Review: Sweet Pea by Kit de Waal

 

Sweet Pea by Kit de Waal is a very thoughtful, character-driven story about grief, motherhood, belonging, and the unexpected ways people become family. de Waal writes about complicated lives and personal relationships with commendable warmth and sensitivity.

What stood out to me was the exploration of family beyond blood ties, the importance of kindness, and how people navigate loss and difficult circumstances. The novel focuses on Paulette's (Sweet Pea's) yearning for love and a family of her own, all the characters and their experiences. Although, it did not work out how she thought, she found one through some of the people she interacts with.

Overall, Sweet Pea is a well-written, thoughtful novel with plenty to reflect on especially if you are from the Caribbean or the diaspora. As a #ReadCaribbean title (Paulette is from St. Kitts), I appreciated the emotional depth and experiences she brought to this story. It is relatable and made it easy to connect. 

Thank you to #NetGalley, the author Kit de Waal and St. Martin's Press for a digital copy (ebook) of #Sweetpea in exchange for my honest opinion. #Sweetpea is out tomorrow, November 3, 2026. 

Review: A Confederacy of Dunces - A Graphic Novel

 

A Confederacy of Dunces by Albert Monteys is a graphic novel adaptation of John Kennedy Toole's 1980 comedic novel. This 21st century version makes the story easier to read and connect with. It follows Ignatius a regular 'bloke' and his daily adventures and escapades. This was okay, rather dull and boring at times. It felt like Monteys' was trying to create a modern version of American Splendor (published in 1976). Tried too hard and fell short. Despite this the artwork was okay, had a gritty look like American Splendor. 

Thank you to #NetGalley, the author Albert Monteys and BOOM! Studios for a digital copy (ebook) of #AConfederacyofDunces in exchange for my honest opinion. #AConfederacyofDunces is out tomorrow, September 29, 2026. 

Review: Look! A Bear! by Elise Kleven

 

This is such a cute picture book. All Remy the rabbit wants to do is make friends and play. The illustrations are super cute and has a pencil crayon vibe that I love. 

Most picture books have some lesson to teach and I think Look! A Bear! has one but not for kids. It's a lesson for parents to careful not to impose their issues and fears onto their children. Remy wanted to make a new friend and play with Bella the bear yet her parents were pointing out that Bella was different and bears and rabbits can't be friends. Bella and Remy did not see any difference. All they saw was that there was an opportunity to make a new friend and have some friend.

Thank you to #NetGalley, the author and illustrator Elise Kleven and The Collective Book Studio | Tiny Torch Books for a digital copy (ebook) of #LookABear in exchange for my honest opinion.#LookABear is out tomorrow, September 29, 2026. 

REVIEW: Queenie Is Working On It by Candice Carty-Williams

 

Queenie "Hot-Mess" Jenkins is back. Older but not necessarily wiser. Queenie Is Working On It is the follow up to Candice Carty-Williams bestseller Queenie (my favorite of all her books) and one of this Summer's most anticipated reads. 

Queenie's life is still the same as it was before, she is still trying to figure out her life. She now has a better "more permanent" job that she actually likes. She is "seeing" someone, a friends with benefits situationship. She is still searching for her thing and her place in the world. I enjoyed this novel, I continue to enjoy watching Queenie trying to figure out her life. She is very relatable as we all are trying to figure out our own lives, taking it day by day while trying not to fall apart. The only issue I had was that Queenie's character still has some growing up to do. She as a grown adult is approaching life like a 20 something year old college student. I am going to predict that if there is another Queenie novel, the title will be Queenie: Grown and Sexy that lends to her finally figuring her ish out, has a stable relationship or realizes that she is fine on her own and will start loving who she is. 

Thank you to #NetGalley, the author Candice Carty-Williams and Gallery Books | Gallery/Scout Press for a digital copy (ebook) of #QueenieIsWorkingOnIt in exchange for my honest opinion.#QueenieIsWorkingOnIt is out today, September 8, 2026. 

REVIEW: The Disappearers by Marlon James

The Disappearers by Marlon James is truly a masterpiece. 

Set primarily in Jamaica beginning in 1988, the novel follows a group of gay men who respond to an ad for actors to audition for a gay play. Just to note it was not a group of men coming together to rehearse for a "regular" play, it was a group or a group of men joining a co-ed cast. Many will find this book difficult to read because the themes are uncomfortable or disturbing especially the extremely graphic violence and sexual content is because Jamaica according to Time Magazine in 2006 was the most homophobic country in the world*.

The novel is centered around an event that was not proven to be factual. The alleged incident was allegedly based on hearsay, rumor and gossip and Jamaicans do not care about fact checking before they "investigate" and unleash justice. I should know, I am Jamaican. In a recent interview James said "..in Jamaica we trust rumours more than facts, so the fact that people kept whispering about it meant it was true."** The only event I can remember from 1988 is Hurricane Gilbert. I found myself taking mental breaks at times, it is a lot to process and digest so the faint of heart or very sensitive readers are duly warned. 

James came back to the literary world with a true tour de force. The Disappears was longlisted for the Booker Prize before it was even published, something that literally never happens. That's how good this book is and left a lasting mark on the selection committee and I agree. I cannot wait for my preordered copy to arrive. Everyone needs to read this book and approach it with an open mind and really think about how people are labeled by society and mistreated accordingly. 

The only issues I had were (1) more patois was needed, (2) a few grammatical issues (granted this is a review of the uncorrected proof) that caused me to reread a number of sentences multiple times to understand what was being conveyed and for the love of [insert your higher being person] enough of Kurt Cobain. One other thing is the focus of Jamaica's university English lit courses, very white American and British and void of regional works. I was in primary school in the 80's so I can't verify this part of our education system.  

The Disappearers is many things brutal, angry, unflinching, queer, complex, haunting, · provocative, funny (yes, I laughed many times), ambitious and unforgettable. And apart for being a Booker Prize worthy 5star masterpiece, The Disappearers is unapologetically Jamaican. 

Thank you to #NetGalley, the author Marlon James and Riverhead | Riverhead Books for a digital copy (ebook) of #TheDisappearers in exchange for my honest opinion. #TheDisappearers will be published on September 1, 2026. 

P.S. Note to Mr. James, your fans have not forgotten that we are due the last book in The Dark Star Trilogy. 

* https://time.com/archive/6939331/the-most-homophobic-place-on-earth/ 

**This quote was taken from a Booker Prize longlisted author interview published on August 16, 2026 https://thebookerprizes.com/the-booker-library/features/marlon-james-interview.