THE PLOT: ‘People Person’ by Candice Carty-Williams is a contemporary novel about five half-siblings forced to work together after a dramatic incident. Dimple, Nikisha, Danny, Lizzie and Prynce wouldn’t necessarily consider each other family. Yes, they all have the same father, Cyril Pennington, but he has been an unstable figure in their lives. Each child grew up with their mum in South London and although they all know of each other (after being introduced as children), they’re not planning a family BBQ any time soon. But when Dimple gets in serious trouble, she calls her siblings for help, forcing them to reconnect with each other and the father they never really knew.

SUMMARY:  I’m a South London girl and I love novels that represent my ends. From Clapham to Camberwell, this book takes a tour of my hometown and brings it to life vividly, with slang and landmarks that make me feel proud to see in print. As a huge fan of the author’s debut, ‘Queenie’, I was so excited to read this book. However, I believe it lacks the depth of ‘Queenie’ with a rollicking plot that borders on soap opera and infuriating characters whose actions aren’t consistent with their backgrounds. Don’t get it twisted, I’m happy to read a novel with crazy plots that no sane person would do in real life; that’s the point of fiction, stories need to be dramatic to be exciting. Yet the inconsistency between the contemporary setting and the wild decisions of each character made it hard to fully sink into this book. Despite my growing frustrations, particularly with the main character who acts like an idiot, I raced through the novel because I wanted to know what happened. So, it’s three stars from me for plot twists, pacing and interesting family dynamics.

GOOD BITS: This novel depicts nuanced family dynamics rarely shown in mainstream media, and it felt heartening to read about a complicated family structure familiar to many of the African and Caribbean diaspora. In seeking to unpick this in fiction, the author does a good job of navigating how each character relates to each other and it’s a valuable work of art for others who may be going through similar sibling and abandonment issues. In addition to the sibling dynamics, I also felt the depiction of their father, Cyril, was well-drawn, and I would’ve liked even more of his psychology.

NOT SO GOOD BITS: I believe novels need to be entertaining, so I’m all here for outlandish plots and exaggerated incidents. However, this needs to be consistent with the world of the book and I felt the characters’ actions weren’t believable in a contemporary setting. Ultimately, I don’t mind what happened in the novel, but the characters’ responses to it weren’t sufficiently rooted in their individual backgrounds and motivations to make them plausible. While I can overlook this to enjoy the story, the writing style feels like it could be elevated due to the unnecessary repetition and dialogue-heavy chapters that feel like a script. Therefore, I just don’t think this book has the skill to deliver such an unrealistic premise.

OVERALL: I’d recommend this book to fans of ‘My Sister the Serial Killer’ by Oyinkan Braithwaite and ‘Mr Loverman’ by Bernadine Evaristo. This could be a good one for a holiday or reading slump, if you want a quick and easy book that will pull you in.