The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalila Harris.

This novel was a little too slow paced for my liking but it’s a decent debut with some really good writing and interesting ideas/social commentary.

Thanks to NetGalley and to the publisher for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

Unfortunately, this book wasn't for me.

I found myself skimming a lot of the text as it felt very dense. Not enough happened early on to keep me interested.

However I enjoyed the writing and I thought the premise was great. For the right reader, this could be a fantastic book but unfortunately, that isn't me.

Thank you so much to the author & Bloomsbury for this eArc.

I really wanted to love this book as the premise seemed like something I would love, a thriller set in the publishing world, unfortunately the pacing and big reveal just didn't work for me.

Though I did enjoy this book I felt like it was extremely slow paced. I loved Nella as a character and enjoyed following her during her hunt for what was going on but I felt like it was left at a cliffhanger without the need. I don’t know if it was intended with the thought for a second book which I can’t personally think what would it be about unless it’s the the journey of maybe Kendra Mae or Hazel. I just don’t see how that could add anymore to the book.
I did love the details in regards to micro aggressions and the awareness to racism in the work place where people won’t always realise. I think it really shines a light on a lot of things people need to be aware of and work on. also the lack of diversity in the publishing sector.
I think maybe the hype around it also left me wanting more and it just never lived to that hype for me.
I didn’t hate the book I just don’t think it is something I would tell people they have to read.

(3.75/5) I did not know until reading this that I am terrified of the very concept of office politics. (There are more sinister things to worry about here than just that, though.) All the little indignities and injustices that Nella has to swallow down, force out, dance around, not knowing who to trust… You can really feel her exhaustion. To me that actually might be the most important part of the book to remember, especially if you’ve never experienced microaggressions or been/felt marginalised in your workplace.

I had an issue with the jumps in POV and timeline; I found them often quite confusing, though some do pay off as the threads of conspiracy begin to glint into visibility quite satisfyingly. There were some incredibly shocking twists too. That doesn’t mean that I didn’t still feel befuddled by some elements of the mystery at the end, for example the point of the notes sent to Nella.

The antagonists and how they operated was sickeningly insidious and the revelation of their identity, their power and their motives was really disturbing (though artistically I appreciated the puns). It is clearly illustrated how twisted this perspective is, no matter how beguilingly it may pretend to come from a place of good intentions. ...Which leads me onto why the ending threw me off so much. It’s chilling for sure, but I felt so much like I’d just been left hanging with no real resolution to the story. Like…I read all of that, stuck with and became invested in the (at times, very frustrating) Nella, read through a lot of overlong exposition too, and…for what? It’s definitely an ending that sticks with you though!

Overall, I found this an intriguing and unexpected genre-crossing book, that felt at times horrifyingly surreal yet at others, depressingly plausible. It’s best to go into this without knowing too much, so I’d recommend resisting the urge to open any spoiler tags online (content warnings excluded, of course).

The Other Black Girl - Zakiya Dalila Harris


Nella works at her dream job at a publishing company. She never felt like she fit in as the only black employee on staff who wasn’t either in the mail room or one of the custodial team.

When Hazel arrives with her waist length locks and unmistakable black perspective, Nella is both excited and anxious. Excited that there is someone else who could share in her experiences, cultural touchstones and perspective in a way that her colleagues couldn’t. Anxious in that she might be a better ‘Black girl’ than she is.

Before too long, Hazel is acting strangely - intent on getting in to Nella's boss’ good books and reading her slush pile, providing opinions that Nella should be giving. She’s talking to people, authors, colleagues about topics above her role, and everyone loves her for it. She even knows about Nella’s white boyfriend, which she’s sure she never mentioned. Or is Nella just being paranoid and sabotaging what could be a great friendship?

While the blurb for this set the story as the new ‘Devil Wears Prada’, I found it to be much closer to ‘Get Out’, layering the code switching and pressure to conform to a society, to suppress Blackness and ‘other’ so you can fit in, in a society that treats you as less valuable, worthwhile and a commodity to be picked up tor sold whenever.

The narrative structure is interesting too, switching between characters and back and forth in time t build a picture of generations of Black women, intertwined and connected but not on the same side - although they may be striving for the same outcome.

I’d recommend this to people who liked Kiley Reid’s ‘Such a Fun Age’ <link> and Jordan Peele’s unsettling cinema, along with a hearty dose of thriller-mystery. Be warned - this is set up for a sequel so you may not get the resolution you’re expecting.

Thanks to Netgalley and Bloomsbury Publishing for the DRC.

Really enjoyed this book.
I thought Nella was going a bit mad at first but then things start happening and wow the twist and turns just compell you to read.
I couldn’t put this down I read it one day.

