This started so good, brazenly rewriting the narrow, dumb, and hateful biases of 1926 America towards an enlightened Harlem Renaissance approach to race and sexuality, while spinning a story about a young, Black, lesbian waitress enlisted by the NYPD to assist in capturing a serial killer running amok on Harlem’s streets. Unfortunately, the author loses the thread in the back half, meandering through scenes that vacillated in tone and weight between madcap schemes and gothic solemnity through the lens of awkward maturation into adulthood that all ends up simultaneously suspended with as much natural chemistry as a glass of oil and water. Louise is a 26 year old barista, hanging tight in a charmingly insular world of late nights drinking and dancing with her girlfriend, Rosa Maria, and Rosa Maria’s brother, bartender Rafael. Louise is jarred from her blissful reverie when she witnesses a cop harassing a young woman, and intervenes by cold-cocking him. That leads Detective Gilbert to offer Louise- who has a famous past, nicknamed Harlem’s hero -the option of charges, or to become his informant/partner. That sets the gears into motion, and thoughtful examinations of marriage, family follow, as Louise interviews potential suspects and victims. The book has some non-sequiturs early on- like a comment about how someone "didn't keep alcohol, illegal or otherwise, in the kitchen or the dining room." that begs the question of how alcohol can be kept during prohibition if it isn’t illegal. These slips are innocuous if irritating, but only become more common as the book goes on. A bigger problem is how heavy handed the book can be in telegraphing and foreshadowing the arcs of characters or the plot. The last third also contains lapses in logic in the main and ancillary characters which can only- as best as I can figure -be present to advance the plot. The culmination ends up feeling like the author ran out of gas on a good premise. Nekesa Afia’s strengths make her an author to watch, but for now, no more.

It’s the Harlem Renaissance, though for young women like Louise Lloyd, scraping by as a waitress, the glamour is superficial while the struggle is real. By day she works at Maggie’s Cafe and by night she dances up a storm with her roommate who she loves and her roommate’s brother at The Zodiac despite the ever-present risk of a police raid. But then there are the Dead Dead Girls.

When a young woman is murdered and Lou finds her body outside Maggie’s, she knows there must be a serial killer at work. So do the police and when she is arrested after a raid, Detective Gilbert, who is in charge of the case, gives her an ultimatum, help solve the case by questioning the witnesses who are reluctant to trust the police (for good reason,) or go to jail.

Asking her to investigate isn’t as ridiculous as it sounds. In her teens, she was kidnapped and managed to rescue herself and the other girls held by her captor. She is the “Harlem Hero” and that reputation brings some expectations. She begins her investigation by going to the girls who worked with murdered girls and then to their families. There are a few red herrings, but most of the investigation is through the accretion of one clue after another.



Dead Dead Girls is a fair mystery. No unseen, unknown murderer pops up in the end. Since Louise loved music so much, I will describe the pace as staccato. Transitions were often abrupt. It was also frustrating as when there is a known serial killer preying on women who work at clubs, why then does she go out and about at night as though she had armed escorts. It seems unlikely she would be so heedless of her own jeopardy. The denouement was fair but hasty. There’s all this buildup and then it’s over in a minute. We need more payoff when the killer is caught. Nonetheless, there are many good points to the book. The sense of place is fantastic and I love how the motif of music is carried through. I liked Lou and think could become a great series. Since this is the first in the series, it may just have some growing pains.

I received an e-galley of Dead Dead Girls from the publisher through NetGalley.

Dead Dead Girls at Berkley | Penguin Random House
Nekesa Afia author site

The setting in the 1920s was one of the best parts of this story. The situation, however, of bigoted white cops bribing a black female dancer/waitress to help them solve multiple murders was a hard sell. The writing was a little choppy but I imagine that will improve in subsequent novels.

Thanks to NetGalley and Berkeley Books/Penguin Random House Publishing for the ARC to read and review.

This book was not for me, I did not finish it. I am not the most interested in the twenties and even though I liked the protagonist, I was not enjoying the overall story.

diverse 1920s murder mystery is exactly my jam so I was looking forward to this one. the book definitely delivered on the setting/time period. I loved the atmosphere and Louise being Black and queer added a lot of nuance to it. the conversations about how Louise wasn't safe because of her race and sexuality were woven into the story so well. I think it gave a more authentic look at New York in the 1920s and was done beautifully.

however, the mystery itself and ending didn't work for me. it wasn't predictable exactly but it wasn't that intriguing. the red herrings and reveals weren't done in a way that made me excited to keep going. the way Louise discovered the culprit and how they ultimately got caught wasn't satisfying and didn't explore motives enough.

If you like the vibes of the Diviners by Libba Bray but didn't enjoy the paranormal aspects, this might be the book for you. I might give another book in the series a shot for the atmosphere with the hopes that the mystery gets stronger.

I was really excited for this book. The time period, setting, and characters of color are something I'd like to see more of in the genre. However, the writing felt choppy and at times hard to follow. That could be a tactic to keep the reader moving along in the story, but it just didn't work for me. The book was also a little more graphic than I expected. Again, that's personal taste. Parts of the book felt like a cozy, while parts were very hard to read. That said, I'd like to see where this series goes, and now that I've read the first one, I'll be able to hand this book to the right person.

Plot: dead girls are being found in Harlem and it's going to take an insider to find the killer. I enjoyed this historical mystery and loved how much I learned about the 1920s while reading it. Lousie's backstory makes her the perfect detective for the serial killer stalking girls in Harlem. While the ending wasn't a suprise, it was an action packed read. Recommended.

Dead Dead Girls is a 1920's mystery set in Harlem. Louise Lloyd works at a cafe during the day and spends her nights dancing at her favorite speakeasy, the Zodiac. Known as the “Harlem Hero,” Louise was kidnapped as a teenager, but escaped and saved other girls in the process. Since then, Louise likes to lay low, but when young Black girls start showing up dead outside of her work place, Louise finds herself working with the police to find the killer.

Dead Dead Girls has a great set up and fantastic characters. The 1920's are usually glamorized, but Nekesa Afia weaves in the realities of race and sexuality in this time period. Young Black girls are being killed and the police don’t act until they absolutely have to. The people of Harlem do not trust the police, with good reason. The police want Louise’s help because she has more access to Harlem and its people, and Louise wants to catch the killer and make Harlem as safe as possible for Black girls. Louise is an endearing character. She has a lot of heart and does her best in a terrible situation. Dead Dead Girls is extremely dark at times, but Louise's relationships with her sisters and her friends Rosa Maria and Rafael, provide much needed comfort and support for Louise. These moments were some of my favorite in the book.

While this story has a great set up and fantastic characters, I didn't love the mystery aspect of it. I felt like Louise just walked into clues and sometimes her assumptions didn’t make a lot of sense. Louise is an amateur detective roped into helping the police, so I was not expecting her to be an expert, but the process she takes to find the killer was pretty lackluster and boring at times. It felt like the author mapped out big moments that lead Louise to the murderer, but once they all come together in the novel, it didn't flow right. The conclusion of the novel was slightly confusing and I still don’t feel like I fully understood what happened and why.

I wanted to love this book, but it wasn't perfect. For a debut, Nekesa Afia was able to set up a good foundation with a great 1920's Harlem setting and complex characters. The mystery aspect was a little dry and confusing, but I will continue on in this series. I’m looking forward to seeing what's next for these characters.

I would recommend this to anyone who:
- loves a 1920's setting
-likes their books to explore real social problems
-likes historical books with good representation

*Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley for providing the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.*

This book was fun and I love the 1920s setting. The writing is a bit uneven, but I think the series can really go places and I love reading a 20s story featuring a black female lead.

Trigger warning: attempted sexual assault, sex trafficking, kidnapping, racism,

When I say I loved this book. I mean I LOVED this book!

Louise Lloyd is my favorite mystery protagonist of this year so far.

Louise is a survivor of a kidnapping and because of that she is well known to a certain extent, but she just wants to live a normal slightly calm life. However, things don't work out like that for her sadly. Instead, she gets dragged into a murder investigation by a detective because of all the people she knows and how she can get into places that police and detectives cannot considering prohibition as well as keeping herself out of jail. So this leads her to have to not only deal with the police detective and his potential shadiness, but also a reporter that keeps sneaking around, and a murderer that she must stop to have her own freedom as well as protecting young girls from getting killed. This is a lot for anyone but Louise was able to juggle it all and was really really good at it. She figured out things that others didn't and caught onto things that were overlooked by the police and never stopped looking.
Now as for who actually was doing the killings, I was kind of shocked by it. For the majority of the last half of the book, I thought it was someone else. I like that I couldn't figure it out for once and that it took all the clues being put together for me to realize who did it. Ms. Afia, you did very well and I can't wait to read more books by you because this one got me for sure.

Overall I loved this book and could not read it fast enough. Louise is a great protagonist and she is always trying to find the real truth and to bring the proper person to justice even if it puts herself in danger while she's doing it. While I'm not a fan of putting yourself in danger, it does have to happen sometimes when your solving murders, and Louise always found a way to get out of danger and always seemed to have a backup plan of sorts. Louise's friends and her girlfriend just perfection. loved them so much and loved the dynamic they had with one another and how they helped when needed but also let Louise do what she needed without asking too many questions. I cannot wait to see more of them in the next book and I am so so glad that this is going to be a series because I need more of all of them.

Ms. Afia can I get book two by chance cause um I need to know what Louise gets up to next. Pretty please!?!

Probably closer to 3.5 or 3.75 but I rather enjoyed this as one of my first ventures into the mystery genre!

Set in 1920s Harlem, Dead Dead Girls follows Loise Lloyd, a young, Black, lesbian woman who gets roped into solving a mystery of a chain of murders involving Black teen girls.

There was a lot to love about this debut. The time period and setting were wonderfully atmospheric, Louise was a fierce and smart protagonist who was very easy to root for and the friendships and romantic relationship were nicely developed. The pacing of the mystery itself was also very well done in my opinion, and I breezed through this book in just a few days without ever getting bored. I really enjoyed seeing the pieces of the mystery come together, however, I was able to figure it out pretty early on in the story with all the hints that were given. Because of this, I found myself a tiny bit underwhelmed with the final reveal but still enjoyed seeing how things played out with the characters.

Overall, this was a solid debut that I had a great time with and would recommend to mystery fans and noobs alike. I will for sure be picking up any future installments of this series as well as anything else Afia comes out with!

If you’re about to skip over this one because you don’t read, or aren’t in the mood, for cozy mysteries (which the cover may make you think it is), come back this is not a cozy!

Set during the Harlem Renaissance, Louise Lloyd has never been able to avoid the spotlight after escaping a kidnapper as a teenager, and setting free the other girls in the process. The press has remembered her, as has the Harlem community. When she’s arrested for assaulting an officer, this comes in handy for the police who recognize her and want to use her. There’s a serial killer, killing young Black girls, and the detective in charge thinks a young Black woman like Louise will make it easier to get people to help with the investigation, rather than white cops asking questions. She doesn’t want to but is backed into a corner, so she goes out asking questions, putting herself in danger…

Louise is a great character who, after being kidnapped as a teen, being forced to raise her younger siblings, and thrown out by her father, wears no rose colored glasses when viewing the world. What she does love is dancing with her girlfriend and friend until the morning hours at a speakeasy, with zero intention of marrying or doing any of the things expected of women.

If you’re looking for a historical mystery, set during the exciting Harlem Renaissance, with a bit of a noir feeling to it, pick up this book. I’m excited that it’s a series starter and look forward to more of Louise and the time period.

(TW attempted rape/ kidnapping/ homophobia/ racism)

I'm a simple gal, I see this on Twitter and immediately add the book to my TBR: "if you want a jazz age murder mystery starring a tiny, tired lesbian, look no further than DEAD DEAD GIRLS." And let me tell you: this debut historical mystery did not disappoint! With an amazing atmosphere, complex characters, and engaging plot, I devoured this book in two sittings *shakes fist at sleep*

"Secrets were made and kept at the Zodiac. It was a place where men could dance with men, and women could dance with women."

Instantly gripping with a sense of unease creeping from the narrative, I was transported to Jazz Age New York City. Let's set the scene for Dead Dead Girls with some Jazz ! I loved how the reader is introduced to Louise in the "present time" of 1926 on the dance floor of a Prohibition era club: the freedom and excitement of expressing herself dances on the page. The Zodiac is where she can be herself and dance with her partner Rosa.

"On nights like tonight, everything fell into place, and 'good' wasn't even the best word to describe it. 'Magical,' maybe. The way the room vibrated with anticipation as the band struck up, and she was whirled onto the dance floor -- it always elicited the same feeling."

