A review by dianapiskor
Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense 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? It's complicated

4.25

I read this book for my teacher book club and I thought this was a beautiful story. About love, loss, resilience, family, friendship, identity, and the beauty and flaws of humanity, I thought this book was poignant and thought provoking. 

The beginning and first half of the novel was captivating and engaging. Even though a variety of characters are introduced, the short chapters, almost like small glimpses into the way the characters were feeling and thinking kept the me entertained. The author structures the story so that everything is supposed to come together in the end. I thought that was a really fascinating way to tell this multigenerational story. 

However, will say that I don’t think the author quite gets there where everything connects at the end. I think there were too many POV toward the last half of the book. Because the big reveals are in the first half of the book, it feels like the second half needed filler, hence the large amount of POV switches and introduction of other characters. 

Overall, while the story lost some of its sparkle toward the end, I still really liked this book and will be reading more from this author. 
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