From unbreakable bonds that make the best of times all the better, and lift us through the worst, to rivalries that niggle no matter now old we are, there’s no question that sibling relationships are among our most significant. As a result, tonnes of writers have explored those relationships in all their complexity — from life-affirming stories of connections that last a lifetime, to tales of estranged siblings who reconnect, to seriously dark thrillers.

It’s a relationship that’s fascinated writers for centuries. Think Little Women, Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice, and The Mill on the Floss, (who can forget the relationship between Tom and Maggie Tulliver?).

Moving now to some of our favourite recently published novels that explore siblings, fans of historical fiction might want to dive into The Leviathan, a bewitching 17th-century-set novel that sees brother and sister Esther and Thomas Treadwater embroiled in a sinister world of superstition and murder, or Cunning Women — part evocative family drama, part historic witch-finding thriller, it features unforgettable sisterly bonds. Meanwhile, Michael Crummey’s The Innocents explores the nature of innocence through two siblings cast adrift from humanity. It really is a haunting masterpiece.

For stirring stories of siblings divided and reunited, The Vanishing Half tells a moving, multi-generational tale of twin sisters separated by a lie, while Silver Sparrow is a compelling coming-of-age story of two sisters who are both united and separated by their bigamist father.

One of our favourites of this year, Black Cake sees a brother and sister work through their differences after their mother dies, and Black Sunday is a remarkable coming-of-age debut that lays bare the hardships, heartaches and hopes of four siblings from 1996-2015. 

Fancy something funny? Try Dial A for Aunties — the portrayal of protagonist’s aunties’ sisterly shenanigans is brilliant, and shot-through with gallows humour. For more dark wit, you might enjoy My Sister, the Serial Killer. Or, if all-out psychological thrillers are more your thing, Mirrorland tells the twisting, disturbing tale of twin sisters tormented by their imaginary childhood world of pirates, witches and clowns.

For an incredibly moving contemporary read, The Cookbook of Common Prayer sees a family endure the most terrible tragedy, but with such love between a young boy and his anorexic older sister. Then there’s Grown Ups, an of-the-moment Nordic novella about a pair of sisters whose rivalry has extended into middle age as they face questions around motherhood and infertility.

Plenty of exceptional YA crossover novels explore sibling relationships, too, among them the book that arguably started the YA genre — SE Hinton’s The Outsiders. We also recommend Sarah Crossan’s Moonrise for its incredible portrayal of death row injustice and undying brotherly love, while the author’s One is an unflinchingly thought-provoking, novel-in-verse masterpiece that tells the moving story of conjoined twins Grace and Tippi.

Providing food for thought on National Siblings Day (10th April), read on to discover novels that explore sibling relationships in all their complex glory. And, if you want to do something nice for your sibling, why not give them the gift of a well-chosen book? Discover why books make the best gifts ever.