⭐️⭐️ well I’ve had to dip in and out of this one as I found it very slow going.

The characters were annoying to me and it seemed after a very slow start, and a very long book, the last quarter was where it all picked up.

Disappointing sorry

I love a debut novel – there’s something incredibly rewarding and exciting about reading what is the author’s first publicly published work. However, I’m not sure this one hit the mark for me.

As an incredibly slow-burning commentary on the white world of publishing, the story follows Nella Rogers – the only Black employee at Wagner Books. In walks Hazel.

As tensions started to grow, I found myself questioning when something interesting was going to happen – when was it all going to boil over? While the book did address the various issues, including microaggressions, that Black people experience daily both at work and away from it, the build up took too long. It wasn’t until the last third of the book that the plot started to take a turn.

I think the concept of this book is exceptional and needs addressing on a daily basis, but the execution just wasn’t right.

We reviewed this one enthusiastically in The Book Club Review podcast episode #102 - great read and perfect for book club:

This is like Stepford Wives for the BLM generation.

I found this a thought provoking, eye opening read which had so much food for thought in every page. What would you do to get ahead when the odds are heavily stacked against you? That's the question posed in "The Other Black Girl" and the answers it provides are deeply disturbing.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC without obligation.

While I’m not really a huge reader of thrillers, The Other Black Girl’s premise sounded amazing. And I really enjoyed the first half of the book, but then things taken unexpectedly quite a turn, and unfortunately, the book has ended up not being my cup of tea. I think that The Other Black Girl sets up to discuss and investigate important topics, and I think it does in parts – especially in the first half of the book – but then loses its authenticity and importance midway. However, I liked the author’s voice so I may have look into their future projects.

Unfortunately, I‘m really disappointed by this novel. The synopsis was great „Devils wears Prada meets Get Out“, but that’s not what it turned out to be. It took about 60% until a bigger reveal occured, it was so slow with little to no moments of suspense.

Thank you NetGalley / Bloomsbury for providing me with this arc in exchange for an honest review.

Not really sure what this whole thing was even after I'd finished reading it... The pace was so slow and it dragged throughout, too much extraneous stuff that filled in rather then get to the heart of the story, and then when it did get there, it was so close to the end, and everything just felt rushed, so much so that the epilogue didn't make a lick of sense to me... Wasn't an enjoyable reading experience, unfortunately

I wanted to like this book as I've heard so much about it, but I'm in two minds. Firstly, the author's boldness in narrating the story with authenticity is admirable; however, the slow pace and delayed plot twist was a turn-off.

I was really looking forward to reading this book going by the back cover description. Unfortunately I think this book just was not for me. I’m not sure if it’s because, to me, it wasn’t what I was expecting from a thriller or if it was the main character that I struggled with. Probably both.

I’m giving it a 3 start rating in fairness as I did not finish the book.

Thank you to #NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

I've been debating what star rating to give this so I settled on a three star.

Check out own voices reviews there are a lot of great reviews of this book.

Nella works for Wagner publishing house when one day a new women is hired, another black woman. Nella is glad to see someone else there that understands her struggles in a mainly white dominated world of publishing but as Nella begins to receive notes telling her to leave Wagner and the new girl Hazel begins to become more popular could she be the person sending her the notes?

Firstly I really wasn't a fan of Nella I get what the author was trying to do by having her come from a money privileged background to show that even money privileged black people suffer too, however the character really didn't acknowledge much from her peers that she was privileged in that way that she has came from money wither some of her other black friends had came from working class back grounds.
Also there were parts in this story were Nella should have just outright asked Hazel instead of all the wondering if it was her or not.

Then there was the plot twist, I think it was pretty silly if you ask me but then again that's just my opinion.

Overall I think this book had some good things to say about racism and the pacing was good.

Wow....gripping. Love the storyline and outstanding plot twist. I really didn't know what to expect. This turned out to be a thriller and not just a story about working in an office. Can't wait to read her next book.

The Other Black Girl is a book I had been so excited to read. The cover is beautifully eye catching and the book description sounds like me ideal novel.
I enjoyed learning more about working in the New York publishing industry but I did have a hard time finishing the book.
I found Nellas character hard to like or root for, the threats and mystery weren't enough to grab my attention and it did seem like nothing really happens for most of the book.
Whilst the last few chapters are exciting and have the action in the big reveal was just too far fetched and bizarre.
I'm so disappointed to have not enjoyed it and to not be able to give more positive feedback.

I loved the building tension and the sense of fear that the flashbacks created especially.

The characters were vibrant and relatable