This story was definitely tough to get through because of its emotional weight. The mental heaviness takes its toll, which is part of what makes it a good narrative for people to learn. I think it is a powerful book that sheds light on the mistreatment of black women in our society, the blame put on victims, and the handling of mental illness. I don’t think ‘enjoyed’ is a good word to use when describing my emotions reading this novel but I do think it is something others need to read and I will be recommending it.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins Publishers for the ARC of this book.

Wow! This story just gets harder to put down the more twisted it gets.

Grown opens with the Big Incident, but quickly sends us back in time so we can experience everything alongside Enchanted. Before Korey Fields begins to seize control of her world, Enchanted's POV is sweet and lighthearted; I almost forgot I was reading a crime/thriller novel. But once we start to see flickers of Korey's dark side, the dark momentum doesn't stop. My mind was brimming with questions until the final page.

This is an important, timely novel about the evil that comes into power and the women and girls we need to believe.

An incredibly written book about a difficult subject that needs light shed on it. knowing that every young lady wants to reach fame and fortune and can't wait for the opportunity to come along, is written in a way to help the shock of the subject of young ladies being taken advantage of them by Jekyll/Hyde type characters. showing the charisma of a prominent character only to realize there are two sides to a person. sometimes the other side they show you in private is not what you signed up for the characters are well-developed and intense throughout the novel which contribute to the plot.

Grown by Tiffany D. Jackson is a YA contemporary fiction novel with an intriguing mystery/suspense element intertwined throughout. The book is told from the perspective of Enchanted, a 17 year old aspiring singer, and switches from describing events that occurred “then” and “now.” The story is compulsively readable, and I found myself unable to put it down. The story drew me in from the first page!

Some of the content of the novel might be difficult for YA audiences, and I would recommend this primarily for older teen and adult readers.

I received a digital copy of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Tiffany Jackson has done it AGAIN! After reading and loving Allegedly, Let Me Hear a Rhyme, and Monday’s Not Coming, I was super pumped to see this title, especially with its storyline. Tiffany so effortlessly weaves so many twist and turns into her stories, surprising her readers around each turn. I could not put this book down. It’s connection with a relevant current-day problem made the story even more intriguing.

I have been looking forward to reading #Grown since I first heard about it. Right off the bat, readers need to know that the central premise of this book is loaded with trigger warnings: rape, grooming, mental & physical abuse, kidnapping, and more. These aren't asides. They are the point. An R&B superstar, Korey Fields, takes a 17-year-old aspiring singer, Enchanted, as his protege. But his influence quickly turns sinister with the storyline mirroring many details of singers such as R. Kelly, which Tiffany Jackson addresses before the book begins. Fields ends up dead (not a spoiler as it happens in the first chapter), and the end of the book becomes a murder mystery -lite while exploring the fallout from Enchanted's experiences. While the triggering topics are obviously difficult, the storyline is very important to help explore how young girls could fall into this type of situation. Thank you to the publisher and #NetGalley for the advanced copy.

BOOK REVIEW: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Tiffany D. Jackson’s (@writeinbk ) novel Grown is so powerful, so timely, and a must read for every young adult (and above!). Drawing inspiration from the horrendous R. Kelly nightmare, Jackson portrays how a teenager falls victim to a manipulative grown man.

Enchanted is a 17-year-old Black girl in a sea of white. She yearns to sing on a big stage and find a place where she truly can be herself and be seen for who she is. Due to a chance occurrence, Enchanted is intertwined in the life of singer and producer Korey Fields, a 28-year-old man. This relationship will lead to devastating consequences for Enchanted.

Enchanted awakes on the floor, covered in blood in Korey’s penthouse where she later finds him dead. The rest of the novel flashes back to Enchanted’s journey to this moment and forth to the investigation of the crime. Who killed Korey Fields? Why would a teenager fall victim to a grown man? Jackson covers these topics tactfully and maintains the terrible reality that many girls face in our society today.

