I was really intrigued to start Son of the Storm by Suyi Davies Okungbowa and thrilled to receive the title in advance from NetGalley and Orbit.

Reviews are so personal, and I have read plenty of people raving about this epic tail. I'm really gutted not to be one of those people.

There is plenty that is promising and truly wonderful about this book, the premise (in a world where skin colour defines your rank, we follow Danso, a high born 'Shashi' of mixed heritage) and the worldbuilding being the main two. But there are are three big reasons why these were not enough for me to enjoy the book.

The first is the worldbuilding. It was phenomenal and so in depth, but this was also its undoing. The start, especially, strayed into info-dump territory and instead of learning of the incredible West-Africa-inspired world through the eyes of the characters, we're simply given all the information. This meant that instead of spending the first half of the book getting to the know characters, I was pushed away from them to concentrate on the world. As I lover of character-driven fantasy, this was a real draw back for me.

The second was the pacing. I actually really enjoyed the last 30% of the book - the pacing here was spot on, there was tension and the characters started to shine. However, in the first third, I found myself wondering when the story was going to start. It was such a shame as initially I loved the main character - Danso, an idealistic academic with a penchant for accidentally getting himself into trouble (reminded me a bit of Ali from the Daevabad books).

The final point is a big one for me. As I mentioned, I really love character-driven fantasy novels and in Son of the Storm I just couldn't really feel for the characters. I loved the idea of Danso, but the slow start drained away my enthusiasm. Esheme - Danso's 'intended' or bethrothed - has a really interesting arc and by the end I was quite engaged with her. Lilong - a magic wielder from an island of hated people - should be compelling as she is the one character with a definable 'quest', but I couldn't consistently engage with her. There were also a lot of POVs. I like multiple POV stories, but the head jumping really watered down my engagement with the main characters.

As I say, these opinions are entirely personal - the book just wasn't for me. However if you're a fan of novels that really focus on worldbuilding (perhaps if you enjoy Brandon Sanderson?), this could be an enjoyable read for you. The world has so much potential, and there were some great moments of wisdom from Biekemwese. The moral conundrum that Danso finds himself in is really compelling, and I wish the author had spent more time in his head so we could work through it with him.

Overall, I've given 2.5 stars. I'm still a little bit intrigued about where the series will go - the story is left poised in a place that has the potential to lead somewhere epic. And, please, let's all take a moment to take in that cover - breathtaking!

I think there's a lot of potential in this story as the world building and the character development are excellent.
Unfortunately the story didn't keep my attention and fell flat.
I will try to read another book in this series as I think it could be my current mood not the book.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Son of the Storm is the first in a new series by Suyi Davies Okungbowa set in a rich West African based society.

When reviewers read books and subsequently post reviews, we attempt to convey our own interactions with the books. What captured our imagination, our level of engagement with the book and the emotive impact that it had to make us feel the way that we do.

Sometimes a book hits right to the very heart of all these things, and sometimes it misses. I suppose what I am trying to say is that whatever we write, positive or negative, the review is about the reviewer's own opinion, and whilst is not necessarily correct, it is how they feel.

Unfortunately, Son of the Storm did not hit the mark for me. I know a lot of reviewers will say “I really wanted to like this book” and I think that you can guess, that is pretty obvious because that is why I clamoured to review this book, and I am indebted to Netgalley and the publishers Orbit for a chance to review this book

There are a lot of positives in Son of the Storm, such as Suyi Davies Okungbowa’s vibrant voice that is prominent throughout this book. He writes with a distinctive voice that you can immediately grasp the vocal tones that the characters are speaking with.

In addition to that, he has created a world that is full of colour and it was one of the things that struck me with its vivacity.

He also describes a rich socio-political system that is complex and at times quite oppressive in its insular vision.

However, as I have said, I failed to make a connection with this book. It does have a lot of positive points, but I just could not get emotionally invested in the story. I have learnt in my time that sometimes this happens. Sometimes, a book fails to click and attach itself at the basest level. This led me to have difficulty with the book and rather than a growing investiture in the plot, | found myself becoming more and more detached from the book.

There is a multi-point of view in relation to characters. Again, this was one of the areas I had problems. I could not relate to the main character of Danso and found myself not caring about what happened to the character in the story.

The breakout character for me was Esheme and her constant striving to increase her status. As a result of this, she will do anything. She is a dichotomy of characteristics. On the one hand, she is highly passionate about her standing, and on the other, she is cold and dispassionate, and in her ambition she finds herself being led down a dark path.

As the story progresses, the character of Lilong is introduced, and similarly, as with Danso, I found it hard to connect.

On the whole, I found a Son of Storms a mixed bag. Whilst there were positives, such as the vibrant world, the complex socio-political system and Suyi Davies Okunbowa’s distinctive voice but the book, unfortunately, did not grab me and narratively whisk me away

As I said at the beginning of this review, as a blogger the main thing that I try to convey is my opinion. There are times that I hope that you will agree with what I write. However, on this occasion, whilst I hope you understand that this is my perspective, I hope that you disagree with everything I say.

Oh my word, but I loved this book! The setting alone is worth 5 stars, as is the writing. I found "Son of the Storm" to be a deeply immersive story, with very well developed characters, a world that feels solid, and did I mention the setting? I did? Well, it's superb! Did I mention the writing? Oh, okay... You really need to sink yourself into this book and appreciate its brilliance.

My thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley. This review was written voluntarily and is entirely my own, unbiased, opinion.

Son of the Storm is a book that grew on me. In part, it had to grow, because I was in the wrong mood for new fantasy worlds (you know how sometimes, the thought of paying attention to all that new information is just...a lot), but I stuck with it, read it in chunks, and ended up loving it just as much as I’d expected to, based on what I’d read of the author’s work previously.

The story follows three main POVs, with occasional chipping in from side characters: Danso, Esheme and Lilong. Danso is a scholar, but barely tolerated on account of the fact that his mother was an outside. Esheme, his betrothed, is the daughter of the city’s fixer, but who wants power for herself. Lilong is in the city to retrieve something stolen from her. Over the course of the story, their paths intersect and come to oppose one another.

Firstly, what I loved most about this book was Esheme’s arc. I say loved, I don’t mean I loved her specifically, because she’s kind of awful in the worst way, but I loved that she just. Got to be so awful. She’s entirely ruthless in her quest for power, and unapologetically villainous, and I loved that. The narrative definitely views her as the villain, I felt, so I’m not expecting a happy ending for her, but she had such a fun arc to read in that respect. Even as I hated her (but in a good way). And she’s sapphic, and I always want to read more villainous sapphics.

And then there’s Danso, aka the himbo of my heart. His were probably the favourite chapters of mine to read, in all honesty. He’s the one I’m most excited to see in the next book, what with his sudden...let’s say change in circumstances. And the undead beast he commands. Gotta be honest here, I love the trope of a character gaining some sort of familiar.

What I would say about this book is that it had to grow on me. As I said at the start, I took a little while to get into it, but then once I had, I binged the last two thirds of the book in just a few hours. The build up to the ending is as exquisite as the ending itself, guaranteed to make you gasp out loud, because Suyi Davies Okungbowa doesn’t believe in some kind of mercy for his readers. You think characters are safe, but they’re really, really not. It’s the sort of ending that makes you nervously anticipatory of what comes next.

So, overall then, if you’re looking for an adult fantasy to pick up in May, I would highly recommend it be this one.

This was one of my most anticipated reads of 2021. I loved the author's debut so I had high hopes for this one but I just didn't enjoy it as much as I thought I would.

The world building is definitely fascinating, but I wasn't able to escape into it, a lot of work went into character development but I couldn't care for any of the characters.

Plot-wise, I didn't have a nice time. I realized that anytime I stopped reading, I didn't feel the urge to go back. I just finished this book because I had hope it would get better for me but it didnt.

Firstly, the cover for this book in phenomenal, and a big part of why I requested a copy in the first place. Unfortunately, it didn’t live up to my expectations, but I still have a lot of good things to say about it. In this review I’ll attempt to keep it as positive as I can, but I do want to explain my disappointments, so that others can decide for themselves.

The book is told through multiple points of view, the main ones being Danso, Zaq, Esheme, and Lilong, though there are a few others that appear here and there. Danso is a scholar, and probably the brightest in his age group, but he constantly faces difficulties because he is Shashi, which means that one of his parents was either from the Savanna Belt or one of the islands. People from that side of the continent are paler, and so are regarded as less by the people of Bassa on the mainland, who see the perfect colour as being the closest to humus, the organic component of the soil from which the gods formed them. So essentially Danso is mixed race, and so despite being in an elevated position in society, he does not get the respect reserved for his order.

