I heard about this book when I was on Tiktok. There was a tiktok where it was showing books similar to Sinners by Ryan Coogler and this was one of the books. I was a little taken aback via the cover but I added to my cart and brought it around a month later. I got it and I didn’t expect it to be this small but at least I can read 4 books at the same time again.
If you follow my goodreads, I usually read 3-4 books but I’ve decided to read 3 books at the same time and since this is a shorter book I can read another book with it.
My ratings
I saw people’s Goodreads accounts and their rating scale. It makes me want to that myself but not on my actual Goodreads account. Also Goodreads don’t allow 0 or even half stars. I’ll use half stars and 0s in my review but not on Goodreads if I do put them.
DNF
This means “Did not Finish”. These are books that I can’t read on anymore. Either it’s because I’m not enjoying the book or it’s problematic. I usually try and finish books but I can’t if I just don’t find them enjoyable. If I DNF a book in the middle then I won’t put it as read, maybe, and I will just put my review and the rating in the review. If it’s more than 60 percent, I’ll put it as read and rate it but it’s truly a DNF.
0 stars
This means this book is so terrible that I should’ve DNF it sooner. I don’t like to call authors being a terrible writer but sometimes that’s the case. This runs deeper than hate. But on GoodReads, it’s a one star.
1 star
There are some points in the book I like but a majority, I hate. It isn’t the best and i’m glad it isn’t the worst. It’s like getting an F on a test. It’s better than nothing but it’s still bad.
2 stars
I like this book a little more. There are going to be parts where i cringe but i’m fine with this. It’s like being served warm water. I won’t like it and I won’t drink all of it but at least it’s drinkable.
3 stars
The average rating. I give 3.5 at the beginning of books. I don’t hate the concept or the writing style. There is going to be parts where it messes up and I don’t like it but I am enjoying it. It not bad but not that good.
4 stars
Really amazing. There are parts where I hate but it’s not that bad. I would read again in 3 years just to like something again. It’s like giving me a plate of all of my favorite foods and coleslaw is on there, I’ll pick out the coleslaw and enjoy the rest.
5 stars
Probably one of the best books i’ve read. I will squeal everytime someone talks about it with me. I will proclaim to the world that this is one of my favorites. I love it!
Reminder
This book review is a little different from other book reviews. I will give my thoughts when I sit down and read them. However, I won’t be giving out every detail in the book, just major ones, lines that make me laugh and such. So I will be missing characters and plot lines. If you don’t want to be spoiled, then you can see my rating at the bottom of the page. Enjoy!
August 15th
So this starts in 1915 and we are introduced to a group of people who kill KKK members. Well, they are personified as monsters(they are). But I’m curious about Sadie. It was described that she has brown hair(which I assumed she was white) but she started staying the n word with a hard r for a page and then they called her yellow?
“Why I got to go get the trunk?” Sadie whines.
“Because we need to get a yella gal with big ol’ gun off the streets,” Chef retorts, throwing a rope over the warehouse edge
-Chapter 1, page 20.
Yellow might just means light skin black person in AAVE so i’m not sure.
August 17th
I wished I read this one day but I don’t like to read so much in one day. So Maryse is kinda telling the story of how the KKK(they are called Ku Klux here) became monsters.
Stories say they read from a conjuring book inked in blood on human skin.
-Chapter 2, page 30.
I can see where people would recommend this book if you liked Sinners. So there is a Gullah lady who does Hoodoo and Maryse and the gang know her by because she saved them. I do have trouble understanding Nana Jean though. I’ve beginning to think that the group killing these monsters aren’t all black because Emma, one of them said “nein” which is a German word, not saying there aren’t any black Germans, but they say a lot of “you people”
Sadie’s mama used to clean some big white man’s house back in Alabama. One day he get to watching her close and he. . .well, he done a very bad thing.
-Chapter 2, page 45
You mean to tell me this book about the KKK as monsters can’t tell me what he did? This book, assuming, is for adult audiences why are we sugar coating this.
So we find out, I knew this already, that the film The Birth of a Nation was the one that made the KKK into monsters and the director is set to release it again, where the first conjuring happened.
It’s an insane plot if you think about it.
