Thank you NetGalley for this eCopy to review.

Giulio Savo delivers an ambitious and thought‑provoking historical thriller that blends real‑world mystery with speculative intrigue, asking powerful questions about knowledge, control, and who gets to decide humanity’s future.

📜 Plot Summary
For centuries, the Voynich Manuscript has baffled scholars, cryptographers, and historians, a text written in an unknown language that no one has ever been able to decipher.

But in Sisters of Twelve, the manuscript is not meaningless, it is deliberately unreadable, part of a vast and carefully constructed system designed to safeguard knowledge too dangerous to release freely.

Hidden behind it is a secret Sisterhood, a lineage of women who have, for nearly two thousand years, preserved and controlled the dissemination of groundbreaking discoveries—ensuring that humanity receives them only when it is ready.

When Dr. Gianna Braccia becomes the latest Custodian, she inherits the responsibility of deciding whether the world should finally access what has been hidden. As governments, academics, and rival forces begin to close in, the balance the Sisterhood has maintained for generations starts to fracture.

What the manuscript contains could revolutionise medicine, science, and human understanding—or trigger chaos, inequality, and collapse. And for the first time, the Sisterhood may have lost control of when that knowledge is revealed.

🔍 What I Loved Most
A fascinating premise rooted in the real mystery of the Voynich Manuscript.
Strong themes around knowledge, power, and ethical responsibility.
A unique focus on a hidden lineage of women shaping history.
Intriguing blend of historical timelines with modern‑day tension.
A thought‑provoking exploration of whether progress is always a good thing.

⏰ Final Thoughts
Sisters of Twelve is an intelligent and compelling historical thriller that stands out for its ambitious ideas and deeper philosophical questions. At times dense, but ultimately rewarding, it offers a fresh take on hidden‑history narratives and the cost of knowledge.

This book thrives on tension. From the very beginning, you can feel that something is off—old rules, shared histories, and choices that were never meant to resurface. And yet… they do. Slowly. Painfully. Perfectly.

The bond between the sisters is the heart of this story, and watching it bend under pressure was both fascinating and heartbreaking. Every interaction feels loaded, every tradition carries weight, and the past refuses to stay quiet. The restraint in the storytelling just makes the reveals hit harder.

The secrets. The loyalty. The moments where you realize not everyone is standing on the same side anymore. Savo builds intrigue in quiet ways, letting small cracks turn into something much bigger.

Thank you to Guilio Savo and NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for a review!

The book is based around the Voynich Manuscript - this in itself set me off on a google rabbit hole and adds a fascinating layer to the story - (Do check that out if you haven't already)

Sister of Twelve follows Gia - the last custodian, who is part a long line of women who have protected the knowledge that the Manuscript holds, until it time for the secrets to be revealed.

It's a very interesting read - I had never heard of the Voynich Manuscript before, so adding real life mystery to a fictional story line is a clever hook, gave me Dan Brown vibes.