Black Sun

Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse
Published by Saga Press on October 13, 2020
Genres: Fantasy
Pages: 464
Format: eARC
Goodreads

From the New York Times bestselling author of Star Wars: Resistance Reborn comes the first book in the Between Earth and Sky trilogy, inspired by the civilizations of the Pre-Columbian Americas and woven into a tale of celestial prophecies, political intrigue, and forbidden magic.
A god will return
When the earth and sky converge
Under the black sun
In the holy city of Tova, the winter solstice is usually a time for celebration and renewal, but this year it coincides with a solar eclipse, a rare celestial event proscribed by the Sun Priest as an unbalancing of the world.
Meanwhile, a ship launches from a distant city bound for Tova and set to arrive on the solstice. The captain of the ship, Xiala, is a disgraced Teek whose song can calm the waters around her as easily as it can warp a man’s mind. Her ship carries one passenger. Described as harmless, the passenger, Serapio, is a young man, blind, scarred, and cloaked in destiny. As Xiala well knows, when a man is described as harmless, he usually ends up being a villain.
Crafted with unforgettable characters, Rebecca Roanhorse has created an epic adventure exploring the decadence of power amidst the weight of history and the struggle of individuals swimming against the confines of society and their broken pasts in the most original series debut of the decade.

I sat here trying to start this review for like 30 minutes and had no idea what to say. Mostly because I was stuck thinking about how the book itself started, and how my review will pale in comparison to the impact of that first chapter.

I’ll start with the obvious, and the basics. Black Sun is a brutal, intense, and immersive novel set in a high fantasy world inspired by cultures of the pre-Columbian Americas. That alone should honestly make you want to read it, since we all know that high fantasy is oversaturated with worlds inspired by medieval Europe. DIVERSIFY YOUR READING!!!

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Characters

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I had two favorite parts of this story. No, three? Maybe four? Idk y’all this was just really good. There are so many things to love. Let’s start with the cast of characters, which ties in to how the story is told. There are the two main characters that are introduced in the synopsis – Serapio and Xiala. The novel also follows a woman named Naranpa, who is the Sun Priest, and Okoa, the son of the matron of the clan Carrion Crow.

Following multiple storylines tends to be something that you either love or hate (from talking with friends) but I implore you to read this book even if you think you don’t like multiple perspectives. The stories all weave in with one another quite quickly, and it never feels like one is unimportant or useless. The characters themselves are all complex and interesting, and it feels like there are very few clear cut good guys and bad guys. I like that, at it seems so much more realistic – everyone has their own view on things and nothing is ever that easy. Also!! We love to see casual queer characters! We have canon trans, nonbinary, third gender, and generally non-heterosexual characters everywhere – as it SHOULD be.

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Narrative Structure and Style

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I mentioned that the story follows a few different characters, which is one of the main narrative structures, but the other is that the story has interspersed flashback chapters. I like this way of learning about the characters (mostly Serapio) as it kept me on the edge of my seat and it helps to reveal the complexity of his personality.

Roanhorse’s writing style is clear and beautiful, and it makes it so easy to picture what is happening. The descriptions are perfect, and I never found them to be over the top. I am also impressed with the research she has done to craft her fantasy world. It is easy to see how inspiration from different cultures was woven in. One example is that at sea, Xiala uses navigation by stars, just as the Polynesian indigenous cultures have done. I haven’t read her other novels, but after this one I am definitely going to be buying them.

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The End. Read this book.

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Anyway, as usual, this review is just me rambling about a bunch of stuff that I love. This book is great!! GO get it, and read it. And support indigenous authors.

I will note that I am not indigenous, blind, or LGBT+ so I cannot speak to the rep of those.