Maya is a well respected lawyer at a small firm in Georgia. When her father, Judge Joseph, passes away and leaves her the family home with a stipulation that her stepmother must be able to remain living there, her world is turned upside down.

Maya’s mother passed away when Maya was a pre-teen. A few years later, her father, a prominent member of the community and a revered judge, ended up marrying Jeanie. Jeanie and Maya have never gotten along and this change in circumstance only threatens to crack their relationship further.

What’s more, is the women are reeling from Joseph’s unexpected death. Jeanie turns to the bottle and sets all her home and parental responsibilities to the side. Her daughter and Maya’s step sister, Ryder, starts to rebel and finds herself in trouble with the police, jeopardizing her college scholarship. Maya is distracted - by her grief, by Jeanie’s spiraling, and by Ryder’s delinquency. She’s so distracted it ends up costing her a big promotion.

The women are in mourning, angry with one another, and bitter that Joseph put them in this situation. But Joseph had a bigger plan and his girls just need to figure it out.

This was a really well written story that covered a lot of heavy and relevant topics in an open and insightful way. Joseph and Maya are Black and Jeanie and Ryder are white and racial tensions were a big theme of the book. I really liked how Jeanie went through some self-improvement and learned that though she didn’t think she was racist, she exhibited micro aggressions and failed to recognize Maya’s struggles and difference in treatment.

I also really loved the dynamic between Ryder and Maya. I thought it was really beautiful that they called each other sisters (not stepsisters) and truly considers the other family. The girls were two peas in a pod and I loved how that storyline was developed and played out.

The novel was told by all three women in alternating chapters and I felt that helped develop each character and allowed us to empathize with their situations. Each woman faced a different challenge in connection with Joseph’s death and I think it was easy to see some of myself in each of them.

Racism, abuse, teenage rebellion, alcoholism, grief, family, and forgiveness were just some of the themes this novel covered. Overall, I found this to be a really enjoyable read and one I would definitely recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley, BookishFirst, and Kensington Books for an advanced copy of this novel.

I received a complimentary copy of this ebook from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book. Told from the viewpoints of Maya, Jeanie, and Ryder, it tells a heartbreaking story of how these three deal with the loss of their father/husband. They each struggle, whether it is by hardening their heart, drowning in drinks, or getting into trouble and they only way to get through it is to band together as a family and deal with those demons. I really felt for all three of them but I did like the way Maya and Ryder were such good sisters and I was rooting for them the whole time.

This book deals with the monsters of racism (like the hard times Jeanie and Joseph had when they got married), inequality due to sex or race, and alcoholism as well as the grieving process. Those were woven in well, as well as how Maya and the others dealt with these issues. There are sweet moments too, with growth from all of Judge's girls.

I definitely recommend this book! It stays with you and makes you think.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. Judge Joe passed away leaving his daughter Maya, his wife (stepmom Jeanie), and her daughter Ryder to figure out how to navigate life without him. There is so much anger and resentment between Maya and Jeanie, it will be a long road. This book is pretty good. Hard topics with a bit of humor. #judgesgirls #sharinaharris #Oct2020

A beautiful family drama! The characters were well drawn and sympathetic, and the storyline flowed seamlessly. Highly recommended!

Oh my god. What the heck just happened and why am I sobbing?!? THIS BOOK LET ME TELL YOU. This book is brilliant and beautiful and funny and lovely and heartbreaking and everything you could possibly want. I loved Ryder, who was smart and a kick ass poet and completely lost when her dad dies. I loved Maya, who takes stuff upper lip to the extreme, but is passionate about making the world a more just place. And Jeanie, who I couldn’t stand at the beginning, but as she is revealed through the pages, becomes real and lost and more... The racial aspects of the book are handled beautifully, with a bit of a smack on the head, and so much grace. This book was perfect.

I received this Advance Review Copy from Netgalley and Kensington Books in exchange for an honest review.
Thank you Netgalley, Kensington Books!!

Review

Judge’s Girls by Sharina Harris is an upcoming novel which will be releasing next month (27 October 2020) Judge’s Girls is the story of three girls (technically two girls and a women) who grieves over the death of the patriarch of the family Judge Joseph Donaldson. Each of them grieve in their very own way, which isn’t doing them any good. This book has so much information and point of views to share to the readers. It talks about grief, problems in broken families, multicultural interests, racism, inequality, the struggles and obstacles faced by Black Americans, life of women out in the big world, alcoholism and many more. Each of this topic in itself is very vast and big which has the capacity to make a story of their own. But the real talent of the author lies here, she had efficaciously clubbed all these issues together without leaving or saying anything hastily or confusing the readers. And has victoriously came up with this amazing end-product Judge’s Girls

The book is narrated from the perspective of three girls, the Judge Joe’s daughters, Maya and Ryder and his white wife Jeanie. The plot of the story was crystal clear and well planned but what made the book more interesting was the elements added into each pages of the book. Every word in the book had strong and deeper meaning. The writing style of the author was commendable, her writing had the power to grab the attention of the readers and they cannot think of anything other than the book, the plot and the characters. This feeling will persist on the readers minds even after finishing the book. I think Sharina Harris has some magical storytelling power to lock the readers inside the plot-line forever.

