An appealing story of a spunky heroine in a steampunk world. The mythology underlying this imaginative story is unusual and intriguing. I enjoyed the characters, and their interactions and hope there will be a sequel.

[this review will be up on my blog, acquadimore.wordpress.com, on 08/1o]

The Black God’s Drums is a novella set in alt-history steampunk-like New Orleans, which has become a neutral city after the Civil War ended with an armistice. This story follows young teen Creeper, a street orphan who, after overhearing a conversation that may upset New Orleans’ already fragile peace, decides to sell information to an airship captain from Trinidad.

This wasn’t easy for me to get into at first, because it’s written in a way that reminds you of how people spoke during that time (it’s almost as if Creeper were talking to you), and English isn’t my first language, but after I got used to it, I loved everything about this novella. The atmosphere is perfect, it makes you feel as if you’re there, and the steampunk-like elements are really interesting as well.
The Black God’s Drums is a vibrant portrait of a city in which African mythology meets nineteenth century technology, in which the tension from the war is still present.

The characters are also wonderful. Creeper is a young, resourceful black girl who has been touched by Oya, the African Orisha of storms, who speaks to her and gives her visions. I loved reading in Creeper’s PoV. The other major characters – Ann-Marie, a bisexual airship captain from Trinidad; Sister Agnès and Sister Eunice, the awesome nuns who know everything that goes on in the city; Féral, the white girl who grew up in the swamps (be careful: she bites) – are all awesome, and I’d love to read more about them too.

Creeper makes a living as a pickpocket but, at the beginning of P. Djèlí Clark’s delightfully imaginative novella The Black God’s Drums, she comes across a piece of information that could destroy her city. In this version of history, the Civil War has become a cold war. The Confederate States are still struggling along, while the Union maintains its borders with help from the Free Islands of the Caribbean. New Orleans, where Creeper lives, is an independent port where everyone gathers and schemes in a way that reminds me of Casablanca, but with a strong flavor of steampunk and the meddling presence of the orisha.

Creeper’s alcove near the city walls becomes the unlikely meeting place of a band of Confederate States soldiers and an opportunistic Cajun. The soldiers are plotting to kidnap a visiting Haitian scientist who knows how to harness a supernatural weapon of mass destruction. She hides as best she can, then bolts as soon as they leave. The plot doesn’t pause for a minute as Creeper dives head long an attempt to save her city. Fortunately for her, Creeper has allies in form of a visiting Haitian captain and her crew, and a pair of nuns who know everything that’s going on in New Orleans.

Clark is excellent at world-building. The problem (if you call it that) is the plot races along so quickly that we never get a chance to just hang out and enjoy the setting. I hope that there are more books featuring Creeper and the world Clark created just so that I can spend more time in this amazing world. That said, the plot is top notch and full of great action sequences. The Black God’s Drums would be a great read for reader’s looking for a fun, original ride this summer.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley, for review consideration. It will be released 21 August 2018.

Clark thrilled me with this novella, and my only complaint is that it is far too short. Creeper’s New Orleans is a beautiful terrifying south. How could it not be? The language is rich and the influence of the Orisha...lets just say I need more books like this!

The Black God’s Drums is a thrilling novella set in a steampunk-inspired New Orleans. This is one of the few novellas I’ve read that I wish was longer. Clark’s characters are so rich and engaging and the worldbuilding is so unique that I’m left wanting more. My one criticism is that at time’s there’s so much world-building here that at times it almost overwhelms the plot. Altogether a great read and I hope there’s more to come set in this universe.

An outstanding fantasy novella set in an intriguing alternate-world New Orleans, where politics, orisha, street smarts, and airships mix. The characters are written well enough to grow beyond their generic trappings (the unbelievably talented street kid, the airship captain with an exciting and mysterious past) and become compelling. I'm looking forward to reading more from this author and about these characters and this world.

Engrossing fantasy with fantastic world building. I enjoyed it from start to finish. This should be more widely read when it comes out. Would recommend to adult readers who enjoy science fiction or fantasy.

My only complaint about this book is that it didn't last as long as I'd hoped.

In an alternate (and somewhat steampunk) New Orleans where the Union and Confederacy have reached a weary détente, an orphan who calls herself "Creeper" finds herself embroiled in espionage to protect her city and learns more about her own strength (and the strength of the orisha who has made herself at home inside of Creeper).

A few quick bullets of delight:
- I love the fact that Haiti is a major military force in this universe -- I have always wanted to write a story about a Haiti that stages a naval invasion of New Orleans and fights back the Confederacy.
- The dialogue is peppered with bits of Haitian Creole - enough to delight speakers but not confuse those who don't.

Can I read more of Creeper's adventures? Please?

It took me a couple of paragraphs to get used to the narrative voice, and then I was away -- I didn't put this novella down until I was finished. Creeper's pretty fascinating, her relationship with Oya, the whole concept of the orisha and their relationships with certain humans, and of course Captain Ann-Marie is just a straight-up badass. Maybe the most badass of all, though, are the nuns. Yeah, I know, you wouldn't expect to hear nuns described as badass, but these ones are.

There's definitely room for more adventures in this world, and I'm hoping I'll get to read them. I really want more of Captain Ann-Marie and her airship, the Midnight Robber. I really want to know more about Oya and the other orisha, and more about the alternative history here, and, and, and...

Yep. That's a thumbs up from me. Also, I love the cover.

Set in an alternative steampunked 1871 New Orleans, P. Djeli Clark's novella The Black God's Drum is a masterfully told tale of a street girl who trying her best pull herself up out of the muck. In an atmosphere of simmering truces, Creeper sees an opportunity when overhears a weapon deal being made, a weapon that could enable one side to literally turn the tides of the war. She takes off to find someone to sell this intelligence to and broaches a deal with a smuggling dirigible captain. Powerful magic and strong histories pull these two from the quarters to the swamps as they try hijack the deal and maybe even save the city. 

Clark's tangible descriptions of the streets of New Orleans are most vivid and colorful. The music, language, food, Mardi Gra costumes, the architecture, and the people. His world-building is an expansive and engrossing treat. Here lies my biggest criticism: the book just isn't long enough! I definitely want to read more about Creeper. More action, more weapon-hoarding nuns, more time in this fascinating setting. Please.

Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillan - Tor/ Forge, and P. Djeli Clark for the advanced copy for review.

In what I hope is the beginning of a series, Clark creates an Afro-Caribbean steampunk world--using powerful weapons with ties to African Gods, Dessalines saves Haiti from French invasion in 1811, allowing New Orleans to revolt against the Confederates in 1861. With intervention from the Free Island airship fleet, France and Britain, interested in a fractured US, New Orleans becomes a walled neutral city surrounded by an even more grotesque version of slavery. When Neo-confederates try to get their hands on the Haitian weapon in the 1880s, saving the free world falls to a young street urchin and a daring airship captain, both touched by the gods. This was a lot of fun, with carefully thought out world building (Russian Kalifornia, for example) and compelling stakes.