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waniojeniyi's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed reading this book; the ending, not so much. It is a great book nonetheless.
tashalou's review against another edition
3.0
Overall I really liked this author's work. She did an amazing job of showing you the horrendous wealth gap between the absurdly rich and the desperately impoverished in modern-day Lagos, and how many of the absurdly rich keep their wealth by dirty measures and the oppression of others. I didn't find the ending satisfying or just, but in a lot of places that's the harsh reality of life, so I can appreciate what Onuzo was trying to recreate.
theos_bananabread's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
think your classic YA girl meets boy, there's a dark secret - for once all of this is not set in a boring US university town but in Lagos - and then it turns almost thriller-esque and you get The Spider King's Daughter. some developments were a bit too obvious and the ending felt a bit rushed but overall not a bad read.
thebetterstory's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
An oddly dull read. The setting is by far the most interesting part―Nigeria as written by a Nigerian author. I found it accessible, which means anyone with more familiarity with the country will probably find it holds their hand too much.
The two leads have fairly complete backstories attached to them, but at no point did I work up more than a mild interest in their lives, even when it involved murder or hardship. It wasn't clear to me why they ended up falling in love, even.
And while I'd like to leave leeway for cultural differences, there are a few things that grated, including slut-shaming (we are, at one point, reassured that a woman who was tricked into prostitution is obviously different from the women who weren't tricked into the profession), and bizarrely, a pervading sense of classism. It's true that it's a cross-class romance between a billionaire heiress and a street hawker, but that's muddied because our street hawker—who I genuinely can't remember ever getting named—was once rich himself. The narrative takes every opportunity to remind us that he's Not Like The Other Poor because of it, particularly harping on how good his English is. In fact, the book rarely lets up, from either character's viewpoint, how terrible and classless all these uneducated folks' English is and that their way of speaking is shameful.
The ending left me with a blank sense of "so what?" We follow these characters around, watch them grow closer and then apart as the hawker discovers Olumide murdered his father, and finally...he doesn't even manage to kill Olumide? Each character gets their individual happy ending, but there's a pervading sense of pointlessness to the leads' whole relationship. There's no sense it changed either of them as a person. Abike would have inherited the way she did regardless. Had the hawker found out the truth about his father's death without ever meeting Abike, his life would have turned out marginally better on account of not pissing off Aunty Precious by scheming. That's it. None of the misunderstandings between them ever get cleared up, they don't end up together, and they never change anything about each other's lives.
The book is ultimately disappointing as both a romance and as a thriller, which is a crying shame when the setup had so much potential.
The two leads have fairly complete backstories attached to them, but at no point did I work up more than a mild interest in their lives, even when it involved murder or hardship. It wasn't clear to me why they ended up falling in love, even.
And while I'd like to leave leeway for cultural differences, there are a few things that grated, including slut-shaming (we are, at one point, reassured that a woman who was tricked into prostitution is obviously different from the women who weren't tricked into the profession), and bizarrely, a pervading sense of classism. It's true that it's a cross-class romance between a billionaire heiress and a street hawker, but that's muddied because our street hawker—who I genuinely can't remember ever getting named—was once rich himself. The narrative takes every opportunity to remind us that he's Not Like The Other Poor because of it, particularly harping on how good his English is. In fact, the book rarely lets up, from either character's viewpoint, how terrible and classless all these uneducated folks' English is and that their way of speaking is shameful.
The book is ultimately disappointing as both a romance and as a thriller, which is a crying shame when the setup had so much potential.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexism and Trafficking
Minor: Animal death, Gun violence, Death of parent, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Sexual harassment
liralen's review against another edition
3.0
Abike is seventeen, the pampered daughter of an ostentatiously wealthy businessman. Hers is a world of parties and privilege and power -- having power, seeking power, using power. Abusing power.
Abike is her father's daughter.
Then there's the hawker. Runner G. (Diogu m?*) He was wealthy, once. He had ambitions, once. But life happened, and things got harder, and now, at eighteen, he's reduced to selling ice cream on the street to keep his younger sister in school and his fractured family in their home.
When their paths intersect by chance...that's when things get complicated.
'The hawker' -- and I call him that with some degree of irony, because I'm not sure whether or not we ever learn his name and because he comes to suspect, at some point, that Abike thinks of him not by his name but as the hawker (or, in fact, my hawker) -- is, by and large, a likable character. Life has pushed him down, but he's determined to get by and to make sure his sister does better than get by. He's adapted. Abike, though...Abike is not so sympathetic. She's calculating. Ambitious. Haughty. She has yet to meet her match.
