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A review by batesbarb
Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I will start by warning folks that this book ends on the cliffhangeriest cliffhanger ever to hang off a cliff. So, if that's something that's going to drive you nuts, maybe wait until the next book comes out.
That said, this is an absolutely amazing epic fantasy novel of political intrigue, religious conflict, and personal adventures. There are some definite trigger warnings for war, violence, and body horror. I knew very little going into it, other than I've loved basically everything that Roanhorse has ever written. My understanding is that the world is loosely based on the religious traditions of a lot of Mesoamerican and southwest north American indigenous nations. Some of the social structures took a little bit of time for me to get used to, but none of it was confusing enough to get in the way of the story. The world felt both new and completely lived in. The worldbuilding is also radically inclusive. There are characters with a ton of different body types and shapes, there are queer and non-binary characters. For the most part, those differences are treated as incidental to the plot and conflict, even when they are integral to the characters themselves.
I'm not sure I can describe the plot much without spoiling the heck out of it, so I'm not going to try. If you liked NK Jemisin's 5th Season books, or if you liked Game of Thrones, but wish it contained about 99% less sexual violence, and maybe had some non-villain brown people, this would be a good book to pick up.
That said, this is an absolutely amazing epic fantasy novel of political intrigue, religious conflict, and personal adventures. There are some definite trigger warnings for war, violence, and body horror. I knew very little going into it, other than I've loved basically everything that Roanhorse has ever written. My understanding is that the world is loosely based on the religious traditions of a lot of Mesoamerican and southwest north American indigenous nations. Some of the social structures took a little bit of time for me to get used to, but none of it was confusing enough to get in the way of the story. The world felt both new and completely lived in. The worldbuilding is also radically inclusive. There are characters with a ton of different body types and shapes, there are queer and non-binary characters. For the most part, those differences are treated as incidental to the plot and conflict, even when they are integral to the characters themselves.
I'm not sure I can describe the plot much without spoiling the heck out of it, so I'm not going to try. If you liked NK Jemisin's 5th Season books, or if you liked Game of Thrones, but wish it contained about 99% less sexual violence, and maybe had some non-villain brown people, this would be a good book to pick up.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Violence, and Child abuse
Minor: Drug use and Homophobia