“𝙎𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙨 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙠𝙣𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙨: 𝙬𝙚𝙖𝙥𝙤𝙣𝙨 𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙤𝙤𝙡𝙨, 𝙙𝙚𝙥𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙤𝙣 𝙬𝙝𝙤 𝙞𝙨 𝙬𝙞𝙚𝙡𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙢.”—Suyi Davies Okungbowa

I was so excited to read an African inspired Own Voices story. Especially after having spent a summer doing medical work in Africa, living in the bush, working in the Serengeti, staying with the Masai, and bouncing between Kisumu and Nairobi. I absolutely love anything African inspired.

I haven’t found a ton of books like this out on the market. Every book has its own discerning feature. For this, it was the vivid world building, all inspired by the author’s African heritage. The magical system, politics, religion, setting, location, people were all richly detailed. The writing was stunning, absolutely beautiful. I found so many great quotes. I appreciated each of these aspects. Wow! And this was extremely political. Probably the most political based I’ve ever read.

However, something felt out of balance. The focus was...off. As if too much world building and not enough story telling. Like 80% of the effort was put into crafting the setting, politics, magic, and people, while only 20% was devoted to crafting the actual Story Core. To me, the story core is the most important aspect of a compelling book. That’s just me. Everyone’s different.

I’m going to elaborate on the storytelling and what I mean. There didn’t appear to be a well defined Hero’s Journey. A hero’s journey should be the framework through which a character undergoes changes that make them better or worse. As a reader, I didn’t know where the story was going, resulting in what felt like a meandering journey with no end in sight. For example, when you watch a movie, you know within the first 15 minutes what the hero needs to do by the end. Thus, I expect to find an inciting incident and clearly defined goals, generally within the first 10% of the book. That’s the hook, right?

Buuuuttttt, I had no idea what the MC’s purpose or goals were???

Is the MC going to defeat an evil villain? Is he going to save the world? Is he going to revolutionize the political system? Is he going to discover a magical artifact?

I kept asking myself this question, to a frustrating extent, and didn’t really figure out what the answer MIGHT be until Danso ran away and discovered his own magical ability. Even then, I still wasn’t sure if running away was his actual goal. Or was it mastering a magical ability? Or was it saving Lilong? Or was it simply his goal to carve a new life for himself? Hmm....not sure. Each thing that happened could have just been yet another series of events happing TO him. Basically he was a punching bag for the plot rather than the DRIVING force behind the plot.

My other gripe is the characters. They felt one-dimensional. Here is why I feel that way: I want to have characters with both strengths and weakness that are RELEVANT to the story. I want to understand these traits within the first 10% of the book so that I can be invested in the character. If I have to wait for the 70% mark before I learn that the MC suddenly has magical abilities, it’s too late. Give me two things at the start: a positive trait and a negative trait. Basically, give me a weakness and give me something endearing.

With these characters, take Danso for example, all I was shown were his struggles. He spends the entire first chapter walking through a vividly described market and city (kudos on the descriptions) but I learn next to nothing about his importance for the story. I’m not given any reason why I should care about Danso and not someone else instead. Why is he the MC? Why are we following him and not some other person?

Make sense?

Moreover, the first few chapters were all about Danso’s misfortunes. That’s great when it comes to creating a relatable character. Everyone has suffered from some sort of oppression, being misunderstood, misjudged, etc. So in theory, we should be able to relate. BUUUTTTTT to have a compelling character we must also see the other side of the coin.

As a reader, I want to see something that endears him to me. Something that makes me go, “Yahhh!!! Danso, you’re the man! Good going! Well done! You’ve given me a reason to root for you.” Maybe it’s a strength or a magical ability or some other characteristic that I find unique or cool. I didn’t feel excited about Danso until the Skopi attack event. But by then, it was too late. If that attack had happened at the beginning of the book? I would have been immediately hooked. Why? Because I found that level of originality of magic SUPER COOL. Damn, wish it would have been there the whole time!

Now, to be fair, I was told that Danso was highly intelligent. That he could recite things by memory. That’s impressive right? Intelligence can be endearing. Hell, I can relate to intelligence (I’ve got a PhD for crying out loud). But I never saw Danso actually using his smarts in situations to get himself out of trouble. I was TOLD he was smart. I wasn’t SHOWN that he was smart. Smarts can basically be super power if used correctly as a story tool.

And Eshme (beautiful name), got on my nerves. She was just power hungry, conceited, and frankly a little evil. If this wasn’t truly how I was supposed to interpret her character, then I have failed. I didn’t see any humility from her...like at all. Maybe she wasn’t a nice person and that was the point? At first, I was hoping for a female MC that was badass but also...flawed. She was pretty awful towards poor Danso and I didn’t feel he deserved her treatment. I kept waiting for her to change, but her character took more of a negative arc than a positive arc.

I digress...

Maybe it all simply boiled down to an execution error. I don’t know. Maybe I am completely off the rocker. Maybe I’m the one missing something. At any rate, this is just me trying to understand and verbalize WHY I didn’t find the characters compelling.

Damn, I feel like I’m being such a hard-ass-stickler here. Clearly I’m missing something because after looking over ARC reviews, I realize I’m of an extremely small minority in my opinions. This book got very high ratings across the board. And that makes me happy because I want to see it do well as a debut.

It just tells me that i’m being picky. My honest truth is: I just didn’t enjoy this. And if I wasn’t reviewing it for Orbit, and didn’t feel obligated to finish, I would have DNF’d at 20%. Again, that’s just me. Humans are all different

This is a book I’d love to see succeed, mostly because of its unique aspects. I want to see publishers take more risks bringing in Own Voices authors, and non US-based authors. So I do want to see this do well. But I’m also not going to lie about how I felt on a personal level.

I encourage anyone reading this review to PLEASE not use it to to make a decision one way or the other. Go to Amazon and have a look at the first few chapters and use your own experience to decide whether or not to read it. I have found time and again that I’ll massively enjoy a book that got low reviews, or hate a book that got high reviews, illustrating yet again that everyone is different and what someone likes, someone else might dislike.

Had this been an independently published book, I’d have given it 3.5 stars. As it stands, it was published by a large publishing house. So I judge by much stricter standards. 𝗠𝗬 𝗥𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗚: 𝟮.𝟱/𝟱 ⭐️

A big thank you to Orbit and NetGalley for providing me an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is a really good series starter. The man character Danso isn’t terribly likable at first. He’s an irresponsible kid who seems to be squandering the chances his father is doing everything to see that he gets. Plus he’s a bit self absorbed and fails to think of those around him. But the world building is fantastic and Danso grew on me as the story went on and he starts to realize he’s screwing up. The two female main characters are also interesting though they seem more secondary to me. I think it is worth noting the author says Nigerians (which is his background) use yellow “ as a skin tone descriptor for lighter-skinned Africans” and the “yellowskin”character is not Asian. She’s got albinism. It is disconcerting to read that with American eyes until I read the author’s note. All in all a good series opener that has good world building. I look forward to book two.

I really loved Okungbowa's previous book, David Mogo, Godhunter, so I'm really surprised that I just didn't enjoy Son of the Storm (I know the two books are different genres, but usually I infinitely prefer epic fantasy to urban fantasy, so...still confused). I initially adored the worldbuilding, but it seemed to become more simplistic as the story went on, and the magic system seemed to have a lot of scope for creative thinking, but also felt kind of dull. I don't need to *like* the characters, but I do need to find them *interesting*, and I just didn't. The ostensible main character, Danso, is kind of a mess, and not in any kind of endearing way.

The prose that really suited Godhunter - action-heavy, light on description, a little blunt - didn't translate so well to epic fantasy, at least not for me. I want lusher prose from my epic fantasy, prose that paints the new world I'm reading about into full colour, and Son of the Storm didn't deliver.

That said...this is a DNF review. It's possible that the second half of the book is a vast improvement. But after forcing my way through the first half, I'm just not invested enough to care about how it all ends - and I know it's not a good sign when reading a book feels like a chore. This one's not for me.

I like writers who take risks in introducing their heroes. Son of the Storm by Suyi Davies Okungbowa sets this first book of The Nameless Republic series on the continent of Oon and its dominant country called Bassa. But unlike the image of the sleek figure on the cover art, the protagonist appears before us initially as something of a mess.
Son of the Storm by Suyi Davies Okungbowa

Always late, clothes disarranged (in a world where status and appearance are everything), bumblingly rebellious, Danso, a scholar/historian initiate, embarrasses his family and his intended, Esheme, who expect him to rise in the ranks of the jali scholar caste. Or at least get to key public events on time. He seems to fudge everything, but we soon learn it’s not because of a lack of brains or talent. He feels wrong in his skin and yearns for a world where he can make his own choices.
...............

This is an excellent story, despite a few rough edges, that pulled me in more deeply, the more it upset my initial expectations of how epic fantasies unfold. All the major characters are fighting to redefine themselves and escape the confines of their prescribed social roles. For better and worse, they largely succeed and set the stage for what are sure to be intriguing sequels to Son of the Storm.

Full review at SciFi Mind.com

A huge thank you to Orbit for the e-ARC of this book! I really appreciate it.

Unfortunately, for now, I am DNF-ing this at 68%.
Please not that I am only rating this on NetGalley because you are required to submit a rating!
On Goodreads it will remained unrated because I don't feel comfortable giving star ratings for books that I DNF.

I've having issues with pacing, as well as having so much information seemingly dropped at my feet over and over in this book. I tried to stick it out, but overall feel that it's better for me to put this one down for now, and possibly pick it up in the future to finish it.

For me the plot was the most enticing thing about the blurbs I've seen, and think that most other people will really enjoy this one. There is a nonbinary character present in this world, as well as some LGBT+ relationships we see on the side. I enjoyed the characters in a very surface level way, I never really felt like we were given much to connect with or any reason to care about them or their struggles.

There are quite a few great reviews for this book out here, so please don't let mine turn you off from giving this one a try when it gets released!

I will not be giving a star rating to this one, because I am DNF-ing it for the time being.

Son of the Storm is the beginning of what promises to be an epic series, but I wonder if it overdoes the backstory. The main character's significance isn't fully realized until more than 200 pages into the novel. I understand, of course, the need to set the stage and provide what the reader needs to move the story forward. Honestly, I don't know what part of the story I would "edit," to make it feel shorter, but there are so many stories being told -- of Lilong, of Danso, of Esheme, of Zaq, of Nem, of the city -- I wonder if the story would have been served better with a faster pace, even if some details were never fleshed out. One character, for example, has an entire motivational backstory established, blended together with another character, involving a socio-political commentary, and then ... we discover that we will never see him again.

The story itself, the character creation, the worldbuilding, the imagining of magic -- all of these are well crafted and highly entertaining. There is a complexity to the character creation that I appreciate, although some resolutions of conflict seem to happen too easily, especially at the end of this first novel of the series.

Will I continue the series? Maybe. Part of my choice will depend on whether I want to invest the time in another longer text, given my previous note about the story maybe being over-narrated.

I love the African inspired world , but this just didn’t work for me at all. I found it boring and tedious to get through. I am aware that this is a fantasy world but use of the word yellow skin can be triggering for some people as it is a slur and derogatory term.

I love that authors in underrepresented groups are getting so much attention right now. I think it's great to be exposed to a more global and diverse viewpoint. The cultures in fantasy are fictional, but usually strongly flavored with the author's experience, as this one seems to be. This book has an African feel to it, with deep skin tone based racism, the darkest being highest class. It has some similarities to C.T. Rwizi's Scarlet Odyssey, with a few people having magical abilities, and the story focusing mainly on some young people discovering and using their magic, to great effect in their communities and political environments. The characters are all outsiders, as we all are in one way or another, so that is certainly relatable. While this book was interesting, and I'm glad to have read it, I can't say I loved it because I wasn't able to like any of the characters. I do appreciate flawed characters, but they need to have some solid redeeming qualities or demonstrate some growth so I can root for them. These characters were a bit too flighty, unintelligent, weak, self-centered, or just downright sociopathic for me to get behind. Okungbowa is maybe a bit too honest about humanity's failings, which makes the book as a whole pretty bleak. A lot of the dialog felt unpersuasive. It was unclear how the political and socioeconomic structure of Bassa would work. The main characters walked, with some riding on an animal, from the center of the "mainland" continent to the shore in a few days time, and it doesn't seem like such a tiny continent would lend to the number of disparate races, languages, and cultures it has. Danso's two lesbian friends (only mentioned once, in passing) pretend heterosexual partners to hide their relationship, yet an openly transgender person is accepted and neutral pronouns are matter-of-fact, which seems inconsistent. Minor details, but plausibility gaps do pull me out of a story.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGallery for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I was so excited to read Son of the Storm by Suyi Davies Okungbowa. Fantasy books are my favorite genre, and I was honored to get approved to review this book ahead of its release date. A fantasy based on "the pre-colonial empires of West Africa" sounds innovative and exciting, and I always support representation by #ownvoices authors. However, I just could not get over the depictions of Asian people in this fantasy world, especially how they are referred to as "yellowskins." As an Asian-American reader, I found this extremely offensive, and I cannot believe this made it past multiple editors without any complaints.

Here are some excerpts from the book about these "yellowskins":

"Yellowskin was the mainland slur for the people of the seven islands of the northeastern Nameless archipelago... Returning travellers to the desert who reported sightings of a yellowskin or two. They called them contagious, that if a yellowskin touched you, you became one. They said yellowskins were of low intelligence and unable to stay too long in the sun or see very far." - Chapter 2, Danso

"For a moment, they studied their hands next to each other, how different they looked: his Shashi complexion that resided somewhere between the humus-dark mainlander complexion and something much lighter but not islander-yellow; against hers, exactly islander-yellow, completely lacking any humus-adjacent colouring in both skin and forearm hair." - Chapter 24, Lilong

As anyone with cultural competency knows, "yellowskin" is not just a fantasy term, but also a real-life slur that was used against Asian people throughout history. Before anyone tells me that the "yellowskins" in the book are fantastical and are not meant to represent Asian people, I want to point out the "yellowskin" woman's name is Lilong. As a Chinese-American myself, I can confirm that that is a Chinese or Chinese-inspired name. As this is a fantasy world, there are plenty of ways to represent Asian people(s) without using perjoratives about our skin color. Many other fantasy authors have used other terms or invented fictional countries with names inspired by Asia. There was no need to refer to Asian people as "yellowskins" in this fantasy world.

Please let it be known that I am not a fan of cancel culture, I think it is better to have a conversation and to learn, instead of just cancelling things. I was so excited to support an #ownvoices author and PoC representation in this book, but not at the expense of slurs against my own race! Overall, this book may have its merits, but I cannot get behind how it refers to Asian people. I cannot in good faith recommend it for any readers.

Thanks NetGalley for letting me do a review of this book!

Since I have been off work for a much needed vacation, I decided to catch up on my TBR and one of them on the list is the new epic fantasy book "Son of the Storm" by Suyi Davies Okungbowa which is the first in a new trilogy inspired by African culture. Recommended for fans of Anthony Ryan and.

Okungbowa begin to weaves his masterpiece in a city called Bassa where you follow the complex and intriguing lives of characters such as the clever librarian apprentice Danso, the ruthless Esheme, and the mysterious Lilong. Worldbuilding was something I enjoyed just as well as the characters, really appreciated the mysterious magic called ibor and how powerful people sought to abuse its power.

A well done story, can't wait for the sequel!

"From one of the most exciting new storytellers in epic fantasy, Son of the Storm is a sweeping tale of violent conquest and forgotten magic set in a world inspired by the pre-colonial empires of West Africa.

In the ancient. city of Bassa, Danso is a clever scholar on the cusp of achieving greatness - only he doesn’t want it. Instead, he prefers to chase forbidden stories about what lies outside the city walls. The Bassai elite claim there is nothing of interest. The city’s immigrants are sworn to secrecy.

But when Danso stumbles across a warrior wielding magic that shouldn’t exist, he’s put on a collision course with Bassa’s darkest secrets. Drawn into the city’s hidden history, he sets out on a journey beyond its borders. And the chaos left in the wake of his discovery threatens to destroy the empire."

THE BOOK I keep hearing about. It was even blurbed by P. Djèlí Clark!

Thanks to NetGalley & Orbit for the early copy in exchange for an honest review.

"Son of the Storm" follows multiple POVs, Danso a naive scholar who soon becomes disillusioned with the lies his school taught him, Zaq, a sort of friend/employee of Danso's, Esheme is the daughter of a ruthless politician who is suddenly incapacitated and has to rise to her mother's position in the only way she knows how. Lilong belongs to a race of people long thought to be a myth and she has escaped her land in order to retrieve what was stolen from her people.

There's a lot going on, but the story weaves all these characters together and they discover more about their society's promises and pitfalls. They each make decisions that they think will make society better...but will it?

Danso was frustrating but still really entertaining to read, his naivety was sad but hopeful. I really liked Biemwensé, didn't like Zaq at all though his motivations were understandable, he was frustrating to read. I kinda ended up skimming his chapters because I hated how mean he was toward Danso. I know Danso's an idiot, but he's got a heart of gold and there's just no reason to be mean to him, Zaq! :(

Lilong was really interesting to read, I liked her depth and motivations. Wasn't really a fan of Esheme, I liked the chapters with her mom instead, ha.

I will say, I think it got kinda slow at the 60% mark, these guys are supposed to be on a journey and adventure and instead get stuck in some town in the middle of nowhere with stupid politics preventing them from leaving or staying. It was really weird and detracted from the adventure. Biemwensé was a huge highlight though.

The world-building was fantastic and I highly recommend reading this book!

What a journey this book was!

The book starts off with a prologue introducing a character named Oke, who is in charge of a big secret. We don’t know what it is but the setup has it to be something big and too grave to be put in the wrong hands. Later on in the book there is more about Oke and her role in everything that ends up unfolding. I do wish there was more from her but I do have a feeling that she will be in the next book.

The next chapter is from Danso. He is learning at a university and is worried about expulsion. As a jali novitiate, he is learning to be a scholar-historian. His complexion is not dark enough for those in his city of Bassa. He is ridiculed by it and called a Shashi, which is a slur. Danso also has a lot more on his shoulders. His father wants him to be the head of the household and remain loyal to his duties whether he wants that life or not. It’s a lot of pressure, especially if you are a dreamer who wants more.

As the story progresses, more point-of-views are introduced. Including the two talked about, there are nine in total. This is definitely a lot. This may not be a book for you if you don’t like multiple point-of-views, but each one does add to the overall plot and we learn more about the characters and why each of them chooses the road they take.

One of those characters that makes a big impact on the page is Esheme. She is a very strong woman and quite scary at times. Just like Danso, she knows what it is liked to be marginalized by others which is why she understands him. She grows through a lot of character growth and she does do very questionable things for the sake of power. Honestly, she surprised me the most.

When it comes to Bassa, you are judged by the color of your skin as I mentioned above. The darker skin you have the better. The Upper Council (who’s in charge of Bassa) believes that their city is being diluted due to the enormous population of immigrants. The ones with power, who are true citizens (as they would say) hire private security. The Bassai Upper Council are in it for themselves and what they can gain out of it all.

Since this deals with a city and their government, the books plot has a lot to do with politics. There is a lot of talk about immigration and what happens when the people are not heard, as well as smaller topics. There is so much to dive into and the author does a great job of making the topics standout as well as making them resemble the very same topics in our own world.

The plot doesn’t focus on any romances but there are minor sex scenes. There is also quite a bit of gore but it’s not often that it happens.

When it comes to the pacing, there is a lot going on for the characters but it can be slow going at times. Some chapters (point-of-views) were easier to get through than others but I still managed to read this book in a decent time because I needed to know what would happen next.

There were good plot twists that kept it all going and the ending was nicely done but also left on a cliffhanger.

The only thing I have left to talk about is the magic system. There isn’t a lot about it but what is included in the first book was fun to learn about. Not everyone can wield it but those that do have crazy powers, but it all comes with a price. I am hoping to see more about it in the next book.

Overall, this was really good. It was a solid start to a new series and I will be looking forward to reading the sequel.

This is a complex book with a lot of exciting worldbuliding ideas behind it, and I hope that it will find a great many readers. Okungbowa has crafted an intricate society, inspired by Benin and other African empires. The magical system is unique, and it feels like there's a *lot* more to explore there in future books. Okungbowa's writing is vivid and tightly focused, fully evoking the textures of the world.

Unfortunately, for me, the central characters didn't quite thrill. The ones we spend the most time with weren't the people I was most interested in seeing succeed, and so it was hard for me to get fully invested. This is, of course, a big Your Mileage May Vary thing! Danso and Esheme just didn't do it for me. Lilong was somewhat better, and I really enjoyed Biemwensé, but I spent the whole book hoping to see more of Oke, whom we meet in the prologue and then never see again! I'll hope the story winds its way back to her in the sequel.

I really enjoyed this book! The magic system was unique, the setting vibrant, and the political system thoroughly written. Each chapter is a different POV with multiple chapters, the three main being: Danso -a scholar and dreamer, Esheme -an ambitious achiever, and Lilong -a traveler out for revenge. Each character is extremely flawed while still being likable, and I found myself routing for all of them (even when their paths clashed). My only criticism was each of these characters is basically a lone wolf, and there wasn't a lot of camaraderie or banter until the end of the book. I'm invested in these characters' journeys and will definitely read the next book in the series to see what happens next!

A bit bland, honestly. I wasn't completely sold on the story or worldbuilding, though I can see it appealing to lots of people out there. I did enjoy the idea of the setting, but it fell flat in a lot of areas where other Adult fantasies excel; the standard for fantasy is high and I felt this one didn't reach it for me personally. I think, however, I would've liked it more if the characters were more well-rounded and less flat, though again, this is just my opinion and others might come to different conclusions. My final thoughts are that in a sea of fantasy, this one did not stand out to me, but if the story appeals to you, as a reader, then go for it.