Diminutive in stature but not in personality, Louise is a main character you can't help but root for. A survivor of kidnapping ten years prior, she lives a happy and 'simple' life as a waitress and tries to move past her notoriety. But when Black girls turn up dead, the police "ask" (aka force) Louise to help them solve the crimes because she can go where the white cops can't. This is the last thing she wants, but she feels a responsibility to her community to do what she can... and it's quickly obvious that the police haven't been doing much in their investigation. She fights for Black girls who the system seems to not care about and I like how she challenges white apathy.

"Summers were time for them to get together as a community. But no one trusted anyone anymore. There was doubt seeping in through the cracks of a community that used to be so close."

Expertly plotted, I love how the clues and hints all tie into the greater mystery rather than having obvious and poorly contrived red herrings. Every chapter ends with a quip that only someone recalling with 20/20 perspective would say, and that not only kept me on my toes but kept me reading. I had to know what would happen next, and I was on pins and needles trying to figure out who the killer is and who the killer will attack next. It's a fast read and one I struggled to put down.

"It was strange to see how her story wasn't a story until it was. There was no mention of missing girls, no mention of her being snatched from the sidewalk blocks from her home, no mention of this utterly life-changing event, until there was a fifteen-year-old Louise looking shellshocked and dirty, accompanied by three other girls."

There's a parallel spanning ten years in Louise's life: when she was abducted in the past and her trying to solve the murders in the present. How no one beyond the community seemed to care about the missing girls until Louise escape; how no one cared about the murdered girls until bodies were left out in the open. It's a critique on not only the news cycle and sensationalism of media but also how crimes against Black people often go unreported and under-investigated. Lingo and slang of the era helps to solidify the era, as sadly the trials and tribulations of Louise and other Black girls of Harlem could have been set in modern times with little difference.

The pacing is a little weird towards the end of the book, and I would have liked maybe 20 more pages. I was genuinely wondering if there was going to be a resolution in this book because I was getting close to the end and it was still all rising action building toward the final confrontation... and then it's resolved in a page. I had a case of reader whiplash because I was vibing so hard with the book and then it was over in a blink; I was left feeling a little unsatisfied, which is a shame because other than that it was a stellar read.

Overall, Nekesa Afia's historical mystery debut wowed me. I love being so engaged in a plot that I can't put a book down, and the mystery itself is plotted well. While the ending came a little quicker than I'd have liked, it's a testament that I wanted to keep reading. I look forward to the next installment in this series and recommend this one to lovers of historical mystery with female characters who become detectives to speak for the forgotten victims.

Representation: Black main character, diverse main cast, LGBT+ characters (gay and sapphic characters)
Content Warnings: attempted rape, depictions of grief, loss of a loved one, murder, racism, sexism, use of n-word, victim blaming

eARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley for my honest review. This does not affect my opinions of the book nor the content of my review. Quotations are from an uncorrected proof and are subject to change upon final publication.

I was excited to read a mystery set during the Harlem Renaissance and the main character is black. Louise Lloyd was fierce, unapologetic, and passionate. At 15 she saved herself and three other girls from a kidnapper. Fast forward 10 years and young black girls have started to disappear again.

This is where the story took a weird turn for me. There was a definite element of mystery and I suspected a few people of the murders. When Louise was thrust into the investigation of the murders with Detectives Gilbert and Martin, things just seemed off. Louise was basically bribed by Detective Gilbert to assist in the investigation or face going to jail Louise always seemed to be flying by the seat of her pants. She was in a secret relationship with her best friend Rosa Maria and I really wanted to know more about their relationship and it is the 1920's what did that actually look like. I also wanted more of a backstory on Louise's family dynamic. She lived in a boarding house for single women but she had an aunt, father, and three sisters. I wanted more. The ending was anticlimactic for me. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to review this ARC.

As soon as I heard that this was a book set in 1920s Renaissance Harlem featuring a Black lesbian MC, I couldn't hit the request button fast enough. I have always been in love with the glamour and glitz of the 1920s, but rarely have I seen Black women like me take center stage in the story much less make it onto a cover like this.

This story follows Louise Lloyd who is focused on living her best life following a traumatic past. This comes to a head when Louisa finds the body of a 16 year old Black girl in front of her workplace. Before she can testify, she's arrested for slapping an officer who was attempting to assault a young girl. Louise is given an ultimatum: help solve the case or face the unjust consequences from the Judge.

What I loved about this mystery is that it's not your typical whodunit where you need to figure out who the murderer is. In this situation, you know. The difference is that Louise must acquire evidence to ensure that the person is found guilty of their crimes. I definitely appreciated this approach because this is something that is still seen so often when it comes to victims from marginalized communities.

As far Louise goes, she was a fantastic character from start to finish. She's fierce, independent, and refuses to be intimidated even when she should definitely run from certain situations. It's also completely understandable her initial hesitancy to get involved considered the past that she endured and the unintended fame that followed.

This is such a wonderful debut, and I can't wait to see more of what Afia has to offer.

This ARC was offered in exchange of an honest and impartial review:
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3,5*
Pros: A convoluted whodunit in 1920s Harlem from the PoV of Black women. Full of mystery and intrigue. Dialogues, figures of speech and references adapted to the era. Dedication is worth a good laugh. Talks about very important issues, such as racial profiling, violence against and fetishization of Black women, still relevant to this day...
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Cons: Lackluster structural editing. Missing character depth and complexity. Doesn't delve into secondary characters.

Very well written with a great story line... simply too long for my attention span. Around halfway through I skipped through the chapters to get an idea of what was happening and then to the end. Likely not the author's fault.. just seemed to go on and on. I wanted to find out what happened to those girls.

Review: Dead Dead Girls by @nekesaafia

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

The story takes place in 1920s Harlem when there was lots of culture and parties. In the city the Girl Killer is on the loose, targeting young Black girls. Our main character, Louise Lloyd, agrees to help the detectives solve this serial killer case. As more and more bodies show up, Louise becomes more fearful for her own life and the lives of the people she loves around her.

I found this story really enjoyable. It has a good mix of cliffhangers and heartfelt moments. One of my favorites aspects of this book is that it has many different subplots. Of course there is the main mystery, but there is also a romantic subplot including our main heroine as well as a family plot. I found them all very entertaining and kept the story fresh.

Although as a whole the story was entertaining, I did find the middle section dragged a little. I also don't know if this is a me thing, but I found the mystery a little confusing at times, especially since there are so many characters and things happening at once.

I think this book could easily be enjoyed by anyone. People who read lots of mysteries will enjoy the setting of this book and Louise as a main character. She is so witty and ready to get in on the action. I also think people who don't read many mysteries will find this one really easy to get sucked into and perfectly quench one's desire for a good twisty mystery. This book is out now so you can pick it up for yourself!

Thank you so much to @netgalley and @berkleypub for a e-arc of this title. All opinions are my own.

It’s 1926. The Roaring 20’s. The period of the “lost generation” post-WW1 and pre-Depression. In Britain, Lord Peter Wimsey is dealing, sometimes badly, with his PTSD and solving crimes. In Australia, Phryne Fisher is seducing young men, solving crimes, and proving to anyone who even thinks to criticize her for doing a man’s job that she’s doing it better than anyone else, including the police, thankyouverymuch and please keep your opinions to yourself.

Dead Dead Girls takes place in the same time period, following the same avocation, but not exactly the same world.

Louise Lloyd, a black woman in her late 20s, is caught up in a seemingly endless round of late nights dancing at speakeasies, waitressing during the day to pay for those late nights, and living in a single women’s boarding house with-and-not-with her best friend and lover, Rosa. Louise is trying to outrun her demons by dancing and drinking her nights away.

But those demons reach out for her in a way she can’t ignore. Young black women are turning up dead in Harlem, and Louise has just discovered the latest victim on the front step of the diner where she works.

So many girls have been killed, so close together, that even the white powers-that-be of the NYPD can’t ignore the serial killings any longer – no matter how much they’d rather sweep it all under the rug.

When Louise’ anger and frustration at the situation, along with the way that the cops seem to be using the murder investigation as an excuse to harrass as many Harlem residents with no pretext whatsoever rather than solve the crime, bubbles over, she hits a cop, ends up in jail and facing the kind of offer that it isn’t safe to refuse.

Help the cops find the killer, or go to jail and let herself be further abused by the system that is designed to keep her people down.

At first both reluctant and amateur in all her investigation and interrogation techniques, as the body count rises and the cops make no progress whatsoever, Louise finds herself drawn deeper into a web of hatred, lies and a determined desire on the part of officialdom to look the other way as long as all of the victims are black.

