Alternate History – Made of Stardust and Stubbornness

“To Ride A Rising Storm” Review

Posted on February 7, 2026 by admin

“To Ride A Rising Storm” (Nampeshiweisit No. 2) by Moniquill Blackgoose

Anequs has not only survived her first year at Kuiper’s Academy but exceeded all of her professors’ admittedly low expectations—and passed all her courses with honors. Now, she and her dragon, Kasaqua, are headed home for the summer, along with Theod, the only other Native student at the Academy.

But what should have been a relaxing break takes a darker turn. Thanks to Anequs’s notoriety, there is an Anglish presence on Masquapaug for the first time ever: a presence which Anequs hates. Anequs will always fight for what she believes in, however, and what she believes in is her people’s right to self-govern and live as they have for generations, without the restrictive yoke of Anglish rules and social customs. And fight she will—even if it means lighting a spark which may flare into civil war.

Review

I thought this was a great sequel to the previous book. I enjoyed the continuation of Anequs’ story and her attempts to do right by her people. There is a lot of conflict in the book from the Anglish who have a negative view of Anequs and her people which comes to a head at the end of the book. This book is very obviously the middle book of a trilogy but I still think there were a lot of good things in it. I loved the continued development of various relationships Anequs has with everyone and the introduction of new characters and possibly allies. I really enjoy all the information in the book and the world building. I liked that we learned more about Anequs’ people and how they view relationships and everything. I eagerly await the next book!

Additional reviews and warnings can be found on the StoryGraph page for “To Ride A Rising Storm”

Book Details

The book cover is blue with a circle in the middle that has leaves and flowers coming off it. On the top left and bottom right of the circle are two flying dragons one pale blue and the other a darker blue than the cover. The title of the book is written one word on each line down the center of the book with the authors name at the bottom.

Author’s Website: Moniquill Blackgoose
Publisher / Date: Del Ray, January 2026
Genre: Alternate History, Fantasy, Young Adult
Page Count
: 464
Date Completed
: February 3, 2026

“The Deep” Review

Posted on July 18, 2025 by admin

“The Deep” by Rivers Solomon with Daveed Diggs, William Hutson, Jonathan Snipes

Yetu holds the memories for her people—water-dwelling descendants of pregnant African slave women thrown overboard by slave owners—who live idyllic lives in the deep. Their past, too traumatic to be remembered regularly, is forgotten by everyone, save one—the historian. This demanding role has been bestowed on Yetu.

Yetu remembers for everyone, and the memories, painful and wonderful, traumatic and terrible and miraculous, are destroying her. And so, she flees to the surface, escaping the memories, the expectations, and the responsibilities—and discovers a world her people left behind long ago. Yetu will learn more than she ever expected to about her own past—and about the future of her people. If they are all to survive, they’ll need to reclaim the memories, reclaim their identity—and own who they really are.

Inspired by a song produced by the rap group Clipping for the This American Life episode “We Are In The Future,” The Deep is vividly original and uniquely affecting.

Review

I really enjoyed this story. Despite being short there is a lot going on and takes some careful reading. I really liked the way everything was described and the way Yetu figures out what she needs to do. I enjoyed reading the different parts of the story that were in the past and how they related to the present time. Especially how it involved the person Yetu meets during the course of the story. The resolution of all the various problems Yetu had handling the memories worked out well and I’m glad she was able to be happy with everything. The history is terrible and tragic but the future is hopeful.

Warnings and additional reviews can be found on the StoryGraph page for “The Deep”.

Book Details

The Deep book cover depicts a dark skinned mermaid faced away floating in the water vertically with her long hair flowing around her head. There are several whales in the water around her as well. The title is at the top of the cover and the authors names at the bottom.

Author’s Website: Rivers Solomon
Publisher / Date: Gallery/Saga Press, November 2019
Genre: Science Fiction, Alternate History
Page Count: 176
Completion Date: July 15, 2025

“The Martian Contingency” Review

Posted on July 14, 2025 by admin

“The Martian Contingency” (Lady Astronaut No. 4) by Mary Robinette Kowal

Years after a meteorite strike obliterated Washington, D.C.—triggering an extinction-level global warming event—Earth’s survivors have started an international effort to establish homes on space stations and the Moon. The next step – Mars.

Elma York, the Lady Astronaut, lands on the Red Planet, optimistic about preparing for the first true wave of inhabitants. The mission objective is more than just building the infrastructure of a habitat – they are trying to preserve the many cultures and nuances of life on Earth without importing the hate. But from the moment she arrives, something is off.

Disturbing signs hint at a hidden disaster during the First Mars Expedition that never made it into the official transcript. As Elma and her crew try to investigate, they face a wall of silence and obfuscation. Their attempts to build a thriving Martian community grind to a halt. What you don’t know CAN harm you. And if the truth doesn’t come to light, the ripple effects could leave humanity stranded on a dying Earth…

Review

I have mixed feelings about this one. While this book switches back to Elma’s story I felt like some of the issues I had with her personality were toned down a bit in a way that made sense being several years later. That said majority of the book felt off because of the way people had been keeping secrets. And then those secrets caused harm to the current crew on Mars. While actually happened during the first expedition actually makes sense all things considered there are some parts of it that still feel off. I don’t want to spoil it but there were things that happened that were essentially allowed to happen because of racism and then additional choices were made as a result of that. The parts I’m not sure about have more to do it the initial aftermath than the event itself. Some choices make sense some do not.

Besides the central mystery I feel like the author did a lot with this book and tried to address many different issues at once for good and bad. There’s still a huge gap about what actually will happen to people who are still on earth – especially disabled people. But the point of the book is that the people who have journeyed to Mars are trying to do the work to learn how to work and live together on a new planet without requiring the support of Earth. I liked the details the author included about the various holidays and traditions of everyone in the crew. I did feel like some things got shoehorned in as an effort to be inclusive and trying to be more understanding.

The disability aspect is still a sticking point for me in this series. Due to various events there are two characters who become disabled during the course of the book. There’s some of talk about keeping them on Mars because it’s home and they’ve earned staying there. Which is all well and good but it does nothing to indicate what will happen to people with disabilities on Earth who can’t make it into space even if they were going to be allowed to in the first place. What it does do is serve as a reminder that debilitating accidents will happen and people become disabled and need support.

Warnings and additional reviews can be found the StoryGraph Page for “Martian Contingency”.

Book Details

The Martian Contingency cover is mostly yellow/gold with shades of orange red on the left side. At the bottom right corner there is a black image two people in space suites standing on a cliff overlooking a base in the distance on the bottom right. The title of the book is in the center with the authors name above it.

Author’s Website: Mary Robinette Kowal
Publisher / Date: Tor Books, March 2025
Genre: Science Fiction, Alternate History
Page Count: 388
Completion Date: July 12, 2025

“The Relentless Moon” Review

Posted on July 12, 2025 by admin

“The Relentless Moon” (Lady Astronaut No. 3) by Mary Robinette Kowal

The Earth is coming to the boiling point as the climate disaster of the Meteor strike becomes more and more clear, but the political situation is already overheated. Riots and sabotage plague the space program. The IAC’s goal of getting as many people as possible off Earth before it becomes uninhabitable is being threatened.

Elma York is on her way to Mars, but the Moon colony is still being established. Her friend and fellow Lady Astronaut Nicole Wargin is thrilled to be one of those pioneer settlers, using her considerable flight and political skills to keep the program on track. But she is less happy that her husband, the Governor of Kansas, is considering a run for President.

Review

I have to be honest and say that I really liked Nicole, the main character in this book, more than Elma in the others. Nicole doesn’t have the “well intended but clueless white person” problem that Elma has along with some other frustrating personality quarks. Nicole seems to be more aware of the issues which has a lot to do with her husband’s work in politics. I also think this book does a better job acknowledging that there are people who will never be able to leave Earth. While there are a couple relevant plot points in the story that impacts a few things, disabled people are still largely still ignored. There’s also the obvious issue that not enough as been done to help the people in the ares most impacted by the Meteor strike who weren’t killed outright. Many of the worst off are largely minorities or poor and uneducated individuals who don’t have the same opportunities as others. I don’t want to spoil the ending too much but there were at least some indications that there would be additional focus on those individuals on Earth as well as supporting the move to the Moon and Mars.

The overall plot of this book was a bit more contained with the issues on the Moon taking up much of the focus. Unfortunately some parts of this book are spoiled by the previous book as the author hadn’t initially planned to write this one. Because this book takes place in the same time as the second book there is a lot overlap in information about what is happening on Earth. However I still think it makes for a good read even though you go in knowing some of what was going to happen. In some ways I had more fun reading this one than the previous two books because of how much I liked Nicole and her friendships with the other characters. Elma is focused on numbers and the big picture knowledge that Earth is in trouble and if humanity is to survive getting off Earth is vital. Nicole ends up being more detail oriented and worried about everyone.

Warnings and additional reviews can be found on the StoryGraph page for “The Relentless Moon”

Book Details

The Relentless Moon book cover. The background of the cover is entirely taken up with an image of the moon with red lines showing the structure of the moonrise. At the bottom are black images of several people wearing spacesuits walking forwards. The author's name is at the top with the title in the center.

Author’s Website: Mary Robinette Kowal
Publisher / Date: Tor Books, July 2020
Genre: Science Fiction, Alternate History
Page Count: 542
Completion Date: July 11, 2025

“The Fated Sky” Review

Posted on July 8, 2025 by admin

“The Fated Sky” (Lady Astronaut No. 2) by Mary Robinette Kowal

Mary Robinette Kowal continues the grand sweep of alternate history begun in The Calculating Stars, The Fated Sky looks forward to 1961, when mankind is well-established on the moon and looking forward to its next step: journeying to, and eventually colonizing, Mars.

Of course the noted Lady Astronaut Elma York would like to go, but there’s a lot riding on whoever the International Aerospace Coalition decides to send on this historic—but potentially very dangerous—mission? Could Elma really leave behind her husband and the chance to start a family to spend several years traveling to Mars? And with the Civil Rights movement taking hold all over Earth, will the astronaut pool ever be allowed to catch up, and will these brave men and women of all races be treated equitably when they get there? This gripping look at the real conflicts behind a fantastical space race will put a new spin on our visions of what might have been.

Review

When the author was originally writing the first book she realized that it would be better as two books instead of one. And this book really does feel like the second half of a two parter (with a little bit of a time jump). There were a lot of things I enjoyed about it – especially the details about the space program the author provides. On the other hand it does have more of the same problems as the first book with regard to how various issues are handled. In this book I do believe it’s intentional that Elma is written as a well intended but clueless White woman trying to support her Black colleges. It does make sense given the setting and the characters in question but I would have preferred something different.

Though to be fair I think a lot of my reactions from having been reading a lot of fiction from authors of color (and disabled authors) who do write things differently from the start. For one thing we’d be getting more of the perspective of people who will be stuck on Earth. While this book does address the idea that there are people who will never be able to make it into space for medical reasons, it never really goes into detail. Honestly with all that’s going on right now that’s actually the more interesting story. How would we actually help the people who won’t make it off Earth. This of course includes disabled people who will even more likely be left behind. It may not be the story the author wanted to focus on but I think it’s something that could have been addressed better.

All that said I do think the books tell an interesting story about a disaster requiring extreme measures to save humanity, and I like idea of a space program actually developing faster as a result. The crew’s trip to Mars and the troubles they faced were interesting. I’m not sure how I feel about one character that Elma had to deal with that she had a history with. His background paints to someone with darker intentions but the narrative doesn’t really address that. Though it probably works within the context of the setting being in the 60s. As with the first book the author included a section at the end that detailed the historical information that is relevant to the books which I liked as well.

