The race baiting division the americans are obsessed with leaves me cold. This show sounds like it's full of it.
I have read the original book cover to cover but have only watched the first two episodes of this onscreen adaptation because John Wick on Amazon Prime was my Saturday evening viewing. There is juxtaposition for you
Whilst every onscreen adaptation of a book applies creative licence to reflect the different mediums, the television show certainly plays up race and identity front and centre from the beginning.
In contrast the book reader has no reason to think about the colour of the main characters, not until around the halfway mark in the book and not for the reasons portrayed by the television show from the first episode.
This review contains a brief acknowledgement the race of the characters was not prominent in the original book. Despite this I am unclear whether the reviewer has read the original book.
The book's decision to keep race in the background was perhaps deliberate to challenge the reader's own assumptions about who is the protagonist and antagonist and their motivations. The book is all the better for it. The character development in the book is the best part. When the reader realises the two families and other characters are different races that is much more dramatic as until that moment of realisation you have no reason to interpret the book's events through the prism of race.
Granted skin colour is impossible to avoid seeing onscreen but the director could have tailored the script and dialogue accordingly.
Mrs Richardson is a person who plans her life. The more the reader learns about the past story of each character as present day life events unfold, it is Mrs Richardson for all her need to be in control who is the person who does not truly know the closest people in her life. Bad communication and presumptions leads to unintended consequence.
I do not think the base story is original, however, the subtle differences between the book and television show does affect the dramatic impact of the story. Regardless of whether or not you have read the original book, I can perfectly see why the television show is not for everyone given the creative decisions for the onscreen adaptation.