In every mirror she's black is a book that has three narrators, all black women with different backgrounds. They are all connected through one man Jonny.

We are able to see the prejudices and micro aggressions these women face on a daily basis as black women living in Stockholm or even Sweden.

I always had the impression that Sweden was quite an open country however this book changed my perspective on that.

The story I connected most with was Munas it was a sad but important read.

This book was well written and I believe it is the authors debut.
The book is compared to Queenie Alot but I don't see it and I much prefer this book than that one.

3.75*
This is the story of three black women who have all found their way to Stockholm and who are connected in different ways to the von Lundin family and the hugely successful von Lundin business, renowned throughout Sweden.

Kemi is head-hunted by Jonny, son of the family and CEO of the von Lundin company and he seeks her out to head up the diversity and inclusion side of the marketing company. He and his team realise that they are a thoroughly white organisation, which of course needs addressing. So Kemi is lured from the States to start a new life in Sweden.

Brittany-Rae is a cabin attendant at the front of the plane, and a chance encounter with Jonny changes her life. He woos her in a ham fisted way but succumbs, and heads to Stockholm to be with him. She leaves behind her boyfriend of many years, and startles her family and friends by her seemingly knee-jerk decision.

Muna is a refugee and works as a cleaner at the von Lundin head office. She has lost her family, is a very good friend at the refugee centre and is now doggedly working towards getting residency in the country. She has a tough time finding her feet.

I listened to this as an audiobook and found it very engaging and in many ways absorbing. It is inspired storytelling, and the author captures really well the sense of displacement for all three women. The Swedes certainly do not come out of this very well, as they are portrayed as innately racist, sexist and emotionally buttoned up. She describes the culture with an appropriate gravitas and objectivity.

However, this is a novel with flaws in the narrative that, at times, felt a little immature. This is a great debut, and with more experience, the real talent for storytelling will shine through:

Kemi struggles with her personal life but soon finds a young man with whom she is happy to spend time. In the wings is a white male giving her the eye and she finds it hard to resist. The reader needs more than just fires burning to understand why she might be tempted to jump ship, or that making ill-judged decisions when it comes to men is just how she is. There is such a great opportunity for deeper psychological explorations.
Brittany drops everything when Jonny comes calling – already there are early signs that he is socially awkward, with his permanently balling fists, drumming fingers and a social unawareness that seems quite debilitating, both for him and the ripple effect of his behaviour on those around him. We need to know just why she fell for his stalkerish behaviour and his dismissive episodes with her. His financial assets don’t cover this. His dynamic is revealed and much focus is placed on him, but less on her and why she might have been drawn to him and his idiosyncratic ways.
One of the characters also has behaviour traits described as a ‘fetish’, which becomes apparent as the story unfolds. Only it is not a fetish, it is an obsession, they are different – maybe an editor should have picked this up?

The author is much more comfortable when she is writing Muna’s story, there is a compassion, insight and sensitivity that the other two characters – although fascinating – just don’t have.

I did enjoy listening to this and despite the shortcomings feel it is a 4* star read.

Stockholm makes a good backdrop for the story, Swedish is sprinkled throughout which adds to the sense of setting and of course there is ‘fika’; and as the characters pick up cinnamon buns around the city, I just had to make some to eat along with the story – love the hold that fiction can have over a reader!!

It’s been 10 days since I finished this book and I’m still struggling to find the words to express how good, yet difficult this story is.

We follow three black women from different geographic and socioeconomic backgrounds as they all end up in Stockholm and in some way, their lives are touched by an affluent white man (with a complex story of his own).

I’ve read over 200 books this year and for many, I can’t remember if I’ve read them or much about them. This is definitely not the case with this book. I can distinctly remember the characters, the mistakes the author allowed them to make and the realities of life as a black woman. I am a white woman living in the UK so this book was somewhat educational for me.

In summary, it wasn’t an easy read but it’s an important one that will stay with me. (I listened to the audiobook)

My thanks to W.F. Howes for a review copy via NetGalley of the unabridged audiobook edition of ‘In Every Mirror She’s Black’ by Lọlá Ákínmádé Åkerström. It is narrated by Rosemarie Akwafo and Sara Powell.

This stunning debut novel is one of my top reads of 2021. I reviewed its print edition for Head of Zeus and delighted that an audiobook edition is now available.

The narrative follows the lives of three black women, who for various reasons find themselves living in Sweden. Each chapter cycles through their individual points of view as they face various challenges in their lives. It is a novel that deals frankly with issues of race, class, fetishism, and tokenism.

