Family Spirit (2000)

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Diane McKinney-Whetstone's latest character-rich, page-turner blends her signature style with a little magic in her depiction of the Maces, a vibrant family of Philadelphia clairvoyants with issues. Ayana has inherited the Knowing gene that the Maces believe have been passed down to at least one girl child in every generation from as far back as they can trace. But her mother has tried to convince her that she is nothing like those weird Mace women. To keep the peace, Ayana lies to everyone—to the Maces, insisting she's never felt a Knowing, to her mother about participating in the rituals, and to herself about her relationship with a man who helps her recover time and time again from the mania she experiences after seeing into the future. Ayana's aunt Lil, banned from the Mace home decades ago after violating a sacred vow, has returned to Philadelphia for a medical procedure. She settles into the chaos of her brother's home where Ayana, a failing