Louise can’t look away. She’s frightened at every turn, knowing that she, or someone she loves, could be next. And that no one except her own community will care. But when she stares into the abyss, she discovers that the abyss has been staring back at her all along.

Escape Rating B: I have to say that in the end this story hits like a hammer. And I’m still reeling from the blow. But that needs a bit of explanation. Perhaps more than that, because this is one of those stories that made me think – and I’m still thinking.

As a historical mystery, Dead Dead Girls manages to hit the sweet spot – or in this case the bittersweet spot – of being both firmly fixed in its time and place while being utterly relevant to the present, to the point where the reader, as much as they know it’s there and then, is certain that it could just as easily be here and now with entirely too few changes.

The consequence is that the mystery has a bit of a slow start, because it takes a while for the time machine to transport us back to Harlem in the 1920s. It’s definitely worth the trip, but it takes a few chapters to get us there.

At the same time, OMG but this is a hard read after this past year. Because of the way that it feels both historical and all too plausible in the present day. Particularly as I’m writing this review on June 1, the 100th anniversary of the second day of the Tulsa race massacre. Which Louise would have known all about – but which entirely too many of us did not and do not to this day.

Just as the murder spree in Harlem that touches Louise’ life much too closely would have been reported on extensively in the Black newspapers of the day like The Defender but would have been totally ignored by the white papers.

As a character, at first I found Louise a bit difficult to get close to, because so much of her behavior seems so deliberately reckless. It took me quite a while to get it through my head that her irresponsible behavior doesn’t really matter. She’s in a no-win scenario and nothing that she does or doesn’t do will make it any better. Like all of the things that we women are taught not to do because we might get raped, when the fact of the matter is that rape is about power and not about sex, and there’s little we can do to prevent it – and that we’ll be blamed for it anyway.

Louise’ situation is that only multiplied. Exhibiting different behavior, while it might have made her life in her father’s house more tolerable, doesn’t change the way the world perceives her and treats her. She has the power to make things worse, but not to make them better. At least not on her own. Lashing out however and whenever she can is a reasonable response. But I admit that I had to work my way towards that reaction.

The mystery that Louise has to solve is as dark and mesmerizing, twisty and turny as any mystery reader could possibly desire. But the circumstances in which Louise has to solve it are weighted with the baggage of racism and sexism in a way that fill much of the story with the darkness of the evil that men do and the inexorable weight of power corrupting – even just the power of small-minded people with little authority – and absolute power corrupting absolutely and inciting more of the same.

Dead Dead Girls is the author’s first novel – and what a searing debut it is. I’m looking forward to great, great things in her future work – particularly the second projected book in this series!

Nekesa Afia brings a unique voice and perspective to the cozy mystery scene. I do classify this as cozy in my mind even though there was a little more boundary pushing than some safer cozies. It was refreshing to have a historical mystery set in 1920s Harlem during Prohibition that the main character is a lesbian Black woman. Afia weaves the historical (and current) racial inequity of Black people throughout the story, but in a less direct manner that might turn cozy readers off for fear of it removing the coziness. The story centers around young Black women being targeted and murdered in Harlem, and the main character, Louise, must unwillingly work with police to solve what's going on.

An aspect I felt was really interesting was how Afia doesn't pretend that the police are necessarily helpful just for the story's sake. Her characters of color are wary and untrustworthy of law enforcement, and with good reason. Circumstances throws Louise into working with a detective and officer, but she never truly lets her guard down because she knows due to her skin color she is not one they serve and protect.

While in a historical setting, much surrounding the Black experience and treatment by police is brought out in the story. Tragedies occur, and the Louise is no stranger to them, but she has perseverance and determination to solve the mystery. There is also a lot of joy in Louise's life. She loves to dance and go to the secret bars, which happens a lot when she's out with her friends, and she's also in love. So I really liked her character and how Afia developed her and gave her a lot of back story, but also brought in happy moments even when the crimes and tragedies are more the center of the plot.

While I loved so many aspects, the characters, the plot, and the setting, I give this three stars (I would give 3.5 if Goodreads let me!) only due to some struggles I had transitioning between chapters. This is a debut book so I'm expecting (and hoping for!) more from Nekesa Afia. There were a few times I found myself confused when a chapter ended and went to the next, felt like a prior issue wasn't fully resolved but we still moved on with the characters abruptly in the next chapter. Overall, the story fit together and made sense, just the transitions weren't always clear.