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The Mayor of Maxwell Street
When a rich Black debutante enlists the help of a low-level speakeasy manager to identify the head of an underground crime syndicate, the two are thrust into the dangerous world of Prohibition-era Chicago.
The year is 1921, and America is burning. A fire of vice and virtue rages on every shore with Chicago at its beating heart.
Twenty-year-old Nelly Sawyer is the daughter of the alleged “wealthiest Negro in America,” a Kentucky horse breeder whose wealth and prestige catapults his family to the heights of the exclusive, elite Black society. After the unexpected death of her brother—the family’s presumed heir—Nelly goes from being virtually unknown to a premier debutante overnight. But Nelly has aspirations beyond society influence and marriage. For the past year, she has worked undercover as an investigative journalist for the Chicago Defender , sharing the achievements and tribulations of everyday Black people living in the shadow of Jim Crow. Now, her latest assignment thrusts her into the den of a dangerous vice the so-called Mayor of Maxwell Street.
Charming and mysterious, Jay Shorey strives to balance his connection to the Chicago underworld with his desperate yearning for the refinement and protection of high society. Born to a murdered bi-racial couple in rural Alabama, he knows firsthand what it means to be denied a chance at the American dream. When a tragic turn of fate gave Jay a rare path out, he took it without question. He washed up on Chicago’s storied shores and never looked back, until now.
When Nelly’s and Jay’s paths cross, she recruits him to help expose the Mayor and bring about a lasting change in a corrupted city. Trapped between the monolith of Jim Crow, the inflexible world of the Black upper class, and the violence of Prohibition-era Chicago, Jay and Nelly work together and stoke the flames of a love worth fighting for. And yet, as with all things in America, there is a price to be paid. What risk is Nelly willing to take for a young man willing to risk it all?
Debut author Avery Cunningham’s stunning novel is at once an epic love story, a riveting historical drama, and a brilliant exploration of Black society and perseverance when the ‘20s first began to roar.
The year is 1921, and America is burning. A fire of vice and virtue rages on every shore with Chicago at its beating heart.
Twenty-year-old Nelly Sawyer is the daughter of the alleged “wealthiest Negro in America,” a Kentucky horse breeder whose wealth and prestige catapults his family to the heights of the exclusive, elite Black society. After the unexpected death of her brother—the family’s presumed heir—Nelly goes from being virtually unknown to a premier debutante overnight. But Nelly has aspirations beyond society influence and marriage. For the past year, she has worked undercover as an investigative journalist for the Chicago Defender , sharing the achievements and tribulations of everyday Black people living in the shadow of Jim Crow. Now, her latest assignment thrusts her into the den of a dangerous vice the so-called Mayor of Maxwell Street.
Charming and mysterious, Jay Shorey strives to balance his connection to the Chicago underworld with his desperate yearning for the refinement and protection of high society. Born to a murdered bi-racial couple in rural Alabama, he knows firsthand what it means to be denied a chance at the American dream. When a tragic turn of fate gave Jay a rare path out, he took it without question. He washed up on Chicago’s storied shores and never looked back, until now.
When Nelly’s and Jay’s paths cross, she recruits him to help expose the Mayor and bring about a lasting change in a corrupted city. Trapped between the monolith of Jim Crow, the inflexible world of the Black upper class, and the violence of Prohibition-era Chicago, Jay and Nelly work together and stoke the flames of a love worth fighting for. And yet, as with all things in America, there is a price to be paid. What risk is Nelly willing to take for a young man willing to risk it all?
Debut author Avery Cunningham’s stunning novel is at once an epic love story, a riveting historical drama, and a brilliant exploration of Black society and perseverance when the ‘20s first began to roar.
528 pages, Hardcover
First published January 30, 2024
687 people are currently reading
75070 people want to read
About the author
Avery Cunningham
10 books359 followersAvery Cunningham is a resident of Memphis, TN, and a 2016 graduate of DePaul University’s Master of Arts Writing & Publishing program. She has over a decade of editorial experience with various literary magazines, small presses, and best-selling authors. Avery grew up surrounded by exceptional African-Americans who strived to uplift their communities while also maintaining a tenuous hold on prosperity in a starkly segregated environment. The sensation of being at once within and without is something she has grappled with since childhood and explores thoroughly in her work of historical fiction. When not writing, Avery is adventuring with her Bernese Mountain Dog, Grizzly, and wading waist-deep in research for her next novel. She aspires to tell the stories of complex characters fighting for their right to exist at the fringes of history. THE MAYOR OF MAXWELL STREET is her debut novel.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,159 reviews
January 30, 2024
Prophetic that I thought Avery Cunningham was already a well known and popular author when this book popped up. This is, unbelievably, her debut novel. This book is more than just well-written (though it is, very well written). It is smart, emotionally charging, historically captivating, and above all, beautiful.
This story opens up with a ballad in Alabama set in the early 1900s. We learn of a mixed boy nicknamed “Jimmy Blue-Eyes” who had to flee his town following the advances of a white woman.
A few years later, a young debutante named Penelope “Nelly” Sawyer has arrived in Chicago for her brother’s funeral. She’s unlike most young debutantes you’ve read in novels, she’s a Black woman whose father is dubbed “The Wealthiest Negro in America”. The Sawyer family’s wealth is very new, they made their fortune raising race horses, and Nelly and her parents are very aware of the delicacy of new wealth, especially for a colored family like themselves.
Nelly’s parents only want for her to marry well and secure her future. But Nelly has a secret: she’s an investigative writer and her articles have been published in secret in a local Chicago paper. Determined to find her own path, Nelly accepts an assignment to find the dangerous kingpin known only as “The Mayor of Maxwell Street”.
Nelly’s investigations will lead her into Chicago’s dangerous underground, meanwhile her debutante is leading her into Chicago’s most prominent locations. Both are places she is told that she does not belong – the underground because she is a young wealthy woman – the exclusive ballrooms and exhibitions because of her race.
Cunningham has written a story filled with beauty and wonder while still keeping us on our toes with the recognition of all the uncertainty and danger that Nelly faces both within her own prestigious company and when she walks down dangerous streets. The racism and presumptions made about the main character are so flawlessly interwoven with the resolution of her character.
That is not to say that Nelly is a perfect character. She undergoes a lot of development, and honestly there were times towards the end that I was getting upset like actually whispering, “you stupid idiot” under my breath and nearly fuming at the thought that the book would head in the direction I feared it would. But that was me being silly because this book is smarter than 90% of the books being published today. The story that is being told is fantastic yet the characters are real and tangible.
And beyond the story being told there is also the setting, which I couldn’t not mention in my review. The setting is what drew me to this book. Chicago 100 years ago? Heck yeah. And Cunningham has done a magnificent job at placing us in the 1920s. Plus the author name drops dress styles, art pieces, and cars which are so fun to look up and visualize in the story. If you take anything from this review please when you read this during the cotillion scene look up the Chicago Cultural Center, and see the Tiffany glass dome and imagine this beautiful ball taking place under there. I’ve been thinking about it literally alll day
Overall review: 500/5 I can’t wait til it comes out in print on the 30th so I can read the polished version.
This story opens up with a ballad in Alabama set in the early 1900s. We learn of a mixed boy nicknamed “Jimmy Blue-Eyes” who had to flee his town following the advances of a white woman.
A few years later, a young debutante named Penelope “Nelly” Sawyer has arrived in Chicago for her brother’s funeral. She’s unlike most young debutantes you’ve read in novels, she’s a Black woman whose father is dubbed “The Wealthiest Negro in America”. The Sawyer family’s wealth is very new, they made their fortune raising race horses, and Nelly and her parents are very aware of the delicacy of new wealth, especially for a colored family like themselves.
Nelly’s parents only want for her to marry well and secure her future. But Nelly has a secret: she’s an investigative writer and her articles have been published in secret in a local Chicago paper. Determined to find her own path, Nelly accepts an assignment to find the dangerous kingpin known only as “The Mayor of Maxwell Street”.
Nelly’s investigations will lead her into Chicago’s dangerous underground, meanwhile her debutante is leading her into Chicago’s most prominent locations. Both are places she is told that she does not belong – the underground because she is a young wealthy woman – the exclusive ballrooms and exhibitions because of her race.
Cunningham has written a story filled with beauty and wonder while still keeping us on our toes with the recognition of all the uncertainty and danger that Nelly faces both within her own prestigious company and when she walks down dangerous streets. The racism and presumptions made about the main character are so flawlessly interwoven with the resolution of her character.
That is not to say that Nelly is a perfect character. She undergoes a lot of development, and honestly there were times towards the end that I was getting upset like actually whispering, “you stupid idiot” under my breath and nearly fuming at the thought that the book would head in the direction I feared it would. But that was me being silly because this book is smarter than 90% of the books being published today. The story that is being told is fantastic yet the characters are real and tangible.
And beyond the story being told there is also the setting, which I couldn’t not mention in my review. The setting is what drew me to this book. Chicago 100 years ago? Heck yeah. And Cunningham has done a magnificent job at placing us in the 1920s. Plus the author name drops dress styles, art pieces, and cars which are so fun to look up and visualize in the story. If you take anything from this review please when you read this during the cotillion scene look up the Chicago Cultural Center, and see the Tiffany glass dome and imagine this beautiful ball taking place under there. I’ve been thinking about it literally alll day
Overall review: 500/5 I can’t wait til it comes out in print on the 30th so I can read the polished version.
February 1, 2024
4 1/2 "Well, alrighty then." Stars!
For a while, I thought this book was just wondering a little bit even though it always held my attention. There were a lot of people and moving characters. A lot of smoke and mirrors. Just remember that and don't be too surprised in the end. I adored Nelly. She was tenacious. Happy reading!
For a while, I thought this book was just wondering a little bit even though it always held my attention. There were a lot of people and moving characters. A lot of smoke and mirrors. Just remember that and don't be too surprised in the end. I adored Nelly. She was tenacious. Happy reading!
February 4, 2024
This story felt very different than what I expected from the premise. I liked the idea of a young woman from the elite of “Colored” society as a main character. And Nelly was an interesting main character. She’s a reluctant participant in society, happier on their Kentucky farm with their horses. But after the death of her elder brother, she’s forced onto the Cotillion circuit in Chicago, as her parents seek a good marriage for her. There she meets Jay, a biracial young man of unknown origin who often passes as white. She also meets Tomas, a European nobleman of Mexican descent. There’s the obvious romantic cliche of which man she’ll pick.
I have mixed feelings about the story. It was like the author didn’t really know what she wanted this book to be about. The story never quite gelled for me. While I found Nelly an interesting character, her rationale for trying to find the mayor didn’t work for me.
The society Nelly lives in is protected as can be, but they are still exposed to racism and Jim Crow. As Jay says, he wants the options that are given to the white man. But the whole time I was reading this, I was left with questions. While Cunningham went out of her way to detail the dresses and the parties, I didn't feel like Cunningham really gave me a sense of how the society really functioned. The plot had some major gaps in it along with scenes that just felt totally unrealistic. And the big twist at the end was obvious to me from near the beginning.
My thanks to Netgalley and Hyperion Avenue for an advance copy of this book.
I have mixed feelings about the story. It was like the author didn’t really know what she wanted this book to be about. The story never quite gelled for me. While I found Nelly an interesting character, her rationale for trying to find the mayor didn’t work for me.
The society Nelly lives in is protected as can be, but they are still exposed to racism and Jim Crow. As Jay says, he wants the options that are given to the white man. But the whole time I was reading this, I was left with questions. While Cunningham went out of her way to detail the dresses and the parties, I didn't feel like Cunningham really gave me a sense of how the society really functioned. The plot had some major gaps in it along with scenes that just felt totally unrealistic. And the big twist at the end was obvious to me from near the beginning.
My thanks to Netgalley and Hyperion Avenue for an advance copy of this book.
December 11, 2023
The story is set in Chicago during the roaring 1920s, the beginning of the Prohibition Era in America and the city is full of corruption and gangsters ruled the streets.
Penelope is the daughter of a wealthy coloured horse breeder Ambrose Sawyer from Kentucky, her family are members of the elite black society, after the unexpected death of her brother Elder, and Nelly goes from being a spare to being an heir. To overcome her grief, Florence Sawyer decides Nelly needs to make her debut at a ball in Chicago and marry a rich man and have babies.
For the past year Nelly has been working secretly undercover as an investigative journalist, for the Chicago Defender, sharing the accomplishments and problems of everyday coloured people. Her latest assignment is to find the mysterious Mayor of Maxwell Street, he’s the leader of one of the biggest crime gangs in Chicago and his identity has been closely guarded. Nelly underestimates how dangerous it is sticking her nose in places it's not wanted, not only is she risking her own safety and she’s oblivious to the fact it could hurt others and have a domino effect.
Nelly meets Jay Shorey, he’s bi-racial and originally from Alabama and has reinvented himself in Chicago, he runs a speakeasy and trouble seems to follow him. Discrimination, racism and hatred is still a problem for people of colour in Chicago, Nelly has been shielded from the worst of this due to her family being rich and while she’s sneaking around looking for the Mayor of Maxwell Street she comes across what it's really like to be a black woman, where your own body is a threat and it’s a big shock.
