(I received a free copy of this book from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.)

In an alternate New Orleans caught in the tangle of the American Civil War, the wall-scaling girl named Creeper yearns to escape the streets for the air--in particular, by earning a spot on-board the airship Midnight Robber. Creeper plans to earn Captain Ann-Marie’s trust with information she discovers about a Haitian scientist and a mysterious weapon he calls The Black God’s Drums.
But Creeper also has a secret herself: Oya, the African orisha of the wind and storms, speaks inside her head, and may have her own ulterior motivations.
Soon, Creeper, Oya, and the crew of the Midnight Robber are pulled into a perilous mission aimed to stop the Black God’s Drums from being unleashed and wiping out the entirety of New Orleans.

I had this big long review written, praising the writing, language, characters and plot. Lots of paragraphs about how great this novella is.

Then my computer had a fit and I lost it all.

So I am gonna make this short:

On Goodreads I have read just shy of 1500 books. I have given less than 40 5-star reviews. That says it all, really.

Go read it. Devour it. Read it again. Tell your friends. Tell your family. This one is sensational.

Please let there be a full novel with this setting and characters. PLEASE!!!!


Paul
ARH

**I received an ARC copy of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review** and honestly, it was great!

A great new novella set in alternate history post civil war New Orleans. The Black God's Drums has a great fast paced plot following a 14 year orphan old street urchin called Creeper who witnesses a clandestine meeting between some shady characters and decides she can use the information to bribe her way on to an airship's crew, and with the help of the ship's captain and a few interested deities they try to prevent an apocalypse. There is goddesses, mystical artefacts, airships, scientists, and a pair of bad ass nuns. Although there is only a touch over 100 pages, the Clark manages to pack a heap of world building that makes me really hope we see more soon!

Holy atmosphere! That is the one thing I loved the most about this novella- and there was a lot to love. The setting and world are incredible- an alternate Reconstruction-era New Orleans. This was extra fun having just been to New Orleans- I was able to even more vividly picture all the streets and areas that the author mentioned. But being an alternate history, things didn't exactly end as they did in our world- but I will let you read about it for yourself. Just know that you will be drawn in to it.

Creeper, the main character, is fabulously done. You want to root for her, and it's incredible how well she's developed in such a short page span. As are the secondary characters, who were delightful in their own right. My only real qualm is that while I loved the world building and characters, sometimes there was just so much going on that I had trouble keeping everything straight. There's the political end, the good guys, the bad guys, the alternate history weapons, and of course, magic. Perhaps because a lot is packed into a short amount, it overwhelmed me a bit. I really would love to read more about these characters and/or this world, so I'll keep my fingers crossed!

Bottom Line: A fabulous novella with well developed characters and a phenomenal setting, this is one that's absolutely worth reading.

So here's the thing: every now and then, a book comes striding along that is both thoroughly readable as well as important—important in ways that extend beyond the hazy boundaries of a book' as a product in and of the world, and the people who inhabit it. Important in ways that make such a book difficult or even impossible to talk about without also acknowledging and discussing these other things. As should be the case with any book, but is mandated by the best. And this has been a year—a decade—for such books, crossing genre and reader demographic boundaries, laying out the cracks in how our world—and our America, our Britain, our Australia, our Western literary and political establishments—treats its citizens. Readers of P. Djèlí Clark's "The Black God's Drums" will recognize a shared spirit with works like Sarah Bailey's "River of Teeth," Nisi Shawl's "Everfair," Kij Johnson's "The Dream-Quest of Vellitt Boe," Justina Ireland's "Dread Nation" (Ireland is mentioned in Clark's acknowledgements), Nnedi Okorafor's "Binti" trilogy, and science fiction and fantasy rooted in the same ethic as Octavia Butler's "Bloodchild." "The Black God's Drums" is in tune with all of these things, all while also being ardently new, confounding postcolonial narratives which are as rooted in fantasies of the Other as they are in the history of Empire.