One of the really interesting things Okungbowa has done with all of his point of view characters is make them outsiders to the higher castes in some way or another, and through this he explores class, race, and societal structure in very powerful ways. Esheme, for example, is Danso’s intended (as in they will be joined soon), and though she is the right caste because of her colour and education, she is looked down upon because her mother Nem (also a point of view character) came from a lower caste and works as a fixer, which means she helps people sort out their problems for the right price. Fixers are both feared and looked down upon, and Esheme wants to break away from that disrespect in any way she can.

Zaq, meanwhile, is from the Savanna Belt, and is essentially an indentured servant, and he works as Danso’s Second, a bodyguard/manservant. Zaq wasn’t always enjoyable to read, but he’s a very interesting character because through him we get to see the perspective of someone who is being used by Bassa, yet who holds a great allegiance to the country oppressing him, and he has to deal with his feelings as he gets dragged away from the city as a fugitive because of Danso’s actions.

Lastly, there is Lilong who was the character I was most looking forward to hearing from, because she is the catalyst for everything. She is a yellowskin from the Nameless Islands, which are believed to no longer exists, and she and her people wield a great and dangerous magic. She appears properly at the end of the first section, which I flew through, and becomes a point of view character from section two onwards. She also offers an interesting dynamic as someone who has grown up hating Bassa for their hatred and slaughter of her people, and now she has to come to terms with travelling with a Bassai who wants to befriend and understand her. While I did enjoy her and Danso’s development, a lot of her chapters felt a little repetitive.

In fact, overall, this story was extremely slow-paced, especially in the ‘fantasy road trip’ (for want of a better term) part of it. When Danso, Zaq, and Lilong find themselves on the run, I thought things would speed up for them and become exciting, but instead they stay in one place for several chapters. Sure, there is some development between these characters that have been thrown together, but I’m not sure how much it warranted the pause. Where the action stays fast-paced is actually back in Bassa, where Esheme’s mother becomes incapacitated, so that she has to step into the role and finds herself caught in the trap Nem’s actions have caused. She acts decisively, and a lot happens during her chapters. Then, just as her story had gripped me again, the point of view would change to someone else.

I am a big fan of many points of view, and love getting to know each character, but the way this was structured threw me off continuously, and messed up the pacing. Which is what my disappointment boils down to, in the end: pacing. The story is good, the characters are interesting, the world-building is incredible, but most of the time I couldn’t tell where the plot was going and was getting frustrated at the characters going round in circles in their own minds. It got to the point that, at the end of part three, I was convinced the book had finished, because the last line had the feeling of a conclusion, and then I realised I was only 80% of the way through! I know this isn’t helped by the format, which is eBook, and I do try to account for that, but it was still draining.

As I’ve mentioned, though, the world-building is really really good. Even in the prologue, which throws you straight into the world full of unfamiliar (to me) words, the way Okungbowa works in the history, geography, and language is done in the perfect balance so that the reader is a little lost by but still intrigued. This continues throughout the book, especially in Danso’s chapters; because he is a scholar, he often refers to texts of history or legend which give the world a much bigger feel, and make me want to explore it further. I mean, there are two moons! How cool is that? And there are some really cool things with the sea, which I’m hoping we get to see more of in the future. The attention to detail is impressive, and it’s always exciting for me to enter a fantasy world that veers away from the typical medieval Europe, which is happening more and more.

So overall, though I did spend some of my time dragging myself through the slow parts of the narrative and yelling at the characters to get a move on, I am glad I read this book, and will probably keep an eye out for the second one next year; perhaps it will elevate my opinion of Son of the Storm. Two of my favourite characters were actually minor ones (Biemwensé – grumpy badass older woman – and Igan – gender neutral warrior), and if there is more of them I’ll be happy.

From one of the most exciting new storytellers in epic fantasy comes a sweeping tale of violent conquest and forgotten magic where a young scholar's ambition threatens to reshape an empire. This is an intricate, clever and powerful story, that pulls you into a richly detailed world layered in secrets. Danso is both a clever and foolish academic (and honestly a mess) who just can’t stop asking questions and reading forbidden books. The story is packed with politics and betrayal, a vibrant magic system, forests that hunt you and unforgiving cities. Definitely pick this one up if you like your fantasies complex and thoughtful!

