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The Better Half
After a difficult five years, at age forty-three, Nina Morgan Clarke’s time has finally arrived. With an ex-husband relocated across the country, her father bouncing back after the loss of his beloved wife, and her daughter, Xandra, thriving at boarding school, Nina is stepping into her dream job as a trifecta: a first-generation, Black female head of the storied Royal-Hawkins School. To mark the moment, Nina and her best friend, Marisol, take a long-overdue girls’ trip to celebrate the second half of Nina’s life—which is shaping up to be the best part of her life.
As Nina’s school year gets underway, all seems to be progressing as planned. Before long, wunder-hire Jared Jones, two hundred pounds of Harvard-educated ego, relentlessly pushes Nina to her ethical limits. Soon after, dutiful Xandra accuses one of her teachers of misconduct. And most alarming, the repercussions of her trip with Marisol force Nina into a life-altering choice. Time is of the essence, and Nina must decide if she will embrace a future she never could have predicted.
As Nina’s school year gets underway, all seems to be progressing as planned. Before long, wunder-hire Jared Jones, two hundred pounds of Harvard-educated ego, relentlessly pushes Nina to her ethical limits. Soon after, dutiful Xandra accuses one of her teachers of misconduct. And most alarming, the repercussions of her trip with Marisol force Nina into a life-altering choice. Time is of the essence, and Nina must decide if she will embrace a future she never could have predicted.
326 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 1, 2023
5523 people are currently reading
14620 people want to read
About the author
Alli Frank
5 books158 followersThe robustness of a farm girl, the honed sophistication of a city woman, a dash of Jewish chutzpah, and a heaping cup of endurance athlete and voila, you have Alli Frank. Alli was raised in Yakima, WA, the only child of two parents who instilled in her that hard work coupled with a resilient spirit will take you where you want to go. So up some of the highest mountains Alli climbed, down insanely steep terrain she skied and across long swathes of land she ran. To pay for all this adventure, Alli has worked in education for over 20 years in San Francisco and Seattle - from an overcrowded, cacophonous public high school to a pristine private girl's school. She has been a teacher, curriculum leader, coach, college counselor, assistant head, private school co-founder, sometimes pastor, often mayor, and de facto parent therapist. A graduate of Cornell and Stanford Universities, Alli can still be found with her nose deep in a book or hunkered down at the movies, never one to miss a great story. Alli lives in Seattle, Washington with her husband, two daughters and terribly cute mini-Bernedoodle. When she needs good food (cause she can't really cook) she turns to her co-author Asha Youmans.
(source: Amazon)
(source: Amazon)
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 659 reviews
July 10, 2023
I have adored Alli Frank and Asha Youmans ever since I read their first novel together, Tiny Imperfections, and they have knocked it out of the park once again with The Better Half! I love that this was published by Mindy Kaling's imprint with Amazon since she also happens to be someone I am a massive fan of, and if she's got this writing duo in her lineup, I can't wait to see who else she will be promoting in the book world. But anyway, back to the reason I am here - this wonderfully hilarious and heartwarming read. There are a lot of social issues that Frank and Youmans always touch on in their novels, and this story was no exception. Nina is the Black female head of a very prominent school and on top of everything she is dealing with there, she also has a bounty of things happening in her personal life. There is a lot going on, but they are all blended together seamlessly in a cohesive storyline that I couldn't get enough of.
Unsurprisingly, the end of The Better Half brought tears to my eyes, but that wasn't before making me laugh like crazy through the rest of it. Frank and Youmans are masters at blending serious topics and humor together, and it is hard not to laugh and cry as you read this touching story of a woman taking control of her and her school's future. There is some romance tucked into the story as well, but it's not anything too steamy and it was very fitting to both the characters and relationships. Since this is an imprint of Amazon, you can also get both the eBook AND the audiobook through Kindle Unlimited which is something I would highly recommend doing. For anyone who hasn't listened to Bahni Turpin narrate, you will be in for a real treat as she completely embodies Nina’s character as well as all of the supporting characters. I am now even more a fan of this author duo and if you love emotional reads that deal with very real worries, this is a must-read.
