A modern-day writer, Shanice Pierce, discovers a haunting portrait while cleaning out her grandmother's house, leading her to investigate the mysterious past of Harlem Renaissance artist Estelle Johnson. As Shanice delves deeper, she uncovers connections to the wealthy art patron Maude Bachmann, who was murdered shortly before Estelle vanished. Haunted by paranoia and convinced she's being stalked, Shanice realizes that the painting holds a deadly secret linked to recent deaths and a shocking truth she never anticipated.

This was such a fascinating read for me! I don't think I've read anything like it. I was intrigued the entire time by the dual timelines and following Shanice's present life while learning what happened in Estelle's past all while a mystery is unraveling. The twists and turns really got me at the end and although some were predictable I didn't mind because the others had my jaw dropping. I highly recommend this book and even reading the author's notes at the end to learn more about the inspiration for this story.

This was written really well, I immediately got sucked into both stories taking place in two different times lines from two different POV. This was a slow burn that was full of twists and turns, even though it was pretty obvious what some of those twists were it was still eerie and full of suspense so I really enjoyed it, I don't think it took anything away from the story. I think L.S. Stratton did a great job incorporating the Harlem Renaissance history into the story inspired by Charlotte Osgood Mason and and Zora Neale Hurston which sent me down a google rabbit hole.

Also at first I didn't care for the added romance in this book but it grew on me throughout LOL maybe 'Ill even check out a romance book now. Am I a low key romance girlie now? maybe.

I cant wait to read more from this author in the future.

Read this if you enjoy: historical thriller/mysteries, dual pov, dual timelines, slow burn, occult, superstitions, historical fiction, mental health rep.

Thank you to Union Square & Co, Netgalley, and L.S. Stratton for sharing a digital copy. As always, opinions are my own.

I received a complimentary copy of this book via Netgalley. Opinions expressed in this review are my own

As someone with cognitive issues, I sometimes get confused with duel time line books. Luckly for me, it was not the case with Do What Godmother Says thankfully.

Such a fun creepy adventure this book was and I already recommended it to a friend. Well done

I enjoyed this book so very much. It kept me entertained from start to finish and I throughly enjoyed the twist at the end. What an awesome story!

3 Stars ~

Shanice Pierce had everything going for her in life, she had a boyfriend who was supporting her through an internship as an editor at a magazine, until one day her bad luck just hit, and it hit hard.
Shanice lost her job, the same day her boyfriend of 5 years left her.

Shanice spent her unemployed days helping her grandmother clean up her house with the prospect to sell, her grandmother gives her a painting. A painting that has a mysterious past and seems to be grabbing unwanted attention.

- Dual Timelines
- Gothic Horror
- Mysterious Painting with huge backstory to uncover about the artists life

Although I mostly enjoyed this read, I felt like the dialogue was very unnatural and it may have been a bit too long for what happened in the story.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC in return for an honest review.

When Shanice Pierce inherits an old painting from her grandmother, she thinks it is just a peculiar piece, painted by a family friend. But recently out of a job and having been dumped by her boyfriend, she decides to do some research on the artist, a Harlem Renaissance painter name Estelle Johnson. What she finds leads her down a rabbit hole so deep, she finds herself dealing with cults, murder, and putting her very life at risk.

This book is told along two timelines: Shanice’s in the present day, and Essie’s in the past.

I absolutely loved this book. I have to get that out of the way. I was completely blown away from the moment I started this book with both storylines, that I was absolutely enthralled. Both Shanice and Essie are really intriguing characters, a bit naive and impulsive, but just trying to make their way in the world, when everything seems to work against them. They’re worth rooting for.

The ending was really intense - I mean, you knew “who” the bad guy was, but not “why” - and that part was just “WHOA.” Especially the very end. Wow, make sure you read until the last page, people!

There’s also some side storylines that are interesting that I enjoyed watching play out as well, but I won’t spoil it. I’ll just say this author is incredibly talented at making you think about things like race and class and how they play out in society.

