When It's Your Turn for Midnight

by Blessing Musariri

'Wars never end, they just change location.'

A scorching, euphoric YA novel about sisterhood, trauma and the fighting spirit of women, from Zimbabwean author, Blessing Musariri.

When her Mama drops a bombshell, Chiante's world shatters. In Zimbabwe, bloodlines matter, so when Chiante discovers her Baba is not the man she thought he was, she flees. Seeking refuge in a secluded corner of Mutare with her feisty, stylish grandmother, Chiante finds solace in a sisterhood forged by bonds of war. This close-knit community of elders and ex-combatants are living their best singing, dancing, drinking and running a successful fashion-upcycling business. But at the heart of their carefully-built world are secrets no-one can give voice to.

As Chiante pieces together the puzzle of her family's past, she wrestles with how sorrow seeps down the generations, and how hope survives all, obliging us to step up and live life to the full.

Genres: Young Adult, Fiction, Contemporary, Africa, Zimbabwe

191 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 7, 2024

Reviews

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

When It’s Your Turn For Midnight is a YA novel about girls and women in Zimbabwe who forge unbreakable bonds which make them an unstoppable force.

Chiante’s world is turned upside down when she finds out her Baba is not who she thought he was. She runs away to her grandmother and seeks solace with her and her friends. These elders were brought together by bonds of war and have stayed together due to the sisterhood they created. They sing, dance, drink and run a fashion up-cycling business. Chiante learns how they work, trying to delve into the secrets and puzzle of her family’s past.

This book is extraordinarily well written and it is an important representation of found family, and how this can be just as (and sometimes more) important than blood relations.

ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. 

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first 80 pages were a bit slow, but that could have just been that I wasn't entirely in the mood to read this book. The second half flew by.
I don't know much about the history of Zimbabwe. I appreciated the glossary in the back. I would have liked some historical notes as well, but that isn't necessary to understand this story, because the history of the war isn't the point of this book. It's about how it impacted a family for several generations. This book explores how lies, poor choices, trauma, and shame can impact everyone around you. All of these characters were fleshed out, even when they aren't on page for long. You could understand why everyone did what they did even while wanting to lecture them all. Seeing everyone take responsibility for their actions and how they hurt others and work towards making amends was really well done. There were a few verb tense mistakes, but overall the prose is quite lovely, even if it is first person present tense.
This is one teen read I can't wait to recommend to people. It wasn't just a good teen read. It was simply a good book. Classic coming of age and wrestling with how messy family can be. I really enjoyed this book. And now I'll be looking for some nonfiction reads about Zimbabwe to learn the history these Gogos lived through.

[Bree · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story of 15 year old Chianti and her family reeling from a devastating secret. Chianti flees to her grandmother’s where she delves deeper into the family background and uncovers further secrets.
I enjoyed Chianti’s writing and character especially when she was around the gogos, bringing humour and knowledge around the country’s previous war conflict.
The book is short, but I did find myself getting bored at times. I preferred the author’s previous work if I’m honest.

[Tracy Wood · Rating 5 out of 5]

Chiante is fifteen when an unfortunate accident results in her Mama making an earth-shattering, life altering statement. Upset and confused, she packs a small bag, leaves the family home in Harare, and heads to her Ankara's home to spend the school holidays with her grandmother. Unable to accept what she heard, Chiante shuts herself off from her Mama and Baba, instead spending time in a small, close-knit community in Mutare. Having fought a war together as no more than children, her grandmother and her sisters are living their best lives, knowing they have earned it.

Chiante begins to realise that no one's past disappears completely and, as she tries to come to terms with her own turmoil, her Ankara's history begins to take on a different hue. As the importance of family, however it is formed, becomes clearer to Chiante, she, her sisters and parents know they too have to try to find the courage to put their family back together so they can live their lives to the full.

This is my second book by an author who has a real talent for showing how the life experiences that define us aren't ever unique, even though we may be. 'Wars never end. They just change location' is the tagline for this beautifully written young adult novel, and its message becomes clearer the further into the book you travel.

I was able to read an advanced copy of this thanks to NetGalley and the publishers, Head of Zeus/Zephyr, but the opinions expressed are my own. This is a positive, powerful, and compassionate story that gets its message of hope and understanding across clearly and concisely. Highly recommended.

