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The Other Black Girl - Zakiya Dalila Harris

 



Description

'The Get Out meets The Devil Wears Prada crossover you've been waiting for' Cosmopolitan

'Riveting, fearless and vividly original'
Emily St. John Mandel

'The year's most buzzed-about debut' i

Get Out meets The Devil Wears Prada in this electric debut about the tension that unfurls when two young Black women meet against the starkly white backdrop of book publishing.

Twenty-six-year-old editorial assistant Nella Rogers is tired of being the only Black employee at Wagner Books. Fed up with the isolation and the micro-aggressions, she’s thrilled when Hazel starts working in the cubicle beside hers. They’ve only just started comparing natural hair care regimens, though, when a string of uncomfortable events cause Nella to become Public Enemy Number One and Hazel, the Office Darling.

Then the notes begin to appear on Nella’s desk: LEAVE WAGNER. NOW.

It’s hard to believe Hazel is behind these hostile messages. But as Nella starts to spiral and obsess over the sinister forces at play, she soon realises that there is a lot more at stake than her career.

A whip-smart and dynamic thriller and sly social commentary, The Other Black Girl will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very last twist.


Review


Sucked in by the comparison to The Devil Wears Prada I felt a little cheated by this book.

The rivalry and goings on, plus the redoubtable boss do indeed resemble The DWP book, but it stops there. This goes much deeper and is very dark, not a light hearted read by any means.

The book began with a character I didn't recognise from the blurb but I plodded on and soon found my way into the book. Then the flashbacks began to feature characters doing things unrelated to the main story and I got a little confused. Around 60% into the book the penny dropped about what was actually happening, but then I had to suspend my disbelief too.

I do think the book went on far too long with the scene setting and long drawn out descriptions of days in the office. The action took place in the last 25% of the book. Otherwise it was an imaginative storyline that definitely highlights issues not only in the publishing industry but in the world at large.

Be prepared to stick with this until the end for the pay off and to expect a rather out there plot line. I admit being intrigued about how this was all going to end. I did have to read the ending twice just to make sure I had understood the last twist - not the ending I was hoping for, but a good ending non the less.

I'm giving this book 3 out of 5 stars. My thanks to netgalley for the ARC to review.

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