"Son of the Storm" is a solid fantasy novel that kept me entertained and introduced me to a cultural context that I'm not used to in the fantasy literature I've consumed so far. The story is heavily inspired by West-African culture and mythology and is really intriguing. The world building is really well done, but at times I did feel a little overwhelmed. It's a vibrant, highly complex world that is so interesting to read about, but the complexity can become confusing at times. It admittedly took me a while to get into this book because there are so many explanations in the beginning, so many unknown words and names are used and introduced that it kept me from just diving right into this new world.

The characters are very distinct and I enjoyed reading their different perspectives. They have their unique voices in their respective pov chapters. They aren't entirely fleshed out though, in my opinion, which can at least partly be blamed on the fact that there are some pov characters that felt superfluous - personally, I think that the book would have benefitted from a clearer focus on the three biggest characters, Danso, Lilong and Esheme, instead of adding pov chapters for too many other, less important characters. Some of them get about one or two chapters only that really didn't add much, if anything, to the story overall. In the end, most of these characters don't leave a lasting impression at all and their chapters take away from the main three who could have used more time and space to live up to their potential. I don't really feel connected to them, neither to the big three nor to any of the other characters.

The writing and prose are accessible and lush, though sometimes a little rough. Characters constantly frown and kiss one's teeth, which got pretty repetitive at some point because surely all these different characters don't show the same kind of mannerisms all the time. There are also some pacing issues. There are bursts of action where a lot happens in a small amount of time, and then there are long stretches of nothing really happening at all that had me skim through whole pages because I got a little bored.

The cultural richness, the vivid world, the interesting magic system and the potential of the characters is really what makes "Son of the Storm" a recommendation. While this book has issues it is still an intriguing beginning of a new series and I will at least check out the sequel when it's released.

I really enjoyed this book. The strength was by far the story. It is an epic fantasy and even though its slow paced it was still great - some twists and turns in the narrative were completely unexpected. I think there could be better character development, there were some drastic chanegs in behaviour that for me were either not believable or at least not many seeds were sewn in advance to accept that views had changed over such a short period. Other than that I was entirely enveloped in the story throughout and wanted to know what happened next. I loved Oon and the lore / history of the continent. All the peoples and the social structure were put together in a coherent manner and I never felt like I was being told something for the sake of it. The slow growth of the main character makes sense given that its a trilogy - I don't know what to expect in the next book but am really looking forward to it.

Son of the Storm is a novel that explores class oppression, the price of magic and a powerful empire set to destroy the history and culture of the land of Oon. Filled with a great cast of characters, an interesting magic system (including necromancy!!) it is a new release you don't want to miss!!

We mainly follow 3 main characters (see below) but there is an excellent side cast as well:

Danso - Danso is a great character to follow, he is the disaster scholar genius of my heart. I love it when characters are super intelligent but at the same time completely lack any comon sense lol. Danso is a Jali scholar in training at the start of the novel and engaged to Esheme, but is feeling like he doesn't belong and wants leave Bassai and seek out his mothers people. Danso is a Shashi (someone who is mixed raced) and is looked down on because of this, so wants to find a place he can truly belong. This leads him to a potenially ill advised quest, and he realises that actions have consequences and that he can't rush headlong into everything. His growth throughout the book was really great, I was very proud of him by the end and it is almost a coming of age story seeing him grow into a young man and take on and acknowlege his own responsiblities. I also really enjoyed his growing friendship with Lilong and how they complient each other, one being slighly naive and optimistic and the other being world weary and cynical.

Esheme - Esheme's arc throughout the book was one of my favourites to follow, as I love a good female villain and descend into villainy arc. At the start of the book she is seemingly quite an innocent character, Danso's long suffering bethrothed and daughter of Nem, Bassai's "fixer" (think olivia pope). Throughout the book she gains more power for herself and becomes quite ruthless with it, eventually discovering the secrets to red ibor herself and using it as a tool for her rise to power and hunting Danso and his allies down.

Lilong - A mysterious foreinger, known as a yellowskin, she arrives in Bassai and causes chaos with her arrival. She is someone who will stop at nothing to protect the secrets of her people and the ibor magic(Islanders who were thought to have died out). She ends up on the run with Danso and seeing two characters from very different backgrounds work together was really fun to read about. I really enjoyed her character, she had the perfect balance of cynicism, kindness and drive.

The magic system is very interesting and I loved how it tied in and was the driving force for the plot. We have a magcial stone called Ibor, and red ibor can grant the user basically necromancy (to power to animate dead animals/people). Danso discovers he is able to use the red ibor, as does Esheme and this leads to a series of dramatic events and eventually a showdown between them.

I was reading in an author interview at the end that Suyi Davies Okungbowa wanted to focus not on warrior characters, but on characters who use their skills in other, quieter ways, like scholars, politicians, fixers, archivists etc. I think this really showed in the book and was one of my favourite parts of the book, how these characters rose to the challenges that faced them in clever and intricate ways. I think it distinguishes the book from a lot of popular fantasy that is just sword wielding badasses (although don't get me wrong I love a good woman with a sword) where violence solves all problems. Whereas in this book the charcaters actually have to think of creative ways to get themselves out of situations.

I loved the setting of the book, especially the sections set in the breathing forest and the dead mines, often a lot of political fantasies are set mostly in cities (and we do see a bit of that) but I loved extra elements of world building, the author has truly created such a vibrant and expansive world that I can't wait to see explored in later sequels.

In conclusion a really enjoyable start to a new fantasy series, full of interesting magic and creatures, nuanced politics and ambitious cut-throat women, disaster scholars and prose that will keep you engaged and wanting to find out the next secret!

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Son of the Storm was an enjoyable read and I am very much looking forward to seeing what happens in the next instalment.

The characters were varied, interesting and with great character arcs. The description of the people and their culture is really different (exotic almost) and believable. The world building is also a strength in the book with the author creating a rich and magical world that has enough realism in it to be believable. The main city has a caste system where the rich become richer and the poorest, the furthest from the palace, live on scraps. I quite enjoyed the fact that the main characters aren't from the richest and poorest castes but somewhere in-between. The magic system is very different from anything I've read before and I look forward to seeing how it develops.

At times I found it hard to get into the story, mainly at the start, so 4 stars overall.

With Thanks to Suyi Davies Okungbowa and Orbit for an advanced readers copy of this book.

Take all the stars - all of them.

I adored this book! Everything about it was just fantastic, Orbit have really impressed me recently I don't think I've had an arc I didn't like for a while. Plus the active diversity being shown both in their author selection and through book picks needs to be mentioned.

This is a Multi-POV book, with each chapter following a different character.

The 3 we get to know best are;
-Danso -a scholar.
-Esheme -an ambitious climber.
-Lilong -a traveler, motivated by revenge.

Each is a well rounded, fleshed out and flawed character, who brings their own unique storylines. I can't in good faith choose which one I liked best. they all are shades of grey.

As for the rest of the book, fantastic world building, great pacing, engaging storyline and I can't not mention that cover!

A triumph.

It is a very simple and not too original and quite predictable fantasy story, infused with West African flavours. I did struggle reading it, not too much is happening, major events in the story manage to start and end within the whole page or two. Not looking forward to book two.

Son of the Storm and I...we aren't vibing. That is not me saying this book is bad, far from it. The author's writing is pretty solid and the setting is vividly rendered. Alas, the book is not so great when it comes to the world-building, story, and characters. I need to feel something (positive or negative) for the characters in order to be invested in a story. And here, well I didn't feel much of anything. The main guy is bland and kind of dumb (two other characters point this out but the fact remains: the boy is thick), than we have a female BadAss-BossBitch who reminded me of a character I absolutely did not care from <i>An Ember in the Ashes</i>, and a few generic side characters (the big silent guy, the girl on a mission for her people).
I just wasn't feeling anything but I'd rather not give this book a low rating. If you are interested in reading this I recommend you checkout more positive reviews.

Whoa!
I liked it! The world is SO vibrant. The different cultures, complex caste systems, characters who are BADDIES, a naive scholar, a skin changing warrior -- everything and everyone leap off the pages. I maybe enjoyed Danso's chapters the most. Seriously, the book needed more Danso.

The magic system is very interesting and I can't wait to learn more about it.

Now, onto negatives--- there is something off with the pacing. Even though the tone of the book is quite slow a lot happens at a very short time and maybe we didn't need so many pov characters. It could have been more subtle. The prose is a bit rough and I didn't like some of the phrases but it was engaging nonetheless.

But, I AM looking forward to the sequel and THAT cover is dope!