My thanks to #Netgalley and #Bloomsburypublishing for the opportunity to review this ARC.

If nothing else it challenged my perception of racism in the workplace. It was an enjoyable read very slow to start but I wouldn’t have described it as a thriller. The last third of the book was gripping and no spoilers but not the ending I expected..

The ending to this book was so unexpected and interesting, but it's a shame that the first two-thirds of the book were really drawn out and slow.
I enjoyed the commentary on black culture, there was a lot of really thought-provoking themes and conversations.
The twist was shocking and original but I wish the author has gone more in-depth with this.
I think my biggest issue with this book was the writing style. I found 70% of the book very tedious and not thrilling at all. Some scenes were interrupted by other scenes before returning to the original scene which made the narrative convoluted and messy. I also found that the writing sometimes focussed for too long on one topic that wasn't too important which made me lose focus a lot.
Overall, I thought the concept for this novel was really innovative and thought-provoking but the execution didn't quite work for me.

Funny and compelling and odd but so very well written. No spoilers but a completely different book than I thought I was reading.
Fully recommend

Thanks to Bloomsbury Publishing, Zakiya Dalila Harris and NetGalley for the ARC.

Wow. Just Wow. This is such a thought provoking, shocking yet truthful book featuring white supremacy and exposing racism within the publishing industry - the references to Devil Wears Prada in the synopsis is absolutely spot on.

Nella is the only person of colour working at Wagner and has continually pushed to try and get a more diverse workforce without success. Then Hazel joins and she is black - finally it feels like things are starting to change; but then the notes start. "Leave Wagner now'

What follows is a tense thriller with a shocker of an ending that will leave you reeling for days after you've turned the last page.

If this doesn't get turned into a film I will be really shocked! Definitely one to pop the top of your TBR pile!

This book defiantly mixes the genres; it combines literary fiction with sci-fi, is a thriller and a social commentary with a pinch of horror thrown into the mix. All of which is deftly written and quite unique.
With Nella working for a Manhattan publisher it is a searing indictment of the publishing industry, how it operates and the complete lack of diversity. The novel itself is inventive, subversive and insightful. A slow burn book with a remarkable twist and I have every intention of revisiting it again.

I've heard this book described (rightly, I should say) as 'Get Out' meets 'Devil Wears Prada.' This is the story of Nella Rogers, who is the only Black woman employed at her New York Publishing House until Hazel-May is hired. Her expectation? Solidarity, a friend. How very, very wrong she is.

In amongst Nella's potentially unravelling career is another story - two, actually, told in first person instead of third. There is Diana and Kendra, a 1980s(?) Black writer-and- editor duo, and a runaway, mostly nameless woman.

It's possible I think this because of the digital format, so please take this with a small pinch of salt, but I was not personally. a fan of the switching between first and third person. It's rare that I enjoy this technique, and I didn't like it here; it made the first-person stories feel like they were building to something that they weren't. I had to stop myself skimming through parts to get back to Nella's story, and it was only at the end of the book that I came to properly appreciate and understand their significance. For the most part, I didn't care. Had I been holding a physical copy of the book, which presumably includes much clearer page breaks, I would have been more comfortable anticipating the changing perspective. Alas, it didn't work for me.

What I did love was the mystery and building tension between Nella and Hazel-May. I felt Nella's frustration at constantly being undermined along with her, and seeing how their rivalry would come to a head was the thing I kept reading for. It’s juicy. I wondered what it would take for Nella to snap.

The array of characters, their diversity of personality and aesthetics, was another thing I loved. This is one of the few book I have ever read to explicitly acknowledge so much nuance between different kinds of Black hair and skin tone (which I think says as much about the publishing industry I think as it does about my reading habits). I wanted to get to know all of them, especially the relationship between Diana and Kendra...

I’m so glad to see this book doing well in the bestseller lists, which is what it so clearly deserves. I enjoyed the writing, even if certain style choices didn’t suit my tastes, and I would certainly pick up another book by this author.

I was really intrigued by this novel, after hearing Harris talk about it at the Bloomsbury Big Night In. I’m really glad that I’ve read it, but I can say that it wasn’t exactly what I thought it would be. Having said that, this is a very topical and profound read that is very deserving of your time investment. It’s a complex, dark and sinister read, but this is all gradually built up over the course of the narrative. Harris blends the multiple timelines and chapters from different character’s perspectives very well, so that they all converge in the final few chapters to reveal exactly what is going on. This is less tension-laced corporate thriller (although it is fair to say that moments of suspense pepper the narrative) and much more a thought-provoking, unsettling critique on race, privilege, wealth and conformity. I spent much of my time reading this trying to digest the experience of Nella and attempting to understand how many challenges she faced as an outsider in her company - something very different to my own experience.

This novel is definitely twisty and I was kept guessing right to the end. Along the way I had multiple theories, but I didn’t guess where this plot ended up! There is an element of sadness to the final chapters of this novel, which I wasn’t expecting, but does mean that I will be thinking about it for a very long time. It’s a powerful and affecting read from that perspective. I was really rooting for Nella, who is an engaging and likeable character. The journey that she undertakes over the course of the narrative is a bitter representation of how race (but equally other protected characteristics) still has an inexcusable impact upon people’s experiences. This is best represented by the similarities between the historical storyline from the 1980s and the current 2018 events. On the surface, it all appears very much like history may be repeating...

It’s hard to review this without revealing too much, so I’ll leave it with this: if you enjoy an increasingly unsettling story that builds to a devastating reveal, all wrapped in a very relevant story, The Other Black Girl is for you!

Absolutely loved the detail of life at Wagner books - as others have said, The Devil Meets Prada in the world of publishing. I thought the sense of unease was captured brilliantly, along with a great cast of characters. But to me it felt like two stories in one, with the second slightly less credible than the main. All the same, a thought-provoking and captivating read.

This novel is basically impossible to classify - it straddles genres and is unlike anything I've read in the last few years. The first half is like a slow building thriller. Working in Publishing myself I totally recognised the New York publishing house setting. It is a realistic study into office politics and microaggressions, populated with believable characters. Things gradually become more and more sinister as Nella starts to receive threatening notes.
In the last portion of the novel things take an entirely unepxected turn. The comparison to Get Out is a good one. It has the same stifling atmosphere and a plot twist you could not predict.
The novel is by no means perfect: I am not sure that the occassional chapters from other characters perspectives add much; and the parallel storyline is not so compelling and can be a little confusing in places. But this is a great summer read - with just the right balance of intrigue, dark humour, satire and storytelling to keep you turning those pages.
Thank you to the publisher and Netgally for the ARC.

Well, I was not expecting that kind of a sinister turn, but boy, did I enjoy it.

The Other Black Girl is a slow-burn; tension building in ever so tiny increments, until the last 20% of the novel that just throws everything off. The comparisons to Get Out are much more accurate than those to The Devil Wears Prada.

The ending was perfect - and I never say that - but I definitely won’t spoil it. In fact, the less said about the plot the better in my opinion, but just know: this is creepy, dark and very creative.

What I didn’t like - Nella. Okay, not always, but yes often the things she did, or didn’t do, annoyed me; I did sometimes want to shake her. And there were a few unanswered questions at the end.

But otherwise, a solid 4 star debut from Zakiya Dalila Harris.

I was looking forward to reading Zakiya Dalila Harris's debut novel for many weeks, and I raced through it in a couple of evenings. In the novel, Nella is a 26-year-old editorial assistant working at a New York publishing house. She works hard, gets on well with her editor and hopes she is on track for a promotion in the not-too-distant future. She is also the only Black employee...until Hazel starts as a new editorial assistant. At first, Nella is pleased; she feels that some of her efforts to encourage the company to take diversity, equity and inclusion more seriously are finally paying off. But when Hazel makes in-roads with the editor Nella works for, and then their CEO, Nella begins to wonder if she should in fact feel threatened by her fellow editorial assistant.

Part social commentary about racism and bias within the publishing industry and beyond, part thriller, The Other Black Girl is sharp, darkly comic and gripping. I worked in publishing for 14 years, albeit in academic journals, and a lot of Harris's descriptions of the company and the industry resonated with me. Change for the better, and more equitable, is starting to happen, but there's still a long, long way to go. It comes as no surprise that Harris was an editorial assistant before leaving to write The Other Black Girl.

**I featured The Other Black Girl in my 'Five Books To Read in Summer 2021' post, which will go live on 14 June.

Unsettling and with an entirely unexpected plot line, perfect for those that enjoyed Get Out. Would recommend.

Did this book give me extreme anxiety because I also work in publishing or because Zakiya Dalila Harris is a master of building suspense? Probably both, but Harris has written an absolute stunner here. Nella was a gorgeous and relatable character to steer us through the wild ride that this book is – I wanted her story to end so differently than it did!m, but damn that ending gave me chills. Huge fan of Harris and this fantastically original story she’s woven. More, more, more!

Nella, a Black woman from a comfortable background, was thrilled to get the job of editorial assistant at top publishing house Wagner, the company who had years ago published her favourite book, edited by two inspirational Black women. However, she struggles with being the only Black editor and facing casual racism and dismissal of her ideas on a regular basis. When a new Black employee, Hazel, joins the company, she is at first thrilled and they seem to share a common viewpoint, but soon Hazel begins to steal her thunder and undermine her, and notes telling her to leave Wagner start to appear on her desk. Is Hazel friend or foe?
This is a fresh, sharp and often funny book. Illuminating about the issues Black people can face, from being slighted and overlooked in the workplace to finding the right hair products, the author deals with both major and minor beefs with the same irony and sly humour. The white author with the ridiculous patchwork hat who takes offence when Nella tries to tactfully suggest the Black female in his new book is a tiny bit stereotypical is hilarious, and although it did prompt some white guilt on my part in places, Harris does also poke fun at the pressure Black people can feel to constantly act as activists for their race and can draw criticism for integrating too much with the white world (Nella worries about being an “Oreo.”)
Sure to cause a lot of debate, this is a thought provoking novel with lots to enjoy.

I found the experiences of Nella a young, black,k editorial assistant in a leading New York publishing company, very insightful.. It raised many thought provoking issues. As a suspense novel it did not quite work for me as I felt it lacked pace and the ending felt rushed. Nevertheless,, the book is well worth reading and is an excellent debut.

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC
This book is not what I expected at all. The story starts by alternating characters between 1983 and 2018. Normally I really like this along with the change in narrative, and whilst I did really enjoy Nella’s story in 2018 story I felt really confused when reading the 83 narrative. There was a lot that I enjoyed about the book, it’s set in a publishing house and the outlook from the only black girl in a white workplace was really interesting and highlighted the micro aggressions that can be faced daily. I was really hopeful for Nella when another black girl joined, Hazel but then things start to change for Nella as she struggled to watch Hazel gain the limelight and she starts to receive notes on her desk. The book is building up all the way through to solve the mystery of the strange goings on, and for me when i find out what that reason was I just thought it was a bit unbelievable. There was a really clever twist at the end though that I didn’t see coming.

Amazing! One of the best book I've read this year!

Really loved the style and the story, I don't work in publishing but I loved that it didn't romanticize it, it was fresh and puts you right there having to face all those issues! You can't deny them anymore and that's very clever.

Fantastic book thank you Net Galley and Bloomsbury for the opportunity to read.

I really really wanted to love this book. But, something didn’t click. It’s not you, it’s me right? I probably didn’t appreciate the fantasy twist at the very end and expected more of a thriller. This book is clearly well written and it explores the dynamics of race and white supremacy in the publishing world. It starts as a slow burner and it turns into full action by 75% per cent of it.

I was expecting a different book and sadly, I was not 100% intrigued, but kudos to the writer for writing it and for fighting against discrimination and racism.

BOOK REVIEW
The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalila Harris
Rating: 4
When I saw this being described as Devil Wears Prada meets Get Out I had to read it! (and I’d say this was fairly accurate but it is more chilling than uplifting)

20-year-old editorial assistant Nella is tired of being the only Black employee at Wagner Books. Fed up with the isolation and the micro-aggressions, she's thrilled when Hazel starts working in the cubicle beside hers. They've only just started comparing natural hair care regimens, though, when a string of uncomfortable events causes Nella to become Public Enemy Number One and Hazel, the Office Darling.

Then, notes begin to appear on Nella’s desk telling her to leave the company….

Who is behind these messages? Is it Hazel? is it the owner of Wagner books? Is it a mysterious stranger?

This book had me feeling on edge throughout – other than the protagonist (Nella) who you know is cool, you get suspicious of everyone else who is introduced, especially Hazel. It builds up so much suspense and will keep you guessing till near the end. It got me hooked.

I fell in love with Nella’s character and hated watching her get into a situation that you know is going to end badly. It takes a shocking turn about 60% through. However, I was slightly disappointed with the ending by like a tiny bit just because it didn’t give closure. There were a lot of unanswered questions and unresolved issues.

There are so many important messages in this book and definitely sparks a conversation and there was one point where I was literally eye rolling at one of the authors she had to deal with in a meeting – that was actually horrific (and the fact that EVERYONE agreed with him).

Nella’s story also runs alongside one of an editor who previously worked at Wagner who was ostracized from the publishing industry after writing an article about the terrible white people in her publishing firm.

I saw someone say that they would love to see a screen adaptation of this and YES, im down to watch that.

~ The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalila Harris ~

I wanted to like this book a lot more than I actually did. We follow Nella, the only black girl working in a big publishing company in New York. When another black girl is hired, Nella is overjoyed until we soon discover that something shady is going on with the new girl.

I can't say I enjoyed reading this book, but I spent a lot of time thinking about it and wondering what was going on. It has been compared to Get Out a lot, so I was expecting a chilling hook, which indeed is what we get. Harris opens/continues a conversation about the publishing industry and its lack of diversity, which was interesting and sinister enough to keep me reading.

However, the narrative is broken up by different POVs and time jumps, which read a bit confusingly and unnecessary as they only took away from the story. I also didn't feel like Nella, while being relatable in her awkwardness, was fully fleshed out and she made a lot of choices that seemed to go against character. A lot of strings and subplots were left untied or were merely lost along the way.

It was certainly a brilliantly bold debut and I do look forward to seeing what Harris does next, this story just fell flat for me I'm afraid.