Warnings and additional reviews can be found on the StoryGraph page for “The Fated Sky”.

Book Details

The cover of the fated sky is nearly sold orange with shades of yellow near the bottom, and depicts a black image of person in a spacesuit standing on the surface of a planet. The title is written one word on each line in the center of the cover and the authors name is at the top.

Author’s Website: Mary Robinette Kowal
Publisher / Date: Tor Books, August 2018
Genre: Science Fiction, Alternate History
Page Count: 384
Completion Date: July 6, 2025

“The Calculating Stars” Review

Posted on July 2, 2025 by admin

“The Calculating Stars” (Lady Astronaut No. 1) by Mary Robinette Kowal

On a cold spring night in 1952, a huge meteorite fell to earth and obliterated much of the east coast of the United States, including Washington D.C. The ensuing climate cataclysm will soon render the earth inhospitable for humanity, as the last such meteorite did for the dinosaurs. This looming threat calls for a radically accelerated effort to colonize space, and requires a much larger share of humanity to take part in the process.

Elma York’s experience as a WASP pilot and mathematician earns her a place in the International Aerospace Coalition’s attempts to put man on the moon, as a calculator. But with so many skilled and experienced women pilots and scientists involved with the program, it doesn’t take long before Elma begins to wonder why they can’t go into space, too.

Elma’s drive to become the first Lady Astronaut is so strong that even the most dearly held conventions of society may not stand a chance against her.

Review

I’m re-reading the first three books in this series so I can read newest book and so I can put the reviews on my site. I do have something of an old review on my Instagram from when I originally read the first book and started the second, but I’ve redone the review for the first book here and there will be reviews for the others.

I enjoyed reading this again, since it’s been a couple years I’d forgotten some details but many of my thoughts have stayed the same. I really liked the world building that went into this series and the way things were discussed among the characters. The author clearly did their research and had help creating this series as detailed at the end of the book. There is also a section at the end of the book that details some historical items that were used to help build the idea that this all could be possible. I do admit to wishing there had been more time spent on the world building and showing how things were developing throughout the country. The space program is important but perhaps a little more could have been said about the conditions on Earth in this book. Still I think it worked out well and because of the timing a lot of time did have to be spent dealing with the sexism and racism that existed. Different reasons for the same progress that needed to be made.

I like the main characters and I thought they were well done, but I felt like some of the other characters could have been developed more beyond their role as someone for Elma to learn from. In that regard I feel like the sexism was perhaps better handled than the racism. Woman didn’t have a lot of rights in the 50s and were treated as if they were fragile creatures who couldn’t possibly handle being in space. Elma was in the Women Air force Service Pilots program during World War 2 and is a mathematician so she gets to join the International Aerospace Coalition that forms after the strike but there are still many roadblocks in place.

On the racism aspect I think it’s decently handled from a white person’s point of view at least, though I would imagine there might be places where some Black readers might wish things were handled differently. As it stands the author handles things by having the main character constantly realizing what she’s missing. Though that might be intentional on the authors part with Elma being well intended but oblivious to wider issues that people are facing as she’s dealing with her own stuff. Elma and her husband are Jewish and have dealt with their own share of discrimination and the events of the second World War as well. I did like that Martin Luther King Jr. and the beginnings of the civil rights movements are also mentioned throughout the book, as the start of changes for Black people going into space. There’s an intent to deal with the racism alongside the sexism that works out well enough as the series goes on.

It does also have to be pointed out that because it’s the 50s its also pre all the advances made by disabled people in getting their rights in the United States as well. Many people with intellectual and developmental disabilities were locked away in institutions in the 50s. People with some physical disabilities faired somewhat better – the main character’s brother had polio as a child and uses crutches – but was well educated and had opportunities given to him as Elma had. There are a few other mentions of disability and mental health issues throughout the series (Elma also has an anxiety disorder) but not to a great detail. But a lot of that can be put down to how it was in the 50s. Disabled people were ignored unless they were already actively in the community working along side others and that was rare at the time.

