Atria Books has the best books on the planet; I am convinced of that. You Made A Fool of Death With Your Beauty by Akwaeke Emezi is a delicious read, as delicious as the mangos and the exquisite foods that Alim Blake, the 2 starred Michelin chef in the story, creates. How Feyi and Alim find each other is the book and WOW, what a book! All these beautiful people! Another WOW! My heart hurt, laughed and sighed reading this novel. It’s the perfect Summer read, ah heck, it’s the perfect read for anytime of year. It’s tropical, heady, exquisite and eloquently written. I cannot wait to read more of Ms. Emezi’s stories. Thank you to NetGalley and Atria books for the ePub.

This novel was such a welcome surprise. I didn’t know a lot about it, but wow, I’m so glad I read it. The story follows Feyi, a young woman attempting to rebuild herself after the death of the love of her life. There are some seriously steamy scenes (wow) but the writing is stunning. Emezi has a way with words that is both direct and lyrical, and it’s just brilliant. We begin in NYC and travel to a tropical paradise as Feyi begins to entertain the potential for love again, and the journey is sexy, heartfelt, and beautifully written. Pick this book up—-you won’t regret it.

This was just a fantastically crafted story. A profoundly impactful, exquisitely written book about grief, love, and finding oneself. Emezi's talent for creating complex characters that feel tangible and real is just one aspect of their literary talents. Their gift for storytelling is evident from the very first page and their range is phenomenal.

You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty centers around Feyi Adekola, an artist still carrying the weight of young widowhood but decides to dip her toes into the dating pool. Feyi soon finds herself thrust into an opportunity of a lifetime, a luxurious trip to the islands to not only meet a major curator but also getting to stay at the house of a celebrity chef. But it soon becomes clear that the forbidden feelings for the very off-limits host are not going away...

I keep seeing reviews that this book is *MeSsY* and I'm sure this says more about me than it does about the book, but ... I didn't think it was *that* messy?! Yes, obviously there is mess as the main conflict in this romance, but I didn't find it exorbitant. I won't get into details to avoid spoilers, but I thought the storyline was reasonable! Overall, I was engaged in this story and rooting for the main character.

This book was amazing. I coudn't put it down. It was magical. Higly recommended! The characters, the plots, the writting: wonderful and perfect.

Thank you to @netgalley and @atriabooks for the #gifted ARC of YMAFODWYB!

“Contemporary romance with grit” as said last night in book club!

This book is messy, gripping, and so well written! I read this in one sitting because I was so swept away by the setting, the characters, and the drama that unfolded that I needed to see what would happen next.

These characters are complex and interesting, and kept me so invested. Despite the messiness of this love, I was completely enraptured by the prose leaving me with such a memorable story that was a perfect #pridemonth read!

A story of imperfect love, forbidden romance, loss, sexuality, handling grief, friendship, complex family dynamics, forgiveness, desire, and self-discovery!

I expected this to have more of a mystery feel (based on some previous reviews and the synopsis) but it did not have much of that! Definitely a romance with a little twist. Good read, finished quickly.

I wanted to love this book so badly, but I just couldn't. The general love story gave me the major ick, and it was really hard for me to look past it & continue on with the book. Overall, I am glad that I finished the story - I thought the writing was breathtaking and emotional. I was hoping for a little bit more in the storyline in regards to Feyi's grief and ability to move forward in life after loss. I couldn't relate to her approach - but everyone grieves differently.

I wish the romance had built up a bit more over time - because it lost me when the MC had 3 love interests in the span of 150 pages.

DNF I really liked the premise of this story. a woman loses her husband and after five years goes on a sexual awakening. the first sexual encounter is hot and raw but then then the tried relationship fizzled and so did my interest.the writing was trashy romance and then there would be a poignant sentence that was thoughtful and sometimes lyrical. Then back to trashy romance. I think this writer has a lot of potential and I would try her again, although this book was not for me.

copy provided by the publisher and NetGalley

This was an interesting story following a woman who is grieving years after losing her husband and how she attempts to find happiness in subsequent relationships with men. Perhaps this clouded my view of the book, but I found the main character to be unlikeable. She made shady decisions and then seemed naive and surprised at how negatively people responded. I just found it hard to root for her and the love story didn’t seem genuine. Their getting together seems rushed. The moral of the story appears to be find happiness when you can, which I certainly agree with, but I can’t help giving Feyi and her love interest at the end some major side eye. This is a decent book that was a quick read, but not one that I loved. 3 stars ⭐️. Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley.

