Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse (Book 1)

This book has one of my most favorite things in a story, and one of my least favorite things. Let's start with the good!

My love for non-linear structure is why I've never really gotten into kindle or audio, and this story not only checks that box, but combines a multi-POV, non-linear structure with a "time-bomb" style plot. It's the type of book I dive into head first and only come up for air when necessary. This story didn't draw out the mystery of the big event as much as others I've read, but it was still good.

I very much enjoyed the exploration of cultures too. I took a two part class on how to world build cultures at the Superstars Writing Conference and learned so much about how to dig deep to create believable cultures that don't just appropriate something that already exists. This is the first fantasy book I've read since that class, and it was a lot of fun analyzing it through my newly refined lens. You can see the stage being set for the inevitable clash of cultures and peoples.

One more thing I'm a sucker for is a character reveal that sends shivers down my spine. The first time I read such a scene was in one of The Wheel of Time books when Rand stands up in the inn and reveals himself as the Dragon Reborn to an unsuspecting Aes Sedai and a group of Two Rivers girls. That scene was a full body experience for me, and I've been chasing that high ever since. Serapio and Xiala's individual reveals didn't quite scratch that itch, but they were delicious in their own way.

But now we come to what is possibly my least favorite thing in a book: a surprise cliffhanger. I can usually handle them when I know they are coming, but this one hit me out of nowhere and I was left with a bunch of plot threads blowing in the wind. I knew this was a trilogy going in, but I wasn't ready for quite so many questions to be entirely unanswered at the end.

I did, however, buy the second book immediately. So the betrayal did its job, and that should be recommendation enough for you to read it on your own. Just consider this a warning that you'll want to have the second book nearby.

Overall, I very much enjoyed this queer-friendly fantasy novel and cannot wait to explore the world more in the next two books.

Buy it here and support a local bookstore!