Honey & Spice

"Dear reader, I loved it. Bolu Babalola’s aptly titled Honey & Spice is a smartly observed mashup of sweetness and fire – Beyoncé meets Jane Austen on a London campus. Kiki is an influential college DJ spinning hip-hop-inflected feminist insight. Malakai is a filmmaker and the slick new guy in town. Despite sparks, she very publicly writes him off as a player. Then boom: An involuntary collaboration breaks through the static, and rivals become more. Babalola first made her mark with the myth-inspired story collection Love in Color (also an NPR favorite). With this swoony coming-of-age story, she cements her status as “romcomoisseur” and chronicler of Black British life."