I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Unsurprisingly, the end of The Better Half brought tears to my eyes, but that wasn't before making me laugh like crazy through the rest of it. Frank and Youmans are masters at blending serious topics and humor together, and it is hard not to laugh and cry as you read this touching story of a woman taking control of her and her school's future. There is some romance tucked into the story as well, but it's not anything too steamy and it was very fitting to both the characters and relationships. Since this is an imprint of Amazon, you can also get both the eBook AND the audiobook through Kindle Unlimited which is something I would highly recommend doing. For anyone who hasn't listened to Bahni Turpin narrate, you will be in for a real treat as she completely embodies Nina’s character as well as all of the supporting characters. I am now even more a fan of this author duo and if you love emotional reads that deal with very real worries, this is a must-read.
I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
June 8, 2023
Life’s too short to spend very long trying to get interested in a book. I pushed it to 20%. Yawn.
June 4, 2023
I loved this book!
The relationships are so relatable and well crafted. Father/daughter, mother/daughter, best friends and ex husbands - this book has it all.
It deals with relevant topics: race in America, interracial dating, bi racial children, women in power positions, integrating families- all without being clunky and preachy. The dialogue flows seamlessly.
I really liked the character of Roan. Too many times Ive seen LGBTQIA characters written in almost as a completed checkmark for inclusion. I didn’t feel any of that. Roan was written in an authentic manner and really came alive. All of them did. The friendship with Marisol and Nina was so enjoyable! I loved the banter, the limit setting, the honesty that these two women share. Xandra was written beautifully representing her rebellion and spirit and love for her family.
I appreciate the topics this book deals with. The struggle Nina has deciding if she should be all in with Leo and what that means to her as a Black woman and retaining her Blackness. I found it interesting to see varying viewpoints generationally on immigration.
One of the things I really like about reading is the stories, the glimpse into another world. I like to read about people who are different than me and see that we are all struggling with decisions that life gives us. A good writer makes you forget about these differences and let’s you focus on similarities that bind us.
This was a first reads pick and I’m so glad I read it.
The relationships are so relatable and well crafted. Father/daughter, mother/daughter, best friends and ex husbands - this book has it all.
It deals with relevant topics: race in America, interracial dating, bi racial children, women in power positions, integrating families- all without being clunky and preachy. The dialogue flows seamlessly.
I really liked the character of Roan. Too many times Ive seen LGBTQIA characters written in almost as a completed checkmark for inclusion. I didn’t feel any of that. Roan was written in an authentic manner and really came alive. All of them did. The friendship with Marisol and Nina was so enjoyable! I loved the banter, the limit setting, the honesty that these two women share. Xandra was written beautifully representing her rebellion and spirit and love for her family.
I appreciate the topics this book deals with. The struggle Nina has deciding if she should be all in with Leo and what that means to her as a Black woman and retaining her Blackness. I found it interesting to see varying viewpoints generationally on immigration.
One of the things I really like about reading is the stories, the glimpse into another world. I like to read about people who are different than me and see that we are all struggling with decisions that life gives us. A good writer makes you forget about these differences and let’s you focus on similarities that bind us.
This was a first reads pick and I’m so glad I read it.
June 21, 2023
This book was touted as laugh out loud funny- it was cute at best. I found the main character so whiny and annoying. I felt the book jumped all over the place, one page was at one place in time them bam the next paragraph- not next chapter- skipped ahead. Having said all this, I did finish the book so I was interested enough to find out what happens.
July 9, 2023
2.5⭐️ This wasn’t for me. The saving grace to this book was the mushy wrap up that happened beyond the 90% mark. The awkward storytelling was exasperating. The time jumps (a black hole for expected upcoming scenes and dialogues), the telling without showing (sometimes used to supply a summary of said missed scenes, but not always), occasional inexplicable behavior, and Nina, who wasn’t particularly smart or likable, exhausted me. I was continually rereading passages or searching the book to see if I missed something from earlier. Nope, just some things thrown in randomly. Oh, and while there was a smattering of banter and humorous insights, the book never came close to the promise of an lol read.
I can see this becoming a Netflix movie which would translate better after skillful screenwriters and a smart director got their hands on it.
I can see this becoming a Netflix movie which would translate better after skillful screenwriters and a smart director got their hands on it.
