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3.49 AVERAGE
3.49 AVERAGE
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
The ideas are there but the execution is quite flawed. The book is formulaic with three parts that follow a typical question pattern: hero has problem, hero tries to fix problem, hero get solution wrong, someone tells the hero what to do, hero kills someone. This made it easy to anticipate. The book dragged overall and there was lots of info dumping with non-relevant information. This book needed an editor and to be about a third les long minimum. There also was hand waving away of real issues such as David’s abandonment by his mother instead of dealing with them within the book. Finally, Fati was a problematic character in how her apparent faith and disability were just removed when they were no longer plot points and just used to indicate her down trodden status. There was a moment at the end where I thought it might turn things but no, it stuck with the utterly predictable course. By the end, I would give it 2.5 stars.
I really wanted to love this book because I loved the idea of it. I love the premise, the setting, the realistic code-switching narrative style, the fact that it is a new-to-me author. The characters have a ton of potential and the use of gods from different cultures gives the author a ton of myth and symbols to work with. But - it read like a super hero movie, jumping from fight scene to fight scene with no pauses for character development, side plots or dives in to the history of this world the narrator finds himself in. I'd still recommend it as a quick, digestible read.
adventurous
emotional
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I enjoyed this book a lot! I found myself loving David Mogo, Papa Udi, and Fati aka the perfect family there is. The humans of the story were amazing, I hated most of the Gods because of selfish and rude they were but that's to be expected... they're Gods. The story left me stressed and on the edge of my seat as I watched David fight various Gods, protect his family, and save Lagos at every twist and turn. I did have a difficult time understanding Papa Udi but I didn't care too much! It didn't take me out of the story, honestly, as I kept reading, the more I was able to understand that he was saying.
I will say, one thing I did not like was how powerless David was. We're made to believe that he's this powerful guy and the only one who can defeat Aganju. But even towards the end, I couldn't imagine or believe that David was going to win. Like, yeah, it makes sense that a demigod can't beat a God so easily but still.... he's the main character of this story. And as the main character, as the hero... we as readers should have faith that the hero will win. I don't know! Maybe that's just me!
Oh, and I hated!! How the Gods always got mad at David for not knowing something when none of them explained anything to him. Oh that irked me so bad, why are Gods like this agioajgioajga.
Overall, I enjoyed myself!
I will say, one thing I did not like was how powerless David was. We're made to believe that he's this powerful guy and the only one who can defeat Aganju. But even towards the end, I couldn't imagine or believe that David was going to win. Like, yeah, it makes sense that a demigod can't beat a God so easily but still.... he's the main character of this story. And as the main character, as the hero... we as readers should have faith that the hero will win. I don't know! Maybe that's just me!
Oh, and I hated!! How the Gods always got mad at David for not knowing something when none of them explained anything to him. Oh that irked me so bad, why are Gods like this agioajgioajga.
Overall, I enjoyed myself!
A lot happened in this relatively short book--like, enough that it felt like I was reading a trilogy in just a few hundred pages. The diverse cast of human and non-human characters, the rich mythology, and the intensive world building make for a fascinating story. I just felt like we never had the chance for any deep character moments in the constant push to move the story along. Not a bad read, but not a world that'll stick with me all that long.
I received a free copy of this ebook from netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
This is my first foray into afropunk (something I sorely need to remedy) so at first I really enjoyed what seemed to be a simple tale of a demigod in near future post god-apocalypse Lagos. He suppresses most of his powers to fit in with humans, and uses the rest to hunt gods and godlings. But a bigger job from a local ruler to capture two twin gods makes David realize that he might be helping his enemies, and it all escalates from there.
I thought David's confusion and feeling of not belonging on either side, with comparisons drawn to refugees and Fati, was an interesting theme. I enjoyed all the new Nigerian culture and mythos I was being exposed to, and the magical/godpunk aspects of the story. Found family is an added bonus as far as tropes go too. But then the plot kind of stumbled and rushed into a really hasty ending, and David's character arc is kind of lost in the mess. I would have liked to see him either embrace his new avatar (avoiding spoilers) or fight to find his own path. As it unraveled in the book, kind of meh. The the last quarter of the plot seemed out of beat as well.
This is my first foray into afropunk (something I sorely need to remedy) so at first I really enjoyed what seemed to be a simple tale of a demigod in near future post god-apocalypse Lagos. He suppresses most of his powers to fit in with humans, and uses the rest to hunt gods and godlings. But a bigger job from a local ruler to capture two twin gods makes David realize that he might be helping his enemies, and it all escalates from there.
I thought David's confusion and feeling of not belonging on either side, with comparisons drawn to refugees and Fati, was an interesting theme. I enjoyed all the new Nigerian culture and mythos I was being exposed to, and the magical/godpunk aspects of the story. Found family is an added bonus as far as tropes go too. But then the plot kind of stumbled and rushed into a really hasty ending, and David's character arc is kind of lost in the mess. I would have liked to see him either embrace his new avatar (avoiding spoilers) or fight to find his own path. As it unraveled in the book, kind of meh. The the last quarter of the plot seemed out of beat as well.
challenging
dark
hopeful
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes