Kin is an unforgettable novel that sparkles with wit and intelligence and deep feeling about two lifelong friends whose worlds converge after many years apart in the face of a devastating tragedy.
Okay, LitStack book lovers, gather ’round! LitStack’s got the scoop on the novel Kin, in presale now. It’s a new book by author Tayari Jones, and let’s just say, the whispers are getting LOUD. This book is a must read. Knopf is keeping things *very* close to the vest with this one, teasing us with a glimpse of the cover and a few hints about what’s inside. We’re showing every detail available, from the intriguing cover art and the publisher’s carefully crafted introduction to advance reader praise that will help you pre-order today. Let’s do this.
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In This Spotlight On Kin
About Kin
In Kin, Vernice and Annie, two motherless daughters raised in Honeysuckle, Louisiana, have been best friends and neighbors since earliest childhood but are fated to live starkly different lives. Raised by a fierce aunt determined to give her a stable home in the wake of her mother’s death, Vernice leaves Honeysuckle at eighteen for Spelman College, where she joins a sisterhood of powerfully connected Black women and discovers a world of affluence, manners, aspiration, and inequality.
Annie, abandoned by her mother as a child and fixated on the idea of finding her and filling the bottomless hole left by her absence, sets off on a journey that will take her into a world of peril and adversity, as well as love and adventure, culminating in a battle for her life.
A novel about mothers and daughters, friendship and sisterhood, and the complexities of being a woman in the American South, an exuberant, emotionally rich, unforgettable work from one of the brightest and most irresistible voices in contemporary fiction.
Praise for Kin
“Kin is the…all-encompassing reading experience I’m always hoping to find: smart and funny and deftly profound. This is Tayari Jones’s very best work.”—Ann Patchett, author of Tom Lake
“A triumphant return of one of the most important literary voices today. Vibrant, funny, moving and powerful, Kin is an unforgettable read.”—Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai, author of The Mountains Sing
“A riveting and deeply moving portrait of indelible female friendship, found family and finding your way. . . . This gorgeous novel already feels like a future classic.”—Roisin O’Donnell, author of Nesting
[Kin is] “Beautifully written and powerfully compelling. . . . Tayari Jones interrogates social injustice through the lens of personal relationships while exploring the ways in which it shapes those relationships, and she does this in language that is intimate, conversational, and musical all at once.”—Kirkus (starred review)
“Jones delivers a triumphant novel of two motherless girls from rural Honeysuckle, Louisiana, who follow very different paths into adulthood. . . . Throughout, Jones tells her protagonists’ stories with grace, humor, and pathos. Kin is a tour de force.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“Jones deftly conveys the nuances of Southern Black culture in this novel full of depth, pain, and beauty. . . . [Kin is a] …tender love song to southern Black families, communities, and female friendships.”—Booklist (starred review)
“Ambitious and accessible, emotionally challenging without pushing readers away. . . . Kin shows off Jones’s considerable skill through strong pacing and a plot that is emotionally taut without feeling unnecessarily dramatic. Without fail, Jones delivers a brilliant turn of phrase, at turns witty and insightful.”—Shelf Awareness
About Tayari Jones, Author of Kin
Tayari Jones is the author of four novels, most recently An American Marriage, which was an Oprah’s Book Club selection and also appeared on Barack Obama’s summer reading list and his year-end roundup. It won the Women’s Prize for Fiction, the Aspen Words Literary Prize, and an NAACP Image Award and has been published in two dozen countries. Jones is the C.H. Candler Professor of English and Creative Writing at Emory University and lives in Atlanta.
You can connect with Tayari Jones on her website, and on Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
Source: Publisher
Publisher: Knopf
ISBN Hardcover 9780525659181
Pub Date: Feb 24, 2026
LitStack Spots – Other Titles by Tayari Jones
Other titles we recommend by Tayari Jones, take a look at An American Marriage, Leaving Atlanta and Silver Sparrow.
Other LitStack Resources
Be sure and check out LitStack Spotlights that shine a light on books we think you should read.
Also look at our LitStack Reviews, including reviews by Lewis Buzbee, Lauren Alwan, Allie Coker, Rylie Fong, and Sharon Browning.
You can find and buy the books we recommend at the LitStack Bookshop on our list of LitStack Recs.
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