June 28, 2023
Nina has finally stepped into her dream job as the first Black, first female head of the storied Royal-Hawkins School. To mark the moment, Nina and her best friend, Marisol, take a long-overdue girls’ trip to celebrate the second half of Nina’s life. But could a summer fling really be the turning point for the Nina? Now, Nina must decide if she will embrace a future she never could have predicted.
I adored this story and encourage anyone to add it to their summer reading list! It's full of witty banter, dry humor and love between best friends Nina and Marisol. Throw in Nina's handsome summer fling Leo, her rebellious teen daughter and her Jamaican father, and you have a great blend of race, culture and romance. Nina's nemesis, Winn Hawkins, and the annoying Courtney provide a fun diversion along the way.
The diverse writing duo of Alli Frank and Asha Youmans work in tandem to deliver a heartwarming story of what family means and how overcoming fears and past regrets can help forge a new future.
I adored this story and encourage anyone to add it to their summer reading list! It's full of witty banter, dry humor and love between best friends Nina and Marisol. Throw in Nina's handsome summer fling Leo, her rebellious teen daughter and her Jamaican father, and you have a great blend of race, culture and romance. Nina's nemesis, Winn Hawkins, and the annoying Courtney provide a fun diversion along the way.
The diverse writing duo of Alli Frank and Asha Youmans work in tandem to deliver a heartwarming story of what family means and how overcoming fears and past regrets can help forge a new future.
June 2, 2023
This book is a humorous and heartwarming story centered around Nina, a successful woman whose life takes a drastic turn when her husband decides to part ways. As she navigates through the process of rebuilding her life, Nina discovers her own strength and resilience. The book presents a range of relatable characters, infused with humor and moments that provoke contemplation. However, some readers may find the ending to be overly tidy and a few plot points predictable. Nonetheless, it remains an engaging read that explores the complexities of modern womanhood.
July 24, 2023
3/5 ⭐️
- It’s so rare to read a book where the author is in her 40’s and plans on the later years of her life to be the best years of her life. The relationships were so relatable and they all felt so realistic! The author wrote the perfect balance between work life struggles and relationships with friends/family. It was so beautiful to see!
- Leo was such a great book boyfriend and I love how the author really made you feel all of the stressful feelings that come with fully committing to someone after having hard past relationships.
- This book covered so many relevant topics, but in a really easy way to digest. Nothing felt too heavy and there was so much humor in this book that I found myself laughing constantly.
- It’s so rare to read a book where the author is in her 40’s and plans on the later years of her life to be the best years of her life. The relationships were so relatable and they all felt so realistic! The author wrote the perfect balance between work life struggles and relationships with friends/family. It was so beautiful to see!
- Leo was such a great book boyfriend and I love how the author really made you feel all of the stressful feelings that come with fully committing to someone after having hard past relationships.
- This book covered so many relevant topics, but in a really easy way to digest. Nothing felt too heavy and there was so much humor in this book that I found myself laughing constantly.
June 5, 2023
pleasant Surprise
I chose this book as my free Amazon Kindle book for June, as it sounded light and interesting.
I was pleasantly surprised at the writing and how realistic the story was. I was kept interested and had a hard time putting the book down.
Nicely done Alli Frank and Asha Youmans
I chose this book as my free Amazon Kindle book for June, as it sounded light and interesting.
I was pleasantly surprised at the writing and how realistic the story was. I was kept interested and had a hard time putting the book down.
Nicely done Alli Frank and Asha Youmans
June 7, 2023
I love you Mindy Kaling but we don’t have the same taste in books. Serviceable plane reading.
June 28, 2023
The Better Half by Alli Frank and Asha Youmans. Thanks to @mbcommunications for the gifted Arc ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Nina Clarke is finally head of her private school- her dream job. She takes a vacation with her best friend to celebrate, which results in life changing decisions.
This was a great story about a professional black woman struggling with some life decisions. I loved that the MC was in her forties; it’s an age group I love to read about because I totally relate! This was a story true to life - nothing too crazy except normal life drama. There were also additional struggles that a woman of color would come across, especially when starting a relationship with a white man.
“Ambivalence about your future gets you nowhere other than exactly where you are.”
The Better Half comes out 7/4.
Nina Clarke is finally head of her private school- her dream job. She takes a vacation with her best friend to celebrate, which results in life changing decisions.
