This is a great example of how what seems to be genre fiction--in this case, a thriller--can also serve as social commentary and education. Yolanda, an FBI agent, goes undercover with a Black organization that is seeking justice for the damage done to its community by a local industrial giant. The more she involves herself with the group, the more aware she becomes of why we need Black Lives Matter and other groups working for change.

The writing is really mediocre. The sentences don't run smoothly together, and I couldn't really get into the story because of it.

Since childhood, Yolanda Vance has forged her desire to escape poverty into a laser-like focus that took her through prep school and Harvard Law. So when her prestigious New York law firm is raided by the FBI, Yolanda turns in her corrupt bosses to save her career—and goes to work for the Bureau. Soon she’s sent undercover at Red, Black, and Green—an African-American “extremist” activist group back in her California college town. They claim a biotech corporation fueled by Pentagon funding is exploiting the neighborhood. But Yolanda is determined to put this assignment in her win column, head back to corporate law, and regain her comfortable life…

Until an unexpected romance opens her heart—and a suspicious death opens her eyes. Menacing dark money forces will do anything to bury Yolanda and the movement. Fueled by memories of who she once was—and what once really mattered most—how can she tell those who’ve come to trust her that she’s been spying? As the stakes escalate, and one misstep could cost her life, Yolanda will have to choose between betraying the cause of her people or invoking the wrath of the country’s most powerful law enforcement agency.- Goodreads

This book was so painfully slow it was disappointing because everything else about it was good.

I loved the fact that the author made this book extremely timely. BLM, Covid, environmental concerns in Black communities, gentrification, the disconnect between Black people who "made it" and the Black struggling class . . . all of these things made the book worth reading and continuing,

But it was drawn out with a lot of nothing going on. I understand that there needed to be a build up for the reader to get to know the Yolanda as well as the surrounding characters but all of them lacked personality and some of them fell on the border of stereotype. I can understand Yolanda being a blank wall but I was surprise to see how the surrounding characters didn't add anything personality wise other than the fact that they were loud and thought Yolanda was uppity.

This was a hard book to get through because it was boring. This did pick up but of course towards the end. The romance was a little predictable. I wanted more development in the characters and I wanted more development in the issues that were noted in this book.

I would have liked to see the RBG do more than complain and focus on the death in the community. It would have been nice to see more involvement within the community.

Overall, I was expecting an exciting, deep undercover, betrayals and tension in this novel and it didn't hit.

1 Pickle