Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is one of my favorite contemporary authors, which may be due to how she brings her heart to her work, and DREAM COUNT is another emotional example. My copy is heavily marked up as I was struck over and over again with how Adichie drops insight after insight, ones that would make me pause at their truths.

DREAM COUNT is the immersive story of four Nigerian women navigating the world, love, belonging, success, and family. Omelogor, Chia, Kadiatou, and Zikora share the narrative, and there is such depth in these pages. Adichie captures the nuance of longing to be unconditionally loved, but also the ways we may project ourselves, fearing others’ disappointments or judgments.

How heartbreaking for Adichie to have lost her father (detailed in the slim memoir NOTES ON GRIEF) and then, so shortly after, to also have lost her mother. She reveals in the author’s note that, in essence, this is a book about her mother, about grieving her mother, and that one of the storylines in the book was inspired by the Guinean maid assaulted by the head of the IMF and the fallout afterwards.

DREAM COUNT is a rich, complex story deserving the honor of being a tribute to her mother.

(Thank you to Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.)

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Dream Count is a captivating exploration of identity, ambition, and the power of dreams. With her signature lyrical prose and keen insight into the human experience, Adichie weaves a tale that is both deeply personal and universally resonant. The characters come alive with complexity and authenticity, making every moment of this novel feel raw, real, and unforgettable. A brilliant and thought-provoking work from one of the world’s most celebrated voices.

Loved this story very much. I’m very glad I get to add this author to my list of autobuy. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for gifting me this arc.

An easy five stars—and I genuinely refuse any criticism of this book. I absolutely loved Dream Count. From the very first page, I was immersed in Adichie’s gorgeous, lyrical writing. Her ability to put words to feeling, to capture the nuance of memory, love, regret, and identity—especially during a time as strange and surreal as the pandemic—is breathtaking.

Set during COVID, the novel unfolds like a dream—drifting between thoughts, flashbacks, and conversations with the past and present. It perfectly mirrors the introspection of lockdown, when time felt elastic and life turned inward. This structure, which may feel lacking in plot to some, is exactly what made it feel so intimate and powerful to me.

We follow Chiamaka, a Nigerian travel writer in America, who reflects on past lovers and life choices while living in isolation. Her best friend Zikora, once seemingly invincible, must suddenly confront heartbreak and vulnerability. In Nigeria, Chiamaka’s bold cousin Omelogor begins to unravel what she thought she knew about herself, and Kadiatou, Chiamaka’s housekeeper, is dealt an unimaginable blow while trying to raise her daughter in America.

These women, all so vividly drawn, explore what it means to be a woman, to be Nigerian, to be an immigrant, to be Black in America. Their stories are woven with cultural expectations, intergenerational tension, personal ambition, and questions about motherhood, identity, and the very nature of love.

This is not a book built on plot twists or high drama, but one that pulses with emotional depth and truth. I know it won’t be for everyone, but for those who connect with it—it’s a book that speaks directly to the heart. Dream Count left me profoundly grateful to be a reader in Adichie’s world

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of this book. This author is a great writer. the storytelling was a little patchy during this read.

I was provided an ARC of this book via Netgalley, however I opted to listen to the audiobook when it cam available from my local library. As always all of my opinions are my own.

The audiobook is narrated by the author, as well as 3 other ladies for each of the characters. I love when audiobooks have a different narrator for different points of view so I know who is speaking. This was especially useful in a book like this when the chapters focus on a specific character.

This follows 4 women centering around the time of the pandemic and follows them in the past and afterward. We really get to know each character and how they are all interconnected. Chia is a travel writer struggling to live up to the expectations of her parents and community. Zikora is, Chia's best friend and a successful lawyer who's life is turned upside down when her beloved ghosts her and breaks her heart. Omelegor is Chia's cousin and a successful banker, who decides she wants to get her master's degree in the US in a completely different field. the we have Kadiatou once an employee for Chia's family and now a friend, who's story is heartbreaking. She is raising her daughter in the US, doing all of the right things, not making waves, working hard when something terrible happens to upend her entire life. We learn about each of these women, their struggles with love, relationships, their families, their careers, where they came from and more.

This was a tough read. It has quite a few triggers, so make sure you check trigger warnings before picking this up. I felt like this was focused more on the terrible men in their lives and the bad choices these ladies made than the their lives. I was disappointed that this was more about poor choices in partners and staying in bad relationships than it was about 4 strong independent women overcoming their poor choices and being awesome in a world that doesn't always love and respect women. They were each strong, intelligent women with strong opinions of their own, but were often overshadowed and overpowered by the men in their lives. I believe that is a way to get to the underlying social issues in the book, but the women didn't feel like main characters in their own stories in my opinion.