This novella is worth reading for these readings, and also because it is simply quite stellar as a written work. Clark puts lovely sentences together, crafts great dialogue, and creates a plot arc which holds all the moving parts together. It's a quick read, but one which will have you lingering in its world for a long time after.

I really enjoyed this book, steeped in New Orleans sights and sounds, Haitian scientists, storm gods and airships! It tells the story of Creeper, a young girl who overhears a plot to acquire the eponymous Black God's Drums and races to protect the city she loves from certain destruction. I thought the prose style was great here, with just enough dialect to give a real flavour of 1870s New Orleans while still allowing the narrative to flow freely. The character of Creeper is a little under developed, but she works well as our point of view and introduction to the world. The plot is intricate, considering the length of the novella, which I thought was impressive and the narrative pacing is fantastic, with the action mounting to a crescendo very well. All in all, I found this to be a very well constructed and enjoyable story and would recommend it to anyone who likes steam punk to try something a little bit different.
I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Creeper is a scrappy girl who lives on the streets of post-Civil War New Orleans, but she has big plans. She plans on gaining passage on the smuggler airship Midnight Robber by earning the trust of Captain Ann-Marie. She'll do just that by sharing a secret of a kidnapped Haitian scientist and a mysterious weapon called The Black God’s Drums. Creeper has her own secret: Oya, the African orisha of the wind and storms, speaks inside her head and grants her divine powers. And Oya has her own priorities.

I was so excited to when I learned I was approved for The Black God's Drums by P. Djèlí Clark. Since I'm a fan of alternate history and steampunk as well as Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi, this novella sounded like an absolute must read. Luckily, this story was absolutely brilliant - and one of my favorite reads of 2018. Although it only clocks in at 110 pages and the plot moves quickly, the author's world-building and complex character development skills are top-notch. It hooked me from beginning to end and I loved just how original and unique it all is. In short, this novella is a real treat for fans of alternate history and a must read for fans of innovative fantasy. I need to read more of Clark's work in the future and I would love to return to this steampunk world.

Ahoy there me mateys! I received this fantasy eARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  So here be me honest musings . . .

the black god's drums (P. Djèlí Clark)

Title: the black god's drums

Author: P. Djèlí Clark

Publisher: Tor.com

Publication Date: Tomorrow!! (paperback/ebook)

ISBN: 978-1250294715

Source: NetGalley

I absolutely loved this novella.  It follows the orphan, Creeper, who inadvertently hears a plot she is not supposed to know about and then gets drawn into the struggle to stop it.  This is set in an alternate 1884 New Orleans, has airships, shows an America where slavery in the South is not illegal, and also has Gods alive and well and getting involved in human affairs.  And me description does not really begin to do it justice.  The world-building is exquisite, the characters are quirky and wonderful, and the writing captivated me.  Though short, it packed an emotional punch.  I want many more stories set in this fantastic diverse world.  Don't just take me word on it (though yer Captain's word should be enough!).  Check out these other reviews by me crew.  Then go get a copy.  That's an order.  Arrr!

Melanie @ meltotheany's review - "I loved this book and P. Djèlí Clark is now forever on my auto-buy list. And in this ownvoices novella, the entire cast is black. And the characters in this book are a tier above most, and you can’t help but fall in love with them in only 100 pages! Creeper, Madame Diouf, Anna-Marie (the bi or pan airship captain of my heart, also physical disability rep because she’s missing a leg), Feral, Eunice and Agnes, I loved them all. And I want nothing more than more books from this world."

Elise @ thebookishactress' review - "I absolutely love the worldbuilding of this book. The Black God’s Drums is set in a post-confederate New Orleans in which the South achieved their goal of armistice. While many cities rebelled, they succeeded in keeping most territories, using slave labor and keeping them confined via a type of poison gas called drapeto. The aesthetic used is perfect, keeping you very firmly within the alt-history lowkey-sci-fi vibe but also not feeling overdone."

Goodreads has this to say about the novella:

Creeper, a scrappy young teen, is done living on the streets of New Orleans. Instead, she wants to soar, and her sights are set on securing passage aboard the smuggler airship Midnight Robber. Her ticket: earning Captain Ann-Marie’s trust using a secret about a kidnapped Haitian scientist and a mysterious weapon he calls The Black God’s Drums.

But Creeper keeps another secret close to heart--Oya, the African orisha of the wind and storms, who speaks inside her head and grants her divine powers. And Oya has her own priorities concerning Creeper and Ann-Marie…

To visit the author's website go to:

P. Djèlí Clark - Author

To buy the book go to:

the black god's drums - Book

To add to Goodreads go to:

Yer Ports for Plunder List

Previous Log Entries for Tor.com Novellas

Bear, Elizabeth – stone mad – book 2 (Dry Dock – Fantasy Western)

Brennan, Marie – cold-forged flame – book 1 (On the Horizon – Fantasy eArc)
Brennan, Marie – lightning in the blood – book 2 (On the Horizon – Fantasy eArc)

Cole, Myke – the armored saint – book 1 (Captain’s Log – Fantasy)

Hutchinson, Dave – acadie (Captain's Log - Sci-Fi)

McGuire, Seanan – every heart a doorway – book 1 (Captain’s Log – Young Adult Fantasy)
McGuire, Seanan – down among the sticks and bones – book 2 (Captain’s Log – Young Adult Fantasy)
McGuire, Seanan – beneath the  sugar sky – book 3 (Captain’s Log – Young Adult Fantasy)

Newman, Emma – brother’s ruin – book 1 (On the Horizon –  Fantasy Steampunk Arc)
Newman, Emma – weaver’s lament – book 2 (On the Horizon – Fantasy Steampunk eArc)

Okorafor, Nnedi – binti – book 1 (Captain’s Log – Sci-Fi)
Okorafor, Nnedi – home – book 2 (Captain’s Log – Sci-Fi)
Okorafor, Nnedi – the night masquerade – book 3 (Captain’s Log – Sci-Fi)

Thompson, Tade – the murders of molly southbourne (Captain’s Log – Sci-Fi)

Wells, Martha – all systems red – book 1 (Captain’s Log – Sci-Fi)
Wells, Martha – artificial condition – book 2 (On the Horizon – Sci-Fi e-Arc)
Wells, Martha – rogue protocal – book 3 (Captain’s Log – Sci-Fi)

Wow, for a novella, this story really packs a punch!

In around 100 pages, the author manages to include original worldbuilding, vivid characters, and an exciting plot. The story takes place in 1871 in an alternate New Orleans, a city where all people mix freely, lying as it does outside the control of both the Union and Confederate states. It’s a steampunk world with airships and other mechanical creations, but the main character, a young teenage girl called Creeper, is an avatar of an African goddess of storms. When the Confederates try to acquire a dangerous weapon that can seed the clouds with massively destructive storms even more dangerous than hurricanes, Creeper joins others in attempting to thwart their plans to save the city she loves.

I loved everything about this novella and can’t wait to read more stories set in this world. Highly recommended for anyone who likes alternate world fantasies!

A copy of this book was provided through NetGalley for review; all opinions expressed are my own.

Dear P. Djèlí Clark:

How did you manage to cram all that epic worldbuilding into such a short novella? How? Some writers would've taken that story and stretched it into 500+ plus pages, but you managed to tell it in barely 100. It's...it's amazing. There is so much badass writing in The Black God's Drums, I am both in awe and super, super jealous.

Please tell me this isn't the only novella, and that this will be an ongoing thing, like Martha Well's Murderbot Diaries. I need more of this world.

Sincerely:

Someone who will likely never possess such amazing writing and worldbuilding skills.

