I had previously read the author’s debut novel His Only Wife and thought it was a strong 5 star book. So when I saw Nightbloom was written by Peace Adzo Medie, I was so excited to read it.

Nightbloom starts in Ghana from Akorfa’s point of view as a young girl. We meet Akorfa’s friend and cousin, Selasi, and see how their relationship evolves over the years. This book is rich in detail of life, the culture, the struggles, the injustices, and family dynamics of Ghana.I was engrossed in Akorfa’s story and life as she grows into an adult. Things are not always easy and become complicated, especially with her relationship with Selasi.

Not quite half way through the book, I realize we go from Akorfa’s adulthood to Selasi’s point of view starting as a girl. This is unfortunately where I started to become disappointed with the book. Some of the scenes are played out through Selasi’s perspective which at times really made me rethink the situation when it was told from Akorfa’s point of view. A lot of things made way more sense having Selasi’s perspective. However, I think this book could have been another strong 5 star book to me if we could have occasionally switched points of view throughout the girl’s life instead of reading through Akorfa’s life and then Selasi’s life. Towards the very end of the book, the point of view is slightly mixed.

This review is really tough for me. The 2 stories independently are really captivating, and the plot overall kept me interested. However, at times I did feel the plot would drag at times and I didn’t always want to read a scene or time period through Selasi’s point of view when I read Akorfa’s so long ago. In Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Harry, Ron, and Hermione turn back time and see events unfold but from a different perspective. Yes, you do learn things that way and make you completely see certain things differently. However, this part of the entire series was my least favorite. So when this book did that at times, it reminded me of this.

This author is extremely talented. If she writes a future novel, I will still excitedly want to read it. I think she just took a chance on the presentation of the story, and I didn’t connect with it as much as hopefully others will.

Thank you to Algonquin, Peace Adzo Medie, and Netgalley for allowing me to read an advanced reader’s copy.

Nightbloom by Peace Adzo Medie is the story of two best friends and cousins growing up in Ghana. As they grow older, their lives take different directions on different continents until decades later, they are together in Ghana again.

First, we read Akorfa's story. She is bright but quiet and studious. She dreams of attending college in the US and becoming a doctor. Then we read about Selasi. She's vivacious and outgoing, until something tragic happens that sends her life on different trajectory. Lastly, we read about the two women as they come together again in their home country.

My thoughts:
Nightbloom is a powerful story about women, our experiences, the relationships that shape us, and the tragedies that sometimes break us. I loved the dual POV, and I think the decision to share Akorfa's story first was brilliant! We have these perceptions of Akorfa, of Selasi, of their families, and their situations. Then we read Selasi's story, and we can see a different side of things. This is life! We as humans view the world in reference to ourselves because how can we see it any other way? Medie shows us what we miss out on when we're only concerned with our own view.
Granted just like in real life, there are times in Akorfa's and Selasi's lives when their pain is all consuming, and they're just trying their best to get through the day.

I admire Akorfa's tenacity. Despite what happened to her, she was able to build a beautiful life for herself in the US. I admire Selasi's perseverance and sheer force of will. She not only stood up for herself but others. Even when backed into a corner, she refused to give up. Her story will stay with me for awhile.

Nightbloom would be an excellent choice for book clubs. Not only will you learn about Ghanaian culture, but there are many topics for discussion. From female friendships to the relationships we have with family to the role that class, race, and gender plays in society, there's a lot that will make for great conversation.

CW: sexual assault, gaslighting, losing a parent

Can't wait to share more about Nightbloom as the publication date gets closer! All reviews are posted on Amazon, Goodreads, and Instagram.

Firstly, my gratitude goes to netgalley and Algonquin publishers for gifting me a copy of this book.

I think I expected much from this book because of my previous experience with the author’s previous book (His Only Wife) which I very much enjoyed. Nightbloom felt underwhelming for me because of its POV. I wished it was told differently(an alternating POV) than a parallel dual POV then I would have appreciated it better. Some themes were left unexplored which makes the story rushed. Some themes also like the family issues were overly explored.

Aside that, I enjoyed the storyline and the writing; simple and straightforward.

