This book was so different to what I was expecting (in a good way!). There were lots of unexpected twists and layers to the narrative, and it went so much further beyond the Devil-Wears-Prada-meets-Publishing storyline I was anticipating. I really enjoyed uncovering the depths of the characters and plot, and would have liked the first half of the book to have matched the pace and tense atmosphere of the second half. Thank you so much Bloomsbury for letting me read this!

I don't know what I expected from this novel, but it wasn't what I got at all. What was actually happening throughout was so out of left field, I really didn't see the last 10% of the book happening that way. I think the concept definitely gets points for originality!

It did feel like it took until that last 10% for much to happen, and I feel that's probably because we're kept in the dark until then really. I did like how some information started making sense a fair few chapters later, a lot of suspense.

I didn't feel that I was reaching for it all that often, I felt no urgency to get through it, and in that way this book didn't live up to the hype for me.

Genuinely couldn't put this down. Still reeling slightly from the ending! This was a brilliantly crafted and readable thriller about identity, workplace politics and being Black in the overwhelmingly white publishing industry.

I enjoy this book but not sure I 'got' it. The last part of the book felt unexpected but not in a good way. Like an add-on and an easy way to explain the previous two third of the book.

I requested an ARC of this book on a whim, there were a few things about the blurb that drew me in, however, I had no idea what really to expect.

I want to start this review by saying that I have never read anything like this before and I really enjoyed it. I feel like this is going to be a book surrounded in hype.

The story is original and gripping. I read this book a lot quicker than I thought I would because I just couldn’t put it down for very long at all.

The plot overall is really wild and out there, but you know what, I actually really enjoyed it, it was unique and unexpected, and definitely not boring. The issue raised in the book about the issues faced by black people in a predominantly white industry is done really well and made me stop and think about the microaggressions that happen everyday. This book touches on some realistic topics and I really loved how the author weaved that into this story.

The only reason I didn’t give this a 5* is because of the ending. I feel like everything was wrapped up very quickly and some of it was left unexplained. I’m still a little confused about some of it, but maybe it’s a case of rereading the book (which I plan to do) and maybe more is revealed throughout.

Overall, a great thriller and mystery book, well written, and deserving of the hype that it’s already getting

An interesting thriller that keeps you guessing until the very end!

The first two thirds had various threads and characters which I was unsure of how they would link together but Zakiya Dalila Harris pulled it off in the final third. Some parts are not realistic but that doesn’t take away from the intriguing plot. I can’t wait to see what she writes next.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for an arc in exchange for a review.

The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalila Harris was one of my most anticipated books of the year, and after reading it I can say that it definitely belongs in the best-of-2021 category for me! I started it expecting it to be a thriller, but I think this book is better described as a slow-paced horror with thriller elements (mostly by the end of the book). We follow Nella, as she navigates the very white world of publishing on a meager salary, and is super excited when another black girl, Hazel, joins her team. But after some things happen, Nella starts suspecting this new girl might have an agenda. And when Nella starts receiving threatening notes on her desk, she thinks it definitely can't be Hazel, can it?

The tension is high way before the notes even start coming in, with the microaggressions Nella suffers in the office and a vague hint at something having "happened" to a famous black editor decades ago at that same publishing house. The story also has the points-of-view of other characters who start explaining a bit of what is going on behind the scenes and the terrible things that Nella has no idea are coming. This juxtaposition meant that every time something, even small things, happened on Nella's POV, I was super tense.

To be honest, I did not like these other points-of-view much, since they basically only served the purpose of filling the reader in bit by bit. It felt to me like it broke the narrative, and they also confused me a lot with half-information. I would have preferred to have only Nella as a narrator, or Nella and Kendra only.

And the plot twist is, whew, a wild ride! I was a bit skeptical at first, but eventually I was completely won over, because the implications of the twist are just so completely terrifying, and the parallels with what black people actually go through made this even more chilling. I also completely agree with the Get Out comparison, The Other Black Girl definitely gives Get Out vibes. I was completely hooked by this book and I think it's a very strong debut! I very much look forward to what the author comes up with next.

