When I was on holiday last week we went to Whitby and went into a discount book shop there. It was there when we visited in January but it was closed, so I was happy it was open this time. The Young Adult section was pretty decent, lots of contemporary stuff and lots of diverse stuff. They had three books for a fiver so I picked three up, including this one. I then read it while we were on holiday, and actually at a day spa that we were at for our anniversary. It is a novella so it isn't very long, so I read it very quickly.
I read Queenie by Candice Carty-Williams and liked it, so I was intrigued to read her first YA story. However, I think she missed the mark a bit with it. She maybe just isn't that familiar with YA and its ages and tropes and stuff. The speech between the girls especially skewed a lot younger than the age they were supposed to be.
So, anyway, Empress and Aniya are now at the same school. It is a private school and Empress has got herself a scholarship. Aniya has been there for years. Her parents are rich, she lives in a huge house. She has a lot of privilege. Both girls are Black. Empress though is from 'the wrong side of the tracks'. She lives with her mother and her baby brother, Leo. They live in poverty and often the hot water or the electricity isn't working in Empress' flat. She gets bullied at school which is awful.
She and Aniya are sort of friends, though. Then on the eve of the 16th birthdays (they happen to share a birthday) they do a spell. And when they wake up, they are each other. Aniya then sees how hard Empress' life is, and of course she wants to swoop in and help. I found this whole bit a bit weird, actually. A bit too saviour-y? A bit patronising. In general the ending annoyed me too, but I won't spoilt it.
In all, I think it had promise but perhaps didn't live up to it. I'm giving this three out of five.
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