A review by onemorepagecrew
In Every Mirror She's Black by Lọlá Ákínmádé Åkerström

challenging emotional reflective fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

Told through the perspectives of three Black women whose lives intersect in Sweden, this novel gives light to racism, classism, fetishization, and tokenism that is amplified in the white-dominated society.  The author’s personal website indicates she is “Born in Nigeria. Educated in the United States. Based in Sweden.” and perspectives from all three countries are reflected in the story.  

The three women in the story have different reasons for being in Sweden, however they all intersect at a global marketing firm in Stockholm run by a wealthy man called Jonny.  Kemi is recruited to for an executive position at the marketing firm and relocates from the U.S., Brittany-Rae is a model and flight attendant who meets Jonny on a flight and moves from the U.S. to be with him, and Muna is a Somali refugee who is working in a janitorial position at the marketing firm. 
 
I typically enjoy a multi-perspective story with a thread in common and generally I enjoyed this novel, however the fast-pace for seemingly major life decisions left me a little dizzy at times.  Kemi wanted to shake up her career and love life and took a leap by moving to Sweden and faced internal conflict when the job and culture wasn’t what she expected.  Muna’s story felt disjointed from the rest of the novel and I could have used much more backstory on her family, her roommates, and her inner monologue.  Brittany-Rae… I had the most trouble connecting to her.  I could not understand her pull to Jonny and there wasn’t enough time to establish her mindset and build that understanding for the reader.  So many times, I was thinking “whhhhhy are you with this guy?” and with her family asking the same questions it was hard to get behind.  Jonny’s arc of “eccentric” to autism spectrum disorder was easy to see coming, but having read several novels with characters with autism spectrum disorder this one lacked a bit of depth. 
 
Overall, this was a quick read and one I did like. If each character had their own book with more depth, I would read each one. The fly-by look at their lives was intriguing and left me wishing for more.  
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