I found this to be an interesting and fresh take on a fantasy story. I enjoyed the world building and the overall plot of the story. There was a good amount of action and the pacing was well done. Some of the characters felt a little flat to me, but otherwise no complaints.

Thank you to Orbit and NetGalley for the e-galley!

This was a thrilling ride and a great opening to a new epic fantasy series.

There is a perfect balance of action, consequence, reaction and more. The society background really shines in this one. I immediately became invested in the world and the characters.

Suyi Davies Okungbowa has a great craft at creating tense, thrilling action scenes that leave a reader hungry for more and desperate for the tension to be over.

Epic fantasies can be a storm of plot threads coming together in either chaotic entanglement or interwoven beauty. Son of the Storm has the good type of an epic storm. Flipping some epic fantasy tropes on its head, while keeping ones that aren’t problematic, the novel fluidly sets up a world, while never bogging it down with exposition. The action sometimes takes the form of combat, sometimes politicking, but whether swords clash or stratagems are devised, Suyi Davies Okungbowa always makes his story intriguing.

The book’s world is based on African culture, and begins in a city called Bassa, home to nobility that favors people with a darker shade of black. In Bassa, lives Danso, a smart and personable man who doesn’t possess the right shade to be considered noble. Early on, he stumbles upon a Yellowskin named Lilong (a lighter person) whose maligned culture lives many miles away in isolation. Things become complicated when Danso discovers that Lilong possesses ibor—a magical mineral that’s sought after by those seeking to abuse its power. After saving Lilong from Bassa’s wrath, Danso goes on a journey of discovery, finding out that those in power are more sinister than they appear. And pursuing Danso is the woman he was supposed to partner: Esheme, a ruthless and powerful person, willing to do almost whatever it takes to achieve dominance.

The hierarchy of Bassa is one that starts to teeter once the inciting incident occurs. What seems like a majestic, impregnable city starts to show its weakness for reasons that are partly their own fault. A place of power sometimes stays that way, not because they possess the means to defend themselves, but because they’ve sat in a place of comfort for so long that their wariness is dimmed.

Blackness in epic fantasy can often take a turn for the worst, particularly because much of the genre is rooted in European, medieval settings. The majority show Black characters as lifeless, subjugated props for the for a white protagonist to swoop in as the hero, telling a white-centered message on accepting people’s differences. Or, if they are not subjugated, they’re portrayed as a barbaric race, isolated from the decorum of society. Son of the Storm doesn’t fall into that trapping. Instead, Bassa – the hub of civilization – values Blackness, particularly the darker shade of black. Nobility, themes of accepting differences, and power are all centered on the Black characters. Even having the main antagonist be Black is a boon to the genre because it showcases them exhibiting power and riches without devolving into barbarism. Despite its fantastical setting, the novel is in many ways truer to life than even some contemporary stories.

A grand tale can be just a desolate expanse if it’s not filled with vibrant characters, and Son of the Storm more than brings vivacity. Danso has some traits of a typical underdog protagonist, but the choices that he makes deviates from that template to make – without spoiling anything – someone who is both more noble and conflicted than you’d expect. Esheme is ruthless, refusing to bend to norms that baggage her, effortlessly marching toward what she wants, often without fail. Lilong is initially filled with doubts, but as the journey continues, her perspective changes and resolve forms.

And Lilong isn’t the only character who feels markedly changed by the end of this installment. Every major character experiences at least one development that should surprise even the most discerning readers. And the novel manages to avoid the pitfall of grand stories that have characters feel like empty chess pieces that the author moves along in their grand design. All of the characters choices are informed by their development with a plot that manages to thrust along a path that occasionally grazes against classic epic fantasy stories, while spending even more time veering off course into fresh lanes.

The magic in Son of the Storm isn’t overexplained. It gives you enough to make it believable, while leaving a level of mysticism that feels, well, magical. That parallels the book itself. It lays out what it’s trying to do on the page, but the way it worked its way into me, with both thrills and emotional attachment was magical. I only have a vague idea of how it did it, but by the last page, I was completely under its spell, eager to see how the story continues.

I won't post my review until April publicly, but I'll just say here that Son of the Storm is a powerhouse start to a trilogy that I'll 100% be following the rest of the way. Intriguing politics, nuanced characters, and a strange new magic system will bring in any long-time reader of fantasy and hopefully convert some of those not too enthused about the genre. This is a book that took me a long time to read, mainly because I was devouring every sentence with care, stopping to reread and understand parts of the world Okungbowa has created here. I'll be checking out his other novel immediately.