Queenie Audiobook By Candice Carty-Williams cover art

Queenie

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Queenie

By: Candice Carty-Williams
Narrated by: Shvorne Marks
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“A book that sneaks up on you...I am hooked.” —Roxane Gay, New York Times bestselling author

This acclaimed and “welcome debut from a seriously talented author” (New York Post) is a disarmingly honest, unapologetically black, and undeniably witty novel that will speak to those who have gone looking for love and found something very different in its place.

Queenie Jenkins is a twenty-five-year-old Jamaican British woman living in London, straddling two cultures and slotting neatly into neither. She works at a national newspaper, where she’s constantly forced to compare herself to her white middle class peers. After a messy break up from her long-term white boyfriend, Queenie seeks comfort in all the wrong places…including several hazardous men who do a good job of occupying brain space and a bad job of affirming self-worth.

As Queenie careens from one questionable decision to another, she finds herself wondering, “What are you doing? Why are you doing it? Who do you want to be?”—all of the questions today’s woman must face in a world trying to answer them for her.

“A must-read novel about sex, selfhood, and the best friendships that get us through it all” (Candace Bushnell, New York Times bestselling author), Queenie is a remarkably relatable exploration of what it means to be a modern woman searching for meaning in today’s world. African American Caribbean Creators Fiction Friendship Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Movie, TV & Video Game Tie-Ins Women's Fiction Funny Witty
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Critic reviews

“[B]rilliant, timely, funny, heartbreaking.”

(Jojo Moyes,)
“My favourite novel this year. Queenie is the sort of novel you just can’t stop talking about and want everyone you know to read. Snort your tea out funny one moment and utterly heart breaking the next, (and with the best cast of characters you’ll read all year), I absolutely loved it. I can’t wait to read whatever Candice writes next. If there is anything right in the world, Candice Carty-Williams is going to be a literary superstar.”

(AJ Pearce,)
“This book isn't even out yet and people are talking about it. Written by a new and exciting young woman, it's articulate, brave and, in the new parlance, 'woke.' Funny, wise, and of the moment, this book and this writer are the ones to watch.” (Kit de Waal)
“This book isn't even out yet and people are talking about it. Written by a new and exciting young woman, it's articulate, brave and, in the new parlance, 'woke.' Funny, wise, and of the moment, this book and this writer are the ones to watch.” (Kit de Waal)
“I ate up Queenie in one greedy, joyous gulp last night. What a treat of a book. Lots to enjoy and think about. I loved Queenie and was cheering her on all the way. I thought all the mental health stuff was brilliant and so well done and authentic—it so often isn’t, in novels—and also all the unhappy sex rang so true. Is there a sequel planned? All I wanted to do when I finished was to open book two.”

(Cathy Rentzenbrink)
“Candice gives so generously with her joy, pain and humour that we cannot help but become fully immersed in the life of Queenie—a beautiful and compelling book.” (Afua Hirsch)

Editor's Pick

Modern-day adulting
"Candice Carty-Williams’s Queenie is the epitome of that refreshing new voice reviewers love to rave about. And rave I will. Her title character, a 25-year-old Jamaican British woman in London at the tail end of a longterm relationship, is a bit of a hot mess—but a hot mess in which we can all recognize parts of ourselves. Her motley crew of girlfriends, whom she calls the Corgis, all shore her up in different ways as she navigates the landmines of her life, from racial/cultural expectations to the emotional trauma of her youth. Actress Shvorne Marks brings Queenie’s world to life with an accessible range of British accents, while highlighting the soul searching for peace that belies the breeziness with which Queenie tries to meet the world, and eventually finds that her path forward isn’t based on anyone but herself." —Abby W., Audible Editor

Relatable Story • Authentic Representation • Excellent Narrator • Cultural Relevance • Emotional Depth

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Where do i begin with this one?
Queenie, Queenie, Queenie. She sort of reminded me of myself when i was younger. Not the promiscuous parts but the "not having your shit together parts".
I LOLed several times. I enjoyed this audiobook. There were a few shock factor moments but all in all it was a good book. Don't listen with children around though. I was listening while in a fast food drive thru with my window down and had to turn it off until i was able to close my window back.
Reminded me of a Jamaican Bridgette Jones maybe?
The narrator was perfect.
I do recommend it for a little mindless chic-lit.

Don't touch her hair !!!!

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Someone wrote my in another review that this book is the perfect marriage between “The Bridget Jones Diary” and “Americanah” (both favorites) and I couldn’t agree more.

I thought I’d be bored because I am well beyond the age of the protagonist but I was thankfully wrong! I identified with the experiences, mistakes and feeling of both my younger and present self. I most appreciated the candor and wit that enfolded within the story.

I liked the main character and hated some others which is a good sign-in my reading experience, apathy towards characters equates to poor story telling, character development, etc and usually results in immediate dismissal of a book.

The ending mimicked real life in that all problems cannot be solved just because the book ends. Progress not perfection...

Good from start to finish.

MUST READ-Humorous and insightful

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This book. First half broke my heart, not in the traditional way. Enough that I had to talk about it with my grown son and husband at lunch one day. I know a protagonist must sabotage but why was Queenie so hell bent on such passive self destruction? Why was her head bowed on the book cover?

My husband reminded me what I knew, of the plight of the young black woman, of the weight she carries, of what is fact about the way men treat her without regard for her person. (As lawyers we are both more aware, and his job in particular makes him see these facts almost daily). The book, however hard to digest, was absolutely factual and on point.

I read on and that night I turned a page that made it all click. Oh. Duh. OH.

In the end, Queenie’s predicament was expertly handled and explained. The anxiety that she and countless numbers of her generation experience (and how counseling can help) was portrayed in a way that I could really understand. Also a great explanation of what #blacklivesmatter means and what it doesn’t mean. So glad for this book.

Why is Queenie’s Head Bowed?

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Was not the best for a mother daughter book club, the description needs updating. Very mature situations!

not Bridget Jones Diary

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Great story about learning from our mistakes and realizing it sometimes takes a village to make a positive change for yourself. I love the support that Queenie get from her besties!

Really poignant message about being objectified

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