A review by radmad_reads
Dominoes by Phoebe McIntosh

emotional informative

• 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

2.5

Dominoes follows Layla a biracial women who is about to embark on an exciting new chapter of her life. Her wedding is fast approaching and with it comes a vast amount of history about her Jamaican ancestors. These historical revelations force Layla into an uncomfortable truth and she watches as the persona of the person she loves changes in front of her very eyes. This is a hard to read story about race, Americas tragic past with slavery, and the truth of how that past was often covered up rather than corrected. 

I have really gone back and forth with my thoughts on this book. On one hand I loved the deep discussions Layla and Andy had throughout the book. It was very reminiscent of my own relationship as I am a white women who is married to a biracial man and we often discuss topics such as the ones in this book and plan to educate our children on these topics as well. I feel this book has some amazing knowledge to share with the world. That being said I didn't like the story itself. After finishing the book I was left with heaviness in my heart and usually i expect that when educating myself on black history and Americas past but the reason I felt this way wasn't even because of the "dark" topics discussed because those were handled very well and the characters talked very openly about them. My feeling of discomfort was because of the character Sera and the way she treated Layla. Treating your best friend horribly and wishing for the destruction of their happiness because you disagree with something they are doing is ridiculous. I found Sera to be self righteous and used race as a defense mechanisms to justify her bad behavior. Being mean towards those who deserved it, like someone who was discriminating or being racist, makes sense but not to your best friend for falling in love with a white man. Overall this book was a good read but I couldn't stand the awful treatment Layla faced from someone who has been by her side for so long and instead of helping her through a potentially devastating discovery she dumped it on her and then abandoned her.