[Milly Reynolds · Rating 4 out of 5]

Longlisted for the Yoto Carnegie Medal. Our main character is 15 year old Chianti. When a minor accident occurs stress causes her mother to blurt out the statement that her father, her Baba, is not her father. Amidst the arguments and feeling very upset, Chianti packs her bags and goes to stay with her grandmother in Mutare. With her grandmother and her grandmother’s sisters, her gogos, she learns of their history. As children they went to war and the bonds formed during that time are even stronger now. These gogos are having the time of their lives - they upcycle clothes and send them to one of their nieces in America to sell on. As she stays with them, Chianti finds that everyone has secrets in their past but family, whether blood family or found family is important. In fact there is the argument that love conquers blood. This is coming of age novel and also about family bonds and home and about being strong for each other. As Chianti is 15, it is written from an almost adult POV. Although I liked this, I have to say that I preferred her book that was Longlisted for the Carnegie last year

[Farah G · Rating 3 out of 5]

When explosive family secrets surface to inform a young woman that one of her warring parents is actually not her biological parent, Chiante is utterly shocked and goes to seek solace with her grandmother.

Her grandmother's closed circle of friends - tied together by the bonds of a friendship forged through fighting alongside each other during the struggle for independence in Zimbabwe - soon become Chiante's friends and a kind of found family, driving home the message that love trumps blood ties and meaningful relationships can be found far beyond the boundaries of family.

A coming of age tale set in Southern Africa, this story features universal themes of friendship, betrayal, war and its aftermath, and family dynamics that many readers will probably be able to relate to. If you like multicultural literature, this one is worth checking out. It gets 3.5 stars.

I received a free copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

[Alyssia · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lovely novel about what 'family' really means. Musariri explores complexities of familial relationships, particularly those between mothers and daughters, and between sisters, with humour and heart. The writing flows easily and the characters are likable. The inclusion of the Gogos and their past as Zimbabwean freedom fighters added an extra layer to the story that prompted me to discover more about the transition from Rhodesia to Zimbabwe.

Although marketed as a YA, I think this book will find more adult readers. I'm not sure I know many teens who would truly appreciate the more mature nuances in the themes Musariri explores. It's a coming-of-age novel, but very much written in retrospect with adult eyes. A worthwhile read and one that could be suggested to A Level literature students, or GCSE students who need a bit more stretch and challenge.

[fede · Rating 4 out of 5]

The novel follows Chiante, a teenager from Zimbabwe, in her journey after discovering a family secret. Family is more than blood: all the elders in Chiante's life have been supporting her since she was born. And even now that her whole world has been turned upside down, they are there to comfort her, to talk with her, to give her a hug or teach her a lesson. While she tries figuring out her place in the world and in the family, she is never alone, her sisters are right next to her. Wonderfully written, When It's Your Turn For Midnight explores the trauma of war as well as the search for sisterhood. Good one!

Arc kindly given by the publisher. All opinions are my own.

[Amena Kofi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the quote on page 156 saying 'We haven't come this far to live on mute....there is life and there is living, we're living'.

The atmosphere was described very well in this book, and I like how it gave an insight into Zimbabwean ways of speaking and familial titles.

However, I really didn't like how the idea of not searching too much for answers seemed to be exhalted. I just don't like reading things like that in novels, as I think that searching for answers about your family background is a natural inclination that shouldn't be dampened down.

[Claire · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Wars never end. They just change location.”
When It’s Your Turn For Midnight is a YA novel about women in Zimbabwe who forge unbreakable bonds and an exploration into the importance of bloodlines.
Chiante’s world is turned upside down when she discovers her Baba is not a blood relative. Running away to her grandmothers she seeks solace with her and her friends.
This book is extraordinarily well written, exploring what ‘family’ really means and the importance of home.

[A.K. Adler · Rating 3 out of 5]

Character: this novella is full of wonderful, compassionate portraits that dance off the page.
Setting: interesting and vibrant, although could do with more development.
Plot: more a collection of loosely connected sub-plots.
Prose: moments of luminosity obscured by some lack of clarity and a lot of confused tenses.

[Rebecca Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely little coming of age story about family intricacies.

[Jolanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read this while I was feeling sick and it was quite comforting. Loved all the characters, the family love was really palpable.

[Valentine]

C- 8
A- 8
W- 7.5
P- 8
I- 7
L- 8
E- 8

[Elaine · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Prerana Shah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved the story of chianti and her family. The characters were so easy to follow and loveable