Brown Girl in the Ring

The strongest parts of this book have to do with the wonderful details about the relationships between women–the central protagonist and her mother and grandmother. There is nothing simple about these relationships, and they ring true. The book is worth reading for this stuff alone.

I didn't enjoy the plot, or the “magical realism” (is it really still magical realism when a spell makes somebody invisible?–seems like just magic); I suspect that so-called “urban fantasy” isn't my favorite flavor of fantasy, which is no fault of the book, but I also think that the plot and setting weren't strong enough to hold the wonderful characters. Two characters talking?–GREAT BOOK. Two characters out in the “magical” world?– YOU LOST ME.

I'll likely try another book by Hopkinson, since this was her first, just because I liked the characters so much...