katsbooks's review
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
"Race doesn't really exist. Culture? Ethnicity? Sure. Class too. But race is just a bunch of rules meant to keep us on the bottom."
I have a lot of mixed feelings about this novel but ultimately, it was a miss for me. First things first, massive trigger warnings for graphic depictions of racial violence and murder. Please read with caution. So some things I liked: I really liked how this story didn't sugarcoat the reality and brutality of lynching in the American South. Too often, history gets white washed and toned down to make it more palatable for a White audience and this book definitely did not do that. I think the intent behind this novel is incredibly important and I'm glad there is a space for it.
Now the things I struggled with: the plot, honestly, just went a-wandering about half way through. It felt like this novel was trying way too hard to fit into a detective/noir type genre which trivialized it a bit for me. I feel like the impact of this novel lays in how it truly humanizes victims who were lynched by White mobs but when the story that impact was lost. The villain reveal was a whole mess that completely lost it's shock value since there had already been so many crazy twists and reveals that had seemingly come out of left field. There were also some moments that were genuinely funny which was cool but really didn't fit with the tone of the story. I just never knew how to feel about what I was reading! And I really struggled with how Harlem was idealized into some kind of utopia. There is a common trope in US historical fields that the North was this fabulous place for Black people but there was plenty of racism and segregation everywhere. I think this book just really lacked the nuance I was looking for but if you're into detective stories and the noir genre, in general, this might be for you.
I have a lot of mixed feelings about this novel but ultimately, it was a miss for me. First things first, massive trigger warnings for graphic depictions of racial violence and murder. Please read with caution. So some things I liked: I really liked how this story didn't sugarcoat the reality and brutality of lynching in the American South. Too often, history gets white washed and toned down to make it more palatable for a White audience and this book definitely did not do that. I think the intent behind this novel is incredibly important and I'm glad there is a space for it.
Now the things I struggled with: the plot, honestly, just went a-wandering about half way through. It felt like this novel was trying way too hard to fit into a detective/noir type genre which trivialized it a bit for me. I feel like the impact of this novel lays in how it truly humanizes victims who were lynched by White mobs but when the story
Spoiler
nonchlantly kills off two white women with little fanfareSpoiler
Especially since the two white women who were killed were part of the "passing" narrative of the story and were marginalized for themselves!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Homophobia, Misogyny, Murder, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, and Violence
More...