The House of Eve

I’ve been looking forward to this one for a long time! This historical novel is very much in the vein of Ann Patchett’s The Patron Saint of Liars and Dolen Perkins-Valdez’s Take My Hand. The story centers two young Black women in the 1950s: Ruby is an ambitious high school sophomore in a single-parent family of limited means in Philadelphia; Eleanor is a promising student at Howard University who, despite her working class upbringing, soon finds herself moving in the upper echelon of DC’s Black society. Both women have big hopes and dreams for their futures: they want love and marriage and family, as well as college degrees and satisfying careers. But shortly after each falls in love, big changes happen—and hard choices have to be made. A good story, well-told, with a satisfying ending. Be sure not to miss the author’s note!