the writing in this novel is so vivid! you feel as if you are in new york and africa with soila experiencing everything with her. while i enjoyed the writing immensely, i wish the characters were more loveable. i felt for soila and everything she went through but that’s the only character i really cared about. for me, i wanted to like a few characters other than the main one. i also wanted to feel more for the other characters whether it be anger, hope, etc. leticia was nice and so was molly but they were very one dimensional. i wanted to get to know everyone better…even soila’s overbearing mother.

i also think the sister could have been taken out of the equation or have her & her mother written with more depth. i expected a longer journey to finding the sister than her being so accessible. i wanted to know more about her mothers relationship with their father. it seemed like they were close but they weren’t. so many opportunities to vamp this book up!

we still don’t know why the father killed himself.

soila’s engagement was rushed in my opinion.

the part that fell short for me the most was the over communication about black people’s struggles. i get it that we should talk about the issues 24/7 BUT there is a way to make it flow within the story. it just felt like one chapter was strictly a back and forth between characters giving great awareness about the issues of african american men with police but it read like i was reading an informative pamphlet and a staged conversation. we talk about black people’s wrongful treatment in america on a normal basis but the dialogue in the book didn’t feel believable. also between 48% and 64%, i didn’t feel the same emotions as i did in the beginning and the end.

i would definitely re-read once it comes out cause the writing is there plus it really gives a great observation of lgbtqia+ in the african community, the notorious african vs african american debate, abortion, & difficult mother/daughter relationships.

This was a very good book with a few differing strengths and weaknesses.

I found the romantic storylines not as strong as the character's evolution in her understanding of the experiences of Black Americans. Another strength was her relationship with her mother and the traditional family relationship that removed her agency in life decisions. The storyline with the abusive priest was painful, poignant, and realistically unresolved. The love stories were less interesting to me and more typical rom com fare; essentially not the higher quality of the other storytelling.
One more note: the long-lost sister is Jewish and yet her character and storyline lack any aspects of that identity, culture, experiences. A more authentic Jewish voice was warranted. A senstivity reader might have been able to offer insights. As much as I appreciate inclusion of a Jewish character, it needed much more development.

This ARC was provided to me via Kindle, from Random House Publishing Group-Random House and #NetGalley. Thank you for the opportunity to preview and review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

This one is a touch out of my norm, an epic story nonetheless.

Wish I could give this many more than five stars! First of all, this is a story of a girl from Kenya, Soila, leaving her country to go to New York. Her mother is very controlling and insists Soila earns a business degree. Soila is not interested in a business degree but dare not go against her mother. But the best part of this story is following how Soila feels. She finds it difficult to find her place in America. There are great differences between the black people from her home and the black people in America. Also a great difference in how families are treated. It was simply a wonderful story. It took over my heart.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Soila is a young Kenyan girl coming of age in Nairobi in the nineties with an overbearing mother, a beloved grandmother and four aunts who more like sisters. Despite being perceived as a lucky girl because she hails from an affluent family, Soila longs to be free. Behind her tyranical mother's back she applies to university in America and gets accepted. Once she arrives, will Soila be able to adjust to the fast pace of NYC, a city so different from her own as well as learn how to navigate America by her race instead of her nationality, pick up
Irene Muchemi-Ndiritu endearing and enlightening, Lucky Girl to find out.

I thoroughly enjoyed Lucky Girl, it was beautifully written with simple yet sagacious prose. It is the perfect combination of Soila being the star of the novel and how the people she meets and the events that occur along the way shape her story. On a personal note, I loved the Black diasporic dialogue that occured on the page which tackled important differences and taboo misconceptions regarding what is means to be Black in America, both as a native and an immigrant. Finally, it was great to read a novel which had many points tension but no real trauma, a trait I am longing in Black and African literature. Well done I highly recommend Lucky Girl.