I was pretty excited to find out this book was coming out, and even more excited when I got approved for an advanced copy from NetGalley. P. Djèlí Clark wrote one of my favorite short stories “A Dead Djinn in Cairo”, so I wanted to see what he would do with a novella-length work.

Sadly, The Black God’s Drums didn’t work for me as well as Djinn did. It’s hard to say why, but I think it has a lot to do with the narrators in each one. The former story had an awesome female detective, whereas the latter features a young teenage thief. Now my teenage self would have loved “Creeper”, the narrator of The Black God’s Drums, and maybe my current self could have grown to love her in a longer story, but she just failed to grab me over the course of the novella.

Clark definitely excels at world building. This story takes place in an alternate version of New Orleans. There are steampunk elements, including airships, and mystical elements, as Creeper herself serves as a vessel for the goddess Oya.

As is the case with most novellas, the plot here is rather simple. There is a dangerous magical device, called The Black God’s Drums or Shango’s Thunder. It creates killer storms. The bad guys want it, the good guys don’t want anyone to ever use it again. Think of it as a magical nuke. The bad guys are a splinter sect of Confederate soldiers. Would you want the Confederates to have a magical nuke? I hope not.

Our “good guys” are a rag-tag bunch. Creeper is an orphaned thief. She seeks out the help of a dashing female airship captain. There are a couple of mysterious nuns. Members of the captain’s diverse crew help out, though their actions mainly happen behind the scenes.

I feel like a broken record saying this about novellas, but I wish this had been longer. I would have preferred a more complex plot, a chance for Creeper to really grow as a character, more of the airship crew, more of the city. When there’s a great setting and an interesting cast of characters, it feels like such a let-down to only be with them for a couple hundred pages. I mean, this is such a short novella it doesn’t even have chapter breaks (unless they added those in after sending out the advanced review copies).

I’ll definitely keep an eye out for more by this author. Even though this book didn’t work for me, I still like the author’s ideas. He clearly has a great imagination and a knack for world building. I’d love to see what he’d do with a full-length novel or trilogy, whether set in this world, the world of “A Dead Djinn in Cairo” or some other world together.

The Black God’s Drums will be published on August 21st. If you would like a physical copy I highly recommend pre-ordering it from your favorite local independent bookstore.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan/Tor-Forge for providing me with a review copy of this book!

I received this ebook via NetGalley.

The Black God’s Drums is alt-history at its finest, told in a voice thicker than any gumbo. I read the novella in one sitting. Creeper is a brilliant, headstrong, rebellious girl—and that’s just her on her own, not considering the old god who thrums in her ears, a storm ready to burst. When she happens on a deadly plot wrought by men who determined to continue the Civil War in their own terms, Creeper offers to sell the secret of the plot to a woman who can give her what she wants most: a place on her airship.

The story flows fast and intense, gods and mystical nuns and fabulous twists along the way. This novella is going on my awards short list for certain, and I’ll look for more of Clark’s work in the future.

The Black God's Drums is a Afro-steampunk novella set in an alternate history, post-Civil War Louisiana. It has an interesting premise and a diverse cast of characters, but is too short for the amount of world-building needed and lacks narrative complexity in terms of pure plot. This would have worked better as a full-length novel or even short novel, but as it is the characters and plot feel under-developed. However, if you're looking for an interesting & quick read, give it a try!

In a world where the Civil War permanently split the United States and Louisiana is an independent territory, Creeper is a young teen girl living on the streets of New Orleans. When she overhears Confederate soldiers planning to buy a dangerous weapon from a Haitian scientist, she used the information to buy her way onto an airship. But first, she must use the powers gifted to her by Oya, the African Orisha (goddess) of wind and storm to save her city.

It's a rich world with fascinating history and culture, wonderful diversity, and promising characters Unfortunately, the story-telling got bogged down in the world-building, a problem that could have been solved by simply lengthening the book. I would read more in this world if we got a full novel. Thanks to NetGalley for providing an early review copy.

