holy macaroni! this is enjoyable. quite slow at first but once you get through the 'plot', it becomes addicting. the subjects of motherhood, race, and privilege were well-executed. i have expected more drama, like shouting, intense confrontations, etc (but i guess the series will do the work for that)

this is actually one of the few books that triggered my thoughts. so many questions and yet it seemed like there wasn't a single correct answer. all characters were flawed and imperfectly human. their social disparities, brought about by their upbringing and culture, fueled their conflicts in the most profound and natural way, despite the fictional elements of it. sometimes, you would nod at the rich's POV and then pages later, you'd feel bad for doing that after discovering the oppressed characters' POVs. it was really black and white, a perfect balanced of nuanced principles.

well, down to that custody battle. this is a personal opinion (obviously), a general thought after hours of sitting and contemplating. the McColloughs—though blinded by their privilege and were unknowledgeable of racial issues—really loved the baby. they were willing to learn and to educate Mirabelle about her true origins. it would be a hard process, yes, but i knew they were open to be educated, and for me, that's enough. for Bebe Chow, i didn't like her. understood her on the first part but then she did something near the end that flipped my plate of sympathy back to the McColloughs.

maybe my point of view is based on an acquaintance of mine who was born Filipino, but grew up with WHITE parents in a white neighborhood. but mind you, he is privilege but he knows how to speak tagalog. he knows Filipino culture. Imagine that!

all in all, a well-crafted book. good job, Celeste!