3 1/2 stars

Thank you Simon and Schuster for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was one heck of a debut. However, while the writing was beautiful (and I'll definitely pick up her next book), the plot felt unconnected to me.

The plot shifted from following a Jamaican man meeting the daughter he abandoned years ago after faking his own death, to a white American woman taking a family journal down to Jamaica to see if her family did indeed have slaves, to a plot point set in following her family in the events followed them when they lived.

I enjoyed the plot points set in the past, however everything else seemed disconnected. It seemed more like short stories than a connected story. I wanted more plot between Stanford, his two daughters, and granddaughter. Even a little more plot with Ver and the kids after Stanford left them.

Once again, thank you Simon and Schuster for an gifted copy in exchange for an honest review.