I received a copy of Avery Cunningham’s novel The Mayor of Maxwell Street from Edelweiss Plus and Sourcebooks in exchange for an honest review. This debut book's touted as a great and epic love story and I really don’t understand why?
Yes, Nelly has two men who could be possible love interests, one being Jay Shorey and the other polo player Thomas Escalante Roche and his family reportedly own half of Mexico. I found it to be a rather long and confusing story, it jumped all over the place, maybe because of the narrative being set in Prohibition era Chicago and it's main focus is on the cities underground and in that case Ms. Avery achieved what she set out to do.
To me it was more of a historical detective/mystery type of novel and a very long one, full of violence, gangs, greed, danger, hidden identities, racism, secrets and a young woman who didn’t know what she was doing, I’m still trying to put it all together, please read the book for yourself and makeup your own mind and three stars from me.
Penelope is the daughter of a wealthy coloured horse breeder Ambrose Sawyer from Kentucky, her family are members of the elite black society, after the unexpected death of her brother Elder, and Nelly goes from being a spare to being an heir. To overcome her grief, Florence Sawyer decides Nelly needs to make her debut at a ball in Chicago and marry a rich man and have babies.
For the past year Nelly has been working secretly undercover as an investigative journalist, for the Chicago Defender, sharing the accomplishments and problems of everyday coloured people. Her latest assignment is to find the mysterious Mayor of Maxwell Street, he’s the leader of one of the biggest crime gangs in Chicago and his identity has been closely guarded. Nelly underestimates how dangerous it is sticking her nose in places it's not wanted, not only is she risking her own safety and she’s oblivious to the fact it could hurt others and have a domino effect.
Nelly meets Jay Shorey, he’s bi-racial and originally from Alabama and has reinvented himself in Chicago, he runs a speakeasy and trouble seems to follow him. Discrimination, racism and hatred is still a problem for people of colour in Chicago, Nelly has been shielded from the worst of this due to her family being rich and while she’s sneaking around looking for the Mayor of Maxwell Street she comes across what it's really like to be a black woman, where your own body is a threat and it’s a big shock.
I received a copy of Avery Cunningham’s novel The Mayor of Maxwell Street from Edelweiss Plus and Sourcebooks in exchange for an honest review. This debut book's touted as a great and epic love story and I really don’t understand why?
Yes, Nelly has two men who could be possible love interests, one being Jay Shorey and the other polo player Thomas Escalante Roche and his family reportedly own half of Mexico. I found it to be a rather long and confusing story, it jumped all over the place, maybe because of the narrative being set in Prohibition era Chicago and it's main focus is on the cities underground and in that case Ms. Avery achieved what she set out to do.
To me it was more of a historical detective/mystery type of novel and a very long one, full of violence, gangs, greed, danger, hidden identities, racism, secrets and a young woman who didn’t know what she was doing, I’m still trying to put it all together, please read the book for yourself and makeup your own mind and three stars from me.
March 4, 2024
she’s fun but why was she 500 pages
July 1, 2025
3 stars ⭐⭐⭐
I'm still processing my thoughts but I genuinely liked this story overall. What makes me give the rating I gave is that the story was way too long for Nelly to not have any character development.
I'm still processing my thoughts but I genuinely liked this story overall. What makes me give the rating I gave is that the story was way too long for Nelly to not have any character development.
November 17, 2023
I'm not sure how to even put in words what I think of this one. The events that transpired throughout were so unbelievable and the love story between Jay and Nelly is so toxic. I can not wrap my head around how this was supposed to be an epic love story.
Updated Full review:
The Mayor of Maxwell Street by Avery Cunningham is marketed as an "epic love story" "a tale of intrigue, racial tension, and class warfare, set against the glamorous and gritty backdrop of early 20th century Chicago." (From the synopsis)
Nelly, a rich Black young woman, who is the daughter of the richest Black family in America during the 1920s secretly writes anonymous articles about everyday life and struggles of Black people. Her hope is to one day become a well-known journalist. Upon her brother’s death, her family relocates to Chicago to put his affairs in order and present Nelly as their heir to the Black elite to form connections for her future and theirs.
At her brother's funeral, Nelly meets Jay, a Biracial young man, who is able to pass as a White man with connections to the Chicago underworld. She enlists his help to help her with an investigative article she is trying to write discovering who the Mayor of Maxwell Street is.
Now the premise had me completely intrigued. I was really interested to see how Nelly’s investigation was going to play out. However, the pacing of this story is really slow and for me personally the book is entirely too long being 500+ pages.
The "epic love story" is where this book completely lacks to me. The "so-called" relationship between Nelly and Jay was pure toxic. Every single time they were together, Nelly was being interrogated, physically abused, shot at, etc. Like how is this love....what love is this when your life is in danger?
Also from the beginning the author, Nelly’s parents and even Nelly herself kept stressing the importance of family legacy and strengthening their family name. But I could not fathom why Nelly kept running around with these mobsters when she was basically "threatening" her family security and legacy.
All to say this book just wasn't for me. And I was hoping I would have liked it better.
Updated Full review:
The Mayor of Maxwell Street by Avery Cunningham is marketed as an "epic love story" "a tale of intrigue, racial tension, and class warfare, set against the glamorous and gritty backdrop of early 20th century Chicago." (From the synopsis)
Nelly, a rich Black young woman, who is the daughter of the richest Black family in America during the 1920s secretly writes anonymous articles about everyday life and struggles of Black people. Her hope is to one day become a well-known journalist. Upon her brother’s death, her family relocates to Chicago to put his affairs in order and present Nelly as their heir to the Black elite to form connections for her future and theirs.
At her brother's funeral, Nelly meets Jay, a Biracial young man, who is able to pass as a White man with connections to the Chicago underworld. She enlists his help to help her with an investigative article she is trying to write discovering who the Mayor of Maxwell Street is.
Now the premise had me completely intrigued. I was really interested to see how Nelly’s investigation was going to play out. However, the pacing of this story is really slow and for me personally the book is entirely too long being 500+ pages.
The "epic love story" is where this book completely lacks to me. The "so-called" relationship between Nelly and Jay was pure toxic. Every single time they were together, Nelly was being interrogated, physically abused, shot at, etc. Like how is this love....what love is this when your life is in danger?
Also from the beginning the author, Nelly’s parents and even Nelly herself kept stressing the importance of family legacy and strengthening their family name. But I could not fathom why Nelly kept running around with these mobsters when she was basically "threatening" her family security and legacy.
All to say this book just wasn't for me. And I was hoping I would have liked it better.
September 13, 2024
Oh my God, I thought I would never finish this book. This book was a huge disappointment. The premise sounded intriguing. It had all the makings of my type of book.
-Chicago in 1921
- A Black socialite investigating a mysterious crime lord.
