An interesting read, but more of a short story than a novel. It jumped between a lot of perspectives without diving deeply into any of them. I would have liked to spend more time with each character to build out a more complete picture of their motivations, even if that meant less characters. But I enjoyed the glimpse into Trinidadian life and I’m glad I read it.

Thank you to the publisher for the advance copy!

Sara

Scarlet Birthright is the follow up to the story contained in "Scarlet Yearnings" - "The First Time I Met My Father" (which I haven't read but will). It is a stunningly beautiful short novel.

We begin with Joromi Enoch, a young Trinidadian man who loves to DJ and isnt following the sensible and sober path his father wishes for him. At a party he meets and becomes besotted by Trisha Sacks, a vibrantly beautiful but wild young woman.

However, despite the love he has Joromi is persuaded to follow his father's wish and dumps Trisha to marry Margaret and go to America to make his fortune. But he will be leaving much more than his mother and father behind.

It has been a while since I've read such a beautiful book. The writing is superb. I wanted to dash through this incredible piece of work but forced myself to slow down, to savour it. It was not easy.

The characters are so vivid; the splashes of red, Trisha's favourite colour, are strewn throughout. It feels like a book written in high definition.

Very highly recommended. I can hardly wait to read more by this writer.

Wow!! What a beautiful story!
⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

OK to summarise how I felt reading this without any spoilers…. This is the kind of book that sneaks up on you emotionally when you’re not expecting it. Like, you think you’re just reading a story about family… and suddenly you’re sitting there questioning everything.

It’s all about messy family relationships (the real kind, not the fun drama kind you see on TV but like raw you know), especially the impact of a dad leaving and how that sticks with his daughter. There’s this strong theme throughout about how “what people leave behind isn’t just things, it’s feelings,” and that really sums up the whole book.

The characters feel very real, flawed, frustrating, but very much believable. And the Caribbean setting adds so much life to it, it was refreshing I loved it!

It drags a little in places, but overall it’s emotional, relatable, and definitely worth reading.

A saga that explored interesting family dynamics, the love only grandparents can give, and the time and space it took characters to explore, love, and forgive. I enjoyed this novella! The writing is beautiful!

I was hooked from the first page until the last.

Reading about Tisha growing up through the lens of her grandmother, grandfather, and her own POV was a gift.