I love that the author was taking on such important and hot-button themes as segregation, racism, and domestic violence, but I felt the story lacked cohesiveness - to me, if felt like she was trying to address too many things at once. While I truly admired the protagonist, the story ended up falling a little flat for me.

A novel that takes on major issues such as domestic abuse, immigration and segregation in the 1950s - and leads us to ask how much has really changed since then. While lacking in hope, the stark realism of this novel is refreshing and thought-provoking.

Cheryl Reid has given us a believable story that takes place in the segregated south, about a family of immigrants from Lebanon. She tackles racial issues as well as domestic issues and the toll they take on Anna, the family matriarch as well as the test of her family. She paints a picture that is so easy to imagine.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review..

While the story idea was interesting, woman wakes up next to dead husband did she do it, the pace was a little slow for me. I felt for Anna and her struggle. I think it did a great job of showing just what sort of tensions are present in a marriage, especially one that has such differences between the couple, but it just left me wanting just a little more. Not a terrible read, but not my favorite.

This was not a good book. Not because the subject matter was not a happy one, but the book was just lacking in so many ways that I cannot recommend this book to anyone.

What a heart wrenching book! My heart hurt for Anna much of the story and what she dealt with. This book delves into social issues and the subjects of racial and women's discrimination, spouse abuse, fear of speaking out, self preservation and family dysfunction to name a few things. The time setting is in the late 50's but some of the issues still pertain to this day in age....sadly. Anna is the main character and her story starts out after years of being abused, mentally and physically, by her Arabic husband. She questions everything in her life from how she feels, what she wants to say, or even what she wants to do. She wants a relationship with her daughter but she fears that what she will say to her will alienate her. One line in the book where Anna wants to tell her daughter, Marina, how she feels is this.... "I wanted her to know that she and Eli were the loves of my life, but it sounded too strong so smothering that it would repel her." I felt so bad for their relationship. The story flashes back to how events happened and brought her to the place she is in her life. I liked the way the story flowed between the two time frames. I was angry at Anna's position she was put in with very little understanding from anyone else. Anna wanted to be loved and for her love to be accepted. Toward the end she has a moment when she's thinking about what she wanted in life. "....I tried to remember what I had wanted when I married Elias. I had wanted him, I had wanted love. I had wanted to be like my mother. All I knew for certain, I had wanted more than what I had or what I got." It was a story that has lots to think about and a lot to learn from. I want to thank Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book and this is my honest review.

Beautifully written, very detailed and just plain old sad. I had to read it in spurts due to the heaviness of the subject matter and somber tone.

This book was pretty good, but not one that I became all consumed with. I think the book would have been better if the author had focused on one or two issues vs having so many. There was segregation, female oppression, domestic violence, anger, death, grief, and some other issues. This just seemed like a lot for one book.

I am sorry but As Good As True was simply too much for me. I knew from the blurb that the book would be hard-hitting and emotionally-taxing, but I don’t think I realise how relentless and triggering the trauma in it would be.
Fed up of the years of physical and psychological abuse from her husband, Anna kills him in an act of self-defence and breathes a sigh of relief that her torment is now over.
But, it’s not over.
Anna is psychologically tormented her entire life by nearly everybody she knows - just because her husband is now dead, that does not mean that Anna is now free. I mean, that woman would have to kill the entire town to even have a fighting chance of being happy. She suffers at the hands of her mother-in-law, her daughter, her neighbours, her brother-in-law… I mean, even miscellaneous people in the town. It was just too much. She is worn-down by every single one of them and, as the pages went on, Anna’s misery became so deafening that I simply couldn’t read anymore without the novel having a significant impact on my own mental wellbeing.
It was graphic. It was gratuitous. And it was certainly something that, since putting the book down, I have done all that I can to try and forget about.

I had high hopes for this. The description sounded promising. Unfortunately, I felt everything about this novel was mediocre. This was one of those books that I finished more because I had to than because I wanted to. It just did not deliver. It was slow moving and did not hold my attention. Much of the plot points were rather obvious considering the subject matter and setting. I also had a hard time sympathizing with the main character. I will say that it does illustrate the extent to which domestic violence can ruin a family. I wish the author had explored more of the civil rights aspect of the story line instead of the old vs. new world mentality of the immigrant family. Thank you to NetGalley for providing an ARC for review.

