One of Our Kind Nicola Yoon
The Stepford Wives meets Get Out in No.1 New York Times bestselling author Nicola Yoon’s first adult novel, a terrifying and thought-provoking look at what it means to be truly free in America.
Jasmyn and King Williams move their family to the planned Black utopia of Liberty, California hoping to find a community of like-minded people, a place where their growing family can thrive. King settles in at once, embracing the Liberty ethos, including the luxe wellness center at the top of the hill, which proves to be the heart of the community. But Jasmyn struggles to find her place. She expected to find liberals and social justice activists striving for racial equality, but Liberty residents seem more focused on booking spa treatments and ignoring the world’s troubles.
Jasmyn’s only friends in the community are equally perplexed and frustrated by most residents' outlook. Then Jasmyn discovers a terrible secret about Liberty and its founders. Frustration turns to dread as their loved ones start embracing the Liberty way of life.
Will the truth destroy her world in ways she never could have imagined?
Thrilling with insightful social commentary, One of Our Kind explores the ways in which freedom is complicated by the presumptions we make about ourselves and each other.
I'm a fan of Yoon's YA novels and this is her first adult novel. It's a heavier topic and a mystery-thriller. I have mixed feelings about this one and I'm glad I borrowed it from the library instead of buying it.
On the one hand it is a page turner, with short chapters and therefore a fast read.
On the other hand I would get frustrated with the characters' attitudes, the gaslighting and lack of investigation.
I don't know how else to explain it all in this review without spoilers. So, here be spoilers.
Jasmyn is the protagonist and our only point of view character. She's a wife, mom, public defender, and an activist. She is someone who sees the racist boogyman around every corner (fearing/not trusting cops, racism at the hospitals, racism at the store, at the restaurant, at work, etc..) And although she and her husband have achieved the American dream, she feels guilty about it.
Jasmyn is also a gatekeeper. She has standards about what makes a person Black: how they wear their hair and how much they're involved in social justice activism. It was super annoying about how judgmental she was.
Then there are the people of Liberty, including Jasmyn's husband King, who bury their heads in the spa and ignore the actual issues in the black community where they could give back and help.
But I was also scratching my head at how they thought to beat racism and their trauma was to "give in" and become white. That's genocide. The whole concept was disturbing and wrong. And they did it to children too!
Also, you don't have to be white to live in America to achieve the Dream. Just being born an American, regardless of your race, is a privilege because you can apply yourself and move up from your status. Not many other places in the world allow that opportunity. And these characters achieved great heights as Black Americans. So it's an insult for them to genocide themselves by becoming white.
I get that this is a mystery thriller and is being marketed as Get Out meets The Stepford Wives. So both extremes make the plot work. But I think it's a warning about how not to be either one. Don't watch the news and get off social media. That media propaganda will consume and define your life, like it did for Jasmyn. Politicians and their best friend, the Media, manipulate people to become useful idiots. Shut it off.
At the same time instead of spending all their time at the spa, they're rich now and have the privilege of giving back to the poor communities they came from: volunteer, mentor, build rehab centers, build recreation centers for kids, tutor kids, foster kids, adopt kids! Save the spa treatment for once a month. Balance your time.
Honestly, all of them were frustrating characters. I will say, I did like Keisha at first, but then she got brain diddled.
In any other type of story the ending would not have been so bleak. But here Jasmyn doesn't take her investigations anywhere. She ignores the signs and is also gaslit by her husband.
The reader was privy to newspaper clippings of the other residents' past traumas, which I liked those glimpses. I thought Jasmyn would fall down the rabbit hole and find those clippings too, but she doesn't. By the time she does any digging, not only is it too late but it's also crammed in at the end. I get that Yoon was trying to create suspense and urgency, but it came off as rushed. This was the point in the novel when I wondered if having different POVs would have been beneficial.
So as I was processing my thoughts and feelings for a review I kept going back and forth between these ratings: 2, 2.5 and 3.
A three because it was a fast read and it did make me think and feel different emotions. A two because what exactly is the message here? Is there a disturbing message or is it just a thriller?
I'm going to setting on 2.5 because it's the midpoint between those final thoughts.
2.5 out of 5 Spas.