The lead character Maya, is an attorney in a corporate firm and the author had successfully brought in the Corporate Law Firm environment into the book. Everything revolving around Law and order, courts and judges felt very real, it gave a legal drama aura. The entire setting of the book was so beautiful and her words had so much power that it easily brought whatever she was saying in front of the readers eyes in a jiffy. That is one of the greatest talents an author can ever have.

The characterization of Maya was extraordinary, she is that kind of a women whom everybody will look up and crave to be like. Each and every single detail of Maya was written down so efficiently. The character development, the way she acted, the words she spoke, the way she carried herself in public was immaculate and quintessential. The readers cannot simply stop admiring her. The character of Jeanie initially felt insensitive and kinda spoiled-brat, the readers tend to hate her for her stupidity. But then she had her reasons and her character development and the steps she took to get her life back together was remarkably good. And Ryder, the teenage daughter of Judge Joe was like a cool breeze of air amidst Maya and Jeanie’s bigger problems. She was the final bridge connecting her mother and her sister. Her love towards poetry, the kind of poem she read and wrote made her very matured and sensible.

Though Judge Joe didn’t play much role in the book but the impact he had left behind on his family was very positive and that’s what drove the three of them in the right direction. The men in the book were perfect gentlemen – firstly, Roland Hill was the man of the book, his relationship with Maya and his genuine rapport with Maya’s sister Ryder, all of this made him adorable. And secondly Alston Wolf, his level of maturity and his obligation and desire to do the right thing was beyond amazing. The thing is Sharina Harris had penned down each and every character so beautifully that these characters will stay in your heart and teach you a lot of things you’d never have paid attention to earlier.

There were a handful of supporting characters, notable a couple female characters, Maya’s Aunt Clara-Bella and Jeanie’s friend Vic. These characters brought so much differences in the lives of the lead characters by making them see things clearly when they aren’t in their right mind. I especially loved the conversation between Jeanie and Vic because it brought lot of clarity about the issues the lead characters were dealing with.

The book spoke about grieving and addiction to alcohol at greater depth. The way the author had spoken about it elaborately made it absolutely real. The pain and struggle of getting back your life to normalcy was written with such tenacity and realistically. I appreciate the author for paying so much attention to it instead of telling it expeditiously which is one of the most common mistakes made by many authors while dealing with matters like these. This made the readers understand each character’s behavior, reaction and choices at a deeper level.

I really have to talk about this, the romance in the book was so exquisite. Either it be Maya’s romantic life or Ryder’s, each and every minute detail of it made the book even more interesting and aesthetic. It is one of the best thing about this book. It did not have too many romance sequences but still even that minimalist part was written down so enchantingly. This book had everything, it had a familial touch to it, it had love, it had romance, it had ambitions, it had societal issues. If you ask me it is a complete package and it’s completely worth the read.

My Views

So, there are few books which will stay in your mind and heart for a very long time even after you finish it. This is one such book, I’m very much hungover with this book. I cannot stop myself from thinking about it and I cannot start another book just yet. I just want to rethink it all over again and to live the story once again. This has never happened to me before, at least not at this intensity. And for that I love this book a lot.

Lot of sequences in the book was very strong and deep that I had to stop the book midway to take in whatever has been told and I reread most parts of the book again and again to reminiscent the whole experience. I loved this book so much and I think will be reading it yet again which I don’t usually do. Now you can understand how much I love this book.

So now the most important point about this book is, I found myself another Book Boyfriend with this book and he is none other than Roland Hill. And I’m sure he is going to stick on to my top three Book Boyfriends list. I loved him so much and I wanted to read lot about him, maybe a sequel would quench my thirst I guess ?

And as I told you earlier, Maya is the best character in the book and she is my favorite. I was pretty more interested in reading her side of the story and at times I felt like directly skipping to her parts. I was that impatient. She was very strong and inspiring and I almost felt seeing the younger version of Jessica Pearson from Suits (Am I allowed to say this ? But still Jessica is one of my favorite fictional characters) I also loved the way Ryder connected with everybody, she had this cute teenager energy.