- An epic romance
That sounds great!
The Mayor of Maxwell Street really needed an editor. There was no reason why this book needed to be over 500 pages. The author could have told the same story in under 250 pages. There were long jags in this book where nothing was happening. The main characters were not well defined.
The Mayor of Maxwell Street is about Nelly Sawyer who lives in Kentucky but returns to Chicago for the funeral of her brother. Her father is the richest Black man in Chicago and her mother expects Nelly to stay in Chicago and do her debutant season to secure a rich husband but Nelly has other plans. Nelly wants to become a journalist and she sets out to find the mysterious Mayor of Maxwell Street. Along the way she meets a biracial criminal named Jay and a wealthy suitor Tomas.
I think the author intended for us to be engaged in this love triangle but I never felt any connection between any of the love interests. Jay spends the entire book lying to Nelly and endangering her life. Tomas has the personality of drywall and Nelly is a horrible person who gets multiple people killed but never seems to learn or want to change her ways.
I didn't enjoy this book and I probably should have just dnf'd it. I don't recommend this book but I would probably read more from this author in the future....she just needs an editor.
-Chicago in 1921
- A Black socialite investigating a mysterious crime lord.
- An epic romance
That sounds great!
The Mayor of Maxwell Street really needed an editor. There was no reason why this book needed to be over 500 pages. The author could have told the same story in under 250 pages. There were long jags in this book where nothing was happening. The main characters were not well defined.
The Mayor of Maxwell Street is about Nelly Sawyer who lives in Kentucky but returns to Chicago for the funeral of her brother. Her father is the richest Black man in Chicago and her mother expects Nelly to stay in Chicago and do her debutant season to secure a rich husband but Nelly has other plans. Nelly wants to become a journalist and she sets out to find the mysterious Mayor of Maxwell Street. Along the way she meets a biracial criminal named Jay and a wealthy suitor Tomas.
I think the author intended for us to be engaged in this love triangle but I never felt any connection between any of the love interests. Jay spends the entire book lying to Nelly and endangering her life. Tomas has the personality of drywall and Nelly is a horrible person who gets multiple people killed but never seems to learn or want to change her ways.
I didn't enjoy this book and I probably should have just dnf'd it. I don't recommend this book but I would probably read more from this author in the future....she just needs an editor.
August 25, 2023
i'm not quite sure how i feel about this novel. "the mayor of maxwell street" is a work of historical fiction in which we follow nelly. it's the 1920's and racism runs rampant in chicago.
this novel suffered from being too long. it was a bit daunting to read. i enjoyed the setting and the atmosphere, but the characters were all... rich debutantes. nelly was easy to like, and i appreciate that this is a story about a black woman in the 20's who knows what she wants. the prologue and epilogue were perhaps my favorite parts of this novel, which is an odd thing to say.
thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an arc in exchange for an honest review!
this novel suffered from being too long. it was a bit daunting to read. i enjoyed the setting and the atmosphere, but the characters were all... rich debutantes. nelly was easy to like, and i appreciate that this is a story about a black woman in the 20's who knows what she wants. the prologue and epilogue were perhaps my favorite parts of this novel, which is an odd thing to say.
thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an arc in exchange for an honest review!
January 1, 2024
I had high hopes for this book based on the premise but with next to no plot and characters lacking in development it was a huge disappointment.
March 7, 2024
3.5!
I think the story was really cool, but I just wish some things were edited for more clarity. It’s still such a solid debut, and I can’t wait to see what comes next from this author!
I think the story was really cool, but I just wish some things were edited for more clarity. It’s still such a solid debut, and I can’t wait to see what comes next from this author!
March 2, 2024
Avery Cunningham has written a provocative, thought-provoking novel compelling the reader to consider the tough questions about the cultural, social and financial situations of the 1920’s.
“The Mayor of Maxwell Street” tells of African-American debutante Penelope Sawyer (Nelly) moonlighting as a journalist. Her wealthy family expects her to marry into status and continue the Sawyer legacy, but Nelly is resolved to have her career first. In order to earn her spot as a journalist with “The Defender” she has been given an impossible assignment - find out the identity of the Mayor of Maxwell Street. This underground leader seems to hold the secrets of society’s finest, wealth, and schemes. No one knows who he is and Nelly is walking straight into the arms of danger.
There are so many beautiful layers to this book. I loved being educated on the Black elite class of Chicago during the 20’s. Every character in this book represented an archetype or ideal of this time period. I supplemented this hardcover with the audio version, read by Bahni Turpin, for the most immersive effect. It made all the difference! For further insight, I listened to an interview with Avery Cunningham on the Book of the Month Club app. The novel does move a little slow through its’ 507 pages, but it ended up being a quicker read than expected. I was captivated by too many facets of the overall story. I highly recommend this one!!
“The Mayor of Maxwell Street” tells of African-American debutante Penelope Sawyer (Nelly) moonlighting as a journalist. Her wealthy family expects her to marry into status and continue the Sawyer legacy, but Nelly is resolved to have her career first. In order to earn her spot as a journalist with “The Defender” she has been given an impossible assignment - find out the identity of the Mayor of Maxwell Street. This underground leader seems to hold the secrets of society’s finest, wealth, and schemes. No one knows who he is and Nelly is walking straight into the arms of danger.
There are so many beautiful layers to this book. I loved being educated on the Black elite class of Chicago during the 20’s. Every character in this book represented an archetype or ideal of this time period. I supplemented this hardcover with the audio version, read by Bahni Turpin, for the most immersive effect. It made all the difference! For further insight, I listened to an interview with Avery Cunningham on the Book of the Month Club app. The novel does move a little slow through its’ 507 pages, but it ended up being a quicker read than expected. I was captivated by too many facets of the overall story. I highly recommend this one!!
August 15, 2023
1921. A rich Black girl writing anonymous articles about everyday Black people. A biracial, white-passing boy with a connection to the Chicago underworld. A love story.
The prologue set a few years before the actual story, immediately grabbed my attention. But I had to warm up to the story itself. I found the pacing rather slow and had to get used to the writing. And somehow, I didn’t understand everything. I had to look up lots of words (it might be because English is not my native language), and it took me out of the book. But slowly, I got invested in Nelly’s and Jay’s story. It was rather chilling to read about topics like racism and misogyny, to have to hide your identity and to become aware we still face those issues these days.
This is not a romance, and I also don’t think it’s a real love story. It’s a novel about a girl on the cusp of adulthood who meets a boy and feels a strong connection towards him, but lots of times they’re not together. They only meet a few times in the first half of the book. And only halfway, Jay promises to help Nelly with her investigation. Next to Nelly and Jay, there are many, many side characters, Sequoia with her encyclopedic social knowledge, hiding a secret at the same time, and Tomás, the Spanish-Mexican polo player who had his own experience with racism and had so many similarities to Jay, being the most interesting.
Like I said, it took me some time to really like the story, and in the second half of the story, I started doubting again because, at 60/70 %, I still didn’t feel that promised love story. I liked the setting and the topics and think it’s a solid debut, but the love story just fell flat for me, so I doubted my rating. Eventually, I decided to rate this novel 3.5 stars and round it down.
I received an ARC from Disney Publishing Group and Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.
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The prologue set a few years before the actual story, immediately grabbed my attention. But I had to warm up to the story itself. I found the pacing rather slow and had to get used to the writing. And somehow, I didn’t understand everything. I had to look up lots of words (it might be because English is not my native language), and it took me out of the book. But slowly, I got invested in Nelly’s and Jay’s story. It was rather chilling to read about topics like racism and misogyny, to have to hide your identity and to become aware we still face those issues these days.
This is not a romance, and I also don’t think it’s a real love story. It’s a novel about a girl on the cusp of adulthood who meets a boy and feels a strong connection towards him, but lots of times they’re not together. They only meet a few times in the first half of the book. And only halfway, Jay promises to help Nelly with her investigation. Next to Nelly and Jay, there are many, many side characters, Sequoia with her encyclopedic social knowledge, hiding a secret at the same time, and Tomás, the Spanish-Mexican polo player who had his own experience with racism and had so many similarities to Jay, being the most interesting.
Like I said, it took me some time to really like the story, and in the second half of the story, I started doubting again because, at 60/70 %, I still didn’t feel that promised love story. I liked the setting and the topics and think it’s a solid debut, but the love story just fell flat for me, so I doubted my rating. Eventually, I decided to rate this novel 3.5 stars and round it down.
I received an ARC from Disney Publishing Group and Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.
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February 20, 2024
Disappointed. Skimmed the last 150 pages just to get to the end. Predictable.
March 2, 2024
Extremely LONG for no reason. I feel like it was a lot of words and not a lot going on with the story line. I stopped reading on page 169 where half the page was written in Spanish with no context as to what was being discussed in English. This book is a definite do not finish for me.
February 28, 2024
This story was definitely a 4.5 star read for me. Not only was this a historical fiction story, but it was also a mystery. I thoroughly enjoyed the writing style, and I felt the author did an amazing job in describing 20's Chicago era.
January 31, 2024
Overall, I found this to be a pretty action packed, intriguing historical that focused on the overall societal issues that were present in 1920s Chicago. We follow Nelly, who is the daughter of one of the most recognizable and famous Black men of the time who made his money breeding horses. Nelly is used to life on a farm and at the racetrack, but is suddenly thrust into Chicago high society after the untimely death of her older brother Elder in a car accident. At her brother's funeral, she runs into a daring figure she can't look away from, Jay Shorey. Jay is very charming and very mysterious and as they keep running into each other, they begin to form a strange friendship and alliance. Nelly has secretly been writing articles for a famous community newspaper and has been given her hardest assignment, find and expose the Mayor of Maxwell Street, a shady character who seemingly has strings in all facets of the Chicago underworld. Even just mentioning the name has people around Nelly practically crossing themselves. The only person who remotely wants to help her is Jay, but he has secrets of his own he'd rather leave hidden.
The synopsis does mention that it is a love story and it kind of is? There are a few different love stories happening in this story but make no mistake this is not a romance and it is not a major part of the story. This story is very focused on showing Black society in Chicago in the 1920s and exploring corruption in the government and interactions in underworld groups. There are shady deals, threats, shoot outs, you name it. If you would expect to see it in a novel set in the 20s, it will likely crop up in this one.
The way the mystery of who is the Mayor of Maxwell Street is crafted had me turning pages unable putting the book down, trying to figure it out and make different theories and connections. Overall, the interactions between characters were interesting and I loved Sequoia as Nelly's friend even if she is a bit much at times and may not be the best friend in the world, but then again neither is Nelly. The characters feel very real and the story is pretty dramatic.
The reason this isn't a 5 star read for me was just that the end was a bit muddled in my opinion and I would have liked a bit more information.
CW: There is a lot of use of certain terms in relation to Black people (n words, etc). The author does note this at the start of the book as it is in keeping with the era she is writing about. There is also a use of the g-slur. This book includes: death of a family member, gun violence, gang violence, racism, slurs, misogyny, explosion. These are the ones I remember but there could be more.
*Thank you to Hyperion Avenue and Publishers Weekly for the ARC! All thoughts are my own :) *
The synopsis does mention that it is a love story and it kind of is? There are a few different love stories happening in this story but make no mistake this is not a romance and it is not a major part of the story. This story is very focused on showing Black society in Chicago in the 1920s and exploring corruption in the government and interactions in underworld groups. There are shady deals, threats, shoot outs, you name it. If you would expect to see it in a novel set in the 20s, it will likely crop up in this one.
The way the mystery of who is the Mayor of Maxwell Street is crafted had me turning pages unable putting the book down, trying to figure it out and make different theories and connections. Overall, the interactions between characters were interesting and I loved Sequoia as Nelly's friend even if she is a bit much at times and may not be the best friend in the world, but then again neither is Nelly. The characters feel very real and the story is pretty dramatic.
The reason this isn't a 5 star read for me was just that the end was a bit muddled in my opinion and I would have liked a bit more information.
CW: There is a lot of use of certain terms in relation to Black people (n words, etc). The author does note this at the start of the book as it is in keeping with the era she is writing about. There is also a use of the g-slur. This book includes: death of a family member, gun violence, gang violence, racism, slurs, misogyny, explosion. These are the ones I remember but there could be more.
*Thank you to Hyperion Avenue and Publishers Weekly for the ARC! All thoughts are my own :) *
January 9, 2024
✑ 2.75 ☆s.
"A shadowy figure showed up in conversation a couple years ago and has inspired all kinds of stories ever since. No one knows exactly where he lays his head, but on the beat, he's called the Mayor of Maxwell Street."
When I saw that this book proclaimed to be a Gatsby-esque love story/investigative mystery from the perspective of a wealthy young Black woman wanting nothing more than to make a name for herself rather than play the part of the dutiful debutante entrenched in a classist and racist society, I was SO intrigued.
The portrayal of the gritty Prohibition-era atmosphere and the focus on race and class was laudable; I thoroughly enjoyed the dichotomy between the roaring '20s glitz and the glam, and the glimpse into the main characters' experiences of being Black during that era (even in the North, and even with staggering wealth). Compounded with the mafia drama, the story had a depth and feeling of historical accuracy that was captivating and illuminating.