Onuzo shows many scenes twice: first through one character's eyes, then through the other's. It's interesting -- overused, perhaps, but the scene twists in different ways depending upon who sees it. Often one character picks up on something that the other thought they'd hidden, or each has a different interpretation of an action or a line of dialogue. Makes you question each scene as you read it.
This is a love story, sort of, but it's also...not. I would say that Abike gets in the way -- her ambition and her snobbery and the way she toys with every single person she interacts with -- but it's more than that. It's a matter of class, too; both characters are well aware that theirs is not a sustainable relationship. Even without those class differences, though, they're just...very different people. Oh, they both have some degree of calculation, and they both walk a fine line, although neither might realise just how fine the other's is. They are both adept at games. But...their connection is largely one of shouldn't, I think; they're drawn in by the knowledge that their relationship is not within the expected.
Some other, unconnected thoughts: I'm disappointed by the implication that Aunty Precious shouldn't be tarnished by her past only because she was tricked; it ignores larger questions of desperation/need/lack of opportunity/etc. I find it fascinating how 'the hawker' uses those closest to his target to reach that target, heedless of what that might mean emotionally for them. Love that it isn't happily-ever-after-tied-up-with-a-bow. I'll be interested to see what Onuzo does next.
*Not sure whether this is a name or an endearment; Google isn't helping.
Abike is her father's daughter.
Then there's the hawker. Runner G. (Diogu m?*) He was wealthy, once. He had ambitions, once. But life happened, and things got harder, and now, at eighteen, he's reduced to selling ice cream on the street to keep his younger sister in school and his fractured family in their home.
When their paths intersect by chance...that's when things get complicated.
'The hawker' -- and I call him that with some degree of irony, because I'm not sure whether or not we ever learn his name and because he comes to suspect, at some point, that Abike thinks of him not by his name but as the hawker (or, in fact, my hawker) -- is, by and large, a likable character. Life has pushed him down, but he's determined to get by and to make sure his sister does better than get by. He's adapted. Abike, though...Abike is not so sympathetic. She's calculating. Ambitious. Haughty. She has yet to meet her match.
Onuzo shows many scenes twice: first through one character's eyes, then through the other's. It's interesting -- overused, perhaps, but the scene twists in different ways depending upon who sees it. Often one character picks up on something that the other thought they'd hidden, or each has a different interpretation of an action or a line of dialogue. Makes you question each scene as you read it.
This is a love story, sort of, but it's also...not. I would say that Abike gets in the way -- her ambition and her snobbery and the way she toys with every single person she interacts with -- but it's more than that. It's a matter of class, too; both characters are well aware that theirs is not a sustainable relationship. Even without those class differences, though, they're just...very different people. Oh, they both have some degree of calculation, and they both walk a fine line, although neither might realise just how fine the other's is. They are both adept at games. But...their connection is largely one of shouldn't, I think; they're drawn in by the knowledge that their relationship is not within the expected.
Some other, unconnected thoughts: I'm disappointed by the implication that Aunty Precious shouldn't be tarnished by her past only because she was tricked; it ignores larger questions of desperation/need/lack of opportunity/etc. I find it fascinating how 'the hawker' uses those closest to his target to reach that target, heedless of what that might mean emotionally for them. Love that it isn't happily-ever-after-tied-up-with-a-bow. I'll be interested to see what Onuzo does next.
*Not sure whether this is a name or an endearment; Google isn't helping.
laurengitelson's review against another edition
4.0
Interesting power dynamics and difference in perspective, but the ending was kind of a let down
kofoworola's review against another edition
1.0
I don't know where to start with this book. The story is strange and extremely unrealistic. I know we read fiction to escape reality, but this is something else.
I'm keeping the rest of my opinions about this book to myself.
I'm keeping the rest of my opinions about this book to myself.
nsabrekwa's review against another edition
4.0
I enjoyed this book but from the late chapters which kept me great suspense.I hated the fact that Abike was a spoilt rich child who wanted everything to herself but the hawker's determination and will had me in my feelings throughout.For a debut novel,I'd say this book was beautifully written!!
maekd's review against another edition
3.0
The novel built up the tension very successfully for much of the book, and Abike Johnson is a well-written and intriguing character. The promised "twist" was so predictable that I was a little disappointed when it did in fact come, but this might not have mattered if the energy hadn't also kind of petered out. The climax lacked the tension of the book's first half, but the read was still enjoyable.
rodillagrande's review against another edition
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0