Reviews with content warning for Religious bigotry - Black Sun

Oh wow, did I enjoy this book! I was a bit worried at first; not being that into fantasy after teen and young adulthood, I can get bored in the opening chapters of a book. Since this was a book club read, I persevered and eventually, the world Rebecca Roanhorse created drew me in. By the halfway point, I was fully invested. When I got to the last page, I actually yelled "Oh my God!" What a cliffhanger.

I appreciated getting to see a fantasy world set in Mesoamerica. I am not any more than superficially knowledgeable about the people that lived in that world, so I wasn't able to recognize specific tribes in the writing, but I did notice little details like pyramids and such.

I found myself being totally drawn into the love story between two main characters and was truly heartbroken when there was no way for them to be together... so technically, you could say this book is better than Romeo and Juliet in that sense.😂

These days, the true test of whether I really enjoyed a book is if I want to buy a physical copy of it. I absolutely want Black Sun in my personal, physical library.

Content Warnings

hanarama's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

The Good:

The plot gradually picks up the pace towards the end, building tension.
Great LGBT rep, including wlw and nonbinary identities.
The writing is very melodic.

The Bad:

Cliffhanger at the end can make the story feel unsatisfying. (A second book is slated, so if you hate cliffhangers, maybe wait for that to come out).
Little character development through most of the book.

You'll like this book if:

Bi Pirates
Pre-Colombian settings
Multiple, opposing POVs

I read this for a buddy read and went into this book with very little idea of what I was going to get. What I got was a journey through a richly developed world in a Pre-Colombian fantasy setting.

Serapio is a mysterious blind man with a purpose designed to bring about a reckoning. Xiala is a pirate captain with a strong affinity for the sea. Naranpa is the Sun Priest, the first not to come from the Sky Made clans, and a polarizing progressive. Okoa is the son of the Carrion Crow Matron, and the rider of a giant crow. As the solar eclipse and the winter solstice approach, their stories rapidly come together and their opposing needs collide.

Roanhorse has a very smooth writing style that allowed me to breeze through the book quickly. Though the multiple POVs made it at times hard to develop strong connections to the characters, there were some standouts. Xiala, the pirate captain is immensely enjoyable and out of all the characters feels the closest to an audience surrogate.

Additionally, Roanhorse provides a lot of lgbt+ representation, allowing it to exist casually in her setting. There are multiple characters that use xe/xir pronouns, which I found really cool to see.

The world feels really rich, with a lot more open for exploration. Throughout the majority of this book the characters are being driven by the forces put in place long ago, so it feels like a convergence of forces, but because the story is so plot-driven, there's little room for the characters to stretch their legs. I hope that with the sequel the cast will get more character development.

Content Warnings

alsoapples's review against another edition

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adventurous dark 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

5.0

Content Warnings

yavin_iv's review against another edition

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adventurous dark medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

Content Warnings

mikki_9's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional inspiring mysterious sad medium-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? No

5.0

I am beyond words. I love this book. LOVE.

Content Warnings

achingallover's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Content Warnings

melaniereadsbooks's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense medium-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

5.0

Thank you to LibroFm for the ALC of this book.
This is a fantasy of absolutely epic proportions. I loved every single bit of it. Xiala is one of my new favorite characters of all time. I was immediately hooked on her storyline and character development.

I also loved Serapio and his story. There is so much going on there, and he is such an interesting character.

The plot of this book really took me by surprise. There was so much going on, from political rivalries, to religious sects, to sirens and villains and cults and everything, but it all flowed together really well.

Roanhorse's writing is delightful and accessible. I absolutely love how well she incorporates so much world-building in without making it feel like exposition drops or overly explanatory writing.

Honestly this book was incredible and I can't wait for the sequel.

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