I’m a little conflicted with what to rate this book. The depth and variety of themes explored deserve five stars, the writing was easily four stars, but the slow pacing in the beginning, chapter timeline countdown (16 years before, 15 years before, etc.), and my distaste for the ending (plot choice and abruptness) is why I ultimately give it three stars. As a mother with two young children, I could relate all too well to the raw postpartum feelings Efe experiences, however, I cared more about Efe as a mother, rather than Efe and Sam as a couple.

I really cannot stress enough how relevant this book is when it comes to motherhood. Tackling themes of identity loss, postpartum depression, bodily autonomy, etc., is desperately needed in today’s day and age. Your feelings toward your children and your feelings toward motherhood are not mutually exclusive, which can be a surprise to some people, as it was for Sam. In addition to Efe’s intrapersonal experience, I love how motherhood was explored through the lenses of marriage, social expectations, family dynamics, and cultural assumptions. It really added to the layers of pressure moms can feel and shows how they are inherently forced to put everyone else before themselves.

When this book gets released, it will be interesting to see what the reactions will be. I predict all reactions, good or bad, will be visceral. With the amount of topics covered, and the immersive writing to support it, you can’t not feel some type of way when reading it. I do hope people rate this book on their collective experience, and not just based on their gut reaction to the polarizing ending.

This would be a great book club pick, as there are so many meaningful conversations to be had, and I am glad this book exists to help facilitate that.

Now, I want to book a trip to Ghana and dismantle the patriarchy (even more than I already did).

Thank you NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.