My only quibble was with Shanice’s constant reference to her “disorder.” She says she was diagnosed with general anxiety disorder and has all these problems with it. She refers to it as “the beast,” and at points blames almost everything on it. But I would argue it sounds more like she has PTSD from the accident she survived that took her mother. I won’t say more, but GAD doesn’t really play out the way she describes. PTSD does. But that’s neither here nor there.

Anyway, I loved this book and highly recommend it. It’s incredible and rich with intrigue, mystery and thrills.

Do What Godmother Says is the rich historical thriller I needed in my life. If you could read midnight blue velvet, this book would be that. It was like sitting around a campfire and listening to someone with a James Earl Jones-like voice tell you a ghost story. I loved the alternating timelines, the realness of our main characters, Essie and Shanice. I related to Shanice especially, because I have an Anxiety Beast of my own. It makes you wary of everyone around you, and usually for good reason, as we soon come to find out. This was my first from the author, and it definitely won’t be my last, because it was quite a wonderful experience.

A new to me author but I was intrigued enough by the blurb to take a chance on Do What Godmother Says as Shanice is inexplicably drawn to find out more about a painting given to her by her grandmother. But the more she looks into the history of the painting and its artist Essie, the more strange things start to happen.

As Shanice’s paranoia mounted and alternating between the past and present, there was a steady flow to the story as this author wove both strands of this tale together with just enough twists and turns as it enfolded to keep me engrossed. I loved the paranormal vibes it gave off and which played right into Shanice’s emotions. If this book is any indication, L.S. Stratton is an author I’d be happy to read more from in future.

I was very interested in the plot because it was different from anything I've ever read. Shanice inherits a painting from her grandmother and it seems her bad luck before magnifies when those around her start to die. Shanice starts to dig deeper to find out more about Estelle and her paranoia increases. I found I would get freaked out a bit while reading this because it does get a little creepy.

This was an enjoyable historical gothic thriller. I loved how this book combined genres and I found the overall plot to be very intriguing. It took me a little while to get into this one, but after a bit I was invested in the story. There was so much packed into this book, which made it a fun read.

Do What Godmother Says" by L.S. Stratton is a captivating psychological thriller that delves into themes of family, trust, and dark secrets. Stratton masterfully builds tension and suspense, making it hard to put the book down. The characters are well-developed, and the twists are both surprising and satisfying. Overall, it's a compelling read for fans of the genre.

This was a unique blend of gothic, historical fiction, and thriller. This story is told through a dual timeline, from both past and present times. This element made it engaging and added to the suspense. This was more of a slow building story with an eerie vibe. Definitely an interesting read.

Thank you to The Union Square & Co for the gifted copy.

♡𝐀𝐮𝐝𝐢𝐨𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤 &| 𝐞𝐀𝐫𝐜 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰♡
4.5 🌟
-
𝐓𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐬 :
•black thriller | horror
•duel timeline
𝐓𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐠𝐞𝐫 𝐖𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 :
•generalized social anxiety
-
Historical fiction with a mix of horror | thriller. This book will take you on a roll coaster of twists, turns, and ups, and down to the point you will NOT know who to believe! The beginning is very slow and was a little hard for me to get into the book, but once you hit maybe 20%, it started to pick up, and I didn't want to put this book down. The duel timeline can sometime be a hit or miss for me, but for this story it was done very well and made the story more interesting and gave very great details and information that was highly important to the main storyline.
The narrators Aure Nash and York Whitake did an amazing job bringing this story to life!
♡𝐑𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞 June.11♡
-
Thank you, Netgalley, Union Square for the (eArc)-eBook, and Dreamscape Media for the (ALC)-audiobook for my honest review.

This took me a minute to get into but once I did I couldn't get enough! This is a historical fiction thriller mash up. There's a lot of twists and some are predictable and others not!

I was very interested in the plot because it was different from anything I've ever read. Shanice inherits a painting from her grandmother and it seems her bad luck before magnifies when those around her start to die. Shanice starts to dig deeper to find out more about Estelle and her paranoia increases. I found I would get freaked out a bit while reading this because it does get a little creepy.

We get a dual timeline which was done very well. I felt like both characters had equal time in the book and neither outshined each other. A unique read!