Trigger warning: drug usage, sexual abuse, child trafficking, child predator

Thank you @netgalley and Edelweiss for the digital ARC of this book.

#bookreview #bookrecommendation #bookrecommendations #bookreviewer #fivestarread #fivestarbook #ireadya #yalit #blackauthors #ownvoice #ownvoices #teachersofinstagram #bookstagram #booklove #readthisbook #spiveys📚club #grown

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the eARC I received in exchange for a fair and honest review.

This book was perfect. I requested it because I’m a huge fan of Monday’s Not Here and wanted to see what else the author had going on and I have to say that this book is one of the most timely, relevant books I can imagine having teens (especially teen girls) read. The steps of grooming are shown in such a meticulous way that it really outlines what young girls need to look out for when an older man gives them attention. I will definitely be using it as a summer reading list book next summer and, depending on what happens with student reaction, potentially in the future, as well.

Jackson pulls her subject matter for "Grown" straight from the headlines of R. Kelly's nightmarish case. She does a really good job and it is a good read, but in this reader's opinion, the author tried to do too much with a difficult subject for a delicate audience. Real life was too horrific to go into detail for a YA book (and this book seemed like it was trying to appeal to the younger YA set which is good - the message needs to get out.) Unfortunately, making the book a murder mystery may have been unnecessary and confusing to the actual issues being discussed.

Tiffany D. Jackson has done it again!!! I was hooked from the first sentence. I honestly couldn't put this book down. This ripped from the headlines page-turner is so important. This tragic story brings awareness to the world of black female victims who are often forgotten, overlooked and not taken seriously. I had so many emotions while reading this and definitely has it's trigger moments. I absolutely LOVED this book and can't wait to sing its praises.

GROWN is a ripped-from-the-headlines thriller that is also so much more. Enchanted Jones is a 17 year old who dreams of being a singer. She feels trapped by her family’s move to a city, and the resulting need for her to spend a lot of time caring for her younger siblings. When she gets the opportunity to travel with superstar singer Korey Fields, she wants it more than anything. GROWN takes us down the path as Enchanted is groomed, abused, and twisted up into Korey Fields’s life.

Tiffany Jackson never disappoints with her twist endings, and GROWN is no different. At the same time, the strong theme of the way Black women are treated by the people and institutions who are supposed to protect is clear and gutting. Various secondary characters show the ways that even “good” people can turn victim blaming and cruel, and how others may surprise you.

Enchanted’s story is at turns heartbreaking and horrifying, and I felt the ending was very satisfying. If you enjoyed ALLEGEDLY and MONDAY’S NOT COMING, GROWN is a must-read.

This was a very interesting story and a representation of how quickly a relationship can take a bad turn. Youth, desire, hope , love and the will to survive all play an important role in how we perceive our actions and our future.

Grown By: Tiffany D. Jackson

The cover of this book is absolutely BLACK GIRL MAGIC. This cover made me feel okay with rocking a low fade. Simple covers always attract me, and this cover was a statement in itself…
Enchanted is a 17-year-old girl blinded by the Stardom of her favorite singer. Enchanted entered a secret relationship with said singer and she is unable to think for herself; she was secluded from her family and was abused at the hands of the man that she thought was supposed to love her.
I felt a lot of different emotions while reading this book with some being anger for what Enchanted went through at the hands of a GROWN Man, sadness for her parents who were seemingly helpless against the stardom of a predator, and disgust for the predatory himself from the very beginning. The character situations were semi- relatable (Enchanted dating an older man). The plot twist at the end of the book was worth it!!
Tiffany Jackson did an incredible job of mixing reality with fiction. I love the fact that she shined the light directly at the doubters of black women who say they have been abused. This book really showcased the sorrow that women of color go through when no one believes them. Tiffany also showed the mental trauma that abuse victims deal with long after the torture has stop.

This book is absolutely one that belongs on everyone’s reading list. This book was written for young adults but can absolutely be enjoyed by adults.