With respect to the audiobook, Sara Powell and Rosemarie Akwafo were both excellent readers, bringing the characters of the novel vividly to life. This was my first audiobook experience of both actors, though I was aware of Sara Powell’s television work. Her voice is very rich and mature. While this was Rosemarie Akwafo’s first audiobook project, I was impressed by the beauty and clarity of her voice. I felt that both did well with the accents required by the narrative.

I was pleased that the audiobook edition included the author’s note and the important message about the availability of support groups.

Overall, I felt that ‘In Every Mirror She’s Black’ was a fantastic debut. It held my attention throughout and was well written and thought-provoking.

Lọlá Ákínmádé Åkerström tells the story of three very different women transplanted to Sweden whose lives come to revolve around the country's biggest marketing company and its enigmatic CEO. There's Brittany-Rae, flight attendant and former model who catches the eye of wealthy, powerful Jonny van Londin. Jonny begins an intense pursuit of Brittany, upending her life in the US and offering luxury, wealth and the protection Brittany craves. But is it love at the root of Jonny's feelings, or do his former black partners point to something more sinister?

Kemi, born in [?] has carved a successful career in marketing in the USA. After winning another prestigious award, she is head-hunted by Jonny to spearhead a new image of inclusion and diversity after a racially insensitive campaign. Increasingly unfulfilled in her work and personal life, Kemi moves to Sweden but find that the most difficult parts of being a black woman follow her there. Do they want her talent and expertise or is she just a token black face?

Muna is a Somali refugee, living in a camp funded by Jonny van Lundin. After a horrific incident Muna is granted Swedish residency and moved into a flat with two other refugee women. After logging her everyone she loves, she hopes she can finally make a home and a family. She takes a job as a cleaner at the van Londin offices where she sees both Brittany and Kemi, strong, successful black women who fill her with pride and hope. But getting residency isn't the end to Muna's struggles as a black, Muslim refugee woman.

Åkerström creates a brilliantly vibrant and nuanced narrative that shows how black women in very different situations face the same issues of misogynoir, racism, tokenism and fetishization. She unravels the idea of Sweden as a Nordic, post-racial utopia and shines an unforgiving light on the idea of social and cultural integration. She pulls no punches and it's a testament to get deft writing and brilliant characterisation that their difficult experiences don't make the novel hopeless. The strength of Brittany, Kemi and Muna has you rooting for them throughout.

The narration is a little uneven, particularly when it comes to accents. The narrators for the three main characters do a decent job for the main women but struggle to distinguish between the voices of other characters. This is particularly obvious when their storylines intersect and it sometimes becomes quite difficult to tell who is speaking except through context.

This is one of those novels that prioritises subject over character/story. While the issues highlighted by the author are certainly important and topical, I found her prose weak and her characters flat. One of the narrators for the audiobook has a very childlike voice that grated on my nerves.

A compelling and well-crafted look at the Black experience in Sweden from the perspective of three unique characters. Oftentimes when a book has multiple POVs I find myself preferring the narrative of one character over another, but I found the experiences of Brittany-Rae, Kemi, and Muna all so interesting, and I loved the ways their narratives diverted and intersected. If you liked GIRL WOMAN OTHER, you'll probably love this!

A fascinating story about 3 very different Black women who connect in unexpected ways in Stockholm. Kemi is a Nigerian American executive who is tired of not being taken seriously in the boardroom, so she interviews for a new job in Sweden with hopes for better treatment. Brittany-Rae is a Jamaican American flight attendant and former model who is tired of serving others and looking for something more in her life. Muna is a young refugee who escaped from Somalia on a tragic journey the rest of her family didn't survive. All 3 of them end up in Stockholm with the promise of a better future, and what unfolds is an interesting and unpredictable story.
The audiobook is beautifully narrated by Rosemarie Akwafo and Sara Powell, who take on a huge variety of personalities and accents and really make this story come to life.
Lọlá Ákínmádé Åkerström has a written an amazing debut which really expresses how it feels to be a Black woman today. It must be difficult to write about such personal topics but the insight they provide is invaluable, and I look forward to reading more of her books in the future.

Ok wow, I adored this book. I loved the three characters we got to read about, Kemi, Brittany-Rae and Muna and how their lives all changed and adapted over the course of the book. All three from very different backgrounds and circumstances but they related to each other in different ways.

I really enjoyed reading this book, I enjoyed the story, I enjoyed learning about the issues these women faced a lot throughout the book and their experiences of cultural diversity in Sweden, which I found very interesting.

This is definitely one of my favourite books I’ve read this year.

Thank you @headofzeus and @ineverymirror for the opportunity to be on this book tour for such a brilliant book!

In listening to the audiobook, however, I did notice a few words were incorrectly spoken “away” instead of “anyway” and sometimes the gaps between the chapters and sentences had longer pauses.