiona McDougal, the local vet already known to Tiggy and Cal through the Kinnaird community, offers Tiggy a position combining holistic and traditional animal care. Tiggy and Charlie commit to building a future together at Kinnaird.

The novel closes with a brief chapter from Electra's perspective in New York. The youngest D'Aplièse sister is spiraling through substance use after a devastating breakup and accepts an invitation from Zed Eszu. She collapses after mixing drugs and alcohol, hallucinating that Pa Salt is holding her hand. This chapter sets up the next book in the series.