Anise Vance

This novel was given to me by a friend who is a friend of the author. It is an outstanding dystopian novel about black people living in an imaginary area in New Jersey who hope to organize a "revolution" to end white supremacy in America. For reasons not entirely clear to me, reading this novel reminded me of Margaret Atwood's works. Although her novels project a very different situation, the works may be similar in the way the minds of the characters are probed. This book is not particularly plot-driven. It is more a look into the minds of a number of people who come together as part of this revolution but have different ideas about how it should move forward. Some believe there should be attacks on white supremacists. Others believe that only when met with violence should one attack the other side. But what happens when you are confronted with the reality? What does your instinct cause you to do? There are complex networks of people who serve on the outside to funnel information and supplies across the rivers to the island in New Jersey where the rebels live. Most of the novel addresses the thoughts of these people and the pain in their lives that brought them to the island to fight for freedom and justice. How should justice be achieved? A question that has many answers but no solutions. Beautiful writing with a complex assessment of relationships between people with each other and with themselves. Highly recommended.… (altro)

After a young, black, unarmed teen is shot and killed by police, a revolution is formed in an abandoned housing project called Hush Harbor, in honor of the secret spaces their enslaved ancestors would gather. Jeremiah Prince and his sister, Nova, are the leaders, but their ideological differences regarding how the movement should proceed differ. When a new mayor with ties to white supremacists threatens the group and locks the city down, they collectively must come up with a plan of survival.

As much as I thought this novel would be about the revolution and protests and marching - this was mostly about an already established, what felt more like a commune, movement. This also focused on the personal experience of the members, especially Malik, who, at the beginning of the novel, was getting recruited right in the middle of it all.

The story was still good and I enjoyed it, but it wasn’t what I was expecting going into it. Of course the issues with racism and white supremacy are the main focus of this book and the author did a wonderful job at writing those. I think I may have struggled with the writing style a bit. It would go from super formalic and dense to a whole page full of dialogue with no movement indication. It didn’t catch my emotions and though I was interested in the story, I didn’t care too much for the characters, minus Jeremiah’s story.

Overall, this was still a good story and an important one at that. The debut writings of this author still intrigue me to read more of his when the next release comes.

*Thank you Hanover Square Press and NetGalley for a digital advance copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review… (altro)

I received an advance copy of this book. Thank you.
I found this book very powerful and compelling; although I was left a little confused by the end of the story.
It starts as a story we are hearing too often. After an unarmed black youth is gunned down by police, protests rise up again. This time protests go further; a resistance movement gains momentum and a revolution is born. They take over an abandon housing project, soon forming a tight knit community. They call their new home Hush Harbor in honor and remembrance of what enslaved people used to call the area where they felt safe to gather and pray. The story is told from 5 points of view: Jeramiah Prince, Nova Prince, Zahra, Quinn and Malik; Jeramiah and Nova Prince being the leaders of the group. As the story progresses, we discover how they know each other, where they've come from, their history that compelled them to fight for their cause. Although they all want the same thing and are willing to sacrifice everything, they disagree on how to achieve this.
Touching and thoughtfully written.… (altro)