Reviews with content warning for Pregnancy - Black Cake

I loved the beginning of this book. However as the book went on it became very predictable and half thought out and almost too convenient for the FMC. Short chapters helped me through this. I loved the amount of diversity and intersectionality of cultures this had, but seemed very far fetched and almost performative at times.

I do not understand how Lin and Pearl were still alive when Covey died at 70… see what I mean by convenient. There was really nothing more to add to Lin’s story. I just felt like it was thrown in there but not needed.

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jennifer_bush_73's review against another edition

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emotional mysterious reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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readingwithgoose's review against another edition

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emotional mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.5

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alpettit's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional mysterious fast-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

2.75

This book was just okay, for a few reasons. First, the editing could have been better. There were some word choices that were inconsistent. The most jarring example is using the words “torch” and “flashlight” interchangeably. Second, I didn’t find Byron interesting or well developed. He was clearly an angry person and career driven, but his connection to the sea and his mother wasn’t entirely believable. Additionally I felt his story arc was haphazardly closed at the end when it wasn’t critical to the story. Same for Mathilda. No one needed to know what happened to her because the story was about Covey and her children, not Covey and her mom. I don’t under understand why the author chose to close Byron’s career loop and not Bennys (she’s still struggling). That brings me to my third point: the ending just fizzled. Unnecessary information/meetings (with Lin and his background on getting rich), no real emotion, and unpolished writing. Almost as if the author realized the book was about to border on long for this type of story and they wanted to wrap up. I might still watch the Hulu series. Maybe they’ll do a better job of showing the familial connections than the author did.

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renareadsbooks's review against another edition

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dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

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ajdavis29's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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angievansprang's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

This is a fantastic historical fiction exploring the importance of heritage and our cultural roots, as well as celebrating our collective humanity. Black Cake details multiple generations of a family of individuals who have all face steep adversity and have had to develop strong senses of self. I felt as though the characters were well-developed, extremely vibrant, and most importantly, believable. I really enjoyed the expansive timelines and locations in this book, it takes you across time and across the Atlantic. I am very excited to watch the Hulu adaptation to see how it compares.

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jennabeck13's review against another edition

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emotional reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4/5)

Genre: Contemporary Fiction

About 380 pages

Eleanor Bennett’s family has been in shambles for years. Eleanor and her son, Byron, haven’t seen her daughter, Benny, in years. Including at her husband’s funeral…. So when Eleanor is determining her final wishes and her will, her biggest priority is to get her children back together. But when Byron and Benny are called by Eleanor’s lawyer, they get the last two things they would have expected, their mother’s signature black cake and a recording detailing family secrets. These family secrets completely re-write the past and leave the family reeling.

Contemporary fiction has become one of my favorite genres over the past year! I think whether I like them is heavily influenced by my ability to connect and empathize with the characters. Charmaine made that quite easy in this book. I loved all of the characters and the complexities of their stories. I think she did a terrific job of meshing the past and present timelines. And everything was beautifully woven together by the end. The pace was a little slow for me, but that is my only complaint!

Favorite Quote: “The beauty of a thing justified its plunder. And nothing was more beautiful than a girl who was fearless.”

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