Delighted to include this title in ‘Summer Reading,’ my latest round-up for Zoomer magazine’s Books section highlighting guaranteed great beach pleasers (see mini-review at link)

A perfect beach read!
Many thanks to Atria and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

So romance is not my favorite genre but I do enjoy it when I need to take a break from the heavy stuff.
This was a true romance, not just a cute rom-com but rather a beautifully written love story.
Thank you so much #netgalley and the publisher

You Made A Fool of Death With Your Beauty was a nice, quick, romance read. I enjoyed the characters and how it showed the authenticity of how messy is can be finding the right person for you. I also think this novel took on the topics of queerness and grief very well. Overall I enjoyed it!

This book is a romance - not really a mystery, which some have called it.

There is quite an emphasis on beauty here and it is not as wide of a depth as is preferable to some readers. That said, Emezi has quite a gift for the English language and for that alone this book is worth reading.

This story is the perfect read about how grief can affect people in different ways. It is awesome to find love stories that can come out of a heavy place!

I had a bit of a hard time getting into this book, but once I found my groove, I couldn't put the book down!

Highly recommend!

You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty was a great story about grief and doing what's right for you, even if it's not the easy path or what is expected. I appreciated how raw and messy Emezi made her characters and their stories. However, I think the main takeaway for me is that as I'm sitting down to write a review a few weeks after finishing, I don't remember a lot of the details and don't have much else to say. I liked it, but it was just okay for me.

3.5/5 stars

Thanks to the publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

“She was hers, she was alive, there was so much to do.”

YOU MADE A FOOL OF DEATH WITH YOUR BEAUTY is a lush, gorgeous romance novel about two people awakening to love after being buried under the weight of their grief. The main character is Feyi, a Nigerian American artist who moves to Brooklyn with her best friend in the wake of her husband’s death. After dipping her toe back into dating, she gets invited to an island getaway with a friend/possible boyfriend to show her art and of course, maybe find her happily ever after. I absolutely loved Feyi’s character: a woman who leans into softness when she could be hard, a survivor rediscovering her own desire, and a rage-filled widow when she needs to be. It’s a sensual book, both in terms of sex and also food, nature, and art, a story bursting with sensory experience, grounding and healing. Feyi and her love interest are both bisexual, and there’s other queer characters as well; also, there’s nary a white person in sight. There’s a forbidden element to the pairing (spoiler: this is a DILF book) but I liked how the biggest risk for both of them was choosing to love again after experiencing immense loss. I’ve now read three of Emezi’s books across three different genres, and I’m so impressed with their range and the beauty and clarity they bring to each story. Thanks to Atria Books for the review copy! I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Bahni Turpin (the same person who performed Skye Falling!) and she does an amazing job.

Content warnings: death (past), some homophobia

I had some trouble getting into this story initially, but I ended up really loving it. Once they were on the island it seemed to gain momentum and I was in.

So many lush food and landscape descriptions! And I just really loved the love story. It was full of beautiful discussions of grief and losing your beloved and healing, and how all of that mixes with new beginnings. It felt fresh and new and complicated and so wonderful.

I think the side characters could’ve used some additional development.
I couldn’t tell if it was supposed to feel like a love triangle?? bc not everybody felt equally developed.
& Joy felt like a best friend caricature (barely wanted to talk about herself, primarily there to hype up Feyi with faint whispers of her own story)

but overall I just feel really mushy about this book!!!!

eARC from Atria Books & Netgalley!

Unfortunately this was a miss for me. The characters were shallow and unlikeable. The dialogue was cheesy most of the time and poorly written. The only hits were the title and beautiful graphics on the cover.