I’m glad that both main characters were able to find a common ground to their issues.

My advice to everybody going into this book should not expect much.

I enjoyed the story line, Selassie’s narration as well as her character. Strong headed like no other. I liked it for her at how she overcame the odds, succeeded and built a home and a thriving business.

The writing style didn’t help with free flow of the story. A number of repetition, boring narrations, and slow pace.

Regardless, it’s a good read

It is a no for me. I had high hope after reading His Only Wife. In fact, His Only Wife is one of my favourite books but this was a huge miss for me.

Told from 2 PoVs, the book Nightbloom tells the story of cousins Akorfa and Selassie. The cousins are inseparable friends but later the friendship breaks and it will be years before the truth comes out.

Here's what I think. Everything wrong with the book is the Point of View. 40% of the book is told from Akorfa's PoV, the other 40% is told from Selassie's PoV and 20% is mixed. It just felt like the same story. What annoyed me was starting Selassie's story from the beginning. Also, the story felt rushed. Several themes were left open and unexplored.

The depiction of class in the book is the only thing I enjoyed.
This book could have been better

This book evoked so many emotions in me. We watch the two best friends, Akorfa and Selasi, grow up together in the same household after Selasi’s mother dies and her father refuses to step up. The story os first told from Akorfa’s side and I will not lie, I started to really dislike Selasi until I read her side of the story and my heart just melted with empathy for both girls. This is a tale of miscommunication, harboured anger, forgiveness, and triumph. The exquisite way in which Peace Adzo intersects cultural identity, traditions, and the modern day-to-day existence of African women into this story leaves you turning page after page. I found myself immersed in life in Accra as the story unfolded. This was an amazing read! There were a few typos, but nothing too glaring. Thank you Net Galley for this advanced copy.

Disappointing

This novel of fraught family relationships in Ghana was emotionally difficult to read: there is so much bitterness, anger, resentment, and misunderstanding, with main characters self-absorbed with their own pain, and having no empathy for others.

Akorfa and Selasi are cousins born on the same day and year, and the first 11 years of their lives are spent living close together and being best friends, as their mothers are, despite being from different educational and occupational classes. Then circumstances change for both girls, they are separated, and they become emotionally as well as physically distant from each other, even when they are reunited in boarding school.

The first half of the book focuses on Akorfa, the only daughter of an upwardly mobile couple. She goes to college in America, and settles there. While seemingly successful, Akorfa comes to see herself as a victim, and one who can’t fight back. Her catalog of discontents and anxieties eventually became tedious for this reader.

In the second half of the book, Selasi, who remains in Ghana, takes center stage, and the book seems to take on some color and life. Also an only child, Selasi has a nurturing mother and an emotionally absent, often abusive, father. When she loses her mother, she goes to live with her loving grandmother; when her grandmother dies, she has no one, and is taken in by Akorfa’s family, reluctantly.

The first and second parts of the book offer contrasting perspectives on the events the girls shared, and this is instructive and fascinating.

Thought-provoking issues are raised, such as immigrant life in America, racism, sexism, political corruption, social and economic divides, and the effects of a history of family trauma. But many of the characters seem one-dimensional, and the drawn-out descriptions of hurt and anger do not add to the story, in fact making it tiresome. And there is no mention of or reference to “Nightbloom.” Do good things come from darkness? It seems an obscure and unsatisfactory title to a book I expected to enjoy, but did not.

Thank you to NetGalley and Algonquin Books for an advanced electronic copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Selasi and Akorfa are cousins, but their bond is stronger: they are inseparable. As they begin to grow and change, their class status and family life becomes clearer, and forces begin to drive them apart. Akorfa leaves to attend university in the USA, with Selasi remaining in Ghana. We see them become adults and face what they overlooked in their youth, showing that there really are two sides to every story.

I requested this because I enjoyed the author's debut novel, "His Only Wife," and I also saw this book recommended for people who enjoyed "The Girl With the Louding Voice," and that was enough to convince me. Even when it feels like there isn't a ton of plot driving the novel, you get into the depths of their emotions. The characters have issues but they aren't whiny or annoying. As the reader, you also get to see both sides of the story, with both of the girls adding their viewpoints. Any time I put the book down, I found myself wanting to check in with Selasi and Akorfa and make sure they were okay. It drew me in! The ending was satisfying, and I'll be thinking about this one for a while.

