I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I was drawn into this book by the cover alone. After reading it I’m absolutely blown away.
I couldn’t imagine leaving my child but Eve and Sam wanted different things. Sam was ready Efe was not. Postpartum depression is a real thing and each person who has suffered from it has acted or handled it differently. This author approaches the subject with care. The dual POV helps you to understand both sides of who the MCs are.

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group -Ballentine and Net Galley for the opportunity to read this ebook in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC. This debut novel works its way backward to the present. The first chapter is Nineteen Years Before. We have the opportunity to know Efe’s life in London and the UK. We meet her very traditional family. She and Sam knew each other as children. They marry though Efe is reluctant. She makes it very clear that she does not want children. Efe is truly lost from a young age. Racism has left her physically and emotionally battered. She has no support from family or friends as she enters young adulthood. Her parents preach traditional values and emotional health is not something they understand. Her husband Sam loves Efe, but on his terms. He believes his success is their success.

I found myself immersed in the Ghanaian culture which was new to me. However, the book starts so slowly I was ready to give up. The structure seems like something Efe would approve of. I found it off-putting.

Rootless is an emotional roller coaster from start to finish. The story begins when Sam returns home to find his wife, Efe, has left him and their young daughter. Then we go on a journey through the past, as we face Sam and Efe trials and tribulations throughout the years. We uncover what could lead someone to make this drastic decision, and the roles that family and friends played in Efe's decision.

Rootless tackles important topics like marriage, mental health, motherhood, and loss. I thought several of those topics were handled masterfully. I was constantly wondering what was going to happen next. Several of the characters also challenged my line of thinking.

I do think this has a slower pace at times, and you have to stay invested for the story to pay off.

Sam and Efe meet in London far from their native Ghana. After troubled childhoods, they find happiness in one another until Efe becomes pregnant. Olivia is welcomed by her father and feared by her mother. The family survives for four years but, when a second child appears on the horizon, Efe reacts unconscionably according to Sam and her mother. Krystal Zara Appiah tells the story of two good people with different perspectives on motherhood and the role of women. They seem selfish and stubborn but as we read their stories we realize their motives. Can they find common ground? This novel’s characters have suffered from poor decision-making. Efe is advised by a friend that people can be a weight around your neck. “You just have to choose which weights you want to carry.” We witness in the closing chapters the results of these choices

I recently came across this title but I'm so glad I did because it was everything I needed at the time that I read it. I enjoyed this one and I'm so glad that I got the chance to read it! It was a deep & important read. I think most people will enjoy it as well once they dig into this book. I enjoyed the characters and enjoyed the writing by this author. I'm looking forward to to seeing what the author comes out with next as I'll definitely be reading it! Thank you to the publisher for my early copy of this book!

This was an incredibly powerful book. Efe is a character that has to deal with some incredibly trying times and circumstances. Throughout the book, there are some twists and turns that keep you wanting to know what comes next. Thank you for the opportunity to read this one.

This was a difficult book for me to read. As a mother, I simply could not relate to, nor really comprehend, a mother leaving her child. But the book was important in that it explored the complexities and messiness of relationships. It was a stretch for me to find empathy for Ebe but I wanted to understand her reasons for making the decisions she made. Life is difficult, relationships are difficult, and this book explores deep and important aspects of each.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me the opportunity to read and review this book.

Rootless is a great debut novel. It was everything I wanted.

The lives of two characters were shown through everything. The good, the bad, and the ugly. From family drama to trying to find oneself, I felt a lot of emotions reading this. I thoroughly enjoyed this read.

Thank you netgalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks Netgalley for allowing me to read this book. Sam has been married to Efe for many years. When he comes home he is shocked to find out that she left. This book wasxan emotional read and I liked this book.

I think this is going to be a big hit. Lots to talk about in a novel when a woman leaves her child behind and you get to explore a couple's life and marriage. Lots of threads about men, women, cultural expectations, finances, marriage, partnership, and education. The book really packed it in but was well written and well paced.

This is a poignant and bittersweet debut novel about marriage and motherhood. Every relationship and marriage has its ebb and flow and it is no different for the two main characters, Sam and Ebe. Why Ebe suddenly leaves Sam and their four-year-old daughter has no easy answers. Their complicated relationship didn't resonate with me personally and it didn't grab me in the beginning, but I'm glad that I didn't stop reading because this fictional relationship drama ended up being an insightful and emotional story.

Best debut novel I’ve ever read. I thought I was going to hate Efe’s character but after realizing how complex her journey of self discovery and motherhood I couldn’t help but simpathize with her character. This book has me excited for what the author will do next.

<i>Rootless</i> was excellent. Efe and Samson have known each other since they were adolescents. In present day, they are married. Krystle Zara Appiah takes us back to the germination of their relationship, and then through each year of their journey together as the book goes on. I loved the way Appiah showed the development of their friendship into, later, romantic love; how the two came together, learned to care for one another in different ways, and how their lives progressed.

I felt so much pain for Efe. It is obvious to the reader that she would prefer to be childless, but is pressured by Sam and her family to be a parent. And when she becomes a parent, it's truly awful. I think Appiah voiced a reality for many mothers that is often hidden: being a parent is hard. Being a parent without the support you need and deserve is even harder.

I found myself really angry with Sam. So many of his choices and beliefs felt unreasonable and unpalatable to me. I don't want to say too much and risk spoiling things. The point is, the pain and anger I felt meant these characters came alive for me.

