Y'all. This book is SO GOOD. Gleefully mashing together truly disgusting body horror and fantastical cosmic horror with meaningful and touching story, Clark moves through this short novel at lightning speed. Fascinating folkloric references are mixed into the mythos of the book, and there's a wonderful literary wink at the end. FANTASTIC.

The cover and synopsis of Ring Shout drew me to this book. This historical science fiction novella is about three Black women from 1920s Georgia (Maryse, Sadie, and Chef) who are bootleggers and hunters of monsters known as Ku Kluxes. Ku Kluxes are people who turned into monsters when hate infected their bodies. This book is a good social commentary on the effect that hate has on the perpetrators and theirs victims. Clark is a very good writer, his descriptions of the monsters are very vivid, I could definitely picture them in my mind. It was a good book, not usually the genre I would read but I did enjoy it. I could see a potential series coming from it.

A Watchmen meets Trail of Lightning thriller with a fierce yet loveable heroine, Maryse.
Will thrill young adult and adult readers alike. Mixed with unknown history and horror for a fascinating fantasy folk tale.
P.S. I loved the short length of this novella.

Thank you for the ARC!

4.5 stars -- I'm honestly blown away by the craftsmanship of this book. It is a textbook perfectly executed novella, and I am beyond delighted & impressed by how much plot, world building, character work, and thematic content Clark develops over the course of this story. I think if you read the description, you'll get a sense of if this a book that intrigues you, and if so-- just go ahead & read it. I don't think you'll be disappointed. With the ending, seems like there is a door for there to be a sequel, which I dearly hope we get!

I went into Ring Shout expecting a horror story, but it's actually more akin to a historical urban fantasy. In short, it's a demon hunter novella, about demon hunters hunting the Klan, and it has a lighter tone than you might suspect given the premise.

It's also a difficult read, although again, not for the reasons you might suspect. The prose is written in present tense, the story starts in media res with little foregrounding, and some of the dialogue is written in dialect that while presumably authentic (Clark is a historian as well as a writer, so I expect he knows his stuff!), can be challenging to parse. It's altogether more writerly than one might anticipate considering how light-hearted the story turns out in the end.

Personally, I'm extremely resistant to dialect in fiction. It doesn't matter if you're James Joyce or Stephen King, I find it an unnecessary affectation. (Maybe *especially* if you're James Joyce.) But those caveats about writing style aside, if you're up for a more lovingly crafted take on the demon hunter genre, this might be worth checking out.

It's weird that the entire novella seems to just be a lead up to two jokes. But I have to admit, I did really like one of those jokes.

A combination of many different literary/fantasy elements combined with the historical components of the story made for an engrossing novella. The atrocious and hate filled Ku Klux Klan met its match in the strong and brave Maryse Boudreaux and the showdown was epic!

I’m gonna be honest, if there has been something good in my life during this lockdown, it has been discovering the genius that is P. Djèlí Clark. I started with his short story when I was in a slump and couldn’t focus and he has captivated me completely with everything of his I’ve read since. So, it was a no brainer that I was excited for this new novella, but I never expected I would get the ARC and that was a wonderful surprise. And wow was this spectacular.

I feel like I’ve already used up my bag of superlatives in the intro paragraph because I just don’t have more words to describe this amazing story. The way the author manages to blend real historical events starting from slavery to Prohibition era America when this story is set, the deep rooted racism of the times, along with lovecraftian horror elements and some good old monster hunting - it’s a carefully crafted masterpiece that packs a very big punch in less than 200 pages. The main character Maryse and her friends Sadie and Chef just jump off the page, with distinct personalities and backstories, and a deep abiding friendship that leaves a mark on you. There is also a very memorable supporting cast of characters, including the villains who all have such a distinct narrative voice despite very little page time. Added to all this are some very thrilling action sequences as well a couple of very creepy chilling ones, and this little novella is essentially perfect.