This was a great story about a professional black woman struggling with some life decisions. I loved that the MC was in her forties; it’s an age group I love to read about because I totally relate! This was a story true to life - nothing too crazy except normal life drama. There were also additional struggles that a woman of color would come across, especially when starting a relationship with a white man.
“Ambivalence about your future gets you nowhere other than exactly where you are.”
The Better Half comes out 7/4.
October 6, 2023
Thanks to NetGalley & Mindy's Book Studio for an eARC of this book. The following review is my honest reflection on the text provided.
It might not sound fair, but Nina’s attitude throughout this book made me dislike The Better Half.
I can almost understand Nina’s position on most things. Sure, Leo is a first-time dad from a very white family, about to embark on a complicated journey. Leo’s personality is usually pretty chill, so it would be easy to assume he wasn’t taking any of this seriously. But even from the outside, through a rather distorted viewpoint, it takes barely a moment of thought to realise that Leo is trying much harder than he’s given credit for. Nina has been turning him down from the moment they met, and he’s been persistent without being creepy; he’s pursued her and worked hard to make their relationship work while Nina withholds, shows up late, and assumes the worst out of some narcissistic self-image problems. Leo is a successful lawyer, so we have to assume he worked hard through university and his career; he was in charge of opening an international office so he’s obviously good at his job, and when he returns early, it’s done pretty seamlessly, further proving that he’s an adult with his priorities straight and his shit figured out. Nina degrades him, babies him, assumes he’s got the wrong perspective, and makes very little effort to connect to him or his family. Leo returns this behaviour with love, kindness, stability, and an incredible effort to connect to her and her family. Why Leo is still around at all is a mystery to me.
If it was only this, I could understand the point of this romance novel. But Nina is also judgmental about every other person she encounters. She judges Rowan’s behaviour and makes bets about his relationship. She ignores advice from her best friend, who clearly has much more emotional intelligence. Nina is oblivious to her father’s life, assuming it revolves around her. She lets her ex-husband make degrading comments about Leo and even seems to let them affect how she feels. She puts off any serious parenting that needs to be done and blames everyone else for her daughter’s issues. She avoids board members and parents from the school she runs because she doesn’t like them and allows this dislike to delay decisions and complicate matters. She puts off confronting and disciplining staff members when it’s sorely needed. Nina, described as a strong, competent, confident Black woman who’s worked harder than she should have had to earn her position, is actually judgmental, passive-aggressive, and deeply insecure while procrastinating most important tasks.
The entire narrative felt overwhelmingly one-sided and insincere. Nina takes from everyone, giving very little back while still expecting more. It made most of Nina’s life unlikely - from close family members to lifetime friendships to a successful, competent adult man working so hard to have a family and relationship with her. I can understand her feeling cynical, jaded, or even exhausted, but the neverending gloom and judgment were too much for me.
Review originally posted here on Britt's Book Blurbs.
It might not sound fair, but Nina’s attitude throughout this book made me dislike The Better Half.
I can almost understand Nina’s position on most things. Sure, Leo is a first-time dad from a very white family, about to embark on a complicated journey. Leo’s personality is usually pretty chill, so it would be easy to assume he wasn’t taking any of this seriously. But even from the outside, through a rather distorted viewpoint, it takes barely a moment of thought to realise that Leo is trying much harder than he’s given credit for. Nina has been turning him down from the moment they met, and he’s been persistent without being creepy; he’s pursued her and worked hard to make their relationship work while Nina withholds, shows up late, and assumes the worst out of some narcissistic self-image problems. Leo is a successful lawyer, so we have to assume he worked hard through university and his career; he was in charge of opening an international office so he’s obviously good at his job, and when he returns early, it’s done pretty seamlessly, further proving that he’s an adult with his priorities straight and his shit figured out. Nina degrades him, babies him, assumes he’s got the wrong perspective, and makes very little effort to connect to him or his family. Leo returns this behaviour with love, kindness, stability, and an incredible effort to connect to her and her family. Why Leo is still around at all is a mystery to me.
If it was only this, I could understand the point of this romance novel. But Nina is also judgmental about every other person she encounters. She judges Rowan’s behaviour and makes bets about his relationship. She ignores advice from her best friend, who clearly has much more emotional intelligence. Nina is oblivious to her father’s life, assuming it revolves around her. She lets her ex-husband make degrading comments about Leo and even seems to let them affect how she feels. She puts off any serious parenting that needs to be done and blames everyone else for her daughter’s issues. She avoids board members and parents from the school she runs because she doesn’t like them and allows this dislike to delay decisions and complicate matters. She puts off confronting and disciplining staff members when it’s sorely needed. Nina, described as a strong, competent, confident Black woman who’s worked harder than she should have had to earn her position, is actually judgmental, passive-aggressive, and deeply insecure while procrastinating most important tasks.
The entire narrative felt overwhelmingly one-sided and insincere. Nina takes from everyone, giving very little back while still expecting more. It made most of Nina’s life unlikely - from close family members to lifetime friendships to a successful, competent adult man working so hard to have a family and relationship with her. I can understand her feeling cynical, jaded, or even exhausted, but the neverending gloom and judgment were too much for me.
Review originally posted here on Britt's Book Blurbs.
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July 21, 2023
I don’t know if I’ve ever hated a book more. Underdeveloped characters, an incredibly unlikeable main character, and no humor.
October 9, 2024
I really enjoyed this one. It was light hearted and the humor was on point. It hit on important social topics without being overbearing. It was the break I needed from the thrillers I normally read.
July 3, 2023
"Is feeling more Black worth feeling less happy"?
Picked this as my June First Read and glad I did. Mindy's intro is correct, the interactions with Marisol made me LOL. I really enjoyed this book. Nina really frustrated me at times, but I understood her fears. We all need a father like Fitzroy, a BFF like Marisol and friend like Roan (Gridezilla) to tell us the truth and check us on our BS.
Nina is 43, just got her dream job as the first Black and female head of an exclusive private school, happily divorced, and mom to a teenager who is going through a militant, rebellious phase. She's reached the middle stage of life where your kid is almost grown, has a great job, and is free to enjoy time focusing on herself.
On a weekend girl's trip to celebrate, she meets Leo, a handsome white attorney. They have a one night stand that turns into a summer relationship and then into a life altering one. He's everything she wants in a partner and loves and wants to be with her. He does everything possible to win her heart, but she fears that loving him will somehow diminish who she is and his race being too big an obstacle to overcome.
This wasn't a fairytale and they tackle all the things that go along with being the Black first, the only, dating outside of your race, and cultural beliefs. Extra star for being a story about us over 40 folks. Highly recommend.
Picked this as my June First Read and glad I did. Mindy's intro is correct, the interactions with Marisol made me LOL. I really enjoyed this book. Nina really frustrated me at times, but I understood her fears. We all need a father like Fitzroy, a BFF like Marisol and friend like Roan (Gridezilla) to tell us the truth and check us on our BS.
Nina is 43, just got her dream job as the first Black and female head of an exclusive private school, happily divorced, and mom to a teenager who is going through a militant, rebellious phase. She's reached the middle stage of life where your kid is almost grown, has a great job, and is free to enjoy time focusing on herself.
On a weekend girl's trip to celebrate, she meets Leo, a handsome white attorney. They have a one night stand that turns into a summer relationship and then into a life altering one. He's everything she wants in a partner and loves and wants to be with her. He does everything possible to win her heart, but she fears that loving him will somehow diminish who she is and his race being too big an obstacle to overcome.
This wasn't a fairytale and they tackle all the things that go along with being the Black first, the only, dating outside of your race, and cultural beliefs. Extra star for being a story about us over 40 folks. Highly recommend.
June 20, 2023
3.5 rounded to 4. Chose this one as my Amazon First Reads for June. There was more depth to this one than I expected. It has a very 'chick lit' feel in the characters and dialogue, but it also tackles more serious topics such as the role race plays in education, raising a child of mixed race, balancing work and motherhood, and pregnancy as an older mom. The treatment of these issues felt authentic. Would make for good discussion. I would have enjoyed even more depth and less fluff but it was still an enjoyable read.
June 9, 2023
Eh
The lead character is supposedly rather smart, but she acts pretty dumb not seeing the glaringly obvious things happening around her. The book skips too much content, the end of one chapter sets the reader up for a big conversation or event and the beginning of the next chapter jumps ahead in time by a lot of time; completely skipping over the conversation or event. And excuse me, but no man is as "perfect" as Leo. It completely fails the Bechtel test!
