The List

May 1, 2023

A top journalist at Womxxxn magazine, Ola Olajide always calls out the men who appear on the List, an anonymous social media posting critiquing inappropriate behavior. Then one morning she wakes up to find her fianc� on the list. Fiction debuter Adegoke is a columnist for the Guardian and British Vogue who wrote Slay in Your Lane: The Black Girl Bible and was named one of Forbes 30 under 30. With a 150,000-copy first printing. Prepub Alert.

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Copyright 2023 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from August 1, 2023
Ola and Michael's upcoming marriage is a social media event--the couple's photos are hashtagged with #couplegoals and #BlackLove. But a month before the wedding, The List drops, throwing their future into disarray. The List exposes men in media and entertainment whose behavior towards women ranges from harassment to assault, and Ola is shocked to find Michael among the perpetrators. Michael insists that the claims against him are false, but Ola is inclined to believe women, especially since she has reported on similar situations. Ola finds her feminist ideals challenged by colleagues unable to consider the nuance of her situation, while Michael falls into a sordid stew of toxic masculinity when he joins a group chat populated by men who appear on The List. As the countdown to the wedding progresses, online harassment escalates, leading to a dramatic public shaming. A final twist at the end recontextualizes the story, giving readers more to consider. Adegoke delivers a thought-provoking account of the power of social media to amplify and to silence, as well as the devastating effects of online pileups that catch innocent bystanders in their wake. This timely novel demands to be discussed; highly recommended for readers of Lauren Oyler and Raven Leilani. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: This timely debut from British journalist Adegoke is a ripped-from-the-headlines must-read with a large print run to back it up.

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Starred review from September 18, 2023
In British writer Adegoke’s complex and revelatory U.S. debut, an online magazine editor in London is put in a difficult position after her fiancé is anonymously accused of harassment and physical assault at an office party. Ola Olajide has made her reputation by reporting on predators in the music industry, and she and her partner Michael Koranteng have garnered many online admirers as a prominent Black couple. A month before their wedding, an anonymous list of allegedly abusive men shows up on social media with Michael’s name on it. Though he’s cheated on Ola in the past, she refuses to believe he’s guilty. Michael is convinced that his former fling, Jackie, named him out of revenge for breaking things off with her, though he keeps this suspicion from Ola. Adegoke does a thorough job of tackling the many issues involved: there’s strong evidence against other men on the list, which causes Michael to appear guilty by association and attracts ire from an online mob, a situation that hurts Ola’s credibility as she neglects to join them in taking down her fiancé. The story is full of poignant turns and nuanced insights, such as when Michael examines how he was negatively conditioned as a boy by a misogynist culture. This page-turner has bite. Agent: Hayley Steed, Madeleine Milburn Literary.

September 15, 2023
Ola Olajide, a feminist journalist in London, is preparing for her wedding to Michael Koranteng, a podcaster who's just landed his dream job, when his name appears on a list of abusers in the media industry. Deeply in love, Ola and Michael find their lives turned upside down when a document known as The List is released on Twitter. Michael has been accused of "harassment and threatening behavior/Physical assault at office Christmas party," followed by " 'Restraining order' in brackets," alongside a football legend accused of homophobia and a musician accused of rape. Ola is torn between her instinct to believe women and her disbelief that Michael could be guilty. Michael, who professes his innocence, obsessively combs through his romantic and sexual past trying to understand who his accuser could be, resulting in his rapidly declining mental health. With a relentless pace, the countdown to the wedding urges the reader onto the next chapter, then the next. As the story alternates between Ola's and Michael's perspectives, the release of The List prompts a series of events that quickly evade either character's control. The insidious misogyny of the media world Ola and Michael orbit will be instantly recognizable to readers following the revelations of the #MeToo movement, and Adegoke also skewers the corporate Insta-feminism represented by Ola's boss with ferocious accuracy. At the same time, she explores the real-world ramifications of an internet culture that lets people freely and anonymously accuse others. The List haunts Ola, forcing her to consider whether she'll ever be able to trust Michael again, whether her career--built on calling out injustice--can survive her affiliation with an accused man. This is a book that forces the reader to consider the lengths to which they'd go to salvage their reputation--and protect their loved ones. A well-crafted, timely response to the myriad anxieties of navigating life in 2023.

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Starred review from October 1, 2023

DEBUT Michael and Ola are a young, beautiful Black power couple in London; Michael is a successful podcaster, and Ola is a journalist in charge of the current affairs desk at Womxxxn. They're getting married in 30 days--or are they? Just as the wedding countdown begins, "the List" appears on social media sites, accusing several men of harassing women, and Michael is among them; it's also alleged that someone has a restraining order against him. He declares that he is not guilty, but when placing his treatment of a particular female friend under scrutiny, he admits that he did not act in the best possible way. In the end, the fallout from the List turns out to go beyond Michael's transgressions and the issues of a single couple. Throughout the novel, Michael and Ola are portrayed as very real people, caught up in a storm of lies, jealousies, and betrayal that many readers will understand. VERDICT A real nail-biter, this impeccably written debut from journalist Adegoke (coauthor of Slay in Your Lane: The Black Girl Bible) keeps audiences wondering until the end. Boasting cinematic qualities that will ease its jump to the screen, this book has already been sold for a TV series.--Lisa Rohrbaugh

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