Scan barcode
A review by danaslitlist
You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty by Akwaeke Emezi
challenging
emotional
funny
reflective
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? Yes
5.0
Before I start my review I feel it's really important that I address the disingenuous reviews claiming that this book is too messy and that Fayi, our main character, is horrible person, while at the same time these reviewers eat up books by white authors for worse plots. It says a lot that this book was pitched to me and reviewed by so many reviewers as a cheating story, as nothing but drama and mess, while failing to mention that at no point is Fayi the girlfriend of Nasir or that it's made explicitly clear from the get go that they are just friends when they fly to his father's home. There is a very clear bias against Black authors, especially Black authors who write Black women in anyway that isn't the non Black reader's idea of "perfect" and I have seen that when it comes to You Made a Food of Death with Your Beauty. Is Fayi always a good person who makes good choices? No. But she also isn't a villain and she certainly isn't the only character in literature to be messy. The reading community needs to sit down and reflect on why they feel the need to be so incredibly harsh and hold up a double standard when it comes to who is allowed to be messy and imperfect (the answer here is that non Black readers have a racist bias against Black authors and Black characters. I don't care how much anti racist work you do, you will always have these biases, myself included).
Now moving onto the review:
You Made A Fool of Death with Your Beauty is typically not the type of book that I would pick up. I'm not a huge fan of books where the main conflict seems to be family drama. But I'm so happy that I decided to give this book a chance and that I didn't end up listening to what reviewers said. As stated before, this was pitched to me by many as a cheating romance and I'm here to report that this isn't true. This is a book first and foremost about grief and how grief fundamentally changes the way a person can live and view the world around them. This is a book about finding a place where the grief can live alongside you while you move forward. This is a book about finding someone who you can sit with and feel at peace because you know you are not alone.
Fayi is a bit of a mess, but who wouldn't be after what she went through? Fay is a mess. But she isn't JUST a mess. She is smart and creative and passionate and supportive. She is trying. And the beauty of this story is that we get to see her heal, we get to see her find her footing and we get to see her rebuild her life. She isn't perfect but that is beautiful.
I think the romance between Fayi and Amil is written wonderfully. It is slow and real and built not solely on attraction. It is built on mutual understanding on pain and grief and grows into a friendship. The contrast between Amil and Nasir is subtle at first and intentional on the part of Emezi. They plant comparisons between the two men from the beginning and make it a point to show the reader that, "Hey, Fayi and Nasir aren't compatible".
This is a book that has amazing commentary on nice guys (though I'd go as far as saying that Nasir steps into incel territory) and male entitlement over women. It blows my mind that I've seen people who side with Nasir or failed (often intentionally misinterpreting the book) to see from the beginning that Nasir is very much a reflection on how women are deemed as "fixable to fuck". I need to reiterate for potential readers: FAYI AND NASIR ARE NOT A COUPLE. They are new friends and that is established. Whether or not Nasir had feelings for Fayi doesn't matter because men aren't entitled to a woman. Ever. No matter how many nice things a someone does for you, you do not owe them any type of relationship or sexual favor. So to see the how Nasir reacts on page and to see how many people failed to realize that no matter what had happened before hand that his reaction isn't okay is heartbreakingly reflective on how society views women. Especially Black women.
Finally I want to talk about the prose of the book. This is my first time reading anything written by Akwaeke Emezi and I can't believe how phenomenal they are. There are so many quotes that had my skin breaking out into goosebumps or making my heart ache. They capture and express grief on page in such a real and powerful way that even someone like me, who has been fortunate enough in my life to have avoided the type of grief that Fayi and Amil have experienced, could understand a portion of what have gone through. The prose is lyrical and flows easily for you to read. I've heard people complain that the author does too much "telling instead of showing" but please allow to share a spoiler free quote to explain why this just isn't true:
"Fayi knew better than to be selective about ghosts. For every echo of Alim and Marisol in the house, there was a broken man and two children left with no mother. Years of grief navy blue in the air. Sobs and nightmares and him rocking them against his chest. Alone. Alone, alone alone."
I'll leave my review with this; You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty was much more than a "messy" and "drama filled" romance. It is a novel about how love can be found in a sea of grief, in the most unlikely of places, and love can be worth fighting for even in it means dealing with the moments of ugliness.
Now moving onto the review:
You Made A Fool of Death with Your Beauty is typically not the type of book that I would pick up. I'm not a huge fan of books where the main conflict seems to be family drama. But I'm so happy that I decided to give this book a chance and that I didn't end up listening to what reviewers said. As stated before, this was pitched to me by many as a cheating romance and I'm here to report that this isn't true. This is a book first and foremost about grief and how grief fundamentally changes the way a person can live and view the world around them. This is a book about finding a place where the grief can live alongside you while you move forward. This is a book about finding someone who you can sit with and feel at peace because you know you are not alone.
Fayi is a bit of a mess, but who wouldn't be after what she went through? Fay is a mess. But she isn't JUST a mess. She is smart and creative and passionate and supportive. She is trying. And the beauty of this story is that we get to see her heal, we get to see her find her footing and we get to see her rebuild her life. She isn't perfect but that is beautiful.
I think the romance between Fayi and Amil is written wonderfully. It is slow and real and built not solely on attraction. It is built on mutual understanding on pain and grief and grows into a friendship. The contrast between Amil and Nasir is subtle at first and intentional on the part of Emezi. They plant comparisons between the two men from the beginning and make it a point to show the reader that, "Hey, Fayi and Nasir aren't compatible".
This is a book that has amazing commentary on nice guys (though I'd go as far as saying that Nasir steps into incel territory) and male entitlement over women. It blows my mind that I've seen people who side with Nasir or failed (often intentionally misinterpreting the book) to see from the beginning that Nasir is very much a reflection on how women are deemed as "fixable to fuck". I need to reiterate for potential readers: FAYI AND NASIR ARE NOT A COUPLE. They are new friends and that is established. Whether or not Nasir had feelings for Fayi doesn't matter because men aren't entitled to a woman. Ever. No matter how many nice things a someone does for you, you do not owe them any type of relationship or sexual favor. So to see the how Nasir reacts on page and to see how many people failed to realize that no matter what had happened before hand that his reaction isn't okay is heartbreakingly reflective on how society views women. Especially Black women.
Finally I want to talk about the prose of the book. This is my first time reading anything written by Akwaeke Emezi and I can't believe how phenomenal they are. There are so many quotes that had my skin breaking out into goosebumps or making my heart ache. They capture and express grief on page in such a real and powerful way that even someone like me, who has been fortunate enough in my life to have avoided the type of grief that Fayi and Amil have experienced, could understand a portion of what have gone through. The prose is lyrical and flows easily for you to read. I've heard people complain that the author does too much "telling instead of showing" but please allow to share a spoiler free quote to explain why this just isn't true:
"Fayi knew better than to be selective about ghosts. For every echo of Alim and Marisol in the house, there was a broken man and two children left with no mother. Years of grief navy blue in the air. Sobs and nightmares and him rocking them against his chest. Alone. Alone, alone alone."
I'll leave my review with this; You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty was much more than a "messy" and "drama filled" romance. It is a novel about how love can be found in a sea of grief, in the most unlikely of places, and love can be worth fighting for even in it means dealing with the moments of ugliness.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Death, Car accident, and Sexual content
Minor: Emotional abuse and Domestic abuse