5 Stars!!!!

Tiffany D. Jackson is known for writing about stories that are "ripped from the headlines" and this one is no different. If you know the story of R. Kelly then you already have a pretty good understanding of what the book is about. There are multiple twists at the end while the truth is being revealed which makes this story unique and engaging. As an educator I would not want to use this book as part of my literature circles just due to the very graphic nature behind the story. However that does not mean I would stock it in my class library or recommend it to my students. I think the story needs to be heard but I can't justify imbedding it into the curriculum.

Blown away by how good this book was. ⁣
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Mark your calendars for September 15 because you do not want to miss GROWN by Tiffany D. Jackson. Part thriller, part coming of age, and 10000000% relevant, I couldn’t put it down. ⁣
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The opening pages grab you instantly: the protagonist, Enchanted Jones, wakes up covered in blood to find superstar musician Korey Fields dead on his floor. The majority of the novel is then spent flashing back to how Enchanted, a Black teen hoping to be a singer, gets ensnared in Korey’s web of lies and sexual predation under the false promise of making her own album. ⁣
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Although I don’t know if it’s meant to be a direct allusion, GROWN definitely felt like it was inspired by the atrocious R. Kelly. Somehow, this novel examined the adultification of Black girls, #MeToo, mental health, racism, and trauma, all while remaining accessible for younger readers and completely enthralling. ⁣
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Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins for providing an eARC in exchange for this review. ⁣

Another exciting read from Tiffany D. Jackson. I finished this in one sitting as I could not put it down. Once again we are taken along for the ride in a story ripped from the headlines, this one similar to R. Kelly and the violence, abuse, and torment he has inflicted on young Black women and girls throughout his career. Grown is certainly inspired by this and it feels so real that when reading, I had to keep going to see how it ends. After I finished, this book and its characters stayed with me and I found myself thinking about them for weeks. Tiffany D. Jackson is incredible as always!!

I was so happy to receive this book from Netgalley. From the moment, I saw this cover I knew I was gonna read this. Enchanted Jones has wanted to be a singer for a very long time. so bad that she was willing to lie her way to an audition. Once there she meets superstar Korey Fields. Her dreams then become her biggest wish come true. But no one knows what goes on behind the scenes. The alienation from her family, the lies, the drugs. But then the unthinkable happens Korey is dound dead and the number one suspect is Enchanted. This will be a great book for preteen and teen girls because it shows that being Grown sometimes can cost you more than you will ever know.

this book is SO IMPORTANT. It was probably one of the most harrowing and hard-to-swallow books that I've ever read and I am so grateful for that. The author created extremely authentic characters that will open readers' eyes to all of the injustice in the world. This story deals with fame and the toxicity of relationships with manipulation and abuse. I is so important to educate teens to recognize red flags and not feel less than because someone has made them out to be such. It stuck such a chord with me and I really hope that many people will have the opportunity to read this book if you can handle the subject matter. Victim blaming is an ever-present issue in today's society and we need to step up and recognize other people's pain. trigger warning for emotional abuse, sexual assault, sexual abuse, assault, child abuse, kidnapping, addiction

As always, I hate giving such a low rating to a Black author but this book didn't know what it wanted to be.

Issues I Had With This Book:
* Is this a murder mystery, is it a thriller, is it a social commentary about abused and neglected Black girls? One could argue that it could be all those things and technically a book could do that (Sadie by Courtney Summers-sans Black girls) but it came across as if Jackson didn't know what she wanted this book to be. It was kinda all over the place for me. There are barely any books that focus on the overlooked exploited and abused Black girls and this was an opportunity but all the other things going on drew attention away from that.

