3.5 stars (rounded up) for Nell and Lady - a touching story of family, loss and forgiveness.

Set against the backdrop of prejudice in the deep south Nell and Lady tells the story of a friendship that defies race and social class. Mavis is a young Black woman who finds herself pregnant and working for Willa Bellemore who is also expecting a child. The two become best friends and raise their daughters, Nell and Lady, together in the Bellemore home until tragedy strikes. Mavis unexpectedly suffers a stroke and dies, leaving Nell without family. Willa adopts Nell and continues to raise her as her own daughter, despite the social implications of the time.

The girls are as close as sisters until the age of 16, when Nell suddenly drifts from both Lady and Willa. She shuts them out of her life, without ever explaining why. Years later, Willa is suffering from cancer and begs her daughter, Lady to find Nell. She wants more than anything to reconnect with her before she dies.

What follows is the unraveling of years of secrets, emotion and bitterness. The story was heartwarming and the characters were easy to like, especially Willa. She is the grandmother every child wishes they had!

Thank you to Ashley Farley, Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley for an advance copy of the book to review.