An intriguing story about memory, family, and the lives of residents of the Caribbean. Amaya in 2003 is living in Virginia and struggling a bit with her neurodiverse son and auntie who has dementia when she's approached by a woman with a Jamaican accent who claims to be her sister. This then takes the reader on a journey through Amaya's life, from the early years in Jamaica that she does not remember to her time in Trinidad where she met her husband and then forward. No spoilers about her sister. Mitchell has real affection for her characters. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A good read.

I read this ARC back in July and really enjoyed it. I can't believe it's already September and this gem comes out in a few weeks. Big up Caribbean authors!

𝚆𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚂𝚝𝚊𝚛𝚝 𝙱𝚊𝚍 𝙰 𝙼𝚘𝚛𝚗𝚒𝚗' is Carol Mitchell's moving debut novel detailing the life of Amaya Lin, a Jamaican immigrant to Trinidad and eventually the US. Life is good, until one day a strange woman makes an impossible claim that triggers some repressed memories, shaking Amaya to her core and forcing her to do a deep dive into a past that she's tried to avoid for years.

The novel's three interwoven narratives take readers from the US back in time to Trinidad and Jamaica to help piece together Amaya's traumatic story and her fight for survival. Throughout 𝚆𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚂𝚝𝚊𝚛𝚝 𝙱𝚊𝚍 𝙰 𝙼𝚘𝚛𝚗𝚒𝚗', Mitchell addresses the psychological impact of childhood trauma as well as the intersectionality of race, class, and gender, all while tying in the immigrant experience. With every new detail revealed, I became more and more engrossed in the authenticity and compelling nature of this book. This one is juicy, ya'll!

Amaya is a smart and resilient MC and her story ends (or begins? 👀) with a 💥bang💥 Even though I appreciated its final moments, I honestly wish we got a little more time with her and her family; so many questions left unanswered! I'm hoping that means there's a continuation of the craziness and that we get to see more of the Lin family and friends in the future. Lovers of immigrant stories, family drama, and Caribbean literature, you wont be able to put this one down!

Rating: 🇯🇲🇯🇲🇯🇲🇯🇲/5

Pub Day: September 19, 2023

Thank you to Carol Mitchell and Central Avenue Publishing for providing me with this e-ARC via NetGalley!

*All opinions in this review are 100% my own*

This book will definitely get bought in person once it’s officially out. For some reason, I could not put this book down. The characters voice was so easy to fall into.

I loved this one! I thought that it was creative, clever, heartbreaking, and intriguing. Amaya is such h a strong FMC and this book kept me wanting more throughout. I found myself thinking about it when I wasn't reading it and unable to put it down when I was

💫 book review 💫

title: What Start Bad A Mornin’ by Carol Mitchell
genre: General Fiction (Adult)/Literary Fiction
rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
pub day: 19th September 2023.

thanks to @netgalley the publishers and the author for this advance readers copy. 🥳🥳

"𝓦𝓱𝓪𝓽 𝓼𝓽𝓪𝓻𝓽 𝓫𝓪𝓭 𝓪 𝓶𝓸𝓻𝓷𝓲𝓷' 𝓬𝔂𝓪𝓷 𝓮𝓷𝓭 𝓰𝓸𝓸𝓭 𝓪 𝓮𝓿𝓮𝓷𝓲𝓷'."

"𝓣𝓱𝓮 𝔀𝓸𝓻𝓵𝓭 𝔀𝓲𝓵𝓵 𝓬𝓸𝓷𝓽𝓲𝓷𝓾𝓮 𝓽𝓸 𝓼𝓹𝓲𝓷 𝓲𝓯 𝔂𝓸𝓾 𝓹𝓾𝓽 𝓲𝓽 𝓭𝓸𝔀𝓷 𝓯𝓸𝓻 𝓪 𝓶𝓲𝓷𝓾𝓽𝓮 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓽𝓪𝓴𝓮 𝓬𝓪𝓻𝓮 𝓸𝓯 𝔂𝓸𝓾𝓻𝓼𝓮𝓵𝓯."

𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀: i like that the writing was so easy to read. i believe this is something Caribbean authors have really mastered. the story telling was smooth. 👏👏 i loved how the author chipped in a lot of history and touched on diverse cultures.

however, the ending felt rushed, like the author wanted to just give it a good ending (we didn’t get any further update on some of the characters, Angela, Aunt Marjorie and even Brian). it felt incomplete, like though there could be more. what happens next? overall, I thoroughly enjoyed the book! 🥳🥳

𝗯𝗹𝘂𝗿𝗯: Amaya Lin and her husband Brian Lin struggled to make ends meet after relocating from Trinidad to the United States. Amaya gives birth to her son, Taiwo, and 22 years later, despite having to care for her aunt who is suffering from dementia, things are going well for them. that's when the blackouts began - Amaya suddenly experiences blackout - as she struggles to piece together the puzzle of memories she suppressed 22 years ago.

cw: sibling separation, domestic violence, Alzheimer’s

the premise of this book is very intriguing - a commentary on the repression of trauma resulting in such severe memory loss that our main character is drawn back to her home in Jamaica to uncover the truth that she can no longer keep at bay. i was drawn into the storyline butttt

it fell short for me. there are some significant plot holes, a rushed ending and the characters are not well defined. i didn’t feel emotionally connected to anyone or anything. and the author engages with some negative stereotypes about drugs and people who use drugs as well as attempts to categorize people who commit crimes

if you’re into light, quick, page-turning reads, you’ll enjoy this!

thank you to @netgalley and @centralavenuepublishing for the advanced copy 🩵

Starting this book it takes a good few chapters to actually get into it but once you do it is worth it, the characters are so well written, I would highly recommend

This story is rich in character. It took a little bit for me to get into it. But once i was a couple chapters in I found the story was just amazing. Definitely worth reading again!

Carol Mitchell has crafted an intriguing story in What Start Bad a Mornin’. The loss of memory and blocking tragic situations is explored through an intense family drama set In Jamaica, Trinidad and the United States. This is an unusual but interesting book.

Thanks to NetGalley and Central Avenue Publishing for the opportunity to read this ARC.

This is a beautifully written story. The reveal of Amaya’s childhood and past is cleverly woven into the narrative. Rather than chapters skipping back in time Amaya has flashbacks stimulated by sensory triggers, and this somehow makes it a much more emotional uncovering. I felt like I was on the journey of discovery with her rather than just reading about it. Fantastically paced with heartfelt deep characters a definite recommendation.

Due out in September - add it to the to read list

@netgalley @centavepub

#bookreview #whatstartbadamornin #carolmitchell #childhoodtrauma #memories #carribean #immigration #canyourecommendagoodbook #bookstagram #bookrecommendations

This was a pretty quick read that started off a little slow. I kept reading wanting to know what happened but not because I was really invested in her story - also because I think it felt predictable once they mentioned the father’s history. The writing was beautiful and I loved reading about Jamaica and the overall history. I do wish there was an ending in present day as I had some unanswered questions about her life and what comes next.

The story of a woman who comes to America with only her new husband and no memories of her early life. She survives a son with autism, a mother in law who thinks she is a gold digger and dealing with an aunt who has dementia. Then her world is turned upside down when a stranger tells her that she is her sister. To find the truth she must travel back to her beginnings and find the past she blocked out.
Good book. I would have liked to find out what happened once she returned home.

Amaya Lin lives in Virginia with her husband, her adult son and her elderly Aunt Marjorie. As Amaya is leaving work one day to pick up Aunt Marjorie, she’s approached by a strange young woman who claims to be her sister. Amaya isn’t really fazed by the woman’s words.. but her Jamaican accent? That causes Amaya to black out.

This story takes place in 2003 and flashes back to Amaya’s teenage years in Jamaica and her early twenties in Trinidad. We learn that Amaya has no family and has practically no memories of growing up in Jamaica. However, as the book goes on, Amaya grows curious about why she can’t remember her past and small things like the woman’s accent cause her to black out but then recall repressed memories.

This book was written beautifully and the story was unique. I really enjoyed the historical aspect and the way the author interwove the political turmoil in Jamaica into Amaya’s personal story. However, I felt that the beginning of the book moved a bit slowly and I really kept reading because I wanted to know what happened, not necessarily because I was invested in Amaya’s story. I felt like the circle ended up fully closed on Amaya’s past but I had unanswered questions about the “present day” (2003) plot. All in all, an enjoyable read!

Thank you to NetGalley and Central Avenue Publishing for the e-ARC.