Omar Epps

I received an advance copy via NetGalley. Also, this book's co-author, Clarence A. Haynes, was my developmental editor on two books, so I approach this read with considerable positive bias.

Nubia: The Reckoning continues soon after the first entry of this duology, breathing life into an intriguing future New York City ravaged by climate change and deepening class and racial divides. Nubians, refugees from an African nation long hidden from the world, have had their superpowers exposed in show more dramatic fashion. The 'sky king' of the former NYC, Krazen St. John, wants to use Nubians as his private super soldiers. Two Nubian teenagers, Uzochi and Zuberi, want only safety and security for their people as they start their own tentative romantic relationship. Uzochi's cousin, Lencho, has gone from drug-dealing on the streets to being a disgruntled agent of St. John, and has become increasingly unstable. Meanwhile, St. John's own daughter craves her own chance at respect and power.

The book is a fast read as it hops between its four perspectives. The world feels both familiar and innovative, and wow, there are some major twists. There's a huge event in the middle of the book that made my jaw really drop. Such a great series. show less

Disclaimer straight up: the co-author, Clarence A. Haynes, has also worked as my developmental editor on two books. I hold him in the utmost respect, and therefore approached this book with faith that it'd be excellent.... and it is. My copy is signed by Omar Epps and was purchased at Pearl's Books in Fayetteville, Arkansas.

Nubia: The Awakening is a fast, breathless read, spinning familiar tropes about futuristic high inner city high schools all around. The climate apocalypse occurred, the show more mass flooding and weather changes overturning governments and destroying countries entirely. Many well-off people have 'Ascended,' living in cities up on high. The former financial district of New York City has become a slum mostly for refugees from Nubia, a land utterly lost in the disaster. The cast largely consists of Nubian teens, each a distinct personality, each with different ways of trying to survive, from martial fitness to scholarship to dealing drugs. And when these kids have incredible powers awaken... well, that is by no means a ticket to the easy life.

The characters are fantastic, but as someone who loves deep world-building, wow did I love what was created here. This future world feels eerily, horribly plausible. I'm really glad the next book will be released soon because I want to know what happens next! show less

TW/CW: Violence, death, domestic abuse, brief mention of sexual assault

RATING: 4/5

REVIEW: I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving an honest review.

Nubia: The Awakening takes place in New York in 2098. Climate change has made a good bit of the world uninhabitable and the rich live in a city in the sky while the poor live in a New York that is only barely protected from rising sea levels by a leaky seawall. The area closest to the wall is inhabited by the show more Nubians – refugees who barely escaped the destruction of their own land. They live in grinding poverty, most barely getting by. That is, until a group of Nubian teenagers start realizing they can do things that nobody else can do…that they have powers – and that those powers can change everything.

I really enjoyed this book. It was well written, interesting, and had a story that keeps the reader captivated. It makes important points about discrimination, poverty and race, truly, it’s an integral part of the story and makes it that much more powerful. It is very much the first book in a series – it ends, but not completely and there is still a lot left to be done when this book is finished.

I recommend this book to fans of sci-fi/fantasy and YA novels. show less

The beginning is slow, but it's worth it. I love superheroes, superpowers, and when morality meets them both in the middle.

The drama and tension here are immaculate. At first, I thought there was a lot of telling and not enough showing, but the plot developed quickly. I found myself quickly invested in the story and the different character struggles.

Usually, a character like Zuberi, who feels like the main character, would have Uzochi’s trajectory, but this is truly an ensemble cast. I show more liked her, but she didn't have as much presence or "screen time." No character is supposed to be bigger than the other, but the cousins’ story was more compelling. Uzochi had so much responsibility on him, while Lencho embodied the African proverb: "The child who is not embraced by the village will burn it down to feel its warmth." Sandra was my least favorite, though she gave insight into Krazen.

“Everybody needed Uzochi. No one seemed to worry that it would cost him his dreams.”

There are some allusions to aspects of Black cultures, the responsibility of being a child of immigrants, and the most obvious crack epidemic parallel ever. So many of the Nubians (read: parents) are trying to hold onto their culture in a New York that doesn’t want them there, while their children are either ignorant or resentful of it.

Something unclear was the makeup of the non-Nubian characters. Were they non-black, this story’s version of “white people” since they had Italians, or was Nubian more of an ethnicity? Could there be Black non-Nubians? Maybe I’m thinking too deeply here. The worldbuilding only focused on New York (in this futuristic, alternate universe).

Anyway, I’m always giving big KUDOS to Black characters without electric powers. It’s so boxed in, no matter how cool it looks. We have some super fun powers here. I’ll give you one for free that’s in here, energy-draining. 😊

Overall, I’ll be reading book two! show less