* Chanty was under developed-At one point, Chanty says that her mother tells her she's mature for her age but I BEG to differ. From the very beginning, she acted like she was 15 and not 17 going on 18. She constantly squealed about Korey and talked about Disney movies. She should have been more mature considering she was the oldest of five with working parents but she wasn't written that way. I'm a teen librarian in a low-income working class community and many of my teens have to babysit their younger siblings and have jobs to help pay the bills. These teens talk about issues in their community; the inequality of school; gender and sexuality issues; not Disney. I'm not saying that Disney is immature as a lot of adults love Disney but if you are trying to convince me that she's mature enough for her parents to allow her to go by herself with a grown ass man, um...no.

-This book hinges on her maturity; it's called Grown. There were many occasions where I was asking why she was so naive. Did she seriously not realize what Crieghton was doing? Why did she think she could just finish her album and then leave? Rico from Jackpot was a better written Black girl with similar circumstances.

* I hate to say it but I don't think Jackson was the best author to tell this story.
- Jackson is trying to make the reader believe that Chanty was driven to Korey because her home life was not ideal but her home life wasn't bad. Okay, she went to a predominately White school. Okay, she had to take care of her siblings all the time. Okay, her parents we struggling with their money. Okay, her parents weren't supportive enough of her singing but the camel that broke the back was when they wouldn't get her a car?! Because Jackson was purposely using her home life to set her up as a girl that would think a 27 year old man would be seriously interested in a 17 year old high school student, I'm gonna focus on that. Often times young girls look for older men because they can provide something a teen boy can't-security; attention; money but Chanty got all of this at home. I could see her going with Korey because she was receiving no support from her family but that wasn't the case. WHY WOULD THIS GIRL THINK A 27 YEAR OLD MAN WOULD FALL IN LOVE WITH A 17 YEAR OLD HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT? WHAT IS GOING ON IN HER LIFE TO MAKE HER BELIVE HIM? Idk, because Jackson didn't write that girl. I can't get past that. This girl wouldn't have taken that path but I have read plenty of other girls in YA who would have.
- There are many books about girls who are sexually abused and assaulted but Jackson is not adding anything new to this issue. All of the justification by Chanty and victim blaming by other characters have all been said to death. Because this is about a Black girl, it automatically adds something new to this topic but Jackson does nothing with it. Black girls and women disappear all the time but law enforcement and the press do not care to take the time to talk about it. If you are White reading this review, ask yourself how many young Black girls do you know of that received nationwide coverage of their disappearance? But I bet you know Natalee Halloway and Jaycee Dugard and Elizabeth Smart. It's a real problem in the Black community but Jackson barely does anything with it. The whole issue with R. Kelly was also a missed opportunity because Kelly has been accused of rape of teen girls for YEARS and the Black community continued to listen to his music for YEARS-THAT IS NOT OKAY! Once again, missed opportunity. Jackson mentions it briefly but not enough. If you are going to write a book like this, you have to stand out; you have to say something different and give readers a new perspective; give readers a new voice; allow readers to learn about something different about a different race/culture. Don't regurgitate.
-If you are going to write a book about sexual assault and exploitation of teen girls, go for it. I felt like Jackson wasn't brave enough to write this book. Black Girl Unlimited went for it.

* I didn't like the pacing.
* Parents were underdeveloped
* The whole Gab thing was out of left field
* Chanty's whole justification thing for why she stayed-UGH! Once again, she wasn't set up well enough for me to believe that she would stay.

What I Liked:
* It started off well. I liked that Chanty wasn't Black enough for school and not bougie Black enough for the WW crew. I thought that was different and interesting.
* I liked the sister; I wish she was in it more

Overall
I was looking forward to this because I love the cover and the idea but I was so disappointed.

If you would like to see an interesting documentary about ignored Black women, check out the show, Unseen, on Amazon.

Tiffany D. Jackson’s books are thought provoking and layered. Grown is an intense ride through Enchanted’s dream of becoming a singer which turns into a nightmare after getting involved with someone she felt she could trust. Getting to know Enchanted and seeing her changes throughout the book had me wondering where she would end up in the end. This book kept me engaged and I wanted to know what was around the next turn.