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3.74 AVERAGE
3.74 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
dark
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
A wonderful story of belonging set in an alternative Africa.
A bright and clorfull world ispired by pre colonialism Nigeria that with some patience opens up magnificiently to the reader.
I would recommend "Son of Storm" to a patient advanced reader of Fantasy. The socio-political set up from the begining is rewarded later and it is an important discution troughout the novel.
I was fascinated by what the autor did in here. I ended up being invested in all the characters even if they had different motivations or were on oposite sides.
Danso's inocence, Eshme's ambition, their strugles with the system in which they live and their resolove captivated me.
I am so excited for the next instalment from "The Nameless Republic".
A bright and clorfull world ispired by pre colonialism Nigeria that with some patience opens up magnificiently to the reader.
I would recommend "Son of Storm" to a patient advanced reader of Fantasy. The socio-political set up from the begining is rewarded later and it is an important discution troughout the novel.
I was fascinated by what the autor did in here. I ended up being invested in all the characters even if they had different motivations or were on oposite sides.
Danso's inocence, Eshme's ambition, their strugles with the system in which they live and their resolove captivated me.
I am so excited for the next instalment from "The Nameless Republic".
medium-paced
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
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
adventurous
challenging
dark
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
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
The political intrigue in this book was EXQUISITE. I absolutely despise Eshemi, but she and her ma Nem are such fascinating, well-written characters. All of their scheming was the perfect foil to the earnestness of Danso, who just wants to learn. Danso is an awesome main character, with a complicated position - he is looked down upon for being Shashi, but still benefits from the systems that see the Shashi as lesser. In the beginning, he is blind to his own privilege because he can only focus on how he is discriminated against. Over time, and lots of argument from Zaq and Liliong, he grows and sees that both things can be true - he can be harmed by the institution he partakes in, while also benefiting from it and causing harm. His growth - both internally and with the magic - was a delight to read.
Liliong is probably my fav character. She’s so angry and powerful and stubborn and i love her so much.
The magic with the ibor is SO cool, and i can’t wait to see more in the rest of the trilogy!!
Liliong is probably my fav character. She’s so angry and powerful and stubborn and i love her so much.
The magic with the ibor is SO cool, and i can’t wait to see more in the rest of the trilogy!!
adventurous
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I think this was a little too slow for me, but overall I enjoyed it and will continue with the series
I will preface this review by saying two things: go read a review by an OwnVoices reviewer and take their thoughts over mine; and go read the material that the author has provided to explain the intricacies of this world he has created.
One of the things that I really loved about this book was how it handled privilege. The nations in this book are governed by a strict caste system influenced by the color of people's skin and their heritage (everyone is Black so it's a colorist system, not a racist system). We see a mixed-heritage person of high "rank" (often accused of faking his rank but also having more privilege than others of similar heritage to his) embodying imperialist ideals and the selfishness inherent in trying to free only himself. We see an indentured immigrant whose goal is to achieve the highest status available to him (which is comparatively low) so that he can marry and enjoy a life of relative ease; he is willing to go along with the rigid structure because he doesn't have any other choice that will not result in more suffering. And we have a high-caste woman who is given an unexpected amount of power, who stirs up the people with talks of patriotism and returning the empire to greatness (sound familiar?)
I will say that the book involved a lot of political machinations, but once the weapons (and magic) came out about halfway through, it was compulsive. Especially when we see how the characters either embraces or shirked the expectations thrust upon them. How do they handle power? How to they learn from it? Who can help them?
I cannot wait to see where the characters and the series go from here!
{Thank you Orbit Books for the finished copy in exchange for my honest review; all thoughts are my own}
One of the things that I really loved about this book was how it handled privilege. The nations in this book are governed by a strict caste system influenced by the color of people's skin and their heritage (everyone is Black so it's a colorist system, not a racist system). We see a mixed-heritage person of high "rank" (often accused of faking his rank but also having more privilege than others of similar heritage to his) embodying imperialist ideals and the selfishness inherent in trying to free only himself. We see an indentured immigrant whose goal is to achieve the highest status available to him (which is comparatively low) so that he can marry and enjoy a life of relative ease; he is willing to go along with the rigid structure because he doesn't have any other choice that will not result in more suffering. And we have a high-caste woman who is given an unexpected amount of power, who stirs up the people with talks of patriotism and returning the empire to greatness (sound familiar?)
I will say that the book involved a lot of political machinations, but once the weapons (and magic) came out about halfway through, it was compulsive. Especially when we see how the characters either embraces or shirked the expectations thrust upon them. How do they handle power? How to they learn from it? Who can help them?
I cannot wait to see where the characters and the series go from here!
{Thank you Orbit Books for the finished copy in exchange for my honest review; all thoughts are my own}
adventurous
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Thank you NetGalley for providing a free copy for me to review!
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I went into this book knowing very little about the plot since I typically enjoy experiencing a story completely blind, and wow did this story end up blowing me away. This story primarily revolves around three separate characters who have very different backgrounds but whose lives are still interconnected. Each of these characters is looked down upon by their current society due to the fact that their mere existence goes against societal ideals. Throughout the story, two of the protagonists have to come to terms with the truths of the world and how they contradict what they've been taught their entire lives by those in power. Meanwhile, the third protagonist, who is of a race most people were told no longer existed, is stuck working alongside one protagonist as she helps him unlearn false truths and to be less naive, and is also working against the other protagonist who has suddenly gained tremendous powers and is seemingly on a path of destruction.
This world and each character are so incredibly complex that it's hard to even do the plot justice in a simple summary. The worldbuilding in general was fascinating to me, especially as the story branched out into places other than Bassa, where most power is held. Each location the characters arrive at unravels even more about Bassai society and does a great job displaying its flaws.
I loved seeing the character growth as all of this occurred as well. No character was the same at the end of this book compared to the start, and despite being exposed to similar truths, each character still went down a drastically different path. Many characters had storylines I wasn't expecting, and some reached drastic extremes in terms of their actions later on in the story. After seeing how dark this book managed to get, I am very curious to see how these characters continue to grow in future books. I am particularly curious about one of the protagonists' future developments because despite disliking her by the end of this first book, her character growth was fascinating to me and I would love to see if she continues to seem unapologetically bad, or if she later becomes a more sympathetic character.
Overall, I loved this story and how it balanced feeling like a fantasy book while incorporating aspects that still made this feel very relevant to modern society. The examinations of how different races and cultures interact, and how those in power can so easily oppress others that they deem beneath them, hit hard, especially regarding the suppression of information in order to further push their ideals on members of their society. The way in which certain characters tried to push their beliefs on others felt almost uncomfortably real because it mirrored things I have seen happen in politics in recent years. Okungbowa really nailed this, as it made it that much easier to understand each characters' perspective on events throughout the story.
This was a great start to a new trilogy, and now that I feel invested in this fantasy world, I look forward to seeing how the story further develops in the final two books!
-----------------------
I went into this book knowing very little about the plot since I typically enjoy experiencing a story completely blind, and wow did this story end up blowing me away. This story primarily revolves around three separate characters who have very different backgrounds but whose lives are still interconnected. Each of these characters is looked down upon by their current society due to the fact that their mere existence goes against societal ideals. Throughout the story, two of the protagonists have to come to terms with the truths of the world and how they contradict what they've been taught their entire lives by those in power. Meanwhile, the third protagonist, who is of a race most people were told no longer existed, is stuck working alongside one protagonist as she helps him unlearn false truths and to be less naive, and is also working against the other protagonist who has suddenly gained tremendous powers and is seemingly on a path of destruction.
This world and each character are so incredibly complex that it's hard to even do the plot justice in a simple summary. The worldbuilding in general was fascinating to me, especially as the story branched out into places other than Bassa, where most power is held. Each location the characters arrive at unravels even more about Bassai society and does a great job displaying its flaws.
I loved seeing the character growth as all of this occurred as well. No character was the same at the end of this book compared to the start, and despite being exposed to similar truths, each character still went down a drastically different path. Many characters had storylines I wasn't expecting, and some reached drastic extremes in terms of their actions later on in the story. After seeing how dark this book managed to get, I am very curious to see how these characters continue to grow in future books. I am particularly curious about one of the protagonists' future developments because despite disliking her by the end of this first book, her character growth was fascinating to me and I would love to see if she continues to seem unapologetically bad, or if she later becomes a more sympathetic character.
Overall, I loved this story and how it balanced feeling like a fantasy book while incorporating aspects that still made this feel very relevant to modern society. The examinations of how different races and cultures interact, and how those in power can so easily oppress others that they deem beneath them, hit hard, especially regarding the suppression of information in order to further push their ideals on members of their society. The way in which certain characters tried to push their beliefs on others felt almost uncomfortably real because it mirrored things I have seen happen in politics in recent years. Okungbowa really nailed this, as it made it that much easier to understand each characters' perspective on events throughout the story.
This was a great start to a new trilogy, and now that I feel invested in this fantasy world, I look forward to seeing how the story further develops in the final two books!