While The Summer I Ate the Rich did turn out to be a lot of fun to read (which was what I had hoped for), it wasn’t quite what I had hoped for when I requested the book and ended up being kind of scattershot in what worked and what didn’t. 

What worked: The main storyline, told from Brielle’s first-person POV. This is a coming-of-age story told through the lens of a true member of the Haitian-American diaspora. Stuck solidly between two worlds and as she grows older feeling that tug from her mother’s homeland and yet the need to stay where she is. The feeling of being seventeen in America and wanting to grow and expand but also of needing the feel of your mom’s hugs. All of the rage and pain and emotional upheaval that comes with the latter stages of female adolescence. 

What didn’t work (for me): The chapters from the muses’ POV. These were distracting, out of tune with the rest of the book, and no explanation was ever given as to what was going on with them. It was giving Disney’s Hercules cartoon and I didn’t like it. 

What could’ve been done better but didn’t bother me too much: The sections about Brielle’s mom’s life in Haiti. 

I absolutely loved the idea behind the book and I loved the overall plot. The parts I did enjoy were a lot of fun.   

I was provided a copy of this title by the author and publisher via Netgalley. All thoughts, opinions, views, and ideas expressed herein are mine and mine alone. All reviews rated three stars and under will not appear on my social media. Thank you.