The only difficulty I had while reading this book was, I’m not an American and I haven’t been to The United States ever. So all my knowledge about Racism, inequality are pretty theoretical, that I had either gained from reading books or by watching movies and series. As my knowledge about the issue was bare minimum, it would have been even more akin if the author had elaborated the issue a bit more for the sake of readers like me. For example, I didn’t know how Blacks were treated in Georgia until this book, so if I had the prior knowledge, it would’ve been even more good. But nonetheless I loved the book so very much. I’m gonna do a bit more research and read this book again.

My rating for this book would be 5 out of 5 stars

I recommend this book to everyone irrespective of your gender, nationality or whatever, this book will bring a positive impact on you. If you love women’s fiction, stories based on multicultural background, I’m sure this book will devour your hearts. This is a must read book to all. I’m so glad I read it!! This book will be a prick the heart of all the people who have been conveniently neglecting the issues happening in front of their eyes and it will be an eye-opener to people who haven’t been much aware of these issues. This book will definitely help each and everyone of us become a better versions of ourselves and motivate to do better.

Happy Reading Folks!!!

~ Meenu

This book was super good. It was super original and I flew through it. It didn't feel like anything I've read in the past. Can't wait to read more from the author!!

3.6 was good
People respond differently to loss. Often times the tensions between family members can heighten during that time making hidden feelings and issues bubble to the surface. I love how this book showed some of that and how the characters dealt with it. Blended families can be tough and today there are many of them. They come in all kinds of differences. This one happened to be of different races. I feel the cover tries to stress that this is the main point of the story but dont be fooled it is not! (which I loved personally) the characters do metion some differences and feelings with it but it is not the focas or the drama instead all the character show WHO they are as a human and their wants and needs. I loved how they also put some relationship struggles both as adults and young adult, with family and with men. I liked following their journey. I thought the story was very good and made you reflect some. I felt it was extremely predictable and nothing major happened in the plot line for me but it was still a nice heartwarming story.

I really liked this book. It dealt really well with grief, and how different people grieve differently. And, despite the serious subject, there were some really funny parts. And I loved the characters!

this book is absolutely everything i wanted it to be! Quickly became enthralled in the characters and could relate to them also because i live in a small Georgia Town.This book dealt with all the ugly and pretty things when it comes to grief in the best way possible kudos to Sharina for being so blunt but not crude in dealing with hard family things! I loved every single piece of judges girls and highly recommend that EVERYONE reads this!

This book focuses on 3 women( Jeanie, Ryder, and Maya) who have lost a very important male figure in their life and navigating their lives. The story focuses on family dynamics, second chances, and relationships( platonic, familial, and romantic). The story is told in each of their perspectives and shows how death can affect everyone differently and unhealthy coping mechanisms. It also shows how its often the people that love you the most that want the best for you.

Even though it took a while for me to get into this book I really enjoyed this book and how it dived into a variety of topics including family dynamics, grief,race, inequality, racism, love and etc.

There are some religious elements throughout the book so you can take that as a plus or a negative. There are also some intimate scenes.

If you are looking for a multi-faceted book that focuses on a myriad of topics or even just looking for a book about family relationships I would highly suggest this book!

Thank you again for allowing me to have the opportunity to read this.

Sharina Harris has become one of my favorite authors, moving swiftly up my automatic buy list. I love everything about her story-telling. When patriarch Judge Joseph Donaldson dies, his last will and testament proves to be a challenge for his wife and daughters. Forced to put their differences aside, the trio must come to terms with past hurts and current challenges, discovering that family bonds aren't always about blood connections. Ms Harris masterfully delves deep into lost love, found love, and new love with a beautiful balance of sensual heat and sexual tension.. Her characterizations are on point and from the first page to the last, I loved everything about JUDGE'S GIRLS!

I really enjoyed this book a lot. This story dealt so well with grief and how everyone grieves differently. I really connected to the story because I just lost my dad in November. It made me laugh out loud at parts and made me tear up at others. The characters were all really likable and well written and had major character growth happen. I liked how it gave readers hope that there can be life after death.

Thank You NetGalley/Publisher & Author for this gifted e-book!

Summary--
Three very different women. Only one thing in common. But when their family patriarch dies and they must share his estate, the truths they discover will test them--and everything they think they know about each other.

Beloved Georgia judge Joseph Donaldson was known for his unshakable fairness, his hard-won fortune--and a scandalous second marriage to his much-younger white secretary. Now he's left a will with a stunning provision. In order to collect their inheritance, his lawyer daughter Maya, her stepmother Jeanie, and Jeanie's teen daughter, Ryder, must live together at the family lake house. Maya and Jeanie don't exactly get along, but they reluctantly agree to try an uneasy peace for as long as it takes...

Review--
Ok WoW! I was not expecting this book to be like this at all!
It was beautifully very well written!
This book felt real in every aspect of real life! Which I loved.
The characters were amazing through the whole entire read.
This was a cute, funny, heart-breaking, enjoyable, lovable book.
That you don't want to miss!

Rating--4/5