From the New York Times bestselling author of Star Wars: Resistance Reborn comes the “engrossing and vibrant” (Tochi Onyebuchi, author of Riot Baby) 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 … 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 even 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 a “brilliant world that shows the full panoply of human grace and depravity” (Ken Liu, award-winning author of The Grace of Kings). This epic adventure explores 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 this “absolutely tremendous” (S.A. Chakraborty, nationally bestselling author of The City of Brass) and most original series debut of the decade.
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Wow, this was a fun read.
When I read the description, it hit a lot of high marks. Non-European fantasy setting. Politicking clergy. Major solar event. Adventures on the high seas.
And it delivered that and more! Roanhorse lays the story out in clean, easy-to-follow prose that sucked me in and sang to me. I quickly found myself planning my weekend around when I could get to the book.
Some of my favorite parts included the exploration of the Teek culture. I’m very interested in Polynesian history (which it’s based on), and I have a manatee tattoo. So, Xiala was immediately a standout character for me.
Often, I’ll read the first book in a series and I can tell that I don’t need to go further. That’s not the case here. I hope Black Sun’s sequel comes quickly!
This book is just….wow! Rebecca Roanhorse has done it again. The back stories and character development is on point. Her incredible skills in world building shine through in Black Sun. I was loving the blood magic, and the other magical elements throughout the story were fantastic.
There is so much I can go into but I still haven’t been able to collect all my thoughts since finishing it last night. What I can tell you is that, holy shit, THIS is the way to start a series and it’s going to drive me crazy waiting for book two.
I have both the e-galley and the ALC for Black Sun, and started by alternating between the two, but the cast for the audiobook is so freaking incredible that I ended up just listening to the book. I felt fully immersed into the stort and I was totally invested. The amazing cast of the audiobook is:
Cara Gee, Nicole Lewis, Kaipo Schwab, & Shaun Taylor-Corbett.
Black Sun is a high fantasy/ historical fantasy, that releases Tues, Oct. 13, and I highly recommend you RUN to get this one if you like fantasy at all. I feel this could also be a wonderful introduction into the fantasy genre. I’ve already pre-ordered a copy for myself and as gifts, because I have a feeling this is going to be one of those series that I’ll cherish.
Huge thanks to Saga Press, Netgalley, and Libro.fm for my gifted copies in exchange for my honest opinions.
Whoa. I did NOT expect this story to end the way it did, but I want to read Book 2 NOW!!!
Great characters, amazing world-building and excellent plot points. The magic and the sorcery balances this fantasy between fantasy and magic realism (I’ll explain more in my review).
Complete RTC! Go read this book!!!
Black Sun is an epic fantasy adventure unlike anything I’ve ever read. This pre-Columbian inspired fantasy will take you on a high stakes ride with bisexual mermaids, crow gods, sun priest, sailors on a voyage, forbidden magic, political intrigue with our four diverse cast of main characters on a mystical quest to stop a celestial prophecy.
Reasons to add to your TBR:
It’s a high stakes political intrigue and rivalries
The worldbuilding, inspired by various Indigenous cultural influences, is excellent, sharp, innovative and expansive. And the prose is absolutely vivid and vibrant which really brings this fantasy to life. Rebecca Roanhorse proves she has the range.
Complex and fully developed (morally grey) characters
The rep. One of the MCs is nonbinary whom prefers neo-pronouns (xe/xir) to which the characters respect. Another MC is bisexual. The casual queerness is commonplace in their non-cis/heteronormative society and it’s very much appreciated. There’s nuanced disability rep as well which was also handled with care (i.e. the author hired sensitivity readers).
The story revolves around the winter solstice, a time for celebration and renewal, however this one will coincide with a solar eclipse which is a rare celestial event that tips the balance of their world.
Black Sun is easily one of the best books I’ve read this year, or of all time. Find out more: https://www.emptyxkingdom.com/2020/10/story-diary-black-sun-by-rebecca-roanhorse.html