Wow, wow. First off it gave me a slight insight into the world of the Syrian people, which I knew nothing about. Secondly it told the story of a Syrian American woman and her life with an abusive husband. I couldn’t even fathom this abuse. She also tried to take on the plight of black american’s in the 1950’s in Alabama. I struggled with the first pages of this book but trudged on to a fabulous read!

Yes this is pretty darn grim but it's also a fascinating novel about a Syrian American woman in 1956 Alabama- oh and her husband is beyond angry because she befriended an African American. Reid has cast light on an era and a situation most of us are unfamiliar with and she has done so with an unflinching gaze. Anna has had to deal with so much and now, well now things actually have gotten worse. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. It's a good read.

This book drew me in and kept me reading until finished. Family pride and prejudice, mistakes from the past, common decency shown to someone from another culture, all collide together and make one realize what the really important things in life are.

I received a copy of this from NetGalley and the awesome Lake Union publishers. Thank you for allowing me to read and review this book

While I notice several people did not give this book many stars and wrote somewhat not good reviews, I had to disagree. I thought it was a very good book. One to make you think. The way some people want things to go now is much like how it was back in the 50s.

This book dealt with a lot of intense and sad issues. From death, abuse, racism and more to families being torn apart. A daughter not believing in her mother. A father not believe in his daughter. I thought the author did a good job of how things were. I thought it was told in such a heartfelt way and you felt like you was there. Through it all I felt the pain of what Anna went through. She had a hard life and unless you feel something it’s not a good book. This one brought out lots of feelings and a few tears. There were lots of characters and lots of perspectives but I felt for Anna. She wanted to be loved by her husband and to love her children.

She wanted to help others. Be a good person to someone’s son who had been kind to her. She lost so much. I enjoyed learning so much from this book. I didn’t know much about the Syrians or segregation but have read a few books that have helped me to learn. I enjoy learning things in a book.
Being from AL this book was very interesting to me. I know it was not just the south that discriminated but it’s where most of it happened I believe. It still is more than it should be.

A good book, good story. Lots to think about. Lots to learn from. I hope Marina did finally do a turn around and forgive. She needed too for sure.

I enjoyed reading this book so much. Thank you Cheryl Reid for writing it and I look forward to more of your books.

While "As Good As True" has an interesting premise and a well thought out cast of characters, it just wasn't a hit for me. I found it plodding and dull, and I really couldn't find the desire to care about the main character in the book.

How pretty is this cover?! As Good As True is the story of Anna, an abused woman, whose life is in a constant state of despair and oppression. She wakes up in the morning to find her husband dead and a community angry with her for allowing the first black postman to deliver her mail. We follow the chain of events and the subsequent fallout. This novel had so much promise but fell short for me. It was much too long, and it carried a feeling of heaviness throughout the entire book. While I feel like the author did a great job expressing to the reader the feeling of oppression, it was just too much. I needed the book to be shorter, or something good to happen. I was aching for Anna to catch a break. For me, this was ⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 stars. Thank you @lakeunionauthors and @netgalley for this advance reader in exchange for my honest review

Thank you Netgalley and publishers for providing me an ARC of As Good As True in exchange for an honest opinion. It is hard to believe this is a debut work; Cheryl Reid is very talented and I will be patiently watching for her next endeavor. This is a unique and compelling take on race and poverty in Alabama in the late 50s told from the perspective of an Syrian immigrant who is also a victim of domestic violence. The story is complex and so are the characters. Although this novel is heavily focused on the characters, the plot holds it own and keeps the reader anxious to see how things will resolve. The story feels real and true, and much like real life, the messiness is not neatly tidied up in the end. Some other reviews have said this book was depressing. I don't agree. Rather, I think it was honest, and I would argue that the ending was actually quite hopeful. Beautifully written.... highly recommended!

I couldn't get into this. The story just didn't hold my attention.

Great book with an important message! I could not stop reading this book.