Ring Shout is a picture perfect example of what a talented author can do with the novella form. With pacing that carries the reader and keeps the pages turning without sacrificing depth or skimping on the heart, Clark vividly imagines an alternate history of Macon, GA and invites readers to marvel at the magic, cringe at the brutality, and most importantly, think.

"Ring Shout" by P. Djèlí Clark is a profound and thrilling dark fantasy historical novella that offers a supernatural twist on the Ku Klux Klan's reign of terror. This Nebula, Locus, and Alex Award-winner has crafted an extraordinary tale that resonates deeply with contemporary issues of racism and social justice.

Set in the backdrop of 1920s Georgia, the story follows Maryse Boudreaux and her fellow resistance fighters as they confront the Klan, now revealed as literal demons. Clark ingeniously blends historical facts with dark fantasy, creating a narrative that is both exhilarating and haunting. The use of fantastical elements to explore the horrors of racism and hatred is both innovative and impactful.

Imaginative, intelligent, and brilliantly written. RING SHOUT continues to be one of my favorite books! It’s outstanding!

"You ever seen a Klan march?" With an opening line like that and promises of literal monstrous beings in the Klan ranks, P. Djèlí Clark had me hooked. Tordotcom rarely does me wrong; but when a book puts folkloric monsters in the 1920s American South, I'm even more sold. Sign me up for some Klan monster hunting.

Ring Shout is set in an alternate 1922 Macon, Georgia. Maryse's world doesn't look so different from our history from the outside. Macon has been infiltrated with violence and fear by the Klan, and the white people of the city literally cannot see the monsters amongst their ranks. Because in Clark's world, there are actual monstrous beings and Maryse can see them hiding under the hoods. Ring Shout is not a story of quiet survival; it is raw and bloodstained, filled with categorically evil monsters and with a magic purposely left partially unexplained.

Clark's prose is a harmonious cacophony of voices and accents, with Gullah, Creole, and other Southern Black voices all represented in its pages. The magic in his world is a tangible and earthy thing, infused with moonshine and buttressed by folk stories and juke joints. It was enthralling to read, and I sometimes forgot I didn't know its magic personally. It felt like a magic I'd heard whispered about on dirt roads and far back in the woods where no one could overhear. Unlike a lot of Southern fiction and Southern fantasy, Ring Shout isn't concerned too much with actual religion; this came as both a surprise and a relief for me. But as Nana Jean says, it's "better to keep folk alive; worry on their souls later."

Ring Shout is a mesmerizing novella that is astoundingly well-written and thought-provoking. If you like the idea of monstrous Ku Klux beings, badass Black monster killers, and women with supernatural swords, then this is it. I want more in this world. I want more Southern SFF literature. Just more of this, please, and thank you.

Full review of the book at https://backshelfbooks.com/2023/10/31/p-djeli-clarks-ring-shout-southern-horror-and-monster-hunting-at-a-klan-march/. Thanks to Tordotcom and to Netgalley for the review copy of the book!

Ring Shout by P. Djèlí Clark is a novella set in 1922 Georgia, mostly in Macon with a set piece at Stone Mountain. It’s a dark fantasy that includes body horror, in which white supremacists use the initial release of “Birth of a Nation” in 1915 to enact a ritual bringing demons into the world. The human racism and racist actions of these white supremacists are subsequently exacerbated by these monstrous creatures who devour both hatred and people, including some of the supremacists. As always with Clark, a historian, the significant details of the time period are skillfully deployed, lending deep resonance to the story’s thematic concerns.

I particularly enjoyed the wide range of women characters. The protagonist, Maryse Boudreaux, was called to become a monster-hunter first via trauma at the hands of white supremacists, then by a supernatural weapon gifted to her by ambivalent otherworldly beings. She brings the mystical sword with her when called to fight “Ku Kluxes” by the wise old Gullah woman, Nana Jean, who serves as the group’s mentor and counsels Maryse not to be led by her hatred of those who harmed her. (I loved that Nana Jean and Uncle Will, who leads the Shouts that raise power, have a romantic relationship.) Maryse’s hunting companions include Sadie, a brash, fearless sharpshooter, and an older woman, Chef, a butch lesbian who dresses as a man, is an explosives expert, and fought in the Great War with the Harlem Hellfighters. German Jewish widow Emma Krauss, the only sympathetic White character, is a socialist who provides both similarity and counterpoint views to the Black characters she lives among.

The book isn’t long, but it packs in a lot of history with its examination of hatred’s harm to both haters and hated, leaving them in a vicious cycle that allows no relief or resolution.

An amazing blend of cosmic horror, dark fantasy, and historical fiction. The Ku Klux Klan is thriving in Georgia as it is led by monsters – both human and inhuman. Standing in their way are three powerful women – Maryse, Sadie, and Chef. This novella is timely, powerful, and an absolute must-read.

One of the best books I read in 2020. Extremely entertaining and with a social message, the mix horror, sci-fi, and ugliest of American history was moving. A phenomenal reading experience.

In 1915 Macon, Georgia, Maryse and her fellow resistance fighters and friends take on Ku Kluxes, inter-dimensional monsters who take on the guise of humans and walk amongst the human Klansmen. As the monsters prepare for a devastating ritual, Maryse must confront her past and her future as she seeks greater power to stop it.

Clark never misses, and this book is no exception. The author’s supernatural twist on the real history is fascinating, and even characters who don’t appear for long show their depth. The worldbuilding only became more interesting as Maryse went further into exploring her choices, and the writing was masterful. I can’t wait for Clark’s next work.

Clark astounds as an author.
A book about Steam Punk magic was not enough he wrote a book about young African American Women fighting demons who have possessed members of the KKK.
Blowing up Bigot Demons. It's just good clean fun.

We interviewed P. Djèlí Clark about Ring Shout in Episode 396 of The Skiffy and Fanty Show.

I was absolutely blown away by this novella. Seriously. I still talk about it. I cannot wait or it to appear on screen. I can't wait to assign it in a college literature course. It's just that good!

While I didn't love this one quite as much as Clark's Cairo books, his speculative fiction is still fantastic. The horror elements in this are very creepy and the book manages to sci-fi-ify this era while still honoring the real horrors of the racism in this era.

A great read that starts off at 100 and doesn't slow down. Quick world building and character development makes this a satisfying short story.

This was such a creative reimagining of history and I would love to see this concept fully fleshed out. Very interested to see what the author comes up with next. Just the right amount of gore and the audio was 10/10

I got this book because I'm geechee and wanted to read a fantastical interpretation of my people. While not all of it was familiar, it made for a damn good novella. My people ain't from Georgia anyway, so of course I'm not familiar--loved the gore and the horror and I always love Black American history played with in speculative ways.

This book, as small as it was, blew me away! Brilliant and imaginative. Combining the Ku Klux Klan, werewolves, an epic battle, and a quest was brilliant, and meshed perfectly. Maryse has her quest to save everyone from the monstrous clutches of the literal and figurative monsters of the Klan. Anazing book!

I could weep with how good this book was. P. Djeli Clark is a master of the written word. His mixture of the historical and speculative is immersive and his use of the novella length keeps the pace and engagement high.

“What I have is beautiful music inspired by struggle and fierce love. What he got ain’t nothing but hateful noise. Not a hint of soul to it.”

I've been meaning to check out P. Djèlí Clark's writing for far too long, and I'm so happy that I finally did, because Ring Shout absolutely blew me away and Clark is a new auto-read author for me, 100%. This novella was incredible! It's packed tight with action, intensity, history, and it all revolves around a trio of badass monster-hunting Black women that I immediately loved upon meeting. It isn't often that I read a book that leaves me feeling genuinely privileged to have experienced it, but Ring Shout is one of those special few.

I truly don't know where to begin with how highly I recommend this book. I loved the characters, the narrative voice, the fantastical elements, and the entire general premise of Ring Shout. Not only was it such a tremendously enjoyable story, but there was the added element of having learned a few things about Black history that I didn't know before. (I've learned since reading the novella that the author is also a historian, so that checks out!)

“Girl, every choice we make is a new tomorrow. Whole worlds waiting to be born.”

I also have to shout out the audiobook narrator, Channie Waites, for going above and beyond. Even when I wanted to read the book visually, I ended up putting my headphones in and listening while I read along with the ebook because the narration added so much extra jazz to the story! (I think this was the first time I'd ever done that, if that tells you what a raving compliment that is from me, someone who doesn't listen to audiobooks particularly often in the first place.)

Seriously, if you haven't picked up Ring Shout yet, do yourself and favor and fix that. Meanwhile, I'll be over here adding all of Clark's other works to my TBR! (Oh, and sincerely hoping that we get another novella in this world, because I was not ready to say goodbye.)

✨ Representation: almost all characters are Black; Chef is queer

✨ Content warnings for: racism, violence, death, body horror, systemic racism, family death/grief, medical trauma

Thank you so much to the publisher for providing me with this review copy in exchange for an honest review!

Wow. Just wow. Clark is fantastic, and this book blew me away. Can't wait to get my hands on their other books!

This was my first P. Djeli Clark book and I absolutely loved it! I enjoyed the rise and fall of action. There is a lot of social commentary which I think he wells. However there is a part of me that wanted more.

An intriguing and terrifying alternative history to defeating racism and the Klu Klux Klan. Not only are they horrible people, but horrible monsters. Literally. The team in charge of taking these beasts down and their Gullah stronghold is rich with imagery, gore, and a celebration of chosen family. Those interested in alternative history and creature horror will completely fall into this read.