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Reviewed by K.C. Finn for Readers' Favorite
Higher Love by Joanne Kukanza Easley is a deeply moving family drama that explores how secrets echo through generations, and how love, especially the kind that doesn’t give up, can still heal the deepest wounds. Set in 1986 Austin, this emotionally charged novel introduces us to Lauren, whose life is turned upside down when a troubled teen named Stephanie appears on her doorstep, claiming to be the daughter of the child Lauren gave up for adoption forty-five years earlier.
Author Joanne Kukanza Easley has a warm and smooth style of writing that is easy to get into, and her storytelling is rich with nuance as she brings past and present into a vivid portrait of intergenerational trauma, forgiveness, and fragile hope. The recent history of the setting sparks nostalgia on every page, with descriptions that don’t just take you back there cinematically, but in every visceral and multi-sensory moment of life in the 80s. The relationship between Lauren and Stephanie is also beautifully complex and told with bold dialogue that has plenty of energy brimming between the lines as their bond is built on pain, shaken by truth, and ultimately transformed by sacrifice. With vivid characters and honest emotional weight at the forefront of the storytelling, the tale becomes a compassionate, gorgeously written exploration of redemption and resilience where you get to know and root for the characters like they’re real people in your life. Overall, I’d certainly recommend Higher Love to fans of contemporary fiction that digs deep into the heart.
