Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for the copy of Acts of Forgiveness, a debut by Maura Cheeks. It took some time for me to find the rhythm of the book- the timeline jumps were a little confusing. I had no idea where the story was going and how seamlessly each thread would come together in the end and it wasn’t until Willie started doing her genealogy research that I got so involved I couldn’t stop reading. The family’s history was painful to read, but Cheeks wisely added a scene that was so beautiful I had to close the book for a minute and just let myself *feel* it. Sometimes an epilogue feels just tacked on, but I loved how this one pulled everything together. If you want a beautifully written family story with richly-drawn characters you can’t go wrong with this one. 4.5 stars rounded up to 5.

“Acts of Forgiveness,” by Maura Cheeks, is a book about a family. What makes a family, how families function, how they get along, and how they work together. This book is about individuals but also how an individual fits within the whole. This wasn’t the hard-hitting commentary I thought it might be but instead is more a character study (maybe a “family study” is more accurate). As other reviewers mentioned, there are a number of time jumps that, frankly, I was a bit taken aback by, though for better understanding of characters and situations, it made sense, but I wish that the transitions could have been smoother. I felt this was an interesting read, but the pacing felt a bit slow in places and some of the time jump randomness took me away from the depth of the story.

**thank you to NetGalley for sending me an ARC for my honest review**

When I was sent an email to read Acts of Forgiveness by Maura Cheeks, I got excited to be chosen. I read the brief description and was interested to see how the book would play out.

I’m not big on giving spoilers when posting reviews so what I will say is that this book wasn’t what I expected. First, books that have a time jump always are hard for me to love. However, I thought it was warranted to allow us to better understand the character development.

Think family focused, understanding and processing family trauma, putting your goals on the back burner for family…

Overall, a great read and worth the read if you like any books with the focuses above.

I rated the book four stars because I enjoyed Willies character, I could relate to some of the themes, and I personally love the idea of financial reparations for those who were enslaved.

I took one star away for the random chapters of other POV, there is parts where it felt slow, and I feel like it could have had more of an bang with such a topic.

ACTS OF FORGIVENESS will be released on February 13,2024!

ACTS OF FORGIVENESS isn't the hard-hitting political criticism with a dash of speculative/what-if-ism that I expected it to be. It's really more of a literary character study. A calm, lovely film about generational suffering and having to sacrifice goals for family. If I had known that going in, I might have been more tempted to give it four stars.

Don't misunderstand me. This is a moving novel, and I thoroughly loved getting to know the characters. I simply thought:

1. The time jump felt strange. Following the announcement of the reparations, we jump back in time to when one of our key narrators, Willie, is a young child. We get to watch her mature. We learn about her family and her sometimes tumultuous adolescence. Then we take another leap. The novel can feel fragmented at times, as if I were dragged out of the study and thrown back into the present story.

2. There were a few chapters from the perspective of Willie's daughter, Paloma. I enjoyed getting to know her, although she seemed to be tossed in there at times.



3. Some sections dragged, particularly in the middle. I found myself skimming a little bit. It didn't detract from the overall experience, but I believe some stuff might have been eliminated.

Nonetheless, I had a good time with this book. If you're seeking for a literary look into generational pain and a family story, this could be the book for you.