Oh wow! The first 2/3 was a bit slow, but intriguing none the less. However, last night... I finished the final 1/3 in one go. It kept me up til 4.30am! When the twist was revealed I was initially a bit sceptical as I was expecting more of a real life novel. When it was compared to Get Out I should have listened. I stuck with it however and OMG!!! What a thrill ride! I was utterly hooked! That ending had me shook! It wasn't just an entertaining story however, I also learned a lot about black culture (particularly hair) and it really made me thing about the class divide and the struggles minorities face. Absolutley riveting, entertaining and an exceptional read! Not at all what I was expecting and thank goodness as it was sooo much better!!

This book... wow. Thanks to Bloomsbury for letting me read The Other Black Girl in advance! This book has been talked about a lot and for very good reason - I found it incredibly immersive and entertaining, as well as exploring many truths about the publishing industry!

Nella is a 26-year-old editorial assistant working at the very prestigious Wagner Books in New York. She's the only black employee at the whole company, so she's delighted when another black girl, the v cool and confident Hazel, gets a job as an editorial assistant. But something doesn't quite add up about Hazel, and when Nella starts receiving suspicious notes on her desk telling her to leave Wagner, she wonders if Hazel is the one sending them...

So apparently this has been described as The Devil Wear Prada meets Get Out, and omg if that doesn't describe this book perfectly. I wasn't particularly impressed by the writing and the author has a habit of slotting in full flashbacks in the middle of scenes, but honestly who cares when the content is this compelling? I thought this would be a story about publishing's diversity problem and how two women navigate this - working in publishing and being fascinated by the industry, I was already excited by the portrayal of the characters and the truths it tells. But then this book does something I absolutely was not expecting!! I'm not sure how many stars I would give it, but definitely somewhere between four and five - it's a book I was really excited to return to, and I still can't quite believe what happened. I do wish that the ending hadn't been quite so abrupt, but that's my only real complaint.

Wow, I loved this book. The description ‘Get out meets Devil Meets Prada’ is spot on. Such a fresh feeling, with a real look at the publishing industry. The thriller style undertone of the book was chilling at times. I couldn’t recommend this highly enough! I will be buying a physical copy to reread!

Thank you to NetGalley and Bloomsbury Publishing for an advance copy to review.

A tense and compelling read. Nella, the only black girl in her publishing work place (who is not sorting mail or fixing computers), is thrilled when another black girl starts working at Wagner. That can only be a good thing, right? Then things take a sinister turn. Zakiya Dalila Harris writes brilliantly about being a Black person in a white environment, code switching, the trauma of racism and the need to put on a bright smile and get on at work. She does this in a satirical thriller that kept me awake and anxious to the very end.

Really interesting take on a complex set of themes. I loved the way the landscape is described, the way the characters are brought to life, and the language.

I finished this book a month ago, but needed to sit with it, before reviewing.
It centres on the publishing industry, and specifically, a small publishing house, and it's approach to diversity (or lack thereof).
It starts as your standard thriller. There are flash backs. There are written threats. There is a spirally main character who is growing more and more paranoid.

And then it gets WEIRD. It is a wild ride, but it does speak to the perceived need of black women to tame their blackness, to be less than, to be controlled.

The sci fi ending though, it doesn't feel far fetched. It feels like something very possible, and that is where the power in this book is I think

The Other Black Girl was a challenging read. You get a great feeling for Nella's character and the friction between work colleagues was very realistic. Once Hazel comes into the picture, the jealousy between the girls drives the story along until we start getting to understand what is really going on and here it starts to get quite sinister. I ended with the feeling that there was still a lot of story to tell, my favourite kind of ending... but this time I was left confused and thought the end needed a bit more.

Thought the premise was really interesting, but struggled with the fact that not much seemed to happen until 2/3rds through. Rather than reaching to pick it up and not wanting it to finish, I was seeking resolution. I really liked Nella and Maliaka's relationship and banter as well as how the city played into the narrative.

Beautiful, enlightening and much needed work. Extremely potent in these times. I give 4/5 stars only because I found some passages a little clunky at sentence level.

Wow. This blew me away. I know it was described as a mix between The Devil Wears Prada and Get Out which is super accurate. I just couldn’t put it down, I had to know what was going to happen next which is the sign of a great book. I thought the writing was fabulous and so descriptive. I just wish the ending hadn’t been so rushed because I really needed more detail of what happened to all of the characters!

Mind = blown.

Whatever I was expecting, I wasn’t expecting that. The Other Black Girl starts off as your usual office drama, which I was definitely here for. However, as the story begins to unfold and you start to encounter different POVs, you realise not is all as it seems, and there is something much darker going on beneath the surface.

I don’t want to say too much about the plot, as I think it’s better experienced first-hand. However, I do want to explain my star rating a little further, because from certain perspectives, this is a clear 5-star read - but for me, there were a couple of things that didn’t work. An example of this is the pacing, which is a little bit too slow for my liking. You realise that something is up pretty early on, but for the majority of the book you have absolutely no idea what this is. My issue is that I started to grow impatient with my lack of understanding - I didn’t feel like I was able to appreciate some of the content because I was still in the dark, and that ruined the read slightly for me.

Another thing that I struggled with is that this book pins one black woman against another. I understand why, but I found it a little bit depressing - there are much bigger fish to fry, why are we fighting against our own? So even though this is the main point of the novel, I feel like I have to dock a star because it did affect my enjoyment.

Despite these minor issues, The Other Black Girl is a brilliant, intelligent novel, and a fantastic debut. Whoever said that this book was a cross between The Devil Wears Prada and Get Out really hit the nail on the head. Keep your eyes peeled for this read in June!

An incredible story about how young black women navigate the work place, how they handle micro aggressions and where they find common ground. I learnt a lot about black hair, hair products and the impact a lack of a diverse workplace can have on an individual. However towards the end I found the story increasingly bizarre and I ended up feeling frustrated by the ending.

I had no idea what I was getting into when starting the book. I've just seen The Devil Wears Prada in the publishing world and I knew I had to read this book. I never watched Get Out so this reference didn't mean much to me. The story starts quite slow and very inconspicuously, I was not expecting the mystery and conspiracies that hit me later. It truly disguises itself as a contemporary book about the publishing world and its whiteness. And it is this book, but so much more at the same time.
Harris uniquely shows race issues.

The story follows Nella, young black girl, the only back employee at a big publishing house until the other black girl joins. Something that seems joyous, a moment when she has someone who will understand her daily experiences ends up nothing like that. The new girl with unexpected ease takes up more and more space in the company. It brings up an interesting question - if you are the only one Black, female, Latin etc. employee, do you starting feeling like the special one? You are the one that made it against all odds, and all new people that will join you, who may make your life easier, also take some of the spotlights from you? Do you want to share the lights with others? You fought for it, and now it's all so much easier for them. I feel like not everyone is so generous not to feel some kind of envy. However, the bigger topic of the book is the decision the main character had to make - how do you want to live with your blackness, how do you want to present it to the white folks in a professional environment? There are no easy answers.

I'm so happy to read about the black characters that are morally ambiguous and do not meet the expected black characters tropes. I was hooked in the story and couldn't wait to learn more. I needed to know more of the secrets, I cheered on the main character when she persued the leads and tried to find out what the hell is going on. The story had a great build-up, and I was hoping for an amazing, climactic happy ending. I didn't get that. I'm disappointed that I didn't get it, but at the same time, the ending makes sense for the story and its message. But I still wished for a more hopeful or confrontational ending. I need a punch to the complacent ones.