Review
“Brilliant, timely, funny, heartbreaking.” –Jojo Moyes, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Me Before You
"A must-read novel about sex, selfhood, and the best friendships that get us through it all." —Candace Bushnell, bestselling author and creator of Sex and the City
"A book that sneaks up on you... I am hooked." –Roxane Gay, New York Times bestselling author of Bad Feminist, via Twitter
"Candice Carty-Williams delivers a hilarious roller coaster of a story." –US Weekly
"[A] brazenly hilarious, tell-it-like-it-is first novel." –O, The Oprah Magazine
"Vibrant, confused and honest, Queenie is a relatable heroine for modern times." –USA Today
"You'll likely feel seen while reading this (yes, it's that relatable), an example of what happens when you go looking for love and find something else instead." –PopSugar
"Candice Carty-Williams, a young Londoner, has a flair for story-telling that appears effortlessly authentic. Her title character is a woman you both know and cannot forget... Carty-Williams has taken a black woman’s story and made it a story of the age." –TIME Magazine
“The vibrant Queenie is a modern-day Bridget Jones's Diary, and so much more... [Carty-Williams’] debut reads a lot like its smart, sensitive protagonist: full of flaws and contradictions, and urgently, refreshingly real.” –Entertainment Weekly
"[A] hilarious, heart-shattering, deeply lovable novel... Debut author Candice Carty-Williams has created a truly one-of-a-kind heroine in Queenie, whose story is universally relatable without ever flinching in the face of challenging subjects that are more important now than ever. All hail Queenie." –Newsday
"You’ll read Queenie, a novel about a young Jamaican British woman trying to find her place in London, in one day. It’s that good." –Hello Giggles
"Meet Queenie Jenkins, a 25-year-old Jamaican British woman who works for a London newspaper, is struggling to fit in, is dealing with a breakup, and is making all kinds of questionable decisions. In other words, she's highly relatable. A must read for '19." –Woman's Day
“My favorite novel this year. Queenie is the sort of novel you just can’t stop talking about and want everyone you know to read. Snort your tea out funny one moment and utterly heart breaking the next, (and with the best cast of characters you’ll read all year), I absolutely loved it. I can’t wait to read whatever Candice writes next. If there is anything right in the world, Candice Carty-Williams is going to be a literary superstar.” –AJ Pearce, author of Dear Mrs. Bird
"Queenie is the best mate we all want—funny, sharp, and more than a little vulnerable. I loved climbing inside her mind and wish I could have stayed longer. I adored this novel." –Stacey Halls, author of The Familiars
"Hilarious and off the wall and tender." –Nikesh Shukla, author of The One Who Wrote Destiny
"Candice Carty-Williams is a fantastic new writer who has written a deliciously funny, characterful, topical, and thrilling novel for our times." –Bernardine Evaristo, author of Mr. Loverman
“I ate up Queenie in one greedy, joyous gulp. What a treat of a book. Lots to enjoy and think about. I loved Queenie and was cheering her on all the way. I thought all the mental health stuff was brilliant and so well done and authentic—it so often isn’t, in novels—and also all the unhappy sex rang so true. Is there a sequel planned? All I wanted to do when I finished was to open book two.” –Cathy Rentzenbrink, bestselling author of The Last Act of Love
"Queenie has all the things you want in a debut novel—a startlingly fresh voice, characters you fall in love with from the very first page, and a joyous turn of phrase that makes this book almost impossible to put down. In turns hilariously funny and quietly devastating, Queenie is an important, timely story." –Louise O'Neill, bestselling author of Asking for It
"A really special book with much to say about black female identity, sexual politics, group chats, emotional becoming in a way that feels totally unforced. Filthy, funny, and profound." –Sharlene Teo, award-winning author of Ponti
“This book isn't even out yet and people are talking about it. Written by a new and exciting young woman, it's articulate, brave and, in the new parlance, 'woke.' Funny, wise, and of the moment, this book and this writer are the ones to watch.” –Kit de Waal, author of My Name is Leon
“Candice gives so generously with her joy, pain and humour that we cannot help but become fully immersed in the life of Queenie—a beautiful and compelling book.” –Afua Hirsch, author of Brit(ish)
"So raw and well-written and painfully relatable. It's also clever and funny and has the most glorious cover." –Ruth Ware, #1New York Times bestselling author of The Woman in Cabin 10
"The protagonist of this debut novel has been dubbed the 'black Bridget Jones' and comes from England buoyed by praise from Jojo Moyes. Queenie Jenkins is a 25-year-old Jamaican-British woman, a newspaper reporter in London, forced to re-evaluate her life choices after a bad breakup with her white boyfriend. A trio of girlfriends offers support via text messages; we can’t wait to meet them all." –Newsday
“Adorable, funny, heartbreaking. People are going to love it.” –Nina Stibbe, author of Love, Nina
"An irresistible portrait of a young Jamaican-British woman living in London that grows deeper as it goes." —Entertainment Weekly (ew.com)
"Sometimes achingly sad, at other times laugh-out-loud funny, Queenie is a welcome debut from a seriously talented author." –The New York Post
"Carty-Williams creates an utterly knowable character in Queenie, who's as dimensional and relatable as they come as she tries to balance her own desires with what everyone else seems to want for her... This smart, funny, and tender debut embraces a modern woman's messiness." –Booklist (starred review)
“With resonant reflections on race, relationships, sex and friendships, Queenie is a terrific debut that’s delivered with a touch of British humor and plenty of feel-good moments.” –Bookpage (starred review)
“[A] smart, fearless debut… This is an essential depiction of life as a black woman in the modern world, told in a way that makes Queenie dynamic and memorable.” –Publishers Weekly, starred review
"A black Bridget Jones, perfectly of the moment." –Kirkus Reviews, starred review
"A charming read for fans of women's fiction; Carty-Williams sets herself apart with her relatable and poignant writing." –Library Journal
"What Carty-Williams also adeptly deals with is the role of technology in our modern lives. Which sounds so serious, but the way she weaves in text messages, e-mails, and more makes Queenie’s world feel so real. Basically, the second the book opened with Queenie in stirrups at her gynecologist’s office, I knew I was sold. Kirkus calls Queenie, “A black Bridget Jones, perfectly of the moment,” and I am deeply inclined to agree." –Hey Alma
"Carty-Williams adds her voice to a timely conversation about mental health, sex and womanhood." –Time.com
"Queenie is the book for anyone who has ever asked: who am I? And how do I get there?" –PopSugar
"Already referred to as the black Bridget Jones, Queenie is the literary heroine readers seek in 2019." –AM New York
"They say Queenie is Black Bridget Jones meets Americanah. But she stands in her own right—nothing can and will compare. I can't articulate how completely and utterly blown away I am." –Black Girls Book Club
"In this Bridget Jones-esque story, a Jamaican British woman working at a London newspaper seeks comfort in the wrong places after a messy breakup from her white boyfriend." –PureWow
"This bloody brilliant novel is heralded as 'Bridget Jones’s Diary meets Americanah,' and you’ll be sold from page one." –Hello Giggles
"[A] wry, candid novel... Reading about 25-year-old Queenie as she navigates romantic entanglements, a frustrating job at a local newspaper, the ongoing tension among her and her white, middle-class peers, and pressure from her Jamaican British family, feels like listening to a good friend's woes and wins — and cheering her on along the way." –BuzzFeed
"The story of how 25-year-old Queenie Jenkins balances her Jamaican and British heritages while navigating professional inequalities and romantic dilemmas is Black and brilliant all on its own." –Essence
"Queenie is, quite simply, the best novel I’ve read this year so far... Queenie is an incredibly well-written, compelling novel about life in a modern London for young black women." –All About Romance
"I'm reading Queenie by Candice Carty-Williams. It's very funny... I'm loving it." –Taylor Jenkins Reid, New York Times bestselling author of Daisy Jones & The Six
"Queenie goes on heartbreaking, hopeful, sometimes funny, and always relatable journey." –REFINERY 29
“I was sucked into Queenie’s world from the first page... To say this is a relatable book for a twentysomething woman is an understatement… By the end of Queenie’s journey to self-discovery, I felt like her close friend.” –Book Riot, "Best Books of 2019"
“With exuberant prose, Carty-Williams takes us inside millennial Black British life (and joyfully into friendships), and all around (gentrifying) South London.”–Electric Lit
“Carty-Williams’ desire to handle race bluntly and clearly, yet refuse to be dogmatic about it… is what makes her debut novel sing… [Queenie] brings you into her world as if she’s known you forever, right from the start… This book is equal parts millennial comedy and treatise on modern race relations, and a work of fiction that leaps from the page as all truth, no filler.” –Sam Sanders, host of It's Been a Minute
"A smart, briskly paced novel." –BookPage
"In what is perhaps the funniest novel on this list, a 25-year-old Jamaican-British journalist finds herself single again after her longterm relationship with her white boyfriend goes in the bin." –Bustle
"Love a book that gives you all the feels? Queenie, the character and the novel, are both brave and hugely funny. The story by Candice Carty-Williams will have you careening from relatable cringes to laughter to tears." –Good Housekeeping
"Carty-Williams deftly depicts a woman struggling through depression and self-destruction, and offers an astute commentary on prejudice in Britain today." –Time Magazine
“Poignant… [with] an irresistible heroine.” –Seattle Times
“This book is equal parts millennial comedy and treatise on modern race relations, and a work of fiction that leaps from the page as all truth, no filler.” –NPR
“I found this book to be the most important one I’ve read for twentysomethings struggling with self-acceptance—especially in the modern dating world… Carty-Williams does a fantastic job of creating a relatable character who learns that acceptance comes from within.” –Book Riot
"Candice Carty-William represents Black Girl Magic to the fullest... QUEENIE named after the name character follows a young black woman post-break-up on a journey full of pain, honesty, and undeniable wit." –BET
About the Author
Candice Carty-Williams is a writer, now a showrunner, and the author of the Sunday Times (London) bestselling Queenie, which was shortlisted by Goodreads for book of the year in 2019 and won the British Books Awards Book of the Year in 2020. In 2016, Candice created and launched the Guardian 4th Estate Short Story Prize, the first inclusive initiative of its kind in book publishing. Candice has written for The Guardian, i-D, Vogue, and pretty much every publication you can think of. She will probably always live in South London. Follow her on Instagram @CandiceC_W.
Instead, I was met with what I’d been trying to pretend hadn’t always been a room full of white not-quite-liberals whose opinions, like their money, had been inherited.Highlighted by 493 Kindle readers
