Reviews tagging 'Suicide attempt'

In Every Mirror She's Black by Lọlá Ákínmádé Åkerström

9 reviews

vvsmydiamonds's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective 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? Yes

2.5

I read nearly 400 pages in hopes of a satisfactory ending for each of the hopeful protagonists— I was disappointed. As always, I wanted to love this book but it appears it wasn’t made for me. 
Also, I strongly dislike the untranslated Swedish conversations, specifically those between Jonny’s family. How are you gonna publish a book in English and not make it a point to translate arguments between secondary characters? I had to pull out a pencil, paper, and good ol’ google translate multiple times. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Racism, and Grief

Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Suicide, Sexual content, Islamophobia, Sexual harassment, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Suicide attempt, Infertility, Abortion, Terminal illness, and Pregnancy

bookishevy's review

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

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

4.5

This book is told from the perspectives of three Black women living in Sweden. 

Kemi - a successful Nigerian-American marketing executive who is enticed by Jonny von Lundin to move to Stockholm and clean up a racially tone-deaf campaign turned PR fiasco at his marketing firm. Kemi also sees this as an opportunity to shake up her love life. 

Brittany - a Jamaican-American model-turned-flight attendant who Jonny thrusts onto the lap of privilege after a chance encounter in business class leads to his obsession with her. 

Muna - a Somali refugee who finds a job as a janitor in Jonny's office after losing the people closest to her. Muna is working toward becoming a permanent resident of Sweden and seeks a sense of belonging more than anything. 

There's so much being explored in this read. The isolation one feels when they immigrate to a new country, especially as a Black woman in a mostly white country. The privileged expecting the oppressed to do the work of dismantling racist systems the former's ancestors put in place. How even with wealth and all that comes with it Black women are still othered. How society dictates what we look for in a mate and how giving into these ideals can lead to unhappiness. The importance of processing trauma and loss and providing the proper supports to someone with developmental disabilities. The xenophobia and challenges refugees face while trying to make something of themselves in a new country. 

I empathized most with Muna because, unlike Kemi and Brittany who chose to uproot their lives and move to Sweden, she fled her home to survive. Her desperation to make a connection is palpable. She's sensitive and a bit naive but she notices things as at Jonny's firm. Through her little interactions with Jonny the reader sees Jonny for who he truly is. 

This story with so many isms: racism, sexism, classism, tokenism, fetishism, ends on a cliffhanger. I'm on to book two. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Racism, Classism, Xenophobia, Suicide attempt, and Sexual assault

aldow94's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny reflective medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Suicide, and Xenophobia

jpreads6's review

adventurous challenging emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

This book was nothing like I anticipated. Lola delicately tackles the reality of being a black woman existing anywhere but more so in a predominantly white environment. The three women are very different which gives us a wide scope for discussion. This makes a very good book club book!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide attempt and Domestic abuse

moniipeters's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Death of parent, Police brutality, Ableism, Abortion, Blood, Drug use, Genocide, Cancer, Deportation, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Grief, Hate crime, Islamophobia, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Suicide, Mental illness, Sexual content, Murder, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Terminal illness, Violence, War, and Xenophobia

kmyr1123's review

dark emotional reflective sad fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Gaslighting, Death, Sexual assault, Grief, Suicide attempt, Sexual harassment, Pregnancy, Xenophobia, Racism, Domestic abuse, and Sexual violence

toadstoolsnshit's review

challenging emotional slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

This novel covers some really important topics in an skillful and insightful way. While I wasn’t really a fan of the writing style, I appreciated the perspective that this book offers. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Suicide attempt, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Rape, Death, Racism, and Violence

Moderate: Misogyny and Pregnancy

Minor: Sexual harassment, Miscarriage, Vomit, and Alcohol

jessicaboodavis's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad medium-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

4.25

This book deals with the issues of identity in a world where you never truly belong. Each of the characters share different identities which mean they struggle in different ways whether it is due to their class, ethnicity and tie to Sweden. The end of this book made me weep as we see all three characters struggle to find there way. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide attempt and Suicide

amandalorianxo's review

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

I just finished reading this debut novel and… wow. Thank you for pouring your heart and soul into this. It’s really going to sit with me for a while. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ stars. It would have been four and a half but the ending and unraveling of it all made me deeply sad. It’s a much needed exploration about what it means to be black in Europe, particularly in a country like Sweden where we discover three different voices from three distinct black women who all wind up in Stockholm thanks in part to one (white) man. The storylines were clear and powerful as we are enriched in Kemj, Brittany and Mina’s lives. The ending is tragic but unfortunately, more common than we realize. It covers racism, privilege, refugees, immigration and fighting to be heard despite feeling like you are on mute nearly everyday.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism

Moderate: Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Pregnancy, Mental illness, Medical content, Infidelity, and Grief