Book Summary and Reviews of Queenie Is Working on It by Candice Carty-Williams

Queenie Is Working on It by Candice Carty-Williams

Queenie Is Working on It

A Novel

by Candice Carty-Williams

  • Publishes:
  • Sep 8, 2026, 384 pages
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About this book

Book Summary

Candice Carty-Williams, internationally bestselling author of Queenie (now a television series on Hulu), reunites us with the iconic character nearly ten years on, facing new chaotic choices in life and love with cherished old friends and family in this highly anticipated sequel.

Queenie Jenkins is moving on up.

She's thirty-three, the editorial director for The Good Sis, a thriving media network amplifying the voices of Black women, a far cry from her former toxic workplace. With a great platform and a renewed sense of purpose, she's fighting the good fight.

So when an appointment for research goes haywire and reveals startling truths about her own fertility, Queenie is confronted with a racing biological clock when she's not even sure she wants kids in the first place. She's sort of seeing someone, but it's not that serious (according to him), and her mom, grandma, and aunt Maggie all mean well, but they keep asking when she's going to settle down.

Surrounded by loyal friends who seem to fall in love with their person and get pregnant at the drop of a hat, Queenie feels they just don't get her. After a series of confusing "situationships" that prove more trouble than they're worth, an old flame that she's now second-guessing why she ended it with, and her beloved grandfather's failing health, Queenie feels as though time is running out in all the parts in her life. And she's going to do what she thinks is best to get back on track, no matter how inadvisable.

Bigger. Not better. Older. Not wiser. The beloved and flawed Queenie Jenkins is scared, she is frustrated, she is confused…but…she is working on it.

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Reviews

Media Reviews

"Carty-Williams vividly evokes Jamaican diaspora culture and Queenie's loving South London circle of friends and family…Strong writing and sharply rendered dialogue." —Kirkus Reviews

This information about Queenie Is Working on It was first featured in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.

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More Information

Candice Carty-Williams was born and raised in south London, by way of Jamaica. She is a novelist, showrunner, culture writer, and author of Book of the Year Award–winning and Sunday Times (London) bestselling Queenie, as well as the young adult novella Empress and Aniya, and the Sunday Times (London) bestselling People Person. In 2016, Candice created and launched the Guardian and 4th Estate 4th Write Prize for underrepresented writers, the first inclusive initiative of its kind in book publishing. Candice is the ex-Guardian Review books columnist, has interviewed and written for i-D, Vogue, The Face, The Sunday Times (London), BEAT Magazine, Black Ballad, and many more publications. Queenie received global acclaim, and was described as vital, disarmingly honest and boldly political. It was adapted by Candice for Channel 4 and Hulu, and her original drama, Champion, aired on BBC One in the UK, and on Netflix globally. She can be found on Instagram at @CandiceC_W.

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