While it’s not the story the author wanted to focus on there are a lot of obvious changes to where the disability rights movement will come from given who likely died when the meteorite struck. That said, other people will have lived and would have made the same choices they already were making in getting out of institutions and fighting to be seen and heard.

Warnings and additional reviews can be found on the StoryGraph page for “The Calculating Stars”.

Book Details

The Calculating Stars book cover. The cover is gradient with dark blue at the top to pale blue at the bottom with circle patters throughout he cover. At the bottom are black images of several women walking forwards, some have hats others doe nought most are in dresses or skirts. One might be riding a bicycle. The author's name is at the top with the title in the center.

Author’s Website: Mary Robinette Kowal
Publisher / Date: Tor Books, July 2018
Genre: Science Fiction, Alternate History
Page Count: 432
Completion Date: June 30, 2025

“Buffalo Is the New Buffalo” Review

Posted on August 31, 2024 by admin

“Buffalo Is the New Buffalo” by Chelsea Vowel

Powerful stories of “Metis futurism” that envision a world without violence, capitalism, or colonization.

Inspired by classic and contemporary speculative fiction, Buffalo Is the New Buffalo explores science fiction tropes through a Metis lens: a Two-Spirit rougarou (shapeshifter) in the nineteenth century tries to solve a murder in her community and joins the nehiyaw-pwat (Iron Confederacy) in order to successfully stop Canadian colonial expansion into the West. A Metis man is gored by a radioactive bison, gaining super strength, but losing the ability to be remembered by anyone not related to him by blood. Nanites babble to babies in Cree, virtual reality teaches transformation, foxes take human form and wreak havoc on hearts, buffalo roam free, and beings grapple with the thorny problem of healing from colonialism.

“Education is the new buffalo” is a metaphor widely used among Indigenous peoples in Canada to signify the importance of education to their survival and ability to support themselves, as once Plains nations supported themselves as buffalo peoples. The assumption is that many of the pre-Contact ways of living are forever gone, so adaptation is necessary. But Chelsea Vowel asks, “Instead of accepting that the buffalo, and our ancestral ways, will never come back, what if we simply ensure that they do?”

Indigenous futurisms seek to discover the impact of colonization, remove its psychological baggage, and recover ancestral traditions. These eight short stories of “Metis futurism” explore Indigenous existence and resistance through the specific lens of being Metis. Expansive and eye-opening, Buffalo Is the New Buffalo rewrites our shared history in provocative and exciting ways.

Review

I really enjoyed reading all of the stories in the book! The Locating Myself, Preface and Conclusion chapters are important to read as they give a lot of context for the kind of stories that are included. Something that is often ignored is that all of the stories about world ending invasions have already happened to many Indigenous populations. The stories in this book play on that concept in different ways. The introduction gives a short explanation for the stories included. Each story also includes an explanation of the story and several footnotes which are interesting to read as they give additional context for the story and the inspiration for them.

BUFFALO BIRD – I liked the way it played out though it was tricky keeping track of the story as it jumped between different times in the life of the shapeshifter character. Though I did think the different time and situations had a common thread that made it work.

MICHIF MAN – This one was interesting as it was split between a modern day academic presentation of whether or not Michif Man actually existed or was just a metaphor and then actual scenes from the character’s life. Interesting story!

DIRTY WINGS – This one is a dream / stream of consciousness story so it’s a bit tricky to get. It’s interesting though and I really enjoyed the explanation section for this one.

MAGGIE SUE – This one takes some work to get through because it’s a detailed story that the POV character is telling about an event that happened. The character isn’t the main character of the story but actually a side character who encounters the main character as they head off on a quest (basically). There’s a lot going on in the story with a few side stories as the character explains things and it does take work to follow along. Worth it though.

