Book Review: “Hurricane Summer” by Asha Bromfield

“Hurricane Summer” by Asha Bromfield (2021)

Genre: YA, Contemporary, Fiction

Page Length: 400 pages (hardcover edition)

Synopsis:

Tilla has spent her entire life trying to make her father love her. But every six months, he leaves their family and returns to his true home: the island of Jamaica.

When Tilla’s mother tells her she’ll be spending the summer on the island, Tilla dreads the idea of seeing him again, but longs to discover what life in Jamaica has always held for him.

In an unexpected turn of events, Tilla is forced to face the storm that unravels in her own life as she learns about the dark secrets that lie beyond the veil of paradise—all in the midst of an impending hurricane.

Review:

*Multiple Trigger Warnings For This Book! It contains a lot of sensitive material!*

Despite being an incredibly heavy read and an a book that made me cry at the end, I throughly enjoyed this debut novel from Bromfield. This novel is a difficult coming-of-age story following the main character Tilla as she and her younger sister, Mia spend a summer in Jamaica. This will be the first time the two sisters will spend a summer away from their mother and away from everything they know. Despite their Jamaican heritage, they feel foreign in their parents homeland and the result is a summer full of growth, culture shock, trauma, and grief. Navigating her complicated emotions, Tilla is forced to face a physical and mental storm that she has been reckoning with.

This novel is hard-hitting from the beginning, and it wastes no time unraveling the complicated secrets surrounding Tilla’s father and the rest of the family she resides with in the country. She struggles to fit in, learn Patois, adapt to a rural lifestyle, and confront her dad for seemingly abandoning their family she needed him the most. In between the emotions and family drama, readers are treated to the beauty of Jamaica and the lush scenery that will take your breath away. The author also showcases the non-tourist side of the country and the harsh realities the residents have to death outside of constant natural disasters such a classicam, colorism, and poverty.

The lyrical nature of Bromfield’s writing kept me constantly immersed with the story and it’s dimensional characters (many of whom are unlikable). The story is set up into three separate parts and I felt that kept the novel at a smooth pace. At it’s core it is a story about a teenage girl’s search for love, acceptance, and dealing with her sudden steps to womanhood. I will say this book may not be for everyone due to its intense nature, but I think it is a powerful story that discusses many important topics. I feel this novel is a very thought provoking story about the obstacles of growing up and a daughter who is wants to preserve her father’s love while healing the rift of her family.

Final Verdict: