I unfortunately wasn't able to get unto this book. I tried picking it up a few times but it wasn't grabbing me. Perhaps I will try again in the future. Thank you so much to Simon Schuster for the opportunity to read an advanced copy.

I was so worried I wouldn’t enjoy this with the way it started off. It was slightly unrealistic until we started to really get to know the characters and then I was invested in the story and how it turns out. It explores pretty heavy themes like race, adoption, loss, family, abuse, foster care system etc and the authors were so good with making the story come alive. I imagined it as a tv series or a lifetime movie while I read. This was my first book by these authors and I'll be reading more of their work.

Thanks to Simon&Schuster CA for the ARC!

You Were Always Mine, just like the last book, We Are Not Like Them, by Christine Pride and Jo Piazza, brings forth a racially charged story that gives the reader so much food for thought.

In You Were Always Mine, Cinnamon, a married black woman, without children of her own, befriends 19 year old Daisy, whom she meets in the park on her lunch break. The two meet up once a week at the park, and never anywhere else, for a good year, but both fabricate their life stories, too ashamed to confide their truths in each other.

Daisy, unbeknownst to Cinnamon, is pregnant and can’t fathom raising a child she didn’t want. So right after giving birth, on a day she would normally meet Cinnamon in the park, Daisy hides the newborn baby in the bushes near their meeting spot with a hope and prayer that Cinnamon will be the one to find the baby.

Of course she does. Along with a note that Daisy wants Cinnamon to raise this blue eyed, blonde haired baby. Cinnamon, haunted by her past of growing up in the foster system, decides she needs to protect this baby, no matter how this decision impacts the rest of her life, including her marriage.

I loved this premise and this examination of race and how prejudices and society have shouted loud and clear that a black person could not possibly adopt or raise a white child. Not only is it so widely unaccepted, it’s also unjustly unsafe as Cinnamon’s husband points out: “I’d end up in handcuffs every time before she made it down the slide…No one would ever believe she’s mine. That I had any sort of right to be with her.”

What didn’t work for me was how convenient some things were. Is it really plausible that Daisy would have time to hide the baby in a park before Cinnamon arrived without someone else finding the baby? Would you really not go to the authorities immediately upon finding a baby in the bush, regardless of some note left with it? And the ending, without giving too much away, was very clean (and a little implausible).

But all in all, I love stories that make me think and examine uncomfortable opinions and so this would make an excellent book club book if you need a suggestion for next year!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

What a beautiful emotional read. This would be perfect for book clubs as there is so much to talk about and dive into.

If you're looking for a more complex read featuring found/adoptive families, be sure to try this one.

I did prefer their first book. This one had too much going on so it was hard to follow. But I’m saying that the book did end well. It came full circle.

From the writers of We Are Not Like Them, this new book continues with the black and white themes that are still present in the US in our day and age. Although it has a brand new story with completely different characters, the underlying message is very similar to their initial novel.
How it differs from their debut is how the question of motherhood is approached. It was another important theme the book was centered around. Not to mention the way experiences shape us into becoming who we are. As we grow and mature our perspectives change, and that's not necessarily a bad thing. What we thought was really important to us in our twenties is most likely not the same as we approach forty.
The authors managed to blend these different topics into a work of fiction that is relatable. Eye opening, emotional and beautifully woven, the story of Cinnamon will not leave you unmoved.
If you want something to read that is well developed yet emotional, this book might be for you.

This book really wasn't what I expected from the description and based on their last book which I really enjoyed. I had expected it to be much more about the race relations and issues/challenges of a Black woman getting custody of a white baby. But it was actually more about the Black woman, Cinnamon, dealing with her own trauma from her childhood challenges and secrets she has kept. The young white woman who left her baby with Cinnamon has her own challenges to work through.

It was a good book but not as good as the prior one. I didn't enjoy this one as much.

I couldn't stop listening! So well narrated and glad for a happy ending. It's a bit more character driven vs. plot than I would have thought, but really liked it + more than their previous book.