“Lester Henry,” she says in a tone hot enough to lay down your baby hairs.
-Chapter 3, page 56
That was the most blackest sentence to describe something and I love it.
“You telling me, white folk is niggers?”
-Chapter 3, page 61
Ok moving on.
August 23rd
So this is me from the 25th(about to be 26th) and I didn’t feel like writing anything down for this day because I forgot to charge up my macbook and these chargers(macbook ones) suck!
I won’t go into detail but I’ll tell you what happened:
Sadie died(I won’t lie, we know the most about her so it made since she would die)
Some head of the KK named Butcher Cyde(almost called him Bradley Cooper) is out to get Maryse.
That’s pretty much the main thing anyways.
August 26th
I won’t lie, thinking about this book is making me not want to give it a perfect 5 out of 5 read. Maybe i’ll change my mind but it’s kinda corny and very surface le—you know i’m going to put this in the review. So Maryse(I guess goes into a realm in her mind. I don’t know) to see her aunts(which I forgot happened) because her sword is broken. The aunties reminds me of those 3 people in A wrinkle in time( i need to go re-read). So Maryse goes to this tree and gets sucked in and meets this guy who is called Dr. Bisset who is going to help her understand hate? I am very confused during this part.
So Maryse fucked up and now she is being dragged by 2 men who is. . .doing something to her.
When the first cut comes to my belly, I’d scream if I could. . .One reaches inside, lifting out something I think is my liver.
-Chapter 7, page 130
huh? I won’t like I was mindlessly reading before going back.
August 29th
I said I would finish the book on the 26th but I just didn’t feel like doing anything else. So they(Maryse’s group) comes and they see that they are playing Birth of a Nation.
I raise an eyebrow. Seem these Klans can hate well enough.
-Chapter 8, page 147.
I mean. . .yeah.
Ok so this is gonna sound so bad but why does the Ku Kluxes sound. . .cartoonish? I mean burning crosses, wearing white bedsheets and saying you hate someone is childish but like I’m just not terrified of them in this book. (Maybe i’m too hypercritical)
Also Maryse is so fucking dumb. Oh let me ask the head of the KKK if they can bring my black family back from the dead.
I’m even more mad at this book(I wasn’t that mad at this book). Like that’s what you think the offer is?!
Side note: I’m thinking Butcher Clyde is Butcher from The Boys and I don’t like it since Butcher(from The Boys) is fine to me.
Anyways. The real offer is giving Maryse power(who would’ve seen this coming)
“You ever heard the story of Truth and Lies?” I asked. “Well, I’ll get to the good part. You the Lie.”
-Chapter 8, 156
Maybe i’m being nitpicky but that wasn’t each chief. Long story short, The Night Doctors(with Dr. Bassiet) came and destroyed the Grand Cyclops1 and Maryse kills Butcher Clyde. And then she goes into a dream sequence(?) and she sees her brother Martin and Sadie. So Nana Jean comes up sing a Shout(basically in the world a magic thing I guess) defeats the rest of the Ku Kluxes. Like she didn’t do that in the first place?!
2So I have some ending thoughts about this book. I really like it but I wish I had something more. . .I guess. It felt too fast for me and we barely got to know the other characters or the other characters in Maryse’s group. Maybe I’ll reread it in the future and it could be a 5 star read.
Final Thoughts and rating
My final rating: 4.4
Goodreads rating: 4
So I had a lot of expectations for this book. After someone said this was like Sinners, I had to try it out and read it for myself but to find out, it sugar coats a lot of things(racism) that I wish it didn’t. I’m almost shock this isn’t a YA novel. I expected hardcore racism that it’s very horror esque but no. It’s like I was reading a YA novel(which I guess I don’t mind). The writing also felt very. . .stereotypical “main character defeats bad guy” Maybe I’m being to harsh or i’m setting my standards way too high but I don’t feel scared or anything for this book. I also wish it had more and more chapters. This is a topic that doesn’t need to be in a short book. It felt too fast for me and we barely got to know the other characters or the other characters in Maryse’s group. I do recommend it for people who want something that personifies racism(?). Still a good read.
Think of the grand wizard in the KKK
Putting this in my review