This book started out interestingly enough, but as it went on it got slower, and more boring, and then uncomfortable, then annoying, and then kid of infuriating. And the ending was pretty dissatisfying for me. I just really need a strong female character and Libertie didn't really make any choices for herself until the last couple pages, but then it just ended.

This novel is crafted with care and detail, a  poignant, searing, and evocative tale as the talented Kaitlyn Greenidge brings us into the life and thoughts of Libertie.  Beautiful, complex, lyrical, rich, and even painful at times, I would encourage anyone to explore it for themselves.

Was delighted to include Libertie in the latest edition of Novel Encounters, my column highlighting the month's top fiction for Zed Books, Zoomer magazine’s writers and reading vertical (full review at at link).

"I saw my mother raise a man from the dead. 'It still didn't help him much, my love,' she told me. But I saw her do it all the same. That's how I knew she was magic."

I was hooked from the opening lines.

Libertie intrigued me because it's inspired by the life of one of the first Black female doctors in the US. But even then, I didn't know what to expect.

It's a book about freedom. But "freedom" means different things to different people. Libertie's story begins in Antebellum USA. She is born free, though she is not free to make her own choices. Her mother has a plan for her—a plan for their future. And when she marries and moves to Haiti, her freedom is compromised for the benefit of the patriarch.

For most of the novel, Libertie doesn't know what she wants. She doesn't even know who she is. She only understands who she is, or isn't, in relation to her mother and to her future husband. She can't pass like her mother can, for her skin is too dark, and she is more intrigued by music than by medical school. Her husband and his Haitian family place certain expectations on Libertie that silence her and restrict her freedoms as a smart Black woman.

It's a slow read. It's a coming-of-age story, so Libertie's character is slowly developing, which means often the characters in her life are more interesting than she, at least initially. At times, I found it hard to stay focused and invested in the story because of the pace and the way it feels like several separate storylines, but, of course, they're all intertwined into Libertie's life story, which doesn't entirely come together until the end. I was intrigued by the Ben Daisy story and Libertie's childhood with her mother's endeavours to assist Black people before the civil war. I personally wasn't as interested in Libertie's time at medical school or her friendship with the Graces because it felt like a really lonely and uncertain time in her life. Her courtship with Emmanuel is also rather fast, which caught me off guard because the rest of the book is quite slow. But his character is intriguing, especially his relationship to Libertie's mother and his connection to and family history in Haiti. The Haitian storyline is really where things came together for me and where I started to enjoy this novel and appreciate the setup Kaitlyn Greenidge created for readers.

I also love the various mediums in the story, including Libertie's poetry, the Graces' songs, and the letters between Libertie and her mother. These moments feel more intimate and personal.

I was probably most intrigued with Libertie's relationship to her mother. It's a very unique mother-daughter relationship to me, and their love for each other is expressed differently than I anticipated. It's also a heartbreaking relationship in many ways. But this created a much more interesting dynamic.

In the end, I really enjoyed this book. Though it took me a while to get into it, everything came together in the end, and I was satisfied with Libertie's character development and aspirations.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review.