However, as noted above, The Mayor of Maxwell Street was slated to be an 'epic love story' and a 'dangerous' adventure of investigative journalism, and I found both of these aspects to be lacking. Beyond Nelly being in her season of coming out & having two men vying for her affection at sporadic points, any aspect of romance felt like an afterthought, a piece shoved in after the mystery. Not only that, but if I felt like the epic love story was an afterthought, Nelly's moonlighting as an anonymous journalist felt like barely a breeze of a thought. I would have loved for more focus to have been on this side of her, as overall, I found Nelly to be fairly insufferable. Every time a character scoffed at her for being a plucky, well-to-do young woman with restless legs, I had to admit that I saw their point. Her actions lacked consequence, even her guilt when an action led to extreme consequences was glossed over and tossed aside. And, when the going got tough, she essentially dropped all pretense of caring about the journalism and moved on.
Finally, the timeline was clunky at best... every major plot point was over & done in flash, while the less 'important' pieces dragged on. Moments of romance, intense danger -- these only seemed to last as long as it took to write them, and it cheapened the effect overall. I found parts of the book dragging (despite it being a quick read overall), and other times, I would turn back pages, sure I'd missing something as a major event was gone in a flash.
Overall, it was a quick read & I'll always jump to read a Prohibition/Gatsby-esque story, but I won't feel any pull to read this one again. The characters could have used more depth, and the plot and timeline needed more shaping. There's high potential & I'll look forward to the next book(s) this author writes, but this one fell flat for me.
Thanks to NetGalley & Hyperion Avenue for the ARC!
... As an aside, there were so many typos & it definitely detracted from the experience of the book... I hope these get fixed for publication, because I would normally drop my rating lower if reading a book with this many typos!
"A shadowy figure showed up in conversation a couple years ago and has inspired all kinds of stories ever since. No one knows exactly where he lays his head, but on the beat, he's called the Mayor of Maxwell Street."
When I saw that this book proclaimed to be a Gatsby-esque love story/investigative mystery from the perspective of a wealthy young Black woman wanting nothing more than to make a name for herself rather than play the part of the dutiful debutante entrenched in a classist and racist society, I was SO intrigued.
The portrayal of the gritty Prohibition-era atmosphere and the focus on race and class was laudable; I thoroughly enjoyed the dichotomy between the roaring '20s glitz and the glam, and the glimpse into the main characters' experiences of being Black during that era (even in the North, and even with staggering wealth). Compounded with the mafia drama, the story had a depth and feeling of historical accuracy that was captivating and illuminating.
However, as noted above, The Mayor of Maxwell Street was slated to be an 'epic love story' and a 'dangerous' adventure of investigative journalism, and I found both of these aspects to be lacking. Beyond Nelly being in her season of coming out & having two men vying for her affection at sporadic points, any aspect of romance felt like an afterthought, a piece shoved in after the mystery. Not only that, but if I felt like the epic love story was an afterthought, Nelly's moonlighting as an anonymous journalist felt like barely a breeze of a thought. I would have loved for more focus to have been on this side of her, as overall, I found Nelly to be fairly insufferable. Every time a character scoffed at her for being a plucky, well-to-do young woman with restless legs, I had to admit that I saw their point. Her actions lacked consequence, even her guilt when an action led to extreme consequences was glossed over and tossed aside. And, when the going got tough, she essentially dropped all pretense of caring about the journalism and moved on.
Finally, the timeline was clunky at best... every major plot point was over & done in flash, while the less 'important' pieces dragged on. Moments of romance, intense danger -- these only seemed to last as long as it took to write them, and it cheapened the effect overall. I found parts of the book dragging (despite it being a quick read overall), and other times, I would turn back pages, sure I'd missing something as a major event was gone in a flash.
Overall, it was a quick read & I'll always jump to read a Prohibition/Gatsby-esque story, but I won't feel any pull to read this one again. The characters could have used more depth, and the plot and timeline needed more shaping. There's high potential & I'll look forward to the next book(s) this author writes, but this one fell flat for me.
Thanks to NetGalley & Hyperion Avenue for the ARC!
... As an aside, there were so many typos & it definitely detracted from the experience of the book... I hope these get fixed for publication, because I would normally drop my rating lower if reading a book with this many typos!
February 16, 2024
I did like this it was just way too long. At 500 pages it couldn’t have easily been cut down by at least 100. It’s the 1920s in Chicago and our main girl Nelly is the daughter of the richest Black man in America. As she works as a journalist she gets caught up in the hunt for the elusive mayor of Maxwell street. Suddenly she’s undercover infiltrating gangs while also having her debut season in society. I loved Nelly and the mystery was interesting. It just dragged on for too long.
March 16, 2024
I really wanted to like this book. The writing in and of itself was really good. The storyline was not what I thought it would be. I have never been so confused after finishing a book. I was relieved to find I was not the only one who didn’t understand the ending and felt very confused. I don’t love when I read a book then have to rely on google to understand what I just read.
March 5, 2024
The Mayor of Maxwell Street by Avery Cunningham is about a young black debutant named Penelope (Nelly) Sawyer who secretly writes under a pen name stories about the lives of Black Americans under Jim Crow. She aspires to become a well-known journalist while her parents want her to marry well and secure her future. While in Chicago to bury her brother, she meets up with the editor of the Chicago Defender. He promises her the desired by-line if she is able unearth the identity of “The Mayor of Maxwell Street.” This quest will take her into the dangerous trenches of Chicago where her choices not only risk her own life but that of others.
The world building was my favorite part of the book. This was done well. I have no doubt that much research went into building up Nelly’s universe. My hesitation falls to the plot. It felt too long in the sense that it dragged, and too short because it lacked a clear direction, so information felt missing. Nelly’s motives and actions throughout the novel contradict themselves from time to time. One minute she has a heart, and the next she is cut-throat to save her skin. Jay was just full of sketch. Couldn’t tell the truth if it saved his life. Nelly was always getting hurt in his presence.
It is billed as a love story but a love story it is not. I believe this would have worked great without the love triangle. A tale of a rich girl, despite not having the greatest reasons to risk her breath, hides her quest to be a journalist from her parents set in prohibition era Chicago. Or even just an investigative story trying to discover if her brother’s death was an accident or suspicious.
I’m still not sure what exactly happened at the end. The plot does a skip and loses me in the epilogue. I would not even be speaking to Jay if he did what he did to my family. I kept asking myself… why is she sharing airspace with this man? Everything about you and him can only be described as toxic. Even Tomas, her polo playing suitor, her I’ve only known you a short time ride or die, was giving me toxic vibes with the whole “I’ll keep asking you to marry me shtick.” I could be overthinking that relationship but Jay… throw the whole man away behind bars and walk away. Also, what happened to the journalism career? Did she make it? Did she give it up to be a wife as her remarks of forsaking her family name suggest?
