The prose is easy to read, vivid and lucid with metaphors which stayed with me such as the description of sound in Michael’s murder scene, “the hum of the fluorescent lights, the only sound in the room, was like a thousand bumblebees.” It was a perfect choice of words when Ellice describes her life as a “cruel irony of blessings.”

The novel is brilliantly written with alternating chapters dealing with her past in Chillicothe, Georgia and her present in modern day Atlanta which is “a southern Mecca for business and industry.” Some chapters end with bombshell revelations which are also heartbreaking. I hope I am not giving away any spoilers when I say that what Ellice is fighting against gave me chills as it is one of the biggest reemerging threats we face in our times. It is a shock to her to find out that her brother has been ensnared in this trap as well. She has to race against time to try to save her brother and deal with corporate conspiracy without compromising on her ethics. Houghton, the law firm she works for is predominantly White and it is facing protests in the streets from people who are shouting, “Houghton Hates Blacks.” Ellice hopes that as a woman of color in a position of power, she can open doors for more diverse people to join the staff at Houghton.Įllice had a traumatic childhood and she has always wanted to compartmentalize her life but now all the angst of her past comes to the forefront and collides with the present. Ellice knows she is being set up and framed and she has to untangle the web of deceit. This is the first step in a series of unsettling events which put her in danger. Shocked, she flees the scene without informing anybody and is later promoted to his position even before she gives a clear acceptance to the job offer.

He matched her in “every way- height, intellect and humor.”Įllice finds Michael dead from a gunshot wound with “ a star-shaped hole” on his right temple when she goes to meet him in his office on a bleak January morning.

It is interesting how Ellice and Michael are from different backgrounds and races and yet they are like two peas in a pod. She is in an amorous relationship with her White boss Michael who is “gorgeous with chiseled features, deep blue eyes, and the tall trim stature of a Kennedy from Cape Cod.” He is also married and Ellice cannot help being his lover despite her mother figure Vera’s advice to “never get your honey where you make your money” Ellice Littlejohn is an African-American attorney with an ivy league degree and secrets from her past.

All her little secrets a novel