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booksamongstfriends 's review for:
Dominion
by Addie E. Citchens
Narration/Audiobook: 3.5/5
Overall Story: 3/5
It’s not very often I feel that a book needs to be longer, but in this case Dominion could’ve used another 100 pages. The prose is captivating and the story has lot of weight and potential, but I never felt as connected to the characters as I should have. Especially with this being a story focused on the expectations and fallout of southern black family, community, and church! This a theme/topic I’ll always be interested in. In Dominion we experience this more specifically in discussing the extent to which the role misogyny plays in those environments.
While the book does this, there was still something missing. For instance, Diamond being one of the main voices we hear from felt strange. I definitely understood the purpose of her character juxtapose Manny’s mother, as he is positioned similarly to his father. But I never felt the connection between the two of them was established enough. While she has her own traumatic background and scarring encounters with men, it sadly seemed as though she was just an obsessed lover of Manny’s. Too much of her story was implied and didn’t deeply hit the way I desired.
This is partially why I think the story would’ve been better told from primarily the male characters’ perspectives. I too often see authors shy away from making their male “villains” extremely unlikeable and terrible unless the story is told via the victim, or most often, the women that encounter or protect them. Because we’ve seen this theme done before through that lens, it would’ve been interesting to predominantly hear from the psyche of Manny and his father. As is, there’s too many moments of the story that don’t contribute to its end, ultimately making the shift and reveal feel abrupt and unfinished.
With this being such a short read, I’d still recommend it! The concept and premise is one worth discussing and this could make a really strong book club pick. Initially, it was engrossing hearing the mom talk about all the gossip and behind the scenes of being the First Lady of the church. It felt like getting all the tea from my godmother and hooked me. It just lost me a little along the way, but I look forward to more from this author.
Also**The audiobook was enjoyable and added a texture and presence to the story that I would’ve missed just reading it. While overall it didn’t knock me off my feet, it was still executed beautifully.
Huge thanks to Netgalley and the publisher FSG for this ALC. All thoughts are my own.
Overall Story: 3/5
It’s not very often I feel that a book needs to be longer, but in this case Dominion could’ve used another 100 pages. The prose is captivating and the story has lot of weight and potential, but I never felt as connected to the characters as I should have. Especially with this being a story focused on the expectations and fallout of southern black family, community, and church! This a theme/topic I’ll always be interested in. In Dominion we experience this more specifically in discussing the extent to which the role misogyny plays in those environments.
While the book does this, there was still something missing. For instance, Diamond being one of the main voices we hear from felt strange. I definitely understood the purpose of her character juxtapose Manny’s mother, as he is positioned similarly to his father. But I never felt the connection between the two of them was established enough. While she has her own traumatic background and scarring encounters with men, it sadly seemed as though she was just an obsessed lover of Manny’s. Too much of her story was implied and didn’t deeply hit the way I desired.
This is partially why I think the story would’ve been better told from primarily the male characters’ perspectives. I too often see authors shy away from making their male “villains” extremely unlikeable and terrible unless the story is told via the victim, or most often, the women that encounter or protect them. Because we’ve seen this theme done before through that lens, it would’ve been interesting to predominantly hear from the psyche of Manny and his father. As is, there’s too many moments of the story that don’t contribute to its end, ultimately making the shift and reveal feel abrupt and unfinished.
With this being such a short read, I’d still recommend it! The concept and premise is one worth discussing and this could make a really strong book club pick. Initially, it was engrossing hearing the mom talk about all the gossip and behind the scenes of being the First Lady of the church. It felt like getting all the tea from my godmother and hooked me. It just lost me a little along the way, but I look forward to more from this author.
Also**The audiobook was enjoyable and added a texture and presence to the story that I would’ve missed just reading it. While overall it didn’t knock me off my feet, it was still executed beautifully.
Huge thanks to Netgalley and the publisher FSG for this ALC. All thoughts are my own.