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andromeda_1998's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Black sun is different from most books I read before. This adult fantasy novel has a different flow, a different feeling than most books in its genre and it does it’s job splendidly. But why does this book work?
Characters
Through the book we follow 4 different characters. A sun priest, a pirate, a chosen one and a warrior.
The sun priest, Naranpa, is a 33 year old woman devoted to the sungod. She once to make the temple into a place of healing and power for Tova (the city she lives in). I didn’t really like her point of view. I found her to be a bid bland and boring. Her POV was necessary though to tell the story and I would not have liked the book without her.
A pirate, Xiala, Xiala is my favorite character. She’s bi, wild and fierce. She is a woman you don’t want to cross.
A chosen one, Serapio, his story is an interesting one. I cannot tell you if this character is the hero or the villain of the story and that is why I like this book. I like that he is morally grey.
A warrior, Okoa, we get to know him later in the story and while I didn’t not hate him as a character, I also didn’t like him. I find his type to be a bit boring but I know that he is the kind of character that others will love.
Worldbuilding
The worldbuilding is done splendidly. Throughout the book and by different pov’s we get to know this beautiful meso American inspired world. The world has magic but it isn’t a common practice.
Writing
The writingstyle takes some getting use to. The book stars slow and doesn’t follow the western way of pacing. I would recommend to not dnf this book in a early stage. Just read through it.
I would recommend this book to adult readers (years 20+) the story isn’t necessarily brutal but the book has some adult themes better fitted to this category.
Characters
Through the book we follow 4 different characters. A sun priest, a pirate, a chosen one and a warrior.
The sun priest, Naranpa, is a 33 year old woman devoted to the sungod. She once to make the temple into a place of healing and power for Tova (the city she lives in). I didn’t really like her point of view. I found her to be a bid bland and boring. Her POV was necessary though to tell the story and I would not have liked the book without her.
A pirate, Xiala, Xiala is my favorite character. She’s bi, wild and fierce. She is a woman you don’t want to cross.
A chosen one, Serapio, his story is an interesting one. I cannot tell you if this character is the hero or the villain of the story and that is why I like this book. I like that he is morally grey.
A warrior, Okoa, we get to know him later in the story and while I didn’t not hate him as a character, I also didn’t like him. I find his type to be a bit boring but I know that he is the kind of character that others will love.
Worldbuilding
The worldbuilding is done splendidly. Throughout the book and by different pov’s we get to know this beautiful meso American inspired world. The world has magic but it isn’t a common practice.
Writing
The writingstyle takes some getting use to. The book stars slow and doesn’t follow the western way of pacing. I would recommend to not dnf this book in a early stage. Just read through it.
I would recommend this book to adult readers (years 20+) the story isn’t necessarily brutal but the book has some adult themes better fitted to this category.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Body horror, Death, Gore, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Racism, Blood, and Confinement
therainbowshelf's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
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? It's complicated
5.0
I really enjoyed this book and recommend it. The world building is amazing and the characters are so much fun. It was super fun reading from several characters' perspectives and anticipating their paths colliding cataclysmically! Who do you root for when one of your POV characters is out to kill another?
📘The Gist 📘: In legends, the crow god ate the sun. Now, he's on a journey to do it again. The story follows seafaring Xiala and her passenger Serapio as they make their way toward Tova for its solstice celebration. At the same time, the sun priest of Tova prepares for the festivities dedicated to renewal and finds herself embroiled in a political plot that could destabilize peaceful tribal alliances.
📒Representation📒: Indigenous mcs and culture, bipoc mcs, neo pronouns, a-spec mc, nonbinary and trans sc, blind mc
💕 For readers looking for 💕: Epic fantasy, tribe society and characters, legends, scary gods, crows, multiple POV characters, LGBTQ+ characters
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Confinement, and Blood
Moderate: Ableism, Animal death, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Murder, Racism, and Suicide
Minor: Racial slurs
bookcaptivated's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Animal death, Suicide, Body horror, Racism, Violence, Blood, Gore, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Alcohol, Alcoholism, and Confinement
Minor: Cursing, Grief, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Rape, and Slavery
urs's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Violence, and Racism
Minor: Child abuse, Suicide, Sexism, Confinement, and Homophobia
troisha's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, Gore, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Alcohol, Child abuse, Confinement, Death of parent, Kidnapping, Racism, and Xenophobia
Minor: Animal death, Drug use, Excrement, Grief, Homophobia, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Sexual content, Vomit, and Suicide
theasbookworld's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Misogyny, Racism, Religious bigotry, Violence, and Torture
yvonne_cl's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Biphobia, Blood, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Grief, Homophobia, Murder, Physical abuse, Racism, Violence, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Ableism and Sexual content
peachani's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
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
4.25
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.
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
Graphic: Blood, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Gore, Violence, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Genocide, Grief, Physical abuse, and Religious bigotry
Minor: Ableism, Animal death, Cursing, Drug use, Pedophilia, Racism, and Trafficking
hanarama's review against another edition
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
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicide, and Violence
Moderate: Racism and Religious bigotry
finnertysea's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Child abuse, Gore, Racism, and Violence
Minor: Suicide