I am undecided if I would glowingly recommend but may if someone asks for historical fiction mystery set in 1920s Chicago. Due to this being the authors debut novel I would not hesitate to try her next book as I did enjoy the writing. The story just needed to be more cohesive and less rushed at the end.
Thank you Netgalley for an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review. I look forward to seeing what other books this author releases in the future!
The world building was my favorite part of the book. This was done well. I have no doubt that much research went into building up Nelly’s universe. My hesitation falls to the plot. It felt too long in the sense that it dragged, and too short because it lacked a clear direction, so information felt missing. Nelly’s motives and actions throughout the novel contradict themselves from time to time. One minute she has a heart, and the next she is cut-throat to save her skin. Jay was just full of sketch. Couldn’t tell the truth if it saved his life. Nelly was always getting hurt in his presence.
It is billed as a love story but a love story it is not. I believe this would have worked great without the love triangle. A tale of a rich girl, despite not having the greatest reasons to risk her breath, hides her quest to be a journalist from her parents set in prohibition era Chicago. Or even just an investigative story trying to discover if her brother’s death was an accident or suspicious.
I’m still not sure what exactly happened at the end. The plot does a skip and loses me in the epilogue. I would not even be speaking to Jay if he did what he did to my family. I kept asking myself… why is she sharing airspace with this man? Everything about you and him can only be described as toxic. Even Tomas, her polo playing suitor, her I’ve only known you a short time ride or die, was giving me toxic vibes with the whole “I’ll keep asking you to marry me shtick.” I could be overthinking that relationship but Jay… throw the whole man away behind bars and walk away. Also, what happened to the journalism career? Did she make it? Did she give it up to be a wife as her remarks of forsaking her family name suggest?
I am undecided if I would glowingly recommend but may if someone asks for historical fiction mystery set in 1920s Chicago. Due to this being the authors debut novel I would not hesitate to try her next book as I did enjoy the writing. The story just needed to be more cohesive and less rushed at the end.
Thank you Netgalley for an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review. I look forward to seeing what other books this author releases in the future!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 9, 2024
If someone could explain the end of this book to me that would be great. I have no idea what happened…maybe it was left for reader interpretation but I didn’t read 500 pages to choose to decide what I think happens.
January 29, 2024
(2.5⭐️ rounded down because as I've written this review I've gotten really angry remembering how frustrating the resolution is). It's a debut novel, and I think the author shows a lot of promise. This book was just trying to do too much, and would have benefited from focusing on just a few elements. Instead we get a book about race, a piece of historical fiction, a story about a family, a love story, a mystery, a gangster novel. There's a lot going on and nothing gets done completely.
Again, I do think that the author has a lot of talent and I will definitely give their next book a chance. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.
Again, I do think that the author has a lot of talent and I will definitely give their next book a chance. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.
January 18, 2024
me enjoying a 500+ page historical fiction this much was not on my 2024 bucketlist but the genre didn't have avery cunningham before this book!!
this book is a romance (love triangle!!), mystery, and historical fiction all at once . . . while also feeling like none of those things. everything about the pacing and the scenes feels subtle and almost quiet. I don't know how to explain it, but I flew through this, was glued to the page, and then was like . . . "what just happened?"
a journey!!
my one complaint: I am definitely a mystery girly but I have not previous read stories dealing with like mob/city corruption plotlines. I feel like in the mafia world there is a lot of like "wink wink nudge nudge" in the dialogue. unfortunately, I have not seen sopranos. I am usually not picking up what you're putting down. so I do think I lacked a full depth of understanding.
will be eagerly anticipating whatever avery cunningham writes next!
this book is a romance (love triangle!!), mystery, and historical fiction all at once . . . while also feeling like none of those things. everything about the pacing and the scenes feels subtle and almost quiet. I don't know how to explain it, but I flew through this, was glued to the page, and then was like . . . "what just happened?"
a journey!!
my one complaint: I am definitely a mystery girly but I have not previous read stories dealing with like mob/city corruption plotlines. I feel like in the mafia world there is a lot of like "wink wink nudge nudge" in the dialogue. unfortunately, I have not seen sopranos. I am usually not picking up what you're putting down. so I do think I lacked a full depth of understanding.
will be eagerly anticipating whatever avery cunningham writes next!
February 12, 2024
DNF. Was moving way too slow, wasn’t motivated to pick it up, and the writing felt a little choppy.
July 25, 2024
I'm so sad because I'm so disappointed. I wanted to love this one. It isn't often I get to read books about the 1920's and this story had the added layers of race and privilege. I was ready to be dazzled and fascinated and angered.
Instead, I got a jumble of a story. It's at least 2 stories in one so it means neither story is fully explored. The ultimate reveal was so disappointing because it didn't make sense. The ending was even more confusing. There were added explanations and conclusions that I didn't feel were necessary and just seemed to add a rushed feel to the conclusions. I really wish I'd liked this more.
Instead, I got a jumble of a story. It's at least 2 stories in one so it means neither story is fully explored. The ultimate reveal was so disappointing because it didn't make sense. The ending was even more confusing. There were added explanations and conclusions that I didn't feel were necessary and just seemed to add a rushed feel to the conclusions. I really wish I'd liked this more.
March 4, 2024
What the HELL was this convoluted load of balderdash. I truly don’t know what other readers saw in this book. I chugged this thing down like a Metamucil-prune juice slurry, but I wish I had just DNFed it.
The good: the writing itself is solid. I don’t have any complaints about the quality of the prose.
The bad: nothing about the story is believable. the protagonist is a whiny, selfish, anachronistic brat. Nelly is the daughter of one of the richest Black families in 1920s America. She also secretly writes as a journalist under her pen name. Here starts the central, contrived conflict of the story: she wants a byline under her name, but her boss deems it risky to publish under her highly recognizable Rich Family name, and so agrees to give her a byline ONLY if she identifies the almost mythical Mafia Lord known only as The Mayor of Maxwell Street. Nelly accepts the suicide mission without hesitation because OH WOE IS ME her parents wants her to meet other guys at the Bridgerton-like Matchmaking Event. BUUUT she likes this dashing rich Mexican boy Tomás who isn’t at all a potential suitor, but just a FRIEND, as she insists.
Throughout the book, she gets people killed in this hairbrained quest for a byline. All so she can be something more than a rich wife. (But for all this fuss about her being a journalist, we don’t actually see her every working on any writing. ) She compulsively lies to her family and close friends about her whereabouts so that she can pursue her suspects, and ends up being kidnapped, beaten, and shot at by Chicagoan gangsters. One would think that she was desperately trying to secure this byline to escape an abusive, maybe religious fundamentalist family of some sort - but her parents are always loving and supportive when they are shown on the page.
Nope, I can’t rationalize Nelly’s motivation. I just don’t buy it.
Honorable mention: the transitions between chapters are atrocious. Settings and characters change suddenly and drastically, without warning or explanation. Sometimes I would have to flip back in my ebook to make sure my app wasn’t glitching.
THE UGLY: the “big reveal” of the Mayor’s true identity is an insult to any reader’s intelligence. It’s highly implied that a VERY PROMINENT character is the legendary Mayor but I was expecting there to be a twist at the end because it couldn’t be that simple… could it? And it was.
I’m not even sure what happened in the last chapter and epilogue, and at this point I don’t care anymore.
Unfortunately, this one is a complete and utter waste of time. Major UNrecommendation.
The good: the writing itself is solid. I don’t have any complaints about the quality of the prose.
The bad: nothing about the story is believable. the protagonist is a whiny, selfish, anachronistic brat. Nelly is the daughter of one of the richest Black families in 1920s America. She also secretly writes as a journalist under her pen name. Here starts the central, contrived conflict of the story: she wants a byline under her name, but her boss deems it risky to publish under her highly recognizable Rich Family name, and so agrees to give her a byline ONLY if she identifies the almost mythical Mafia Lord known only as The Mayor of Maxwell Street. Nelly accepts the suicide mission without hesitation because OH WOE IS ME her parents wants her to meet other guys at the Bridgerton-like Matchmaking Event. BUUUT she likes this dashing rich Mexican boy Tomás who isn’t at all a potential suitor, but just a FRIEND, as she insists.
Throughout the book, she gets people killed in this hairbrained quest for a byline. All so she can be something more than a rich wife. (But for all this fuss about her being a journalist, we don’t actually see her every working on any writing. ) She compulsively lies to her family and close friends about her whereabouts so that she can pursue her suspects, and ends up being kidnapped, beaten, and shot at by Chicagoan gangsters. One would think that she was desperately trying to secure this byline to escape an abusive, maybe religious fundamentalist family of some sort - but her parents are always loving and supportive when they are shown on the page.
Nope, I can’t rationalize Nelly’s motivation. I just don’t buy it.
Honorable mention: the transitions between chapters are atrocious. Settings and characters change suddenly and drastically, without warning or explanation. Sometimes I would have to flip back in my ebook to make sure my app wasn’t glitching.
THE UGLY: the “big reveal” of the Mayor’s true identity is an insult to any reader’s intelligence. It’s highly implied that a VERY PROMINENT character is the legendary Mayor but I was expecting there to be a twist at the end because it couldn’t be that simple… could it? And it was.
I’m not even sure what happened in the last chapter and epilogue, and at this point I don’t care anymore.
Unfortunately, this one is a complete and utter waste of time. Major UNrecommendation.
January 7, 2024
Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC. I had so many mixed feelings about this book and I would say it's 3.5 stars but I rounded up because I did genuinely enjoy it. To me, the best part about this book was the atmosphere of the period and setting: 1920's Chicago, with a mix of dazzling parties and seedy underground bars, multiple ethnicities co-mingling and of course, the mafia. It made for a fun and fascinating read.
The protagonist is Nelly, a woman coming from the richest black family in America, tied to social and family obligation of coming out at the cotillion and marrying rich. She wants nothing more than to be a journalist and in order to do that, she has to get involved in discovering the Mayor of Maxwell Street. I loved her grit and determination, though she often wreaked havoc with her naivete. Nelly's love interests could have been written better, and I found myself very conflicted with how that turned out. I understand why she was drawn to Jay Shorey, but he just frustrated the hell out of me. Additionally, I was confused by a lot of the events that transpired and while I think Cunningham's writing is sublime, some stuff was a little unclear. Her vivid descriptions and dialogue were awesome though and I felt as though I was right there with the characters.
I think the overall concept of this book was amazing and I really enjoyed it. I can't wait to see what else Cunningham has in store because she definitely drew me in!
The protagonist is Nelly, a woman coming from the richest black family in America, tied to social and family obligation of coming out at the cotillion and marrying rich. She wants nothing more than to be a journalist and in order to do that, she has to get involved in discovering the Mayor of Maxwell Street. I loved her grit and determination, though she often wreaked havoc with her naivete. Nelly's love interests could have been written better, and I found myself very conflicted with how that turned out. I understand why she was drawn to Jay Shorey, but he just frustrated the hell out of me. Additionally, I was confused by a lot of the events that transpired and while I think Cunningham's writing is sublime, some stuff was a little unclear. Her vivid descriptions and dialogue were awesome though and I felt as though I was right there with the characters.
I think the overall concept of this book was amazing and I really enjoyed it. I can't wait to see what else Cunningham has in store because she definitely drew me in!
January 28, 2024
TL;DR: Great premise that suffered from debut syndrome- too much, too slow. Beautiful writing style but the pace was rough and this book doesn't know what it wants to be.
This book is a contradiction for me. I think it suffers from a common debut issue- there's so many things the author wanted to include that it turned into a bit of a mess. Although I liked Nelly a lot, I thought the love story between her and Jay was slightly toxic and was rooting for Tomas the entire time. If this had been either a love triangle or a journalistic mystery, I would have enjoyed it more, but we really don't even start on the investigative piece until 150 pages in or so, and the pace takes several sideways turns, alternating fast and slow. A narrower focus may have helped, or editing down some of the long scenes that were really just interactions with secondary characters or descriptions of the setting could have done wonders to march the plot along.
However, I did love the setting, and the writing itself is fantastic. Cunningham obviously has a lot of talent, and I'm interested to see what she comes up with next, as long as some of the issues with pacing get resolved.
This book is a contradiction for me. I think it suffers from a common debut issue- there's so many things the author wanted to include that it turned into a bit of a mess. Although I liked Nelly a lot, I thought the love story between her and Jay was slightly toxic and was rooting for Tomas the entire time. If this had been either a love triangle or a journalistic mystery, I would have enjoyed it more, but we really don't even start on the investigative piece until 150 pages in or so, and the pace takes several sideways turns, alternating fast and slow. A narrower focus may have helped, or editing down some of the long scenes that were really just interactions with secondary characters or descriptions of the setting could have done wonders to march the plot along.
However, I did love the setting, and the writing itself is fantastic. Cunningham obviously has a lot of talent, and I'm interested to see what she comes up with next, as long as some of the issues with pacing get resolved.
March 1, 2024
It��s more a 3.5 but still feels good to give 4 stars. I did enjoy this story and there were moments where I was audibly gasped. But it still felt like something was slightly missing from this book, like the writing was laking intensity at certain moments. Still would recommend to others!
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