First of all, I love the title both in and outside of the context of the novel. That is mostly what drew me in as a reader, as well as the idea of three women who are all in some way related to this powerful exec. I think she wanted to do something new and different, she was young and had no reason not to. If I had been in her position I would have wanted to do the same thing too. - gaylamath Yasmiin and Kadija went through trauma on their own and I don’t know whether I was happy with how their stories ended. As an English teacher for the past 18 years, I often tell my students that reading a wonderful novel is one of the best ways to feel better when times are hard. Well, with Mirror, I ended up taking my own advice. This novel got me through one of the most stressful months of my career by transporting me to another world with its plot and perspectives. Thank you, Lola! Who is This Book Best For?

I loved the character of Kemi: Smart, powerful, ambitious — and on a passionate quest to date well. She is extremely relatable in her three-dimensional “flaws” (I put that word in quotation marks, because many of her “weaknesses” are also strengths, when seen in a certain way.) I also loved all of her outfits, each of which was sumptuously described.

Lolá Ákínmádé Åkerström

Tying together the lives of these three women is a fairly egotistical, unlikable guy. Good looking enough, it seems, to get away with it. Part of the fun of reading a unique book is discovering the book on your own. So no spoiler alerts, and I will stop my review here. I am telling my friends: you should read this!! Successful marketing executive Kemi Adeyemi is lured from the U.S. to Sweden by Jonny von Lundin, CEO of the nation's largest marketing firm, to help fix a PR fiasco involving a racially tone-deaf campaign. A killer at work but a failure in love, Kemi's move is a last-ditch effort to reclaim her social life. Speaking of narratives, I was expecting for the three women's lives to converge in a more consequential way. They meet and interact, by being at the same place at the same time, but they don't have much effect on each other. It was cool to see three people from different circumstances encounter each other but I'm not sure that it added anything to the story overall. Kemi, Brittany-Rae, and Muna can have nothing whatsoever in common, however as the three separate stories are interweaved through the common character of Jonny, one finds many similarities. Book Genre: Adult, Adult Fiction, Book Club, Contemporary, Cultural, Feminism, Fiction, Literary Fiction, Race, Sweden

To my agent @craig_literary, friend and writing mentor @theleighshulman, all my friends, family, and dear readers who continue to support my work, my gratitude knows no bounds. Thank you ❤️ Muna experiences a tremendous amount of loss in the novel. What do her experiences show of the struggles refugees go through when displaced from their homes?This book must be published in Swedish immediately. (A recording with readers who are more adept with the Swedish language, and American Southern and Swedish accents should follow closely afterwards. Thus 4 stars for the audiobook, instead of 5.) The various experiences of Afro Swedish women in this book speak into a yawning void in Sweden, where the existence of racism is largely denied. Well I had to sleep over my emotions before writing this review. I had this as a gift from a friend Jonny’s privilege and the protection his money affords him ultimately become problematic for Brittany and her child. What do you think the author was trying to say about wealth, choice and accountability at the end of Brittany’s story? Speaking of “faults” being superpowers, I can’t stop thinking about the character of Jonny. As an educator, I work with many students on the Autism spectrum, and I’ve never seen someone with this characteristic depicted in a novel so fully — nor have I before seen such an accurate portrayal of the ways that ignoring, hiding, or denying a person’s special needs causes harm.

Kemi’s relationship with Ragnar is unhealthy almost from the start. What does her final interaction with him show about her own growth and what she’s learned about herself in Sweden? Outfit choices and fashion become pivotal in Mirror, as they are so linked in the story to identity, culture, and body image. I was particularly moved by the description of how a bold dress that made Kemi feel powerful was seen as jarring and over-the-top to her Swedish colleagues. I think Lola's writing is beautiful and has strong narrative voice. It really shines in scenes between the main characters and the love interests. So much so it makes me wonder if her writing is more suited for contemporary romance rather than contemporary literature. I could not put this down. I was hoping all 3 women would meet but their stories aligned in a way i didn't expect.It’s been a long time since I’ve been so thoroughly engrossed in a book. I ended up finishing it in just a few days because I couldn’t stop thinking about it. I stole every moment possible (between my teaching job, running this blog, and parenting young kids) to find out what happened next! The colorful cover of the novel. A brief example - Kemi an educated Nigerian woman with low self esteem who gave her body freely to a married racist man randomly, Britney a model and flight attendant left her long term partner for a stalker just because he’s rich and white, Muna was also obsessed with a man who she wasn’t in a relationship with (a Kurd refugee), and the Somali representation here was really bad.. Muna was the jilbab wearing, uneducated, refugee cleaner, to me the rep of her Somali roommates and the Somali Swedish community showed prejudice from the author. Given Lola’s experience as a travel writer and photographer, it’s no surprise that architecture and cityscapes are meticulously characterized in the novel. I especially loved reveling in the decor of Jonny’s many homes. This was overall a pleasant reading experience that I looked forward to continuing! I’d give this book a strong 3.5, so I just rounded up to four stars.

Muna’s life seems to be filled with so much tragedy for someone so young. Was there something that inspired you to tell the story of a refugee? Kemi seems like she has a good job and her story will revolve around that, Brittany is a flight attendant for business class and her first chapter was so interesting! Finally Muna, a refugee and a Muslim aswell so instantly i connected with her. Looking into divorce in Sweden isn’t what former model-turned-flight attendant Brittany-Rae von Lundin anticipated. Only jointly owned assets are split evenly between couples. Brittany gave up her career and came with nothing into Jonny’s kingdom. Having had a child with him, her greatest fear for Maya includes being cut off from the resources she’s become accustomed to. With a man obsessed with a ghost, trying to get away isn’t going to be easy. And the deeper she digs into his past, the darker the secrets she unravels. Do be aware that there are lots of very steamy romantic scenes in Mirror, so this book is not for those seeking strictly G-rated reading. There are also several mentions of violence: physical and emotional harm, as well as deep-dives into weighty issues such as racism, self-harm, abuse, and sexism. These are not fairy tale lives or absurdly perfect romances or tales of young women whose parents provided them with such an auspicious start in life that there's no way they can fail. This is contemporary life where women who are dating past high school are going to run into some uncomfortable and/or insulting situations.

Reviews

Successful marketing executive Kemi Adeyemi is lured from the US to Sweden by Jonny von Lundin, CEO of the nation's largest marketing firm, to help fix a PR fiasco involving a racially tone-deaf campaign. A killer at work but a failure in love, Kemi's move is a last-ditch effort to reclaim her social life.