“Make a way out of no way” is just the way of life for Rue. But when her mother is shot dead on her doorstep, life for her and her younger sister changes forever. Rue's taken from her neighborhood by the father she never knew, forced to leave her little sister behind, and whisked away to Ghizon—a hidden island of magic wielders.
Rue is the only half-god, half-human there, where leaders protect their magical powers at all costs and thrive on human suffering. Miserable and desperate to see her sister on the anniversary of their mother’s death, Rue breaks Ghizon’s sacred Do Not Leave Law and returns to Houston, only to discover that Black kids are being forced into crime and violence. And her sister, Tasha, is in danger of falling sway to the very forces that claimed their mother’s life.
Worse still, evidence mounts that the evil plaguing East Row is the same one that lurks in Ghizon—an evil that will stop at nothing until it has stolen everything from her and everyone she loves. Rue must embrace her true identity and wield the full magnitude of her ancestors’ power to save her neighborhood before the gods burn it to the ground.
I believe I found this one through Facebook and/or new release emails from my library. Since reading Legendborn last year I'm really interested in reading fantasy woven into and around Black traditions and experiences. Other than reading the summary blurb, I really had no idea what I was getting into, or just how much this book would dig its claws into me.
First, a couple things I gotta get off my chest. Rue was a blast to follow. Strong, independent (though mostly out of necessity), proud, loyal, inquisitive, and intelligent, she was everything I wanted in a YA fantasy heroine. I would have liked if she was a little nicer with her best friend, Bri, but I understood why she wasn't as chummy with her, what with only knowing each other a year at most. Still, without any other interactions with friends from her home, Bri was really the only gal friend we got to see, which made Rue seem more standoffish and opportunistic than I think the author intended.
Now, I was totally on board with this book focusing on Rue and her journey of discovery and self-discovery, and then suddenly a boy walks in at Chapter 15. I honestly found the flirting to be the weakest parts of this book whenever they came up. I know it's YA and hormones wait for no one, but I couldn't help but cringe, especially in the later chapters. I was like, how long have you known this boy? And do you really have time to focus on him right now? Not unexpected in a YA book in general, just kinda out of the blue considering all we'd already gone through and how high the stakes were at the time.
Another thing that kinda bugged me was the character death. It seemed more plot-required rather than character-based. With magic playing such a huge role in the story, I expected so much more to happen with fighting against their death, trying to bring them back, a Last Airbender Avatar-state-type moment or something, that when it just kinda happened with no fanfare whatsoever, I was left with frustration rather than sadness. It was like the mantra of “grow stronger in the pain” was too set in stone as a plot necessity, that Rue didn't even try to fight it. Again, frustrating and confusing, especially considering how much of a fighter Rue is.
Back on the positive front, I really enjoyed the exploration of magic and technology in Ghizon, though I do wish more had been done... I guess I enjoyed the idea more than the execution. Still, I'm excited to see more of the technological side of Ghizon, how everything works while being cut-off from the rest of the modern world.
Now to the real meat of things.
This book was uncomfortable to read, but kind of in the best way—if that makes sense? I liked Rue, and felt for her as she was uprooted not just once but twice from everything she thought she knew. I did think she was ill-prepared when she traveled back home without any arm/hand coverings, considering the danger that touching a human possessed, but I could let that slide.
Then she started fighting the Ghizoni government and the gang activity in East Row as an army of one with no firepower. It's not like I haven't seen it before—an altruistic freedom fighter dead set on bringing down the villain no matter the personal cost—but Rue just seemed more pragmatic and street smart to go do something as stupid as spying on gang leaders without backup, magical or otherwise.
And then Rue learns the dark truth behind what's happening in Ghizon, and that's where the discomfort began. Rue immediately decides to bring Bri into the fold, needing backup and support from her ride-or-die best friend. But when Bri isn't immediately on board, they have a falling out. It's not like it's a new concept, isolating the heroine so she can rise even higher later on. Thing is, I was on Bri's side.
No, I didn't support everything Bri said, especially when she wished she hadn't enabled Rue to start this whole series of events, but I got where she was coming from. I may have been following along with Rue for her story, but I connected with Bri, the academic, the techie, the quirky nerd. I could understand her reluctance at accepting Rue's statements as fact—after all, this girl had only been on Ghizon a year, had never seen magic before, didn't even attend most history or technical classes, was passing on information from people Bri had no proof still existed, and started talking about having visions, yet expected Bri to accept all she said, going against everything she'd ever known to be true, as fact? There's ride-or-die friendship, and then there's healthy skepticism.
And as the reader, even knowing everything Rue had gone through, had been told, had been shown, I still found myself siding with Bri. I think most of it comes back to “proof”. Just as Bri had no proof that the people Rue was quoting even existed, I had no proof that what they were saying was fact. To avoid spoiling too much, I'll keep the specifics vague, and just say that the main argument was concerning magic. Though, that probably needs its own explanation...
I'm no stranger to nebulous magic systems in fantasy stories, but I had problems with this one. From the very first chapter, in which we are told that if Rue touches a human all her memories are instantly transferred, I just didn't get it. When magic became more technology-based, in that it was centered in the onyx stones embedded in their wrists, and could be deactivated using a central computer system, the memory transferal was even less understandable. And then when this new revelation about magic came to light, still without any explanation (literally described with “somehow,” “I don't know,” and “I have my own theories”) I admit my skepticism was at an all-time high.
So, in supporting Bri, a pale-skinned person, in her assertion that maybe Rue, a Black person, didn't know what she was talking about in regards to magic, was I being racist? Again, I didn't support everything she said about essentially wishing Rue hadn't started this whole chain of events, exposing this new information. But there was still a part of me that didn't believe—didn't want to believe—that everything Rue and her people were asserting was true. Because I felt sorry for Bri? Because I connected to her more? Because I didn't want to see her hurt for something that wasn't her fault?
Like I said, I was majorly uncomfortable reading this, connecting to the (literally) empowered side even with all the evidence laid in front of me. (Well, not all evidence, but I assume that will be further explained in the sequels.) But I'm glad I was uncomfortable. I'm glad that Bri's conflict was included, that I connected with her, that I struggled (and continue to struggle) alongside her. And I'm excited to see her journey continue along with Rue into future books.
I know, I know, this isn't her/my story, stop making it about her/me. But I'm grateful nonetheless.
Overall, I highly recommend this book. This was the first book about the Black experience and systemic racism that had me legitimately questioning my own views and prejudices by offering some conflicts in shades of gray. As a debut novel, there are some rough edges still to be worked out, but I'm trusting details (like with magic and the title of the book) will be further addressed in the upcoming sequel(s). If you're interested in or looking to get into YA fantasy, social justice reform, Afrofuturism, or other subjects concerning Black experiences, this one is definitely worth a read. I, for one, am definitely going to be returning to this series as soon as I can.
Read by Bahni Turpin
Unabridged Length: 11.7 Hours
Listened at 2x Speed
Unabridged Length: 11.7 Hours
Listened at 2x Speed
I don't know why I had so much trouble with this audiobook compared to others, but I did. I don't think it was anything inherently wrong with Ms. Turpin's reading, but for some reason I had a hard time differentiating the internal thoughts/narration from Rue's spoken voice. If I didn't have the text right in front of me—during the couple times I rested my eyes—there were times I thought Rue said some really hurtful stuff out loud. It could have had something to do with the text itself lacking many of the "I said" clarifiers from dialogue sections, so I don't know that there was much that could be done.
Overall, a good audiobook to clarify pronunciations, especially of the Ghizoni language which comes up often, but possibly not for the audio-only crowd. Ms. Turpin does a phenomenal job bringing Rue's voice to life, but perhaps a little too good. Due to the lack of clarity between the main character's internal thoughts and her spoken dialogue, at least to my ear, I don't know that it would be the easiest to listen to without the text showing which is which.
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