As with many reviewers I really loved the author's note at the end, it was heartfelt and gave insight into the characters an why she chose certain aspects of the story to tell. That helped me understand a bit more about the way she choose to tell the story.

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie writes the kind of crystalline prose that draws your attention to every word. "Dream Count," her long-awaited new novel, follows a group of Nigerian and Nigerian American friends through the pandemic lockdown. It's a very interior story that puts a lot of energy into past romantic messes and the difficulty of gifted women finding a worthy mate. The book was a struggle for me--Adichie is a fine writer but her sparkless plotting in this novel did not keep me engaged. If she were able to link writing and plotting this novel would be unforgettable.

Many thanks to Knopf for the digital review copy in exchange for an honest review.

Dream Count is a beautifully written (seriously, the prose is stunning) ode to feminism and racial relations told in parts through the eyes of four African women in a modern day politically charged international world.

I found myself fully immersed in Kadiatou’s story which is inspired by the story of Nafissatou Diallo. It’s an awful and enraging story of sexual assault and the attack on a migrant woman’s character who was brave enough to report her assaulter. It’s grim and disturbing and sadly it’s an all too familiar rendition of how racism and mysogony dominate most sexual assault legal cases.

While I enjoyed some aspects of the other three perspectives, they fell flat in comparison. There’s a heavy emphasis on too many horrible men that flitted in and out of these women’s lives adding no value to them or their storylines. Chiamaka, Zikora, and Omelogor are super intelligent, strong willed women navigating life as successful Black women, yet are consistently falling prey to the whims of arrogant men. Their stories, though they touch upon issues such as race and gender inequality just felt disjointed from Kadiatou’s storyline.

Overall, I enjoyed the book and appreciated it even more after reading the Author’s Note. It is evident how much research and time went into creating this story and I would definitely recommend it if you liked Americanah.

Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf for my copy of the book; all opinions are my own.

Dream Count is a must read.

I’m not going to lie. There were times it was difficult for me to read these stories. I really related to Kadiatou due to similar experiences. I cried…more than once. Sometimes realistic fiction is uncomfortable and there were many times reading Kadiatou’s voice that I felt her pain and her strength. I don’t think she would call it strength, but just surviving. She’s as real to me as who I see in the mirror.

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s writing is impactful. They laid bare our worries, hopes, dreams, and failures. Love that continues to fail due to our own self-esteem issues and choices. It doesn’t change the dream of a family or partner. The separateness we feel of our own identity to others and sometimes to ourselves. The pressures of society, community, and family dictates our choices too. All of these emotions are on the pages in Dream Count.

It’s an exploration of self-identity, friendship, and survival. Whether it be survival from the physical or the mental attacks that occur. How income can affect our decisions. How pain changes everything.

There are times that Dream Count is just relatable when talking about the search for love and self and it’s not as painful to read. Then there are the gut-punches. It’s all worth it. Dream Count is a must read.

This novel really shines when it comes to portraying strong female friendships and painting a vivid picture of life in modern Nigeria. It’s honest about the female body and raises important questions about how much of a woman’s dreams are shaped by society. The writing is beautiful, and the themes—love, friendship, immigration, and finding your own path—are handled with care. That said, it could go deeper in places, especially when it comes to exploring different views on gender and power, giving more dimension to the male characters, and fleshing out the American academics so they feel like real people.

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie quite literally never fails to disappoint. I loved the way she weaved together the stories of these women and their lives. It sort of reminded me of "Girl, Woman, Other" the way the characters where connected but had independent story lines. The writing was powerful and moving, though heavy at times. This is not a book to go into lightly because serious topics are addressed, but Adichie approaches them in such a human, raw way. It is impossible not to connect with the characters and share in their triumphs and hardships. If you like Adichie's other books, this will not be an exception; it is literary fiction at its best. The only reason it is not five stars for me is because I prefer more plot-driven books, but I can't deny the work of art that this is.

A novel taking place in the U.S., Guinea, and Nigeria, circling a group of women with close ties to each other. The focus shifts between them, not chapter by chapter but in larger sections, becoming almost entirely different stories from each to each. Really interesting use of perspective—I'm still thinking about what it might mean that one and only one section is told from the first person (I have multiple theories). The centering events are the years of the COVID pandemic and a sexual assault experienced by one of the women.

This book was so sad! I felt so bad for Kadiatou and what she went through. The story was so compelling. and I really enjoyed reading it, even though it was so dark.

I love the opening sentence, the idea, the presumed setting, the author’s note, and some of the language of Dream Count by Chiamamanda Ngozi Adichie. Unfortunately, I struggle with the book itself. The stories of all the women focus on the men and their role in society and in these relationships more than the women themselves. I find myself putting the book down, reluctant to go back. I persevere, but I am sad, for I so wanted and expected to love this book.

Read my complete review at http://www.memoriesfrombooks.com/2025/04/dream-count.html

Reviewed for NetGalley.

I’m a big fan of this author’s novels and this one was no exception. This latest novel is split into the intersecting stories of 4 African women: Chiamanka, Zikora, Omelogor and Kadiatou.

Chia’s story starts us off as we are introduced to all the characters from her perspective: Kadi was her former housekeeper who she has a strong connection to, Omelogor is her feisty cousin, and Zikora is her lawyer best friend. Chia, a travel writer and daughter of wealthy Nigerians, recounts her lonely struggles trying to find love, before, during and after the pandemic. Zikora shares her story of how her hopes were dashed by a hurtful betrayal. Omelogor is ambitious and does well professionally but is still struggling to find her sense of self and identity. And Kadi, the woman I feel is at the heart of this novel, is the hardworking single mother who follows her heart to America only to find obstacles after obstacle until her simple life explodes into unimaginable chaos.

I really enjoyed this introspective novel following these women and their stories but also how they helped each other through each of their struggles. While the novel starts and ends with Chia’s story, I felt most invested in Kadiatou’s story and loved how all these women came together to support her.

To note: This novel is broken into 5 long parts without proper chapters. I also did this in part on audio and the cast of narrators was fantastic.

Thank you @aaknopf @pantheonbooks @vintageanchorbooks @netgalley for a #gifted early digital copy of this novel.

It took me a few tries to really get into this book. I am glad to kept at it because the effort was worth it. The skillful writing is a delight to read and the characters are true to life, which makes our protagonist infuriating and yet likeable because she forces us to confront the ways in which we think we understand ourselves and those around us.

Check your trigger warnings before reading!!

Dream Count follows the stories of four African women finding their place in the world and discovering what they really want. Chiamaka is a wealthy travel writer living in America. She receives constant pressure to find a husband, but as she ages she has to decide if that's really what's right for her. Zikora is Chiamaka's best friend and a successful lawyer. When she finds out she is pregnant, she has to reevaluate everything in her life. Kadiatou is Chiamaka's housekeeper. She is raising her daughter in America when a traumatic event alters the course of her life. Omelogor is Chimaka's cousin who runs a successful financial scheme in Nigeria. She is outspoken in every aspect of her life and needs to determine where her values truly lie.

This book took me a while to get into but it was so worth it. These stories were often difficult to read, but beautifully written and deeply emotional. Seeing all the stories weave together was my favorite part. The author's note at the end wrapped the entire story up perfectly. My only issue with this book is the format. While I love the idea of spending one chapter diving deep on each character, this makes for four exceptionally large chapters. I found myself not wanting to pick the book up because I wasn't ready to read 100 pages in one sitting. I would have preferred shorter chapters.

Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor for the ARC of Dream Count.

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Dream Count is a deeply introspective and emotionally resonant novel that explores the lives of four West African women navigating love, ambition, and identity. Set against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, the novel follows Chiamaka, a Nigerian travel writer reflecting on past relationships; Zikora, a lawyer grappling with heartbreak and single motherhood; Omelogor, a successful financier questioning her life’s meaning; and Kadiatou, a Guinean immigrant facing immense personal struggles in the U.S.

Adichie’s storytelling is as sharp and evocative as ever, weaving together themes of migration, womanhood, and resilience. The novel does not shy away from difficult topics, including systemic barriers, cultural expectations, and the complexities of relationships. Yet, despite its weighty themes, Dream Count remains engaging and immersive, offering a nuanced portrayal of its characters’ inner lives.

Adichie’s ability to craft fully realized, flawed, and compelling characters ensures that Dream Count will linger in the reader’s mind long after the final page. I enjoyed it's depth and emotional honesty. It felt very timely and touching to read this through Women's History month.

This author is an amazing writer, but at times I felt like this book was just so long that it was unnecessary. Like I didn't need ALL the extra details that had nothing to do with the story. Certain parts of the story was made clear, but others wasn't which was probably due to length of the book which I struggled with.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

I was excited to read this book as a big fan of Adichi and Americanah. I found this book hard to get through, but stuck with it and was glad that I did. It does drag on at times, but the writing is sharp.