You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.74 AVERAGE
3.74 AVERAGE
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
It’s ok …
This book highlights and calls out the day to day racism (both explicit and micro expression) experienced in Sweden, by the three female leads, in this, I think it’s an important story to read and understand.
However, the character work leaves much to be desired, which is interesting given we are in a first person POV for all three of them. There is no deeper look at the decisions they make or why, even though we are literally reading from their brains, it comes through as a very superficial first person POV on all three women.
The book doesn’t have any sex scenes, but the book reads as explicitly sexual. I understand that is absolutely what the author was trying to show and demonstrate through the fetishisation theme, and that the fact it is uncomfortable to read is the point, but it does over shadow the story in my view. Not only are the men fetishising the women characters constantly; but the women are also in many ways fetishising each other. There is a constant reference to bodies and sex in a way that is very ‘tell not show’ in the writing style.
This book highlights and calls out the day to day racism (both explicit and micro expression) experienced in Sweden, by the three female leads, in this, I think it’s an important story to read and understand.
However, the character work leaves much to be desired, which is interesting given we are in a first person POV for all three of them. There is no deeper look at the decisions they make or why, even though we are literally reading from their brains, it comes through as a very superficial first person POV on all three women.
The book doesn’t have any sex scenes, but the book reads as explicitly sexual. I understand that is absolutely what the author was trying to show and demonstrate through the fetishisation theme, and that the fact it is uncomfortable to read is the point, but it does over shadow the story in my view. Not only are the men fetishising the women characters constantly; but the women are also in many ways fetishising each other. There is a constant reference to bodies and sex in a way that is very ‘tell not show’ in the writing style.
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
4⭐️ read for me! It was a good book that made readers face a topic most shy away from-race and how it plays a major role in life. The author made you see through 3 different perspectives how race affected 3 different lives and the outcome of the decisions made! A beautifully written book that I will forever keep in mind!
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I found it difficult to give a precise description of the mood of the book based on the descriptors offered by StoryGraph, while the book has a tragic element to it, it also reads like a chick flick (in my opinion) there’s a centring of romance and the conflict between wanting more for yourself as a woman (especially as a black woman) and also wanting to contend yourself with less than you were taught/expected to strive for in life. That is to say, balancing career ambitions and romantic ambitions with the need to reconcile for oneself what that truly means for you, rather than what society has outlined and also at times the emerging pressures of those around us; those who prod at you to go in a certain direction despite your inner desires and limitations. The book presents this as something both restricting and at times liberating. And the layers of conflict often faced by black women when trying to present themselves and their choices in a light that is both representative of their desires while simultaneously being a manifestation of “pushing back” against societal expectations/prejudices. In some ways it depicts how many black women often do things out of spite (i.e., going against the grain to show that they are multifaceted, or non-stereotypical, anticipating and preempting the boxes they might be put into by making decisions that at times suggest otherwise, trying to prove their worth for both visible and invisible judges). I liked this book mainly because it’s based in Sweden and it was refreshing to read fiction from the perspective of a black woman in this country where our voices seldom get platformed. However if I’m honest I found the most captivating aspect to be the forbidden romance tropes which were quite “mills and boone-y” however, they never really felt satisfying given that it wasn’t really the main premise of the book. It was also nice to see her addressing misogynoir, however I feel she could’ve given us a bit more in this regard. In short, it’s an okay read, could’ve been steamier (imo). Would recommend to anyone needing to get out of a reading slump; a nice holiday/travelling read.
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-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
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A very refreshing read. The book depicts the struggles of black women from different backgrounds in such a real and well written way. The nothern European angle, where I also come from added another complex layer. It felt raw and real, without any fairy tale ending. This book made me feel sadness, pride, anger, love and everything in between and I am grateful I was able to read such a book
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated