Reviews

In the Shadow of the Fall by Tobi Ogundiran

meganobrien419's review

Go to review page

adventurous challenging dark mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.0

crothe77's review

Go to review page

adventurous fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix

5.0

I was given an ARC by the publisher in exchange for an honest review

In the Shadow of the Fall by Tobi Ogundiran is a Nigerian fantasy novella where the acolyte Ashâke has been in service to the orisha for most of her life but has never been made a priest by them. They are silent. After witnessing multiple peers become priests and be chosen by the orisha, Ashâke tries to force their hand and witnesses a terrible vision as the price. 

The novella moves at a fairly brisk pace and is mostly from Ashâke’s POV. I was immediately drawn in by the voice and the desperation that seeped through and the pacing kept me hooked the entire way. The worldbuilding was also very cool, from the boats tied together that create a floating city to the use of faith and oral tradition to the use of orisha.

I would recommend this to fans of Nigerian fantasy and of orisha and readers looking for more non-Western fantasy novellas.

 

bella_banks21's review against another edition

Go to review page

5.0

An absolute must read! Ogundiran is able to craft a beautiful, magical world with an immense amount of potential for this series in less than 200 pages. With a fascinating protagonist and lightning fast pace, I could not put this down for a second! The only thing I’m upset about is how long I’ll have to wait for the next installment.


Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

chaptersofmads's review

Go to review page

adventurous mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? N/A
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

 ARC provided via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Captivatingly vivid and beautiful written, this novella was so good.

I was concerned that the length would detract from my enjoyment of the story, but those fears were completely unfounded. Tobi Ogundiran used every single page to its fullest, somehow managing to weave a story that is both intricate and incredibly fast-paced in less than 200 pages. The characters, no matter how brief their appearance, were fleshed out and felt entirely real. Creating three-dimensional characters is something authors (reasonably) struggle with on a much larger canvas and yet this novella handled it with such ease, I felt like I was simply hearing about people that had once existed.

Pairing that with the use of African mythology and a cosmic war between the gods, this was one you're not going to want to miss. 
Expand filter menu Content Warnings

sophiasunlitreads's review

Go to review page

adventurous emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring mysterious sad fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

zeezee08's review

Go to review page

adventurous challenging emotional hopeful inspiring tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

quadratic_queen's review

Go to review page

adventurous emotional mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

aniie's review

Go to review page

adventurous fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

kaitebooktoklady's review

Go to review page

challenging emotional mysterious slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

I found the main character not incredibly lovable, but some of the people she meets along the way were wonderful. 

Similarly to my NetGalley review (thank you NetGalley and Tor for the arc of this!), I found that I needed more time with many parts of the book; it just felt too short in many places to develop the story in the way I think it could have been. I have high hopes for the second novella in the duology though!

mel_c_bell's review

Go to review page

adventurous hopeful inspiring fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? N/A
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

5.0

Excuse me? An African mythology cosmic war fantasy??? Yes, please! I honestly had no idea that this was what was missing in my life. But, ok, I'm here for it. Lessgo 🙌🏻

Ashâke, an acolyte in the hidden temple of Ifa, grapples with her identity and faith as she finds herself embroiled in a celestial conflict that has simmered for centuries.

The author does not ease us into this story, we are dropped feet first with a simple, implied, command of "keep up". In 114 pages, we are given the ingredients of an epic-level fantasy baked with a contemporary voice but the flavor palette of literary canon. And, I say that with the utmost sincerity and reverence because stories like this are why I fckn love literature.

I believe the chonky fantasy novels are here to stay, but I also see the emergence of fantasy novellas, particularly those featuring non-western tales, as a valuable and necessary expansion to the genre.