I appreciated the slice of Ghanaian culture that was shared, and how it was overlaid on the experience of being Ghanaian in England. <i>Rootless</i> touches on many important topics, all branches of what it's like to be a female in a patriarchal society. It's a lot of sadness, but there are some moments of levity and joy, too.

My only complaint about <i>Rootless</I> was that it felt like it took a long time to get where it's going. I'm hopeful that with some final edits before publishing, it will improve in this area. Highly recommended.

Favorite quote:
<i>"She hates that he can want someone he has never met more than he wants her, the person standing right beside him."</I>

I’m blown away by this emotional, yet stunning debut. Efe is probably one of the best written characters I’ve encountered this year.

BLOWN AWAY! What an unforgettable debut novel!

Let me tell you, this book will be on every list come 2023. I truly cannot believe this is a debut novel, it is well written, and filled with characters you cannot help but cheer for, who is going through relatable things. I cannot recommend Rootless enough.

Rootless opens with Sam reaching home and not finding his wife Efe. Their bank account is missing $1,300, their daughter is crying and Efe is not picking up her phone. Sam feels totally blind-sighted, where is Efe? Where did the money go? Why isn’t Efe’s sister picking up? How does one disappear?

Efe and her sister were sent to the UK from Ghana to live with her Aunty for a better life. Efe and her sister thrived somewhat in the UK but they missed home. Efe wasn’t sure where her place is in the world but she knew she wanted to leave an impact. She met Sam while in high school and they stay connected while in University. Through a series of events, they got together later in life, got married and everything was going great, until Efe accidentally got pregnant.

Efe struggled through her first pregnancy, she went through it because Sam left her no choice. Motherhood was hard for Efe, so much so her parents came from Ghana to take her child from her. After three years, Efe and Sam are finally happy, back into a groove, and enjoying their marriage and being a parent. That is until Efe disappears.

A truly heartbreaking novel about motherhood, tradition, marriage, regret, love, family, and what it means to lose yourself for others. The author covered the theme in such a layered and brilliant way. It is one of those books you read and you can feel your heart constricting because while you don’t want the book to end, you need to find out what happens. A truly brilliant book that EVERYONE will love!

This is part of my review;

The way the book comes together makes so much sense in fact, with every annoying character, and event supplementing one other, and building up for the end of the book.

However, my favorite parts of the book are the moments where Efe completely breaks down because she has had so much to deal with in regards to this new baby that she was not sure she wanted in the first place, and an un-understanding partner and family. I am not saying this because I am a masochist who likes pain but because the author writes these parts extremely well. These moments felt so raw, so true, so honest. They touched something deep in me, and I really loved that because that just made me enjoy this book so much more. Needless to say, this book gripped me! I could not stop turning the pages until I reached the final end!

I have received this book from Net Galley and here is my honest review. Rootless is an interesting book that takes us through different stages of a couples live that starts when they were very young. They met in Ghana, the main characters name are Sam and Efe! Sam was brilliant and after high school went to college. He studied Law! Efe wanted a career in painting. The both lived in London. They fell in love and married some years later. Sam wanted a family but Efe felt she didn't have it in her . It didn't feel natural to her, she didn't have a maternal instinct! After a few years of being happily married she became pregnant. She hated every minute and after delivering a baby girl had post part um depression. A year and a half after the baby was born she was pregnant. She was torn with what to do. She had an abortion and left Sam and her baby daughter and fled to Ghana. what follows us anguish for Sam and Efe , the destruction of her family, including her parents. Its very interesting to learn about there culture and what was expected and how they fought to live independently! I recommend this book. It was a great read!

This is a debut?? Ok, I’m officially wowed, Ms.Krystle Appiah. You have brought a grown man to tears with that unexpected ending. The denouement was such a surprise, mainly because it was so skillfully tucked away into a beautiful story of family, home, motherhood, honesty, and the importance of being rooted in every sense of that word. I can’t believe this is a debut.

The protagonist, Efe, is so richly fleshed out, that you feel every emotion right along with her, as if she is real. If you don’t feel this, check your empathy muscles and see that they haven’t atrophied. This work is beautifully constructed and even though we know from the publisher summary that Efe and Sam will be husband and wife, that knowledge doesn’t disturb the story of them coming together, that is due to the great pacing and placing of various scenarios, all highly realistic and relatable.

After Sam and Efe have their first child, Efe suffers from postpartum depression, Ms.Krystle Appiah handles this so adroitly that it’s not even named nor forcefully thrust upon readers. After, her recovery from postpartum, Efe and Sam work hard to rebuild their relationship and one can imagine after that experience how difficult that could be.

Ms. Appiah could have taken the readers down the heavy drama rode, but thankfully she didn’t and kept us on the real and engaging journey. By this point in the novel the reader will know they are in the capable hands of a writer flirting with greatness. Those plotting decisions result in a top notch debut. READ THIS! This book doesn’t drop until April of 2023, and I’m guaranteeing right now, this will unquestionably be one of your best reads of ‘23! It’s that damn good! Thanks to Netgalley and Ballantine Books for an ARC.

BLOWN AWAY! What an unforgettable debut novel!

Let me tell you, this book will be on every list come 2023. I truly cannot believe this is a debut novel, it is well written, filled with characters you cannot help but cheer for, who are going through relatable things. I cannot recommend Rootless enough.

Relating to the struggles of motherhood and staying true to self is something that drew me to this book.

Sam and Efe have a relationship many crave and yet compromises and one's true want to not lose oneself and yet pleasing to your mate takes you on a rollercoaster of emotions in this novel. The writer allowed you to feel for both Sam and Efe and relate to the struggles that come about, for many, during motherhood and choosing to become a mother.