(I’m writing this review a month after reading this book 🙈 so apologies if it’s not very coherent! 😂)

This book is historical fiction, but it definitely leans more toward literary fiction. It’s very well-written, but some might find the writing too abstract and overdone for the story. I’ll admit, some parts were hard to focus on in the audiobook and I think it would’ve helped me to have the print book to follow along with while listening. Some audiobooks I can listen to while doing a million other things and still follow along easily; this one required and commanded more attention. (I’m not saying this is a bad thing either—just trying to explain what kind of book this is and the best way to read it.)

That being said, I found the plot to be compelling and the characters satisfyingly complex. We get into the heads of several different characters, not just Samuel and Isaiah, and we find rich and real people in all of them. I also liked seeing the story from varying points of view.

There is a lot in this book that’s unsettling, but I thought the author handled these things well. He drew necessary attention to certain horrors and injustices without glorifying them or glossing over them. But please do be aware of the content warnings.

Thank you to Libro.fm, the publisher, and the author for my ALC.

Read if you like: Civil War–era fiction, forbidden love, gray areas.

Review to come!

Reminded me a lot of a Toni Morrison story, with a dense writing style, large cast of characters, and heavy emotional moments.

This is a beautifully written book. Jones Jr.'s language is astounding and majestic. It is clear that so much thought and love went into crafting this story and bringing each character to life. This is definitely a book where you'll have to pause at times just to sit and languish in the beauty of a line. It's amazing.

The beauty of the writing carries over into the depiction of queer love. Isaiah and Samuel, both strong characters in their own right, come together to form such a quiet, strong, and loving relationship. It was really interesting how Isaiah fully embraces his queerness, yet throughout the book, Samuel struggles with his attraction to Isaiah, even while fully loving Isaiah and supporting him as a partner and friend.

Jones Jr. writes the interior of a character very well, and allows us to understand the multitude of perspectives on view on the plantation, Empty. There are those who accept Samuel and Isaiah's relationship and those who see it as a force that can only bring harm to the plantation and the way of life that has been established there. There are those who hold up traditional African beliefs that have been passed down for generations, and those who wish to move on. It was especially interesting to view this contrast while also getting a glimpse into the life of the Kosongo tribe and its members when they are first infiltrated and captured by white slave traders. Their belief system was really refreshing and so outside of Western, European/American conception. I loved how Jones Jr. gives this set of beliefs the important and authority that the racist chroniclers of the slave trade failed to provide then (and I'm sure even now, too).

While there were many parts of this book that I appreciated and valued, I did feel a bit afloat at times. Much of the story uses biblical references and themes, which I just did not understand as I've no familiarity with the Bible. I feel like a lot of important moments that would have been made more significant through the religious references were lost on me, which was unfortunate. I do also think that the pace really slowed down in the middle, almost to the point where I didn't want to pick the book up and keep reading. To this end, I think some of the chapters that follow secondary characters could have been shortened or even removed. Some chapters that followed the white slaveholders I found no real purpose in, other than to emphasize how racist and horrible these people were.

The ending of this book isn't anything radical or unexpected, but Jones Jr.'s writing breathes new life and vigor into an expected conclusion. This book is worth trying just to experience Jones Jr.'s masterful prose, and I am very curious to see what more he will write in the future.

3.5 Rounded Up.

What more can be said about this novel that hasn't been. The hype here is real. This is a stunning debut. I also would say this is a book like you've never read before, it's not the Underground Railroad, it is a work that stands completely on its own.

The story follows Isaiah and Samuel, two men who are enslaved and given the role of animal caretakers. They are also in love and their love is a well known secret and yet it is threatened when one of the other slaves at the plantation becomes evangelized. Violence descends on the plantation.

Here's what I'll say this book is not easy. It is not easy in the sense that the material is challenging and graphic. But it is also challenging in literary prowess. This book has a lot of time shifts and shifting perspectives and it's not always clear what is going on. There are a lot of biblical allusions that certainly went over my head. This isn't a book you can read in the background of something else, it is a journey and requires your focus and time. Ultimately since I chose to listen on audio I couldn't give it my complete focus (I work and listen to audio). A lot of it went over my head but I want to reread it and just completely adore it like I know I could, but right now with my limited absorption of the material, it didn't quite make it to incredible for me. Do I still think the writing is extraordinary? Yes, am I still thinking about it? Yes. This is a book that takes effort but I think you'll be rewarded. My rating will likely improve with reread because I will catch things I didn't on audio.

This synopsis falls so short. I was privileged to listen to the author, Robert Jones, Jr., speak about this novel with fellow author Deesha Philyaw last week. Originally intended to be a narrative from Isaiah's perspective, Mr. Jones shared "What their love needed was witnesses." He created and wrote more than 10 witnesses to their relationship, both Black slaves and White slaveholders and overseer. The result was a profound exploration of deeply personal Antebellum South experiences including voices and stories from ancestors and the horrors of the Middle Passage journey. The scope of voices just left me in awe. It was immersive. Ms. Philyaw said, "each page is a gift". Reading this novel was a full-body, mind-blowing experience in both its beauty and its tragedy. 

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The normalizing of Isaiah and Samuel's love was refreshing and affirming. The treatment of gender identity and roles was thought-provoking. The strength, wisdom, tenacity, and beauty of the Black women was artful and real. The White people were written with care and, Mr. Jones shared, great consideration for their motivations. One must confront their humanity. From the book, "there was no such thing as monsters. Every travesty that had ever been committed had been committed by plain people and every person had it in them."