First, the cover is really awesome. I kept looking at it when I wasn't reading it. I think the shades of yellow and soft lines drew me in. And I don't even like the color yellow.
More importantly, this book inspired me to look into the family of CR Patterson, which I think is the ultimate goal of any historical tale. The struggles of being rich Black people around the turn of the 20th century was really interesting, since there's that intersection of Reconstruction and Jim Crow laws in the South, but the story takes place in Chicago, so the characters are experiencing ripple effects. I'd only ever read stories from around this time period where the Black characters were dealing with financial hardships due to racism and inequality.
I started liking 3/4 of the characters' point of views, and the fourth grew on me as she became more of a personable character. There was a good sister bond throughout the story as well. There were a lot of roller coaster ups and downs for the characters, which kept me interested. There appeared to be room for a sequel to this story, and I would enjoy reading it if so.
More importantly, this book inspired me to look into the family of CR Patterson, which I think is the ultimate goal of any historical tale. The struggles of being rich Black people around the turn of the 20th century was really interesting, since there's that intersection of Reconstruction and Jim Crow laws in the South, but the story takes place in Chicago, so the characters are experiencing ripple effects. I'd only ever read stories from around this time period where the Black characters were dealing with financial hardships due to racism and inequality.
I started liking 3/4 of the characters' point of views, and the fourth grew on me as she became more of a personable character. There was a good sister bond throughout the story as well. There were a lot of roller coaster ups and downs for the characters, which kept me interested. There appeared to be room for a sequel to this story, and I would enjoy reading it if so.