Thank you NetGalley and Union Square & Co for the e-arc.

#UnionSquare&Co
Thanks to #NetGalley and #UnionSquare&Co for the book #DoWhatGodmotherSays by #LSStratton. This book is about a painting that Shanice was given by her grandmother. She had been having bad luck until this painting shows up in her life. Now, she wants to know about the painter, Estelle Johnson., and the “Godmother”, Maude Bachman. The truth behind it all is scary and deadly.

Was there a moment this book pissed me off? Yes. Could I put this book down? No.

Finding out that "Do What Godmother Says" was based on a real patron during the Harlem Renaissance made it even more fascinating and a true page-turner for me. The historical fiction aspect of this book was thoroughly enjoyable. As someone who loves the arts, I appreciated how the author shone a light on the fact that Black artists were often sought after but silenced. This is an important message, not just during the Harlem Renaissance, but also in considering the generational ramifications of such actions down the line.

On a deeper level, there’s so much being said in this book that made me really enjoy it as a read. But even on the surface, there's plenty to enjoy. One could read this and simply enjoy the mix of the fanciful, the occult, the twists, and the turns. Yes, there was a level of predictability, but the author handled this in such a masterful way that, even if you saw one thing coming, there were ten other things you didn’t see.

The story starts off slow, introducing us to a young woman who loses her job, suffers a bad breakup, inherits a painting she doesn’t even want from her grandmother, and deals with terrible anxiety while still reeling from her mother's death years ago. Simultaneously, we follow the journey of a young artist during the Harlem Renaissance, and these two journeys eventually collide. I loved the duality of the stories and this slow build because, once the engine starts burning, choo-choo baby, the train takes off.

The characters all had very strong voices. The minute her grandmother said, “Don’t put your purse on the ground,” I looked over at my bag to make sure it was right next to me. I could feel Shanice’s hesitancy to approach Noah, her dad gives immediate dad vibes, and you could feel the allure of Maude's world while also being disgusted by it. The characters were well-written, and every character had this moral gray area that kept you guessing. Just when you thought you could trust one person, another would lie.

I found Shanice’s relationship with her grandmother was particularly compelling. Her grandmother was authentically herself, and this authenticity made her stand out. There was a complexity in the relationships between Shanice, her grandmother, and her father that felt so raw. Both her grandmother and father loved Shanice and her mother in ways they saw fit—one spiritual and one analytical. Both held secrets and past traumas, and all three were still grieving in their own ways, each with different approaches to what was happening to Shanice. It seemed they were all withering in some ways with the mothers pain and ultimately her choices. Especially the father who presents this as Shanice’s inherited struggle and inability to find strength within herself.

On the broader themes, this book explores mental health, the importance of passing down knowledge, and the challenges of generational wealth and ownership, especially in Black communities. The book also critiques the erasure of Black bodies and the exploitation of Black talent. This was particularly evident in the depiction of white saviorism and how it often comes at the expense of Black lives, art, and safety.

"Do What Godmother Says" was a compelling read that offered a mix of historical fiction, mystery, and a deep exploration of significant themes that more than held my attention. Highly recommend it!

Thanks to Netgalley & Union Square & Co. for the opportunity to read this ARC.

DNF! I love love the cover of this one, but it just didn’t do it for me. I didn’t find myself wanting to pick this one up! I may try again once it’s released!!

Historical fiction and thriller around the art world and the Harlem Renaissance? Yes, please! I loved this book. The dual timeline worked well, and I found all the characters to be compelling. The mental illness representation was well done, too, and that was a pleasant surprise.

Thank you to Union Square and Co and NetGalley for the ARC.

I think this novel is well written and has an interesting story to tell. Unfortunately I just don't think I'm the right audience.

3.5 stars for me

This thriller was a great read.
It does touch a lot on mental health and how it can affect generations, I thought the representation was done fantastically but if this is a trigger for you, please be mindful of that before reading.

The book had me hooked from the start with the past and present POV. I needed to know how they connected and really enjoyed how it was written.

You get to a point where you are questioning everyone and their involvement, which makes it a great thriller.