Julie's Review: The House of Eve

Author: Sadeqa Johnson
Series: None
Publication Date:  February 7, 2023
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Pages: 384
Obtained: publisher via Netgalley
Genre:  Historical Fiction
Rating: 4/5
Bottom Line: 
Grab, Just get it at the library, or Remove from your TBR list? Grab

Summary: 1950s Philadelphia: fifteen-year-old Ruby Pearsall is on track to becoming the first in her family to attend college, in spite of having a mother more interested in keeping a man than raising a daughter. But a taboo love affair threatens to pull her back down into the poverty and desperation that has been passed on to her like a birthright. Eleanor Quarles arrives in Washington, DC, with ambition and secrets. When she meets the handsome William Pride at Howard University, they fall madly in love. But William hails from one of DC’s elite wealthy Black families, and his par­ents don’t let just anyone into their fold. Eleanor hopes that a baby will make her finally feel at home in William’s family and grant her the life she’s been searching for. But having a baby—and fitting in—is easier said than done. With their stories colliding in the most unexpected of ways, Ruby and Eleanor will both make decisions that shape the trajectory of their lives. ~amazon.com

Review: Let me begin by saying that Ms. Johnson's 2021 release The Yellow Wife was one of my favorites and I encourage you to go read it if you haven't. The House of Eve focuses on a different time period but yet still highlights the struggles of black women. Eleanor and Ruby are similar in their backgrounds but very different. Eleanor's parents wanted to afford her a higher education so they sacrificed to send her to Howard. Ruby's home life is anything but ideal and she's often shuffled between homes. It is her Aunt that is the one that truly encourages her to try to make the best of herself by taking advantage of the program she's enrolled in. 

Eleanor gets an introduction to black high society while she is at Howard and especially when she begins to date William Pride. Before then she wasn't aware of racism in her own people but now she's too dark to even join the sorority on campus. She is not welcomed by William's inner circle and of course his mother thinks that she's beneath him. It's not easy constantly be in situations where you are ignored because you aren't one of them and it does cause some strife in their relationship at times. 

Ruby does her best to keep her head in the books but it's hard when a young man, Shimmy, keeps pursuing her. Despite her aunt's warning about getting involved with him, she finds herself in trouble. She ends up at a home for pregnant, unwed girls in D.C. What Ruby finds in herself is the strength to get through her current circumstances, finish her circumstances and pursue her dreams. 

I enjoyed the novel but for me it didn't have the same emotional punch as The Yellow Wife but Ms. Johnson does a great job of telling both stories. What I really enjoyed was her afterword because she gives a lot of history/context on black high society, which is super interesting. I can see why Reese Witherspoon chose this as her February 2023 choice, it lends itself to some great conversations. 

Julie's Review: Second House from the Corner

Author: Sadeqa Johnson
Series: None
Publication Date: June 24, 2014
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Pages: 304
Obtained: publisher
Genre:  Contemporary Fiction
Rating: 4.5/5
Bottom Line: A novel about how our past always catches up to us
Grab, Just get it at the library, or Remove from your TBR list? Grab!

Summary: Second House from the Corner centers on the story of Felicia Lyons, a stay-at-home mother of three drowning in the drudgeries of play dates, lost pacifiers and potty training who occasionally wonders what it would be like to escape the demands of motherhood. But when an unexpected phone call threatens to destroy her life, Felicia is forced to return to her childhood home where she must wrestle with an ex-lover and long buried secrets to save the family and home she loves despite the daily challenges. Felicia Lyons is a character who mothers can identify with and laugh along with. You can't help but cheer for her in Johnson's engaging and well-written novel. ~goodreads.com  

Review: Second House from the Corner is probably one of the most honest looks at being a mother and wife that I've read in a long time. Ms. Johnson doesn't hold back and that is refreshing. Felicia Lyons or Faye has 3 children 6 and under and at times feels harried taking care of the kids since her husband is always working. She finds herself losing it at times and that's when she needs a break. She's done well for herself as an actress and strives to give her kids the stable family life that neither she or Preston had. She's a good mom that spends a lot of her time with the kids while also trying to resurrect her acting career.

One phone call on a regular evening changes how Faye reacts and overreacts to things going on in her life. It also leads to some very poor decisions on her part as well. There isn't a lack of times in he book where you won't want to smack or shake her. In the end, though it's a journey that she needs to take to rid herself of the ghosts that have been haunting her since she was a young girl.

I want to talk about Preston for a moment because I think how he treats Faye leads to her journey. I think that Preston is still stunned that he landed someone as beautiful as her for a wife. He holds her on a pedestal and where else is there to go but down form there. He's never home to help with the kids even on the weekends it's up to her. Everyone needs a break even the most devout mother. Part of me felt that he wanted her as a trophy wife but didn't want to share her with anyone. I also think he was a bit naive to think that he was her first lover. I wanted to shake him a few times and ask him to treat her like a person instead of a possession.

This is a novel that kept me turning the pages until the very end. I wanted Faye to desperately figure out what it is that she needs to get out of her system. I wanted her to wrestle with her demons once and for all so that she could be the person she wants to be.

Second House from the Corner is an intriguing and fast-paced novel. It will have you up late finishing it and you probably won't be able to get it out of your head after wards.


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