The Black God’s Drums is the first novella I’ve read by P. Djeli Clark, but I’ve got to say that I’m officially hooked. Her writing style and techniques are flawless. Here we have a blend of genres, yet the novella never once feels conflicted in what it is.
The Black God’s Drums is both alternate history and urban fantasy rolled into one. It’s also a little bit a coming of age story, which was a nice touch. Add a dash of Steampunk for good luck and you’ve got a perfectly balanced and extremely unique novella.
It relies heavily on local mythology, so the local accents used are a wonderful touch. The entire plot itself it based in New Orleans, but it doesn’t take long for us to learn that what is happening here could have far greater reach than that.
I wasn’t really sure what to expect when I first picked up The Black God’s Drums. I knew it was being published by Tor, and honestly that holds a lot of weight for me, and that it was based in New Orleans, but that was nearly it. Obviously the title gave me a few hints as well, but not as much as I would have liked.
What I got though? What I got was a compelling story. One that wrapped up so many elements and somehow managed to make it all its own. We’ve all read stories where a youth sees or does something that quickly gets them in over their head. However, P. Djeli Clark managed to make that whole concept unique and fresh again. Creeper (not her true name, naturally, but her preferred one to be sure) is a girl living out on the streets. She’s quick, bright, and shockingly observant. There’s likely nothing that goes through the docks that she isn’t aware of.
And that’s exactly the reason she found herself in a spot of trouble. It’s amazing how dangerous information can be. What’s more dangerous though, is allowing others to act on that information. I don’t think Creeper intended to get as wrapped up in this adventure as she did…but she handled herself well.
This novella was beautifully written. I’ll admit that I’m not always a fan of alternative history novels…but this one really managed to grab and hold my attention. The addition of the fantasy and steampunk elements really helped sell it too, so that’s a major plus. More than that though, the characters and the emotions they carried were so real, how could I possibly been anything other than charmed by them?
The Black God’s Drums ended in a way where it could very easily get a sequel…and I’m really hoping it does. In fact, I would love it if this became a series. I so badly want to see more of this world, and more of Creeper’s adventures. I want to see more of her goddess’s quirks and opinions, and I want to see if Creeper ever manages to get out of New Orleans. In short, I really just want another novella or two. Or three.

This puppy is short … 110 pages. That’s all there is! I wish it were twice … no three times as long! I’m going to keep this review short as well but don’t let that fool you, I loved it.

I have to say I love these novellas being published by Tor. It started with Binti for me and now I just want to collect all of them. The quality of writing is top notch, they are written by a diverse group of authors, and feature brilliant Scifi/Fantasy. This little story is right up there at the top of a distinguished list.

I don’t want to take a chance at giving away too much so I’m sticking to bare bones on the plot. Creeper, is a young girl living on the streets in New Orleans. She is intelligent, daring and somehow chosen by the gods. Oya, an African Orisha speaks to the girl and lends her power. Scrapper wants to escape her life on the streets and get accepted on the crew of an airship but she has to prove herself.

Right off the bat the thing that impressed me most, besides the wonderful characterization of Creeper herself, is the language of the book. This story is full of characters from so many different cultures and they speak with such distinctive dialects and voices. There is never any confusion about who is speaking. You can almost hear the rhythms of their speech and it lends a musicality to the dialogue that I really enjoyed. As I said, I would have loved to have spent a much longer time in this world. I’m looking forward to seeing what this writer will come up with next. I keep adding to my Tor novella pile as we speak!

Song for this book: Creole United: African American Creole Music from Louisiana

Having just finished "The Black God's Drum", the only regret is that it wasn't longer. I was getting invested in the character of Jacqueline also known as Creeper. Creeper is a child of the street in an alternate steampunk history of New Orleans. I presently live in New Orleans and have lived here for 15 years. I always find it interesting to see others perspective of this diverse and wonderful city.

Creeper lives in a New Orleans near the later part of the 19th century. The area is still recovering from a war that shook the country. There are unsavory forces a foot that would see the city and the alliance destroyed using an ancient power. Creeper overhears the plot and seeks out the assistance of Captain Ann-Marie. They share connections to ancient powers that are essential to the survival of New Orleans and possibly the entire country. The power these forces seek to release carries the power of a category 5 hurricane. It is an untamable destructive power with little to no defense against it. There is hope! Creeper and Ann-Maries connection to the Orishas are their only hope.

I can only hope that the author Mr. Clark will continue the further adventures of Creeper and Ann-Marie. There seems to be a lot more adventures in store for them and I would like to join them.

Almost, almost, almost!

Oh, I liked this so much. I just didn’t love it. I almost did. There are sky pirates, really cool alt-history, a bit of steampunk, diversity, and some truly awesome villains. And yet…almost.

It’s just too short! This has such epic potential and I just wanted to physically restrain the author from publishing and say, “Please stop!”

I wanted it fleshed out more. I wanted the characters built out just a touch more and I wanted sub-plots. I just wanted more. The plot is so thin when it could have had more intrigue, more danger, more More!

I will read the author again. I just wanted the book to live up to its epic potential.

*ARC Provided via Net Galley

Publishing house Tor continues to hit it out of the park with their series of novellas. P. Djèlí Clark tells the story of homeless orphan, Jacqueline, in an alternative steampunk New Orleans of the late 1800s as she gets swept up in a plot that threatens the city. Packed with great world-building, interesting magic, a captivating alternate history of the United States, and a superb central character, The Black God's Drums' is a great bite-sized serving of steampunk fantasy.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing a copy in exchange for a review.

This is SPECTACULAR. Historical New Orleans with an alternate twist of magic and steampunk. Short but still somehow not lacking, "The Black God's Drums" is an eloquent story told in a world I ache to see more of.

Every setting was so easy to visualize, (despite me never going to New Orleans) every character tangible and interesting. I'm begging author P. Djeli Clark for something else set in this magical, wonderful place. Finished it in two settings -- devoured it.

Honestly, this is how you write novellas. With enough worldbuilding and plot and characterisation that you simultaneously feel that it works as a novella but also that it could be expanded into an entire novel. And The Black God's Drums does all that so well.

This novella is an alternate, steampunk history set during the American Civil War, in which the Confederates and Union came to an truce (along with a number of other things, as explained better in the book than I could ever hope to summarise in this review). It follows Creeper, an orphan living on the streets, who overhears a Confederate plan to use a weapon known as the Black God's Drums to defeat the Union once and for all, and plans to use the information to bargain her way onto an airship.

Sometimes, in a novella, it can feel like there's either not enough worldbuilding or not enough plot, but in this one, there's the perfect balance of both. The world and the characters in it are compelling, and there's a fully realised plot as well. It's so good, I even didn't mind the present tense, which would usually be a bit of a problem for me.

If there's one tiny thing that I didn't really like, it was the strangely omniscient nuns. I get the plot needs to move along, but the fact they knew everything and had the right tools for the right moments in time, and even seemed to perhaps be able to see the future? It all felt a bit overly convenient. I'd have liked the main characters to have had to struggle a bit for the answers but there we go.

This novella is set in an alt-history New Orleans, which has become a neutral city upon the end of the Civil War with an armistice. We follow our young protagonist, Creeper, a street orphan who uses information she has heard as part of a trade, in order to gain the trust of an airship captain from Trinidad. I did love the mix of African mythology/civil war history with more modern technology like airships.

I'm of mixed opinion about this novella. I enjoyed it. However, I found myself wanting more. Sure, its great fun when the plot moves fast and there is lots of action. BUT I felt like there were some plot points that could have been expanded on. Like a the end, what happened to the fourth canister? Why did the captain change the subject? Am I reading too much into this or does this mean there will be more from this world.