Yinka, Where Is Your Huzband?
A Novel
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4.2 • 68 Ratings
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- $7.99
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- $7.99
Publisher Description
“Yinka is a lovable and relatable disaster—which is to say, she isn’t actually a disaster at all...I adore her.”—Emily Henry, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Book Lovers
“Feel good, funny, and clever, it’s got smash-hit written all over it!” –Josie Silver, New York Times bestselling author of One Day in December
Meet Yinka: a thirty-something, Oxford-educated, British Nigerian woman with a well-paid job, good friends, and a mother whose constant refrain is “Yinka, where is your huzband?”
Yinka’s Nigerian aunties frequently pray for her delivery from singledom, her work friends think she’s too traditional (she’s saving herself for marriage!), her girlfriends think she needs to get over her ex already, and the men in her life…well, that’s a whole other story. But Yinka herself has always believed that true love will find her when the time is right.
Still, when her cousin gets engaged, Yinka commences Operation Find-A-Date for Rachel's Wedding. Aided by a spreadsheet and her best friend, Yinka is determined to succeed. Will Yinka find herself a huzband? And what if the thing she really needs to find is herself?
Yinka, Where is Your Huzband? is a fresh, uplifting story of an unconventional heroine who bravely asks the questions we all have about love. Wry, moving, irresistible, this is a love story that makes you smile but also makes you think--and explores what it means to find your way between two cultures, both of which are yours.
NAMED A MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK OF 2022 BY MARIE CLAIRE, PARADE, ESSENCE, MS. MAGAZINE, POPSUGAR, BUSTLE, BOOKRIOT, DEBUTIFUL AND MORE!
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
A young and ambitious British Nigerian woman grapples with love, loss, and faith in Lizzie Damilola Blackburn’s funny and electrifying debut. According to her mother and concerned aunties, Yinka Oladeji is running out of time to find a husband—and they all form an incredibly embarrassing prayer circle for her at her younger sister’s baby shower, just to ask God for help in the matter. But the beautiful, shy, churchgoing Oxford grad has her own plan to land a date for her cousin’s upcoming wedding—one that goes hilariously awry almost immediately. We were captivated by Yinka and her fabulous friends (especially her Afropunk-inspired fashion designer BFF, Nana). And we were constantly laughing at Yinka’s ability to find herself in awkward situations (like accidentally befriending her ex’s stunning new fiancée). Yinka, Where Is Your Huzband? is a stirring ode to self-love.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Blackburn's comical debut chronicles a Nigerian British woman's quest to find a date for her cousin's wedding. The title's question is lobbed at 31-year-old Yinka Oladeji by overbearing and traditionally minded people such as her mum and aunt Debbie whenever they see her. At her younger sister Kemi's baby shower, Debbie unfavorably compares Oxford-educated Yinka to her cousin Ola, who dropped out of university for a "shotgun wedding." Then, at an engagement party for another cousin, Rachel, Yinka meets her ex's new fiancée. Afterward, she treats getting a date to Rachel's wedding like a project, but worries that her dark skin and Pentacostal Christian faith might doom her to spinsterhood. After being laid off from her investment banking job instead of getting the promotion she wanted, Yinka checks in with a charity where she once volunteered and reconnects with the annoyingly contrary but handsome Donovan. Once her friends notice Yinka's attempts to appeal to men, such as getting a weave, they stage an intervention to encourage her to remain true to herself. Blackburn's lighthearted tone helps deliver heavy thoughts on colorism, the tension of cultural differences, and the benefits of therapy, as the story moves toward a happy ending on all fronts. This delivers loads of entertainment and a dollop of enlightenment.
Customer Reviews
Great Read
Reading about Yinka and given the opportunity to be apart of her life and mind was been entertaining. I have laughed a lot more than I expected to when I first started reading the this book. And I must say I enjoyed it so much I’ve told my work colleagues about it as they noticed my head indulged in my iPad at my desk. I appreciate this reading. Yinka’s realization of self love is empowering.
Real and beautiful
I really enjoyed this book about realness, societal/family/cultural pressures, self love, faith and owning who you are. Easy to read, funny and super relatable!
Insecure/Issa Rae vibes
Awesome story of self discovery! A lovely book. Super relatable for the gurls 💅🏾⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️