4.5 stars. 
 What can I say about a novel that pulled me from my reading slump, except thank you? Vanessa and Her Sister was just what I needed--I'm sure part of the pull for me was not being 100% familiar with Virginia Woolf, Vanessa Bell, or the Bloomsbury Group. Sure, I've read, seen, or know of the work that many in this group have created, but I didn't know much, if anything at all, about their personal lives. I was struck by what Priya Parmar wrote in the afterward in the novel, namely that one of her biggest challenges was trying to build a story in the tiny cracks left among the many surviving letters and works of the members of the Bloomsbury Group. She said that they were prolific in their letter-writing, so much is known about what they all did. I have to admire Parmar's ability to craft such a fascinating story from all of that, and I can also appreciate that she wrote it from Vanessa's point of view instead of Virginia (because doesn't she always get the spotlight?). 
 The only thing that keeps this from being 5 stars is the sheer number of people I had to keep straight in my head while reading. I think that may be my fault, but the reader is plunged headfirst into the "action" of the story, via Vanessa's diary, with little to no preamble. There is, of course, a list of "characters" at the beginning but to make it even more confusing, most of them had nicknames! 
 I highly, highly recommend this novel and I requested Parmar's first novel, Exit the Actress, from the library soon after finishing this. I can't wait for it to come in!