CW: sexual assault, rape, gaslighting, death (mentioned not described)

3.25/5 stars! Firstly, I feel like I learned a lot about Ghana and the social classes and culture of living there, as well as the acclimation of what immigrating to the United States, is like. I think the author's choice to do one POV fully first and then follow it with the other was unique, but it didn't work for me. Getting that far into the story and then resetting for Selasi's take was hard to connect with. I enjoyed the story but would have preferred POVs matching up throughout the story.

I received an advance review copy for free through NetGalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily

I was gifted a copy of this book from Net Galley and Algonquin Books in exchange for an honest review. This book is available on June 13, 2023. ⭐⭐⭐ ⭐️⭐️ This is my second book by this author and I liked this one more than the first. I love how the first part of the book was from Akorfa's point of view and the second half was the same story but from Selasi's point of view. It made you see how there really are always two sides to every story.

Nightbloom is more of a coming-of-age story of two young girls Akorfa and Selasi (cousins) into womanhood.
What I loved about this book is how easy it is to read and I enjoyed how peace weaves together the family dynamics. She explores other themes such as womanhood, classism, abuse, and friendship.

While the premise of the book is good, I think the structure Peace uses in telling the story didn’t quite work for me. The first 40% is narrated by Akorfa, a protagonist I find boring and unlikeable and the other 40% is by Selasi whose perspective was more engaging and enjoyable, and the rest is by both protagonists.

I felt some of the scenes were repetitive and dragged. I did like the ending, and I was glad the cousins got the closure they needed to move on with their respective lives. All in all, it was a good read.

I wanted to love this book, but it didn’t quite work for me.

The first half of the book started strong and was engaging, but when it switched characters I felt serious whiplash. It almost would have worked well going from alternating POVs rather than going through one persons entire life and then the others. I felt like the chapters were massive dumps of information lacking in present moments/dialogue.

I didn’t feel satisfied with the ending and felt like all the characters were hard to root for.

I did enjoy the cultural aspects and the themes of belonging, moving to a new country and forging an identity, and what it means to be Black in America. Those themes were written very powerfully.

First I would like to say thank you to Algonquin Books for the digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

His Only Wife was one of my favourite reads of 2020, so obviously I was desperately waiting to get my hands on this ARC. Unfortunately I think my expectations were set too high and I was let down by the story of Selasi and Akorfa. While the premise is not as scandalous as His Only Wife, I could tell there was a lot of potential for the story just from the synopsis.

The book is split into Akorfa's P.O.V. (40%) followed by Selasi's (40%) then both for the last 20%. The story recounts their relationship from babies, to teens to adulthood and uncovers all that transpires and leads to them not talking for decades.

Personally I would have enjoyed alternating P.O.V. 's because the flow of trying to go from babies to adulthood in the first 40% of the book from just Akorfa was a lot. It felt rushed and like Akorfa was just listing everything that happened to her. She also came off as unlikeable so it was really hard to get through and have empathy for her at times. Peace does a good job of making her wounds show as she gets older though. Even when she began to frustrate me but I know why she is the way she is so I forgave her.

Selasi was definitely the more interesting of the two and her P.O.V. of the events were so vastly different and had me hooked while I was reading. But once the incident with the politician kicked off it felt dragged out and repetitive and was honestly really hard to read due to the subject matter.

The ending unfortunately wasn't satisfying either I was more happy that it was done and the cousins got some sort of closure. Peace is definitely a talented writer and I will be looking out for her next books, but unfortunately Nightbloom didn't hit for me.

Honestly it was really difficult for me to get into this one. I didn’t find the writing as engaging and it was a very slow paced book. This might not be the book for me but I know this book will make its way to the right audience. I still encourage readers to give this book a chance!

Thank you to Netgalley and publisher for the e-arc!

I wanted to enjoy this but found it to be not what I was expecting. I couldn't get into the story or the characters and found the writing a bit off.