Kai Ashante Wilson

*WAVES ARMS* Read this! And if it's anything to go by, go ahead and pre-order all the other Tor.com novellas as well. BUT THIS REVIEW IS ABOUT THIS GLORIOUS BOOK.

"Sumptuous" doesn't really do the language here justice. I read a ton of short fiction with language that I truly enjoy, but nothing novella or novel-length in quite some time. This ended that drought. And the plotting sure isn't bad either (IT'S GODDAMN GREAT). The dialogue is fantastic, the world-building is amazing, and the show more action is visceral as hell. THE MAGIC IS SCIENCE-Y AND EARTHY. AND THE CHARACTERS! DEMANE. THE CAPTAIN. CUMALO. ALL THE CARAVAN GUARDS. Even the *vague eyebrow waggling* creature, in the same way the shark was a looming background character in Jaws.

"The Devil in America", and Wilson's other short fiction, has been on my list for a while, and I'm about to go on a spree, for sure. show less

This is a mesmerizing and heart-breaking story and I absolutely loved it, even though it just about ripped me apart as I read it. Wilson's gut-wrenching, yet beautifully told, story about the evil of slavery and racism is woven together with magic and family bonds stretching back through generations. The Devil In America devastated me with its powerful language, original imagination, and bleeding-raw emotion. Wilson's writing is masterful - hinting and suggesting to make you understand so show more much with his concentrated, suggestive, and forceful prose. show less

I am not at all sure how to talk about this book. On the one hand, the writing and characterization are outstanding. I was in love with this author's prosody from the first page. I get stuck at trying to discuss the structure of the narrative. It manages to have depth and breadth while being very concise. If I were to attempt to explain it to you you wouldn't believe me when I also say that it's a satisfying read. Stepping away I can recognize that the structure is non-standard but I'm too show more much in love with the book to worry about it.

Let me just say this: [book:The Sorcerer of the Wildeeps|25819519] is a strong second world fantasy that is also a speculative future history. It will punch you in the gut and make you like it.

I am totally going to be reading this again. show less

Tight, gorgeous, and brutal. Homoerotic, humane, crushingly moving but utterly unsentimental. The premise as pure a sword-and-sorcery trope as you can get (superstitious and provincial bash-and-slash mercenary company traