Sister Mother Warrior received a Starred Review from Library Journal.

Riley follows up Island Queen with another sweeping, powerful historical novel based on two remarkable real women. Adbaraya Toya grows up in the West African Kingdom of Dahomey and becomes one of their feared women warriors. In 1758, a betrayal leads to her being sold into slavery and sent to the French colony of Saint-Domingue on Hispaniola (part of present-day Haiti). There she uses her healing and medicinal knowledge to survive and takes a maternal interest in young enslaved orphan Janjak, training him as a warrior in hopes of a better future. As Janjak grows up on Hispaniola, so too does Marie-Claire Bonheur, further south on the island. Marie-Claire, a free Black woman, has complicated relationships with her mother, aunt, and grandmother--all of whom have different experiences as women of color in late 18th-century Saint-Domingue. When Marie-Claire meets Janjak (who will later take the surname Dessalines and become the first ruler of an independent Haiti), their instant and strong bond forms the basis for a lifelong relationship that will be tested by time, distance, and the Haitian Revolution led by Janjak.

The Atlanta Journal Constitution Review.

"Riley's storytelling skills shine through, creating a compelling portrayal of two women who remain true to themselves under tremendous hardship."

Sister Mother Warrior is an Amazon Editor's Pick for July 2022!!!

Author of ISLAND QUEEN and A DUKE, THE LADY, AND A BABY Vanessa Riley's SISTER MOTHER WARRIOR in which she returns to the West Indies to tell the untold true story of two remarkable Black woman, Victoria Montou and Marie-Claire Bonheur who helped shaped the Haitian Revolution, to Rachel Kahan at William Morrow, in a very nice deal, by Sarah Younger at the Nancy Yost Literary Agency (World).