Content levels
Trigger warnings
Heroine archetypes
Protagonist archetypes
Tropes
Themes
Synopsis
Dana, a modern black woman, is celebrating her twenty-sixth birthday with her new husband when she is snatched abruptly from her home in California and transported to the antebellum South. Rufus, the white son of a plantation owner, is drowning, and Dana has been summoned to save him. Dana is drawn back repeatedly through time to the slave quarters, and each time the stay grows longer, more arduous, and more dangerous until it is uncertain whether or not Dana’s life will end, long before it has a chance to begin.
Kindred: content & age rating
Intended for adult readers (18+).
This is an unflinching portrayal of slavery with graphic violence, racism, sexual assault, and intense psychological trauma. The content is historically accurate but deeply disturbing and intended for mature adult readers.
What to know going in
This book has strong violence, moderate sexual content, and moderate language. Content notes include sexual assault, torture, slavery, domestic violence, and physical abuse (see the full list above).
Who'll love this
Adult readers interested in confronting America's history of slavery through the lens of time travel will find this powerful and harrowing.