One of the great things about the Internet is you don’t have to depend on reviews from traditional sources to know how your product is being received. Users (or, in the case of Oh Gad! readers, are getting in on the action). Here’s some of what they’re saying:

On Amazon

“It pulled you in and refused to let you go. Even though the dialect wasn't something I was used to at the end of the book, I felt that I could go to Antigua and carry on a conversation with the best of them.”

“I loved this book…Each character came to life for me, I could picture each scene vividly, taste the food and hear the music. This book was an interesting rich experience.”

“I picked up O Gad because I had read 2 other books by Hillhouse and thoroughly enjoyed her ability to weave a story around the every day details of Caribbean life. I was not at all disappointed. …Hillhouse unpeeled layer after layer of detail, intricacy and intrigue, finally exposing a most satisfying conclusion.”

On Facebook

“Plot so real that fell into the book so much so that when I came up for air had to blink to remind myself that I do not know these people - yet I understand them… Joanne's confidence in telling our story in a contemporary setting with some history and mythology thrown in without making you feel like you got to go to university to understand that our navel string is tied to the 'muddy' and sucks up our ancestors......bravo Joanne...bravo.....can't wait to see this on the 'Book Club’ list across the diaspora and beyond.”

“What a freaking good book!”

“Joanne has captured our island - our lives, our nuances, language so well.....Sea View Farm may become as famous as Nelsons Dockyard.”

“Reading Oh Gad! ... savouring each page as Ii pick out the characters I like (Tones and Carlene). A short bit beginning from the last paragraph on pg 93 continuing on the first line on pg 94 had me on d floor literally.”

“Just read the hotel scene after the baby scene in Joanne C. Hillhouse Oh Gad! Intense!”

And elsewhere

“The one thing that I can say for sure is that it held my attention and forced me to stay awake until after 2:30 one morning, for one reason and one reason only – it was a great read, a really well written book.” (submitted to various Caribbean media outlets including the Daily Observer)

“With, Oh Gad, Hillhouse has officially placed herself on the international literary map.  Her ability to convey the soul of her characters through their words at times makes one forget they’re actually reading fiction. This tale of family, love and loss could potentially bridge the gap that separates Caribbean people and their African American counterparts; particularly from a literary standpoint. It’ll be interesting to see how this book is received by the two groups.” (@ Caribbean Literary Salon)

“I can’t stop staring at this cover. I love the flow of her writing, not to mention the premise of her book.” (in response, not to the book, but a guest post at her blog)