You Were Always Mine is a story about racial prejudices and family structures. It made me reflect on my own biases regarding race, as well as my own experiences regarding "untraditional" family structures. This would be an excellent bookclub read and would lead to thought-provoking conversations.

The story was unfortunately a little too slow-paced for my own liking. The chapters were lengthy, and even though they often ended in cliff-hangers, it was a slower read. The storyline itself is quite emotional, yet this one didn't have the "tear at your heartstrings" impact I was expecting, until the last chapter and epilogue. Some of the supporting characters were also completely unnecessary and downright laughable at times, which was disappointing and took away from the impact of the story.

⚠️ Potential trigger warnings: child abandonment and abuse, foster care, infertility, sexual abuse (may not be an exhaustive list).

🙏 Thank you NetGalley and Simon and Schuster Canada for the gifted electronic copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was the first book I read from these authors, and I actually picked this one because I loved the cover. I'm so glad I chose this to read as it was very thought provoking and an enjoyable read.

Cinnamon Haynes has had a tough upbringing and has fought hard to get where she is, married to Jayson in a sweet little seaside town. Her marriage hasn't really turned out quite the way she hoped and her future is uncertain. She eats lunch once a week at a park close to her work and ends up meeting Daisy. Over a period of months the two women become friends and Cinnamon looks forward to seeing Daisy at the park for lunch each week until the fateful day that Daisy doesn't show up. Instead, Cinnamon finds a tiny newborn baby in a carseat behind the bushes and a note from Daisy asking her to raise her child. Shocked, Cinnamon takes the newborn baby girl home determined to find Daisy and reunite the young mother and child.

The story touches on race, motherhood, abuse, foster system and found families. What does it take to be a mother? I think this would be a great choice for book clubs as there is so much to discuss!

Book Review
You Were Always Mine
By Christina Pride and Jo Piazza

Tropes
Racialized Adoption
Abandoned baby
Marital relationship
Foster care

Thoughts
Our MC has a lot going on- in her marriage, in her career. Her past is slowly seeping into everything and her dishonesty in her relationships adds unwanted complications

Honestly I liked their previous book more. I feel like there were some lost opportunities to dig a bit deeper re racialized adoption and foster care.
I appreciated how the authors ended the book - it came full circle…. The relationships weren’t perfect but they were based on trust, truth and mutual respect indicating our MC had grown as a person and as a parent.

Thanks to @netgalley @simonschusterca for my eARC in return fir an honest review. Opinions expressed are my own

Title: You Were Always Mine
Author: Christine Pride and Jo Piazza
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Rating: 4.00
Pub Date: June 13, 2023

I received complimentary eARC from Simon & Schuster Canada & Atria Books via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. #Gifted #Ad

T H R E E • W O R D S

Sensitive • Human • Impactful

📖 S Y N O P S I S

Cinnamon Haynes has fought hard for a life she never thought was possible—a good man by her side, a steady job as a career counselor at a local community college, and a cozy house in a quaint little beach town. It may not look like much, but it’s more than she ever dreamed of or what her difficult childhood promised.

Daisy Dunlap has had her own share of problems in her nineteen years on earth—she also has her own big dreams for a life that’s barely begun. Her hopes for her future are threatened when she gets unexpectedly pregnant. Desperate, broke, and alone, she hides this development from everyone close to her and then makes a drastic decision with devastating consequences.

These two women, unlikely friends and kindred spirits must face down their secrets and trauma and unite for the sake of the baby they both love in their own unique way.

💭 T H O U G H T S

After absolutely loving writing duo Christine Pride and Jo Piazza's debut We Are Not Like Them, it will come as no surprise that You Were Always Mine was one of my most anticipated reads of 2023. I'd heard them talk about this next project during an author zoom event, and in the same vain as their debut it sounded like it would be spark dialogue and debate.

This duo certainly has the ability to blend their voices and create dynamic character arcs. This very well-written novel, tackles the issues of race, discrimination, class, abuse, foster care, motherhood and friendship head on. With a slightly slower pace, this one lacked the depth I'd been anticipating. It felt more fictionalized, requiring me to suspend my disbelief at times, and there were a lot of subplots that detracted from the main story. There were so many missed opportunities for the story to so deeper and spark dialogue, but it took a different approach.

At the end of the day, You Were Always Mine is an important, powerful and well crafted novel that made me reflect on my own biases. A solid contemporary read, just not the literary gem to entice deep contemplation I'd been hoping for. I'll continue to read whatever these two authors publish next.

📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• readers who enjoy books that tackle motherhood
• fans of Hold My Girl
• anyone who likes stories about foster families or adoption

⚠️ CW: pregnancy, abandonment, foster care, adoption, rape, sexual assault, sexual violence, child abuse, domestic abuse, emotional abuse, cancer, hate crime, racism, medical content, medical trauma, death, death of parent

🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S

"I chose you, but I also chose me, because for once it was my time, my chance to get something I wanted - and you were it."

"... She'd spent years carrying around her loneliness and isolation like an invisible cape, half nuisance, half shield. There was a silver lining to it - if you didn't get attached to people, they couldn't hurt you."

You Were Always Mine by Christine Pride and Jo Piazza is a sensitive, if imperfect, exploration of what it means to be a mother.

Cinnamon Haynes is finally in a good place. Growing up as a Black woman in foster care, her childhood full of uncertainty has made her grateful for the life she has created with her husband. Her past remains a secret to even those she is closest to, a way of protecting herself from judgment and questions. When she discovers a baby, who happens to be white, left by a new friend (who doesn't want to be found), she's forced to look at what she really wants and whether or not she's willing to open up the door to her past in the process. As Cinnamon grows closer to the child, the next steps become more and more intense. Does she want to take on raising a child, and how does she find a mother who does want to be found?

All things considered, I did enjoy this book overall. It takes what could be considered a "Lifetime movie" premise and adds depth, humanity and complexity. The premise in itself needs expert handling for it not to fall into the schmaltz or afternoon school special category. Where this one struggled for me, is that I felt like it couldn't figure out whether it wants to be biting and challenging or sentimental and heartwarming. It succeeds more in the latter but seems to be striving for more (and the premise itself lends itself to more layers). From the beginning, we can predict the beats the story will hit and it hits them all.

Overall, it's beautifully written and Cinnamon is easy to root for and is richly characterized. But You Were Always Mine ends up being a bit of a miss for me. It seems to want to explore and say something about different complex and nuanced topics but I feel like it just scratches the surface, never really making the impact I was hoping for.

Didn’t really have much expectations going into the books and for the most part I really did enjoy my time reading this. there were some parts that kinda lost my interest but that could be solely a me problem seeing as I don’t read a lot of literary books. the premise was fine and I would recommend this to people looking for a story that talks about race, trauma and real life problems in a moving way.

thanks Netgalley for e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

I was excited to see that writing duo Jo Piazza and Christine Pride had a new book coming out after I loved their debut We Are Not Like Them two years ago. Together they wrote a powerful and thought-provoking story that encompassed important issues.

Their new book You Were Always Mine asks the question: What would happen if a Black woman found an abandoned white baby and she wanted to adopt it? Cinnamon Haynes is a middle-aged Black married woman who works as a college counsellor and has a casual friendship with a young white woman named Daisy. Unbeknownst to Cinnamon, Daisy was pregnant, and she suddenly leaves her blonde-haired, blue-eyed newborn in a basket for Cinnamon to find with the request that Cinnamon to raise the child.

This book had all the fixin's for another great read by this duo - issues of race, discrimination, class, abuse, friendship, foster care and motherhood are some of the topics that are introduced. The story includes flashbacks to Daisy and Cinnamon's pasts and letters Daisy writes to her child. The topics are relevant and important, but I was disappointed that these complex and poignant issues were not handled with nearly enough depth or emotion.

