Reviews with content warning for Panic attacks/disorders - You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty

I did really enjoy this book, and probably would’ve absolutely loved it if not for the initial discomfort I felt with the premise of the main conflict —

that Feyi falls in love with and decides ultimately to pursue a relationship with the father of the man she’s already involved with.

I don’t really have a problem with age-gap romances, but that particular vein of relationship dynamic really squicked me out for some reason, to the point where I almost put the book down. I could see by about halfway where the plot was headed, but I think it must have been more the anticipation of

Feyi crossing into *something* with Alim

than anything else, because for the last third or so of the book once they’d crossed that line, so to speak, I was much more okay with it. I still didn’t love that dynamic situation, but not so badly I wanted to stop reading. Overall, I really did enjoy the book, and aside from that one aspect, really don’t have anything negative to say.

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thevicariousheroine's review against another edition

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emotional reflective medium-paced

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

3.75

I’ve never read a romance that made me think this much. It’s hours after I finished and I keep going back to read sections because these characters are that interesting.
I truly feel that my thoughts on this story say more about me than it does the story which has lead to so much dissecting.

Emezi’s writing is gorgeous as usual. This story however, is a very character driven story. I advise going into the story completely blind (I even regret reading the blurb). Follow the characters, observe their very flawed choices and analyze. If I had gone in with less expectations I feel I would have enjoyed the story more.

When I immediately finished I was slightly disappointed because I didn’t feel it was a romance and I didn’t feel a deep connection with any of the characters. After reading Emezi’s interview where they mentioned blending genres I realized this is more than a romance. To me it feels like a more complex story about grief and community told through the effects of one romantic relationship.

It wasn’t until hours of still thinking about these characters that I realized I did connect with them. Romances are often black and white. Love interests and main chapters don’t make bad decisions and if they do it’s followed by severe groveling. In this novel every character you meet will make a bad decision and do things you may not agree with. In fact, if the story was not told in this perspective Feyi may have been a villain. Somehow Akwaeke created sympathy for each character but also the space to see where they were wrong. I didn’t make excuses for Feyi but I understood why she did what she did and can’t help but advocate for her autonomy.

I don’t think this is a story I will completely understand on the first read. It didn’t give me the “warm fuzzies” I get with my favorite romances but it has occupied my every thought.

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purplepenning's review

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emotional funny hopeful reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

Whew. Complicated, raw, sensual, powerful, romantic, redemptive, messy as hell ... kind of amazing?

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annreadsabook's review

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challenging dark emotional lighthearted medium-paced

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

3.5

This book has a little bit of everything: romance, grief, and a bit of glamor. It's interesting because, as much as this book may serve as an escape for the reader, the behaviors in which Feyi, the main character, engages function as her own personal escape from the grief she still lives in. I thought this novel was a really intriguing look into how we might choose to cope with massive amounts of loss and grief; I'm of the camp that can't bring themselves to agree with Feyi's choices, but I'm not convinced that Emezi wants readers to "side" with Feyi. While it's true that Feyi herself must live with the choices she makes, they also impact others in profound ways that I'm not sure she truly appreciates.

I flew through this book, but I will say that towards the beginning there was a trope that did not quite work for me and nagged me for a large chunk of the book. And, I think there are a lot of ways in which Emezi crafts these characters with the hope or expectation that the reader will side with Feyi...

Nevertheless, I'm sure I'll be seeing this book on beaches during the summer--it's heartfelt, challenging, but also balances this out with a fair deal of lightheartedness throughout.

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