This was such an enjoyable and highly entertaining debut novel. The beginning starts out a bit slow-paced but soon picks up after a few chapters. The author covered so many themes from finding yourself, belonging, finding love, the importance of friendships, racism, family roles, grief, and dating.

I really liked Maddie’s character. In a lot of ways I think people will find her very relatable. She did overly use Google for everything which I found questionable but also hilarious because there are people who do this regularly. But that alone showed how unprepared for life Maddie was and because of that she can be viewed as very naive and gullible.

When she lost her father not only did that break her but it opened her eyes to see the world and people in it for what they truly are. She was ready to experience life outside of caring for her father but she wasn’t ready. Nobody prepared Maddie for the things she was going to endure once she was on her own.

I loved how the author addressed a real family situation. How when a parent becomes sick and taking care of them becomes the sole responsibility of one person. Then once the person passes away everybody so hurt yet none of them were around. Maddie didn’t deserve the treatment she received from her family especially her mother.

She had amazingly supportive friends. When Nia told her “Not everyone is capable of dating a black woman” I felt that and Maddie needed to hear it. With her not having much experience with dating or sex Alex was not the right choice for her. That’s why loved her friend Shu. We all need a Shu in our circle cause she did not play about Maddie.

I died laughing at her snarky remarks toward Alex after he showed up on Maddie’s doorstep. He was a loser and took advantage of Maddie especially when she had sex with him for the first time. Sam on the other hand was definitely a better pick even though them getting together was a bit shady.

The best part was the author addressing the reason behind Maddie being called “Maame” and its meaning in the book. Maddie didn’t like the reference nor what being referred to as Maame had done to her. She felt it made her grow up when she should’ve had more time. It caused her to be overlooked by her father as a child, her mother to leave her behind, and her brother to do the bare minimum.

Overall, this book was great and I do recommend you guys give it a read!!! Special thanks to the author, @stmartinspress, & @netgalley for my advanced readers copy.