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4.2 AVERAGE
4.2 AVERAGE
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
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
Somadina is a beautiful, meaningful and thoughtfully crafted story.
I love Akwaeke Emezi infused Igbo culture, traditions and mythology into this story.
The writing evokes vivid imagery and i found myself in Somadina’s village.
This is not just a story of a girl who embarked on a journey to rescue her twin brother from a powerful enemy. It is a story that explores what it means to be too powerful or extraordinary beyond understanding.
It shows how society can alienate, fear and hate what they do not understand.
It shows the pain of being cast away by your community, and family because of their own ignorance.
The story reflects how easy it is to internalize other people’s opinions and perspectives of you.
I love how Somadina grew in this story. She went from a girl who saw her magic as only dangerous, dark and destructive to someone who sees the value and light in herself.
I also appreciate how it addressed the way history is hidden and how it affects the future generations.
However, I wish this story was a bit longer. It could have benefited from a little more development.
Overall this is a really fantastic story with so many amazing layers and I am looking forward to reading more fantasy books from this author.
Thank you to Faber for providing me an ARC of this book via NetGalley.
I love Akwaeke Emezi infused Igbo culture, traditions and mythology into this story.
The writing evokes vivid imagery and i found myself in Somadina’s village.
This is not just a story of a girl who embarked on a journey to rescue her twin brother from a powerful enemy. It is a story that explores what it means to be too powerful or extraordinary beyond understanding.
It shows how society can alienate, fear and hate what they do not understand.
It shows the pain of being cast away by your community, and family because of their own ignorance.
The story reflects how easy it is to internalize other people’s opinions and perspectives of you.
I love how Somadina grew in this story. She went from a girl who saw her magic as only dangerous, dark and destructive to someone who sees the value and light in herself.
I also appreciate how it addressed the way history is hidden and how it affects the future generations.
However, I wish this story was a bit longer. It could have benefited from a little more development.
Overall this is a really fantastic story with so many amazing layers and I am looking forward to reading more fantasy books from this author.
Thank you to Faber for providing me an ARC of this book via NetGalley.
dark
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
Count on Akwaeke Emezi to write a YA book that doesn’t suck.
Somadina tells the story of twins, born into a world based on West African and Igbo culture, that has been separated from the mainland by the creating of a terrible rift, called the Split. The creation of the Split means that all individuals gain a magical ability with the onset of puberty. For Somadina and her twin Jayaike, puberty is delayed, and when their gifts appear, they appear different from everyone else they know, creating fear and suspicion amongst the villagers and even family members.
This is an excellent YA book, as it wrestles with identity, what it means to belong, and what it means to confront the darkness within. I really enjoyed Emezi’s first person narration for Somadina herself as well as their unique approach to characterization. While not as dark as some of their other works, Somadina tackles topics seen in other novels from their canon: queerness, being spirit-touched, and more.
Despite its fast pace and brevity, Emezi once again creates a rich world and a fantastic YA story.
Perfectly magical, anti-colonial, and hopeful. What a story!
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Another great novel from the brilliant Akwaeke Emezi. At this point, I don't think there's anything they could write that I wouldn't read! This book packs in so much in a relatively short page count, and I was impressed at the subsantial world-building that was able to be established so quickly. I did find the pace dragged a bit at times and the ending wrapped up a bit conveniently/quickly for my taste, but despite those minor quibbles, this is still a beautiful, deep, and emotional read, and one I'd certainly recommend widely.
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
enjoyed this. i wanted more development in a couple of areas, it could've used the standard "long fantasy novel" treatment, but this was very unique
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
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
absolutely amazing and gorgeous book. loved the language used and the foods mentioned. I'd urge you to read this one, and I'm very excited to try out akwaeke's adult fiction next