But what ultimately makes this book extra special are the underlying themes, and for something that’s actually a historical novel, it’s unfortunate that most of these themes resonate with us even after almost a hundred years. There is so much hate in these pages, in the hearts of the Klan members and the monster Ku Kluxes, and while that might not be the form it takes in our world today, there is still the same hate and politicians festering it even more to gain and keep their power. One of the characters makes a point about how the white Klan members have so much hate in their hearts against Black people even though they already have all the systemic power over them, and exert it to the fullest extent possible, and I think our current predicament gives answers - they don’t even wanna contemplate the idea of losing that power and do everything possible to hold onto those racist power structures. But ultimately the message of the book is that despite facing all these oppressions for centuries, when Black people protest and fight for their rights, they are doing so not with the kind of hate they’ve been subjected to, but with sadness and pain and righteous anger and the need for justice.

To conclude, I don’t wanna say much more except, just read this book because it is thrilling and horrific and impactful, and feels like something you’ve never read before. The writing, the characters, the history, and the horrors - every element comes together perfectly to form a tour de force of a book, and I promise you will be swept away in awe. This is must read fantasy and I can’t wait to read whatever the author comes up with next.

Such a creepy book.

The last book I read by P. Djèlí Clark was perfectly self contained novella. This one also used each word and each scene with a clear purpose.

Ku Kluxes are creatures that use racial hatred to infect white people and slowly infect their body to give the reader sickening images of body horror. Maryse with her magical sword fights them along with a little band of fighters. This story is hard to summarize without being worried about spoiling things. The book delves into African American stories and belief. In the end, it looks at the cost of hatred and the circle is creates.

In a way, I wish that I knew more African American stories than I do. My definition of African American stories are stories that are taken from Africa by slaves and passed down generations. The only one I'm familiar with is Br'er Rabbit (thanks Disney for ruining it for the American public) and that was woven expertly throughout the story. If I knew the others then maybe the story would have another layer added for me. So if you are familiar with African American stories, there are some Easter eggs for you.

This review is based on an advanced reading copy provided through Netgalley for an honest review.

“The Shout come from slavery times. Though hear Uncle Will tell it, maybe it older than that. Slaves would Shout when they get some rest on Sundays. Or go off to the woods in secret.”

I requested this book knowing only one thing: it’s written by P. Djèlí Clark. That was good enough for me and wasn’t surprised at all that this book exceeded all expectations. His. Books. Never. Disappoint. How does he do it? I thought Tramcar and Dead Djinn were exceptionally good, now this! Believe the hype. Read this book.

1922. Macon, Georgia, the land of the Klans. The scene opened with three bad-ass monster hunters - Maryse, a sword-fighting-fear-nothing woman, Cordelia aka Chef, a WW1 Harlem Hellfighter, and Sadie, a lanky, foul-mouthed-sharp-shooter, standing atop a building about to kill some Ku Kluxes. They were Klan-folks-turned-monsters, hidden in human forms. The only ones who could tell them apart from the Klans were Maryse and her friends, who, besides hunting Ku Kluxes, also helped Nana Jean, a Gullah bootlegger, sell her special water with magic known to ward off evil.

One day, Maryse was called upon by her three ‘aunties’, who gave her the magical sword she now owned. She was told that ‘ill tidings are afoot’, and they needed to do something about it. And with the appearance of Butcher Clyde in Maryse’s dream meant that this wasn’t going to be good. When Maryse met up with him, Butcher Clyde hinted her about a ‘grand plan’, something called the ‘Grand Cyclops’.

When she put two and two together, Maryse figured out that he meant the gathering that was about to take place in Stone Mountain, GA, on the viewing day of The Birth of the Nation – a movie that was conjured to spread evil and violence, and hatred for the Blacks far and wide, making the Klans believe that the colored people were monsters. Even though Maryse and her crew knew they would be outnumbered on that day, they knew it was up to them to stop the gathering, even if it meant risking their lives.

There was so much to love about Ring Shout. Firstly, its fantastic world-building. Enter a half-world where Maryse met with her three aunties; then step into the gnarly Angel Oak tree whose branches bore skulls, rib cages, and horns, and meet the Night Doctors known to have snatched slaves and experimented on them; and of course, come to Atlanta where Black-hating Klans were a common sight.

Clark also brilliantly blended history with fantasy, making D. W. Griffith not only the creator of the racist movie, ‘The Birth of Nation’, but also a conjurer who was going to use his film to spread hatred and evil among the Klans. Then there was also the Ring Shout, which I knew nothing about until now. Traditionally, it was a religious ritual during slavery times, done with song and movement led by the spirit, to give strength and hope to the enslaved. But in this book, the Shouters helped magicked Nana Jean’s water into a special concoction used for protection and fight against the Klan.

On top of the richly-imagined worlds, this novella also had many unforgettable characters, and I loved every one of them - from Maryse and her crew, to strange Aunty Jadine, and Maryse's brother who only made a minor appearance but whose voice was heard throughout. I not only saw how much Maryse loved him, but also felt it whenever she thought of him. And the friendship between the three women was a joy to read; I also loved how protective Nana Jean and the Shouters were of Maryse and her friends. And oh, Butcher Clyde, that detestable, monstrous ugly thing! Don’t even get me started on those shrieky mouths on him. Yuck. What a sight.

Like many of Clark’s novellas, reading this was like being on a roller-coaster ride. Those fight scenes had my heart racing; the touching, emotional moments pulled at my heartstrings, and not forgetting the horrific monsters and creatures of sorts that made me wince and retch, and some lighthearted moments that made me smile.

‘Ring Shout’ cannot come at a better time when this country is in racial turmoil. At the heart of this novella, is the theme of the consequences of racism. Fed with intense hate, the Klans would turn into Ku Kluxes, and there’d be more and more of them if hate grew, and if Maryse were to continue to allow hate to consume her, the cycle of violence would never end. We can’t douse fire with more fire. The fire has got to stop. Channel the hate, frustration and anger to something good.

To say this novella packed a punch is an understatement. It was as thrilling as it was horrifying, engrossing as it was powerful, entertaining as it was educational. How is it that a novella can be packed with so much goodness? I believe Clark knows magic.

Ring Shout is dark fantasy meets horror meets historical fiction, with fantabulous writing and a cast of unforgettable characters. Love these combinations? Read this.

And let it be known that ‘Ring Shout’ is something to shout about! Please forgive the cheesy pun.

Thank you NetGalley and tordotcom for providing a free eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are mine.

Thank you to Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!
Wow. Wow wow wow wow. I need this book as a movie ASAP. Surely one of the best books I’ve read all year, no doubt. I know I lacked the cultural understanding to actually GET a lot of it, but I still found it incredibly cool and impactful, and it was a WILD AND DELIGHTFUL read, that actually made me cry big baby tears. The characters were so interesting and well-developed, despite how short the story itself was, and I literally couldn’t tear my eyes away from the page. It was FANTASTIC! I’ll be recommending this book to everyone and buying copies for all my friends, thanks.

Set in 1922, the KKK is being led by monsters from another dimension. Only certain people can see their true form. Maryse can see them and with the help of a magic sword she can fight them.

This book offers a unique look at a period in history. Part fantasy and part horror, the further the story progresses the more fantastical it becomes. The last half of the book is great. An epic battle between good and evil.

I received a free copy from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

Ring Shout is set in 1920s USA and follows Marsye, who is hunting down Ku Kluxes, who are monsters who have transmorphed from Klans (i'm assuming these are KKK members) . The setting feels incredibly rich in history and atmosphere and Maryse is such a vibrant and dynamic character to follow. There is also an element of spirituality and magic, with history being played out through a slightly fantastical lens, which i think worked so well to highlight some of the historical issues (and contemporary issues) and almost felt like the internal conflicts of the characters were playing out externally.

It was so easy to get absorbed into this book and fall into the story and these characters, whilst exploring some very important issues around race and intergenerational trauma. P. Djeli Clarks writing is stunning as well, something about it is so transportive and it feels like you are there with the characters.

P. Djèlí Clark is well known in the world of speculative fiction for his unique ability to seamlessly take key pieces of history and morph them into the fantastical. As an academic historian, this is not surprising. His ability to do so is award-winning, in fact. Clark’s short story The Secret Lives of the Nine Negro Teeth of George Washington won the 2019 LOCUS award and the 2019 Nebula Award for Best Short Story. He also received the 2019 Alex Award for his novella The Black God’s Drums.

Clark is back in October 2020 with a new release likely to be just as successful with fans and critics alike: Ring Shout. Tagged a “dark fantasy historical novella,” Ring Shout tells the story of Maryse Boudreaux and her band of badass women as they storm through early 1920s Georgia on a quest to find and eliminate the monsters she calls “Ku Klux.” The physical embodiment of racism, these Ku Klux are embedded among the well-known Klan, using their superhuman size and strength to spread hatred throughout the nation. And it appears they are adapting and evolving day by day to become even more dangerous...

Not everyone has “the sight,” the ability to see the Ku Klux for the monsters they really are, but Maryse and her team of women surely do. Merely 25 years old, Maryse is hell-bent on stopping this virulent expansion, no matter the cost. She has already lost too much to give up now. She is aided in this calling by a sword that appears magically when she draws it to mind. A sword that sings. A sword that calls on the long dead enslaved, the spirits of the ancient chiefs and kings bound to the sword as penance for selling these individuals into slavery, and the power of the mighty African gods. Maryse is accompanied by Sadie, a young woman of just 21 who fears no man (or monster, for that matter). Sadie’s favourite companion is her Winchester 1895 and she’s one hell of a shot. Chef rounds out the team, the oldest and the most experienced in combat, having served in World War I with the Harlem Hellfighters, one of few combat regiments composed of Black soldiers. She isn’t known for her culinary masterpieces, though; rather her nickname derives itself from her ability to cook up quite the effective bomb.

The foundational concept of Ring Shout is ingenious -- Clark turns the monstrous humans who were members of the Ku Klux Klan into actual monsters that must be destroyed. However, there are also many other historical counterpoints which Clark creatively twists and moulds into his unique fantasy world of prohibition-era Georgia. Take D.W. Griffiths, for example. In Clark’s world, he is not just the filmmaker who created the ultra-racist propaganda The Birth of a Nation; he is also a sorcerer who brings about the second coming of the Ku Klux Klan. Through this film, he lures white people into thinking the Klans are heroes, and thus hatred seeps further into the fabric of the country. Then there’s the use of the ring shout: a traditional religious ritual full of song and movement which gave strength to the enslaved and now gives strength to fight back against the return of the Klan in the world Clark has created here. History buffs will also take note of references to places like Tulsa, the setting of a historically significant race massacre, and key historical figures like Marcus Garvey, a well-known Black nationalist who led the Pan-Africanism movement.

Simply put, Ring Shout is a brilliant piece of speculative fiction. In just the length of a single novella, Clark presents a history lesson, copious amounts of action and adventure, social commentary that is critically important in the United States today, and all the elements of fantasy one could desire. The core theme of the horrors of racism sadly continues to be just as pertinent today, almost 100 years after the time period this novella takes place. Clark also cleverly examines the line between anger and hatred. While so many characters in this story have experienced horrible hatred and tragedy in their lives, they do not turn to feed on hatred as do the monstrous Ku Klux. In fact, this hatred is rejected by characters like Maryse, in favour of embracing the continued fight against that which is fundamentally wrong. Centering strong Black voices and tenacious women at the helm of this story, Ring Shout -- like Clark’s body of work at large -- fills a gap in the genre, delivering a story readers won’t soon forget.

There are so many more layers readers need to unfurl for themselves as this cleverly crafted, vastly moving novella builds in intensity until the very end. So, I will simply leave you with this … go grab a copy of Ring Shout!

This is a story about monsters. Otherworldly beings and those who walk amongst us. The Klu Kluxes are pure hatred and evil personified as shape shifting monsters - and only a small band of female warriors can see them for what they really are.

This is a tale of vengeance and injustice, gore and terror and ultimately love and hope. I loved reading about Maryse and her band of strong women, and really enjoyed how African myth and history was incorporated into this story. It was a great adventure.

The only thing i didn't really enjoy was the Lovecraftian monsters in this book. But that is a case of 'it's not you it's me'. I am not drawn to monster books - I prefer my horror to be grounded in reality or hauntingly supernatural.

A fast-paced, highly entertaining read.

I kept seeing Ring Shout on those "Book you HAVE to read in 2020" lists, so obviously, I had to read it. And I'm so glad I did! This little book was so much fun, so timely, and so very well written.

The writing! Absolutely fantastic. Within just a few words my attention was completely captured. P. Djèlí Clark really gave voice to these characters, to this world. It was different from anything I've ever read before, and was done so well.

The characters were wonderful. Maryse is a perfect lead, and while it is her story, everyone around her felt like they had their own stories as well. None of the side characters ever just felt like a prop. For this book, that's less than two hundred pages, to pull that off so spectacularly when I've read enormous tomes that couldn't ever do it right... that alone speaks to the high quality of the writing here.

Ring Shout is much shorter than most books I read, so I knew I'd get through it pretty fast. But I read this one even faster than I ever expected because the pacing is just so good. There's so much action, truly high stakes, and it all just moves moves moves all the way to the end. I was gripped from the first page, and this book didn't let go of me until I'd finished it.

If you're looking for a fast read, or maybe something different to mix things up, Ring Shout is the perfect book for that. It's diverse, and gets across some really important messages. It's fun and fast and exciting. It's a book that's going to stick in my head for a really long time.

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This review will go live on NovelKnight on 9/22/20.

I have been a P Djeli Clark fan since I discovered his work, and I was very excited to see this title become available for advance review. It has, without a doubt, one of the most memorable book covers I have seen in a long time.

I'm not spoiling anything by saying the subtitle, which is Hunting Ku Kluxes in the End Times, which paints a clear picture. What I will say is that the voice and point of view herein are so evocative, grabbing your attention from the beginning and not letting go. Scattered throughout, the author has included transliterations from former slaves from the Gullah language of South Carolina, which I also found interesting.

Set in Georgia, "...this Klan we got in 1922, not concerned with hiding." The protagonist says they hunt monsters and knows them when they sees one, and the action kicks off at, what else, a 4th of July parade. I think Jordan Peele, HBO, and other companies should both take note, because this book screams to be a necessary film or television adaptation.

It is a prescient book, more necessary than ever, #ownvoices, so important, so timely, and I don't know what more I can say other than buy it now and read it now.

Like Lovecraft Country, Ring Shout combines eldritch horror with racism, and it turns out the hate behind racism is the real horror.

Maryse is a sword-wielding black woman who hunts Klu Kluxes, the nightmare creatures that form from Klan members filled with too much hate. She's accompanied by Chef, a munitions-wielding WWI vet, and Sadie, a young woman who is a deadly shot with a rifle. When the group finds out that there's going to be a special showing of DW Griffith's infamous Birth of a Nation, they realize something even worse than normal Klu Kluxes is coming.

I love how a common trope— a sword-wielding young person with a dark past— is transformed in this uniquely American setting to say so much about our past and present. Rather than getting bogged down in pure spectacle, Ring Shout centers on a message about the destructivepower of hate. Further, Clark's background as an academic specializing in slavery and emancipation shows in myriad touches throughout the book, like the references to Marcus Garvey, Night Doctors, Tulsa, and many more.

First of all, this is a fun and exciting book to read; it's well-plotted and well-written, with interesting characters and plenty of action. At its core, the story is a version of the archetypal Hero narrative - a person is chosen, comes to term with and grows into their power, and faces large evil forces. In this case, however, the Hero is a young Black girl in 1920's Georgia during the second wave of the Ku Klux Klan, the Teachers are matriarchs of one sort or another, the "Brotherhood" is actually a sisterhood, and the monsters are the KKK. There is even a "damsel" in distress who has to be saved - the Hero's boyfriend .

The book fits somewhere on a spectrum with Colson Whitehead's and Ta Nehisi Coates' recent works, recasting Black American history with elements of the magical and fantastic. In Clark's case, the fantastic mixes together Lovecraft, African mythology, and African American Christianity.

The ending leaves open the option for additional adventures, and that would be fine with me.

Ring Shout is, to give the elevator pitch, a historic fantasy about lady bootleggers fighting the KKK, with a hearty dose of cosmic horror. But it’s so much more than that.
It’s about rage, and hurt, and justice. It’s about fighting for what’s right even when it’s hard. It’s a colossal EFF YOU to the racist origins of the cosmic horror, and it’s one of the best books that I’ve read all year.

D.W. Griffith and his KKK cronies are sorcerors, who have used Birth of A Nation to cast a spell of hate across America. And hate is a powerful thing.
But Maryse Boudreux has a magic sword, a mouthy sharpshooter, and a Harlem Hellfighter by her side and they are not going down without a fight. Maryse and her friends must fight demons - literal and figurative - to stop the KKK from raising hell on Earth.

Clark toes the line between fantasy and reality remarkably well. I was concerned, in the beginning, that atrocities would be blamed on monsters (thus removing the onus from the all-too-human monsters that continue to stir hate to this day) but Clark shines just as harsh a light on the cruelty of men and the horrors that we create here on Earth. It’s grim, and at times horrible, but it’s a painful reminder of how much we need to continue to do.

Readers, you know I love thorough research, and the paragraphs included regarding the origins of the Gullah ring shouts referenced in the book just had me over the moon - details like these in just MAKE a good historic novel (fantasy or otherwise for me.

5 stars just aren’t enough for this book. Clark’s writing is superb - his characters fresh, unapologetic and loveable (or, in the case of Butcher Clyde and his cronies, deeply hateable), noble and deeply human. It packs a serious emotional punch - it has the sort of battlescenes that make you want to stand up and applaud after reading, and the kind of reunions that bring you to tears.

I’ve pretty much had Clark on my “must-read” list since I picked up The Black God’s Drums, but I was less sure about reading this one. I wasn’t sure about the idea of the Ku Klux Klan being literal monsters: it seemed a bit unsubtle? And I don’t know much about the Ku Klux Klan beyond the very basics, and I just don’t have that deeply American background where they’re a part of my story. That said, I’m gathering that a lot of (white) Americans don’t either, and I don’t normally let a lack of context stop me! Just I’m not always sure what’s really clever and what actually happened, when books blend reality and fantasy like this, and I was worried it’d matter particularly with a book like this, grounded in the pain of Black people and the real horror of history.

I’ll admit, I’m still not entirely sure the literal monsters worked for me. I stayed a bit too conscious of how apropos it is, almost to being a cliché… But laying that aside, it was a quick read, albeit a challenging one: trying to parse the Gullah dialogue kept me busy, especially since I’m not actually good at sounding out what I read, and the dialogue sometimes gave me pause at first. I think it’s probably a good thing I read it in one go, because it gave me a chance to get into the swing of the dialect!

The horror is genuinely horrifying, and I quickly got fond of Maryse and (mostly) Chef. I can’t say any of the twists of the story really surprised me, but they unfolded in such a way that they felt like the only natural way for things to go — not that they felt forced, but that it all flowed from one decision to another. I loved the quoted bits about ring shouts, which illuminated the story and gave me the background I needed… while teaching me a bit of history that I didn’t know about at all.

I can’t say I liked it as much as The Black God’s Drums, but it might stick with me more in terms of the story and images (there’s some really gory bits). I’m not quite sure how to rate it, being honest: my first instinct is three stars, but other aspects (including a worry that I just don’t “get it”) make me want to bump it up… and reading other people’s reviews and what they pick out (particularly the use of folklore, including the shouts) I think that’s more than fair. I’m just a wuss and still cringing at some of those descriptions!