‘The Vanishing Half’ by Brit Bennett is an astonishing novel. Reminiscent of early Toni Morrison, Bennett writes beautifully in this tale of race, escapism, identity and proximity. A joyous read, and a mesmerising story. A masterpiece!

I was not a fan of Bennett's "The Mothers" so my expectations going into "The Vanishing Half" weren't high. However, this novel is an absolute gem; a riveting, slow-burning novel about the infinite ways one dreams of rewriting their life by erasing their past. "The Vanishing Half" reminded me of Hurston's "Their Eyes Were Watching God"; both books deal with the theme of discrimination within the black community itself, about the fact that lighter skin color is idealized and darkness looked down upon, a theme that hammers in the devastating lack of community solidarity.

The story of twin sisters who left home at sixteen and lead very different lives.
This family sage is told over several decades from the 1960’s.
Unfortunately I found this story hard to get into and it didn’t hold my interest.
Thank you to NetGalley and Little Brown Book Group UK for my e-copy in exchange for an honest review.

So this might actually be the best book I’ve read this year. A contemporary voice giving life to a multi generational tale of race, gender, family, community and identity. Set in the Deep South and beyond, this tale of twin sisters and their families will long linger in my heart. Loved it

This was a carefully crafted novel; a cleverly worked out plot with much depth of character. The twins Stella and Desiree, who run away from their small southern coloured town go their separate ways - one marries a very dark man and has a black child, the other masquerades as white, marries her boss and has a white daughter. Their daughter meet accidentally and their own stories are then followed. There are some lovely relationships - particularly Desiree and Early, and Reese and Jude. The racial politics are quite shocking to the UK reader, but relationships are the main point of this story and the overall tone is optimistic.

This book is very well written and I'm sure it will appeal to some readers. Unfortunately it was not the book for me and I found it hard to get in to. As a result I didn't finish it which is a shame. I would still urge you to read it as it is a book which may suit you. I liked the writing style and this experience would not deter me from trying another book by this writer.

An involving read that covered some difficult prejudices. The characters were so well drawn they came to life as I read. I felt sympathy for all their viewpoints.

Wow this book is fantastic. I started it and thought it was a bit slow but the book unravelled itself it is beautifully written, there are so many different layers to this book. It was incredible.

I have a long standing interest in the free people of colour of Louisiana and other similar pockets of Black history. I think that as a little girl absorbed into a much larger step family I sought out ways to understand my differences with my siblings, being too young to understand the offhand comments made about my skin, my hair and even my attitude.
Brit Bennett offers an unflinching account of colourism in the Black community, the turning on our own to shame and ridicule. But I didn't find The Vanishing Half to be only about that in particular, nor about the many other social issues, some surprising, that emerged as the story unfolded. The success of this book, and why I feel certain it will shoot to the top of Must Read lists, lies in how every character is so richly realised that any reader can empathise. I understand Stella, and Desiree, Jude, Kennedy and even Reese. Not because I have the exact same experiences, but because we all hide things, and give up parts of ourselves. We hurt, and those experiences of the past inform our futures. We all make difficult decisions and try to have good intentions. It takes such skill, to write relatable characters that strangers can be passionate about but somehow, this is a masterful success.

DNF. I know its strange tof offer up a 3* rating for a book I couldn't get through, but i can appreciate the story, and the writing, and the fact that many will love it. I just didn't. And couldn't get through it, I didn't connect with the characters, nor could i get on board with the (crucial to the story line, but still so heavy handed) signifying factor of every character.

This was an excellent drama that kept me literally entranced. The character depiction was on point and the story was fascinating and well developed.

A sincere thank you to the publisher, author and Netgalley for providing me an ebook copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. This is not my usual genre, I’m more of a crime/thriller reader therefore am extremely pleased and grateful for opening up my mind to something totally different. 4 stars 🌟🌟🌟🌟