I loved the first half of this book. The characters were so fleshed out and human. I could truly empathize with them and their plight. The stories of two sisters, one who becomes a slave and the other who marries a slave trader, are so nuanced. The stories of their descendants are also fascinating to read. While I truly hated the misery brought to both family lines by the Europeans, the complicity of Ghanaians in the slave trade make this novel different from others that have tackled this issue. Almost no one in this novel is a complete victim or a complete villain. That's part of what I think generated so much well earned buzz for this novel. 
 However, the second half of the book dragged. The characters began to feel more like archetypes instead of real people and I began to be bored by their stories. Overall, three stars for an excellent first half.