A LODGE WITHIN HER MIND – A pandemic story! Interesting take in the idea of being uploaded into a virtual reality and what it can mean for you afterwards. The ending of it is neat.

ÂNISKÔHÔCIKAN – This one has an interesting idea – using nanites to force all language heard by a person into Cree, from birth, in order to create more native speakers of the language. The story is short and it’s intended to raise more questions than answers as we only see the beginning years of the child’s life without a lot of detail. How will it work as the child grows up? There’s hints of the idea of how we claim that technology will save us but it never works without consequences.

I, BISON – This story takes the idea of digital uploads and expands on what it would mean in the context of spiritual connections to the body. It also explores the idea of disability or mental illness and what actually disabled us. I really liked the ideas presented and the explanation is after the story is interesting.

UNSETTLED – And this is the story that deals with the idea that Indigenous populations are already postapocalyptic. They’ve had their lands stollen and their people enslaved or killed. What would happen if they were given control back? What would it take for them to decide that it was worth whatever cost they had to make? It’s an interesting idea and makes an interesting point. The explanation afterwards is great too.

Warnings and additional reviews are available on the StoryGraph page for “Buffalo Is the New Buffalo”.

Book Details

Author’s Website: Chelsea Vowel
Publisher / Date: Arsenal Pulp Press, June 2022
Genre: Science Fiction, Short Stories
Page Count: 341
Completion Date: August 31, 2024

“Elatsoe” Updated Review

Posted on August 16, 2024 by admin

“Elatsoe” by Darcie Little Badger

Imagine an America very similar to our own. It’s got homework, best friends, and pistachio ice cream.

There are some differences. This America been shaped dramatically by the magic, monsters, knowledge, and legends of its peoples, those Indigenous and those not. Some of these forces are charmingly everyday, like the ability to make an orb of light appear or travel across the world through rings of fungi. But other forces are less charming and should never see the light of day.

Elatsoe lives in this slightly stranger America. She can raise the ghosts of dead animals, a skill passed down through generations of her Lipan Apache family. Her beloved cousin has just been murdered, in a town that wants no prying eyes. But she is going to do more than pry. The picture-perfect facade of Willowbee masks gruesome secrets, and she will rely on her wits, skills, and friends to tear off the mask and protect her family.

Review

When I read this last year I wasn’t in the best mood about books that had kids saving the world while adults are useless. I also must not have been as open to urban fantasy as I should have been, which resulted in an unfair review at the time. I decided to re-read it after reading “Sheine Lende” which is a prequel to “Elatsoe”.

I really enjoyed reading the book for the second time. The characters are great. And I do think the adults around Elatsoe are great too even though she does all the investigative work with her friend and solves the case. Her parents are very supportive of her gifts and how she uses them. I think I also failed to realize she’s actually seventeen the first time I read the book, so actually closer to being an adult than a child. For some reason I thought she as younger the first time around.

The setting is really interesting and the word building made more sense this time. I think in some places the details could have been explained a little more but there’s also a sense that things are secret as part of the cultures involved. There are a couple places where Elatsoe was thinking of her Sixth-Great Grandmother and the scene shifts right into a story about her. I think those instances could have been separated a little more. Especially in once case there is something serious happening to Elatsoe and story switches POV before returning to solving the initial situation Elatsoe is in.

It’s still a bit annoying that Elatsoe does almost all the work to solve everything. Her mother has the same gifts she does but can’t use them as well for some reason. I don’t know if that was explained or not? I might have missed that explanation like I missed why her father suddenly disappears after driving her to her cousins house. There’s actually a line in the book about how he needs to go back to work, but that wasn’t entirely clear after all his talk of believing her and wanting to help her find out what had happened. None of this impacts my overall feelings of enjoying the book and I’m glad I read it again.

Warnings and additional reviews are available on the StoryGraph page for “Elatsoe”.

