brianaisgoingplaces 's review for:

The Davenports by Krystal Marquis

3.0

lighthearted slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

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We don’t often get historical novels focused on Black people that don’t predominately focus on slave stories. It’s a scourge on America’s history, and because of that, it remains in the background, sinister, always lurking. The Davenports takes a slight departure from that, and that choice is one of the qualities that make it a lovely novel. I really enjoyed getting to see a “success” story, a glimpse of what it might have looked like to be a member of the Black elite in a time where so much hate and destruction was happening. They’re rich, and as such, they’re a little out of touch. This is a YA novel, and so we get pieces of the main characters navigating life and learning who they are and what they want to stand for. We get a lot of love and a little bit of loss. These are all things I can appreciate in this novel. 

Despite all these things, the majority of this novel felt like a SLOG for me, and I think this primarily came from the fact that there were just TOO MANY POVs. Throughout the novel, we follow the two Davenport sisters, Helen and Olivia, their maid/friend Amy-Rose, and Olivia’s best friend Ruby. I think this would be okay if there stories were more different, but they very quickly melded together

with love triangles and every young lady liking every young man (or at least that’s what it felt like.

A lot of times it felt like I was reading the same thing over and over, and unfortunately, that made the story drag for me. 

I have the second book as an ARC, and I plan to start reading soon. I’m hoping it turns out to be a little snappier than the first so I can rate it higher, but truth be told, if I didn’t have the ARC, I don’t think I’d be invested in seeking out the second book.