The lead character is supposedly rather smart, but she acts pretty dumb not seeing the glaringly obvious things happening around her. The book skips too much content, the end of one chapter sets the reader up for a big conversation or event and the beginning of the next chapter jumps ahead in time by a lot of time; completely skipping over the conversation or event. And excuse me, but no man is as "perfect" as Leo. It completely fails the Bechtel test!
June 25, 2023
I value my time
I couldn't get through the third chapter. Since I've hit 50 I've decided I'm not going to finish books that are not fun to read and the amount of effort I had to put into reading the first two and a half chapters with not fun happening wasn't worth it.
I couldn't get through the third chapter. Since I've hit 50 I've decided I'm not going to finish books that are not fun to read and the amount of effort I had to put into reading the first two and a half chapters with not fun happening wasn't worth it.
August 13, 2023
There were things I really enjoyed and appreciated about the book but overall the pacing just really didn't work for me. It felt like there was too much and yet not enough going on at the same time.
July 10, 2023
Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
WOW I loved this book so much!
I am a white woman married to a black man, and we have 2 black sons. This was an incredible story, reading about the innerworkings of a mind of a black woman pregnant with a biracial child, worried about her white husband and his ability to raise a black man in America. This is a heavy topic, and something that my husband and I frequently talked about before having kids and still talk about to this day. Leo was such a good guy, and I'm glad Nina was able to see that Leo really put in the effort to learn about her culture, and by extension, his son's culture. This is something I am actively doing for my kids, and I think it’s a great message to everyone, esp white parents of kids of color.
I will ABSOLUTELY be recommending this book to all my friends, as well as reading the other books by these authors.
WOW I loved this book so much!
I am a white woman married to a black man, and we have 2 black sons. This was an incredible story, reading about the innerworkings of a mind of a black woman pregnant with a biracial child, worried about her white husband and his ability to raise a black man in America. This is a heavy topic, and something that my husband and I frequently talked about before having kids and still talk about to this day. Leo was such a good guy, and I'm glad Nina was able to see that Leo really put in the effort to learn about her culture, and by extension, his son's culture. This is something I am actively doing for my kids, and I think it’s a great message to everyone, esp white parents of kids of color.
I will ABSOLUTELY be recommending this book to all my friends, as well as reading the other books by these authors.
June 10, 2023
3.5 stars. This was a light and fun read mixed with topics that could easily be heavy, clunky, portrayed poorly, etc. I greatly appreciated this book dealing with perspectives different than mine, as the main character was a black woman in an interracial relationship dealing not only with race but child bearing in a unique way.
The book covered relevant topics like women in power, race in America, immigrants, class, integrating families, interracial relationships, child bearing at an older age, LGBTQ+ and more.
This was a solid Amazon First Read choice.
The book covered relevant topics like women in power, race in America, immigrants, class, integrating families, interracial relationships, child bearing at an older age, LGBTQ+ and more.
This was a solid Amazon First Read choice.
June 15, 2023
This is an enjoyable light read, perfect for beach or pool time. I liked the story overall. The pacing was a little odd to me. Time was clearly lapsing between chapters but with little explanation of what was happening during that time. It was basically a way to advance the plot without having to tell more story. The story arrives at a satisfying resolution but one that glosses over a lot of details, so you just have to suspend disbelief. That being said, I loved the characters and read it for the distraction, not the substance. Would recommend.
August 4, 2023
Firstly, I am unclear why the book is titled The Better Half. It doesn’t tie to any of the various plots or subplots. This is more about interracial friendships, personal and professional relationships. No one person shines as the better half.
The story is disconnected with several significant leaps in the timeline making it hard to follow. There are a lot of people and names to remember, which can be confusing. It would have been better to focus on fewer of them and go deeper into the story arcs to develop those characters. It’s quite evident throughout The Better Half that there are two authors.
The main character, Nina, is supposed to be very intelligent, but misses obvious things right in front of her face. This happens in both her personal and professional life. Maybe this should be a testament to the fact that as humans we can’t have it all. When people are spread too thin, like the many sub plots in this book, we fail to do any of them well. However, I don’t think that was intentional in this book.
This is supposed to be a hysterical book that will have you laughing out loud. It has humorous one liners and moments, but overall does not deliver on the LOL promise. I did appreciate the references to 90’s rap songs, though.
This is a 2.5⭐️ rating, but I rounded up since the last few chapters were enjoyable. The ending itself could be better, but overall a decent story. I just wouldn’t recommend for any “must read” lists.
The story is disconnected with several significant leaps in the timeline making it hard to follow. There are a lot of people and names to remember, which can be confusing. It would have been better to focus on fewer of them and go deeper into the story arcs to develop those characters. It’s quite evident throughout The Better Half that there are two authors.
The main character, Nina, is supposed to be very intelligent, but misses obvious things right in front of her face. This happens in both her personal and professional life. Maybe this should be a testament to the fact that as humans we can’t have it all. When people are spread too thin, like the many sub plots in this book, we fail to do any of them well. However, I don’t think that was intentional in this book.
This is supposed to be a hysterical book that will have you laughing out loud. It has humorous one liners and moments, but overall does not deliver on the LOL promise. I did appreciate the references to 90’s rap songs, though.
This is a 2.5⭐️ rating, but I rounded up since the last few chapters were enjoyable. The ending itself could be better, but overall a decent story. I just wouldn’t recommend for any “must read” lists.
July 21, 2023
Honestly, if I wasn't reading this for a book club, I wouldn't have finished it. Nina is such an insufferable main character. She's overly concerned about how people perceive her in a way that's like a brown nosing student (she wants her man to think she's a boss lady at meetings -- who cares). She's very inflexible and uninterested in the other character's opinions. None of the side plots (her daughter for instance or Roan's engagement) go anywhere and I don't understand why they are in the book. Not a great start for Mindy's picks.
June 21, 2023
Content buried in trash
I knew I would need my largest blade plow to get through this. Still broke down a fifth of the way through. Enough! There may be a interesting storyline, but it is fully drowned in contemporary glitchy social media slang. Content please, not cutesy attempted comedy. If you are writing for a fellow teachers audience, you are using the wrong dialect. Or is your real audience each other? ACTUALLY ZERO STARS!
I knew I would need my largest blade plow to get through this. Still broke down a fifth of the way through. Enough! There may be a interesting storyline, but it is fully drowned in contemporary glitchy social media slang. Content please, not cutesy attempted comedy. If you are writing for a fellow teachers audience, you are using the wrong dialect. Or is your real audience each other? ACTUALLY ZERO STARS!
July 11, 2023
I’m going to keep my review short and simple bc I wanted to like this more than I did and I’m probably in the minority. And I think my liking it mainly was bc it has Mindy Kaling backing it. Otherwise it probably would have ended up a DNF for me but I figured there had to be something there for her to be behind it because she’s super smart and funny. And yes, there were some smart and funny moments, but overall the main character was boring and self centered and not likeable. She did grow some towards the end, thankfully but what saved the story was her friends and her love interest Leo. He was fab and so were they! He was definitely the better half of the couple and the book.
Thanks to MindysBooks Studio and NetGalley for this eArc in exchange for my review.
Thanks to MindysBooks Studio and NetGalley for this eArc in exchange for my review.
June 19, 2023
I really enjoyed this book, my Amazon First Reads pick for June. The relationship was low angst and the characters were so real. (From start to finish, Leo was such a great book boyfriend!) When I saw at the end that one author is Black and one is White, it made sense why all of the characters were written so well. (Own voices!)
June 16, 2023
Excellent Read
An excellent read about interracial relationships and dealing with what life throws at you. Nina and Leo's struggles with the black/white world being mid-aged expectant parents with a teenage daughter, and widowed father gives the storyline a real life feel. Enjoyed the ups and downs of these characters and look forward to reading more books by this team of writers.
An excellent read about interracial relationships and dealing with what life throws at you. Nina and Leo's struggles with the black/white world being mid-aged expectant parents with a teenage daughter, and widowed father gives the storyline a real life feel. Enjoyed the ups and downs of these characters and look forward to reading more books by this team of writers.
July 22, 2023
Phenomenal on audio!
Source: Kindle Unlimited audio
Source: Kindle Unlimited audio
September 4, 2024
Really cute and fun audio. Laugh out loud at times. Listen if you need a light fun read.
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