AMAZING! This book is sensuous, serious, complex, and thoughtful. And it probably has the most diverse set of characters than anything I’ve ever read. Loved it!

This was extremely existential and heavy on new terminology, and I wasn’t in the mood to decipher it all. Fans of worldbuilding will probably have so much fun with this. I stopped after chapter 0/zero (7%).

Thank you to NetGalley and Tor for the ARC.

My thanks to both NetGalley and the publisher Tor Publishing Group for an advanced copy of this look at an alternative Earth where the colonization of Africa changed the history of the planet in many ways, socially, politically, and scientifically.

I recently read an article in Interstellar Flight Magazine about Wakanda, the fictional home of the the superhero Black Panther and one of the most technically advanced countries in the Marvel Comic Book Universe. Wakanda had been gifted with the metal vibranium, which allowed the isolated community to progress in medicine, science, engineering, in ways that the rest of Africa and even the world had not, curing diseases, creating new forms of energy, even conquering space. The writer of the article stated that Wakanda had to be fictional, and had to have been created by people with no clue about Africa, colonization and the exploitation of the entire continent. If a group of people had a technological, even a political edge, a group dream of freeing Africa from its European oppressors, they would never have stayed hidden, never let the murders of so many people been unavenged. Just like the country of Everfair in this series by Nisi Shawl. Kinning is the second book in the Everfair series, a world where a group of people have been able to push Europe out of their country, using science, and strength of will, and what happens after.

Everfair is a country in Africa that was carved out of the territory controlled by King Leopold of Belgium, for a price. A land that became refuge for political thinkers, ex-slaves from America and people with knowledge and know-how who were ignored in their own countries. Everfair has fought off all attempts to claim it, using steam technology that is more advanced than anything in Europe, along with other technology and sheer will. The book begins a little before the last book ends, with seeds being planted for this story. The Great War is over, but a plague, a Maltese flu has further weakened Europe. However all is not well in the country, as outside influences continue to work against the still nascent nation, with the monarchy that has been decided on is still working on power issues and control. To this is added a plan to bring people together using a mushroom fungus to cause people to have empathy with each other. A plan that could spread revolution and change throughout a still struggling Europe.

This is an alternative history book with a lot of big ideas, and a very big cast, that lesser writers could lose control over quite easily. Nisi Shawl however controls the narrative well, never losing sight of the plot,and keeps a steady hand on the characters, never leading them or the readers astray. Shawl has an interesting style, a third person way of writing that makes the book almost documentary in style, with asides to the reader that makes the story real, and want to know more. A lot of the joy comes from seeing real world events and people changed by what has happened, and what could happen in the story. Shawl has done a tremendous amount of research and work and it shows in the writing as there is no hesitancy or lack of vision.

Recommended for people who enjoy alternative history stories, and for readers who enjoy stories about politics, war and what might have been. This is the second book in the series, and I recommend reading the first one before starting just to understand what is going on. Which is a good thing as book books are very good, and worth one's time.

I really liked Everfair, so when I saw that this was coming out in January, I may have slammed the request button. This book ends up taking a look at how you come up with the story of who you are as a person, how communism would've unfolded in a world with Everfair in it, and forming new ways of experiencing and looking at the world, ie, the forming of hive minds of individuals via mushrooms (well played). I compared the original to Game of Thrones but in a world that believes in improvement and afrofuturism; the sequel leans full into the afrofuturism but still keeps the political plays, and takes the characters into a completely new and foreign experience. I also like the alternate futures Shawl glimpses into on the in between chapters. If you liked the original, and wanted it to lean into the sci-fi part of sci-fi fantasy, you'll find it here. Definitely pick this up when it comes out in January.

There was a lot I liked about this book. I really liked Everfair and was excited for the sequel. The effect of the spores (so creatively and often frankly described!) and their deployment as an anti-imperialist rebellion were a fascinating bit of worldbuilding. However, I found the story overall to be quite opaque. Characters' motivations, relationships, and even physical locations were hard to keep track of (although the latter of these might be the fault of the slightly distractable reader). The prose seems to hold the reader slightly at a distance, somehow.

I'm rounding up because a book like this deserves a chance to be found by readers who are fans of alternate universe retellings with a speculative fiction bent and a socialist mindset.

3.5/5

I requested this one because it might be an upcoming title I would like to review on my Youtube Channel. However, after reading the first several chapters I have determined that this book does not suit my tastes. So I decided to DNF this one.