We skim over all these issues and are instead given a story that is very slow moving with many subplots that not only convolute the main plot but will require readers to suspend disbelief - particularly legal aspects. The plot soon loses steam, and I was frustrated by many of Cinnamon's decisions and disappointed that the big confrontation didn't happen until almost 80% into the book and wasn't the big conflict I was expecting.

This book will give readers a lot to discuss regarding race, motherhood, secrets and trauma, but it was too farfetched, and I didn't feel connected to the plot or the characters and soon found myself skimming the pages. While this book wasn't for me, I loved their debut and look forward to reading more from this duo in the future.

Disclaimer: My sincere thanks to Atria Books for my advanced digital copy which was provided in exchange for my honest review.

This book has so much depth, it's hard to know where to start. A one sentence synopsis: a young black woman finds an abandoned white baby in the woods, which was left for her to find. This unusual incident sets off an interesting tale.

There are racial issues (direct and indirect), there is a young woman whose early life was so messed up she invents stories about an idyllic childhood, foster parenting, strife in a marriage.
The list seems to go on and on. And, sometimes, life is like that. Most of us have no idea what others' pasts have been like.

The main character, Cinnamon, shows incredible strength throughout, though at the same time, she experienced terrible self-doubt. Quite the paradox. The other characters in the story are well portrayed, some are good, some are not so good. It's a good cross section of life.

There are a lot of thinking issues brought up in this book, I think it could be good for a book club discussion. It's also an excellent briefing on the foster care system.

The further I got into this book, the faster I was reading it. Though, I did not want it to be over. The only negative I can say about it is that there are times that it is very wordy…..the same idea could have been expressed using fewer words. But, that might be a “Me” problem……I was just anxious to move the story forward.

Great ending!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the Advance Readers Copy.

I adored the last novel by this author duo and happy to say I liked this new release from the them as well.
A novel exploring what it means to be a mother. A black woman finds an abandoned white baby and this brings up all sorts of questions (of our day) surrounding race, motherhood and what does it mean to “mother?” The storyline at times lagged, but really like the overall message of this book.
Thank-you to NetGalley and Atria Books for an eARC of this novel.

I loved this writing duo's first book We Are Not Like Them a couple of years ago and they have another hit on their hands with You Were Always Mine. The premise of a black woman finding an abandoned white baby and then trying to foster to adopt had me intrigued from the start. The writing of the letters by the biological mom warmed my heart and were some of the best parts of the book.

The story deals with a lot of issues such as race, motherhood in all its forms, abuse and foster care. They were all thought provoking and dealt with in a realistic and sensitive manner. The racial divides in foster care made me aware and I saw it in a new light. Kudos to the authors for teaching me something. The writing of the duo is seamless. I felt so many emotions while reading this book everything from crying to out and rage. Rage at some of the characters but also the system itself. This was such a unique take on being a foster parent and a story I loved reading.

This is what I would call a thoughtful read, a book club choice, something that has many layers that could be unravelled together with other readers. It doesn’t have the speed of their first book together but that doesn’t mean it has any less impact.

This duo of authors have found a way to blend their voices to create stories that grasp the emotions of charged situations in life. That’s not really the proper wording I want to use but I don’t know how to say it clearer then saying the reader’s lens of life may find themselves contemplating their own biases while reading.

It’s about a woman, married and without children, who finds a baby in a child seat. All alone in the park with only a note that essentially gifts the baby to Cinnamon. Her frantic search at the start leads to protection of the young mother and finally to a love that breaks any race barrier.

There’s 0 chance that you don’t fall for Cinnamon, especially if you relate to her as a true empath. Watching her find her own voice and heal her own past was heartwarming. So while I say it’s emotionally and racially charged, I also think it’s just a “found family” story. The only that makes you smile by the end.