Book Details

The cover is covered with white cloudy shapes of dogs with a young girl standing on the right side of the cover near the top. She is wearing a red coat and black pants and has long hair. The title is written out across one of the dogs.

Author’s Website: Darcie Little Badger
Publisher / Date: Levine Querido, August 2020
Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult
Page Count: 362 pages
Completion Date: Originally – August 4, 2023 / Re-Read – August 15, 2024

“Sheine Lende” Review

Posted on August 16, 2024 by admin

“Sheine Lende” by Darcie Little Badger

Shane works with her mother and their ghost dogs, tracking down missing persons even when their families can’t afford to pay. Their own family was displaced from their traditional home years ago following a devastating flood – and the loss of Shane’s father and her grandparents. They don’t think they’ll ever get their home back.

Then Shane’s mother and a local boy go missing, after a strange interaction with a fairy ring. Shane, her brother, her friends, and her lone, surviving grandparent – who isn’t to be trusted – set off on the road to find them. But they may not be anywhere in this world – or this place in time.

Nevertheless, Shane is going to find them.

Review

I really enjoyed this book and the characters. I thought this one worked a bit better than “Elatsoe” for which this is a prequel. The main thing that makes this one work better for me is that Shane isn’t surrounded by adults who know as much as she does or more. She actually is the only one with the specific type of training for how to find people the way her mother does. The primary adults in this book are grandparents of those who are missing and her own grandparent who isn’t as helpful as he should be, and then a few additional teenagers she knows. In general I think this book just feels like it works better in the sense of being a book where a younger person solves the day while adults can’t help.

I also felt like the world building was a little better in this book. A lot of things were explained more, or if not it as acknowledged that information was not available. The mimic rings are unknown to everyone in this situation as no one really knows why the exist. So Shane has to do the work of finding out what is going on and who might have the information. I really like how she handles everything while also looking after her little brother. I also like the friendships she has and develops along the way.

I really liked the resolution of everything with what had happened to her mother and also another person that disappeared years ago. The clues are there to be had, and while the solution was little more whimsical than I’d usually enjoy, it totally worked for this book.

Warnings and additional reviews are available on the StoryGraph page for “Sheine Lende”.

Book Details

Author’s Website: Darcie Little Badger
Publisher / Date: Levine Querido, April 2024
Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult
Page Count: 368
Completion Date: August 13, 2024

“Ring Shout” Review

Posted on February 24, 2024 by admin

“Ring Shout” by P. Djèlí Clark

In 1915, The Birth of a Nation cast a spell across America, swelling the Klan’s ranks and drinking deep from the darkest thoughts of white folk. All across the nation they ride, spreading fear and violence among the vulnerable. They plan to bring Hell to Earth. But even Ku Kluxes can die.

Standing in their way is Maryse Boudreaux and her fellow resistance fighters, a foul-mouthed sharpshooter and a Harlem Hellfighter. Armed with blade, bullet, and bomb, they hunt their hunters and send the Klan’s demons straight to Hell. But something awful’s brewing in Macon, and the war on Hell is about to heat up.

Can Maryse stop the Klan before it ends the world?

Review

This was a very cool short story. I really enjoyed the characters and the way everything played out. Maryse is a great character and I liked the development of her character as she learned more about what was going on and the resolution of everything. I liked that the story has a good resolution while still living things open for more. The fight isn’t over – because things never really end that way but this story has an ending that serves the purpose of the story.

Warnings and additional reviews are available on the StoryGraph page for “Ring Shout”.

Book Details

The cover of the book is read with a hooded KKK member in in the center the eye holes are ruined with teeth at the top and bottom. Black hands are held up in front of the figure. The authors name is near the top of the hood while the title is under the eye holes.

Author’s Website: P. Djèlí Clark
Publisher / Date: Tordotcom, October 2020
Genre: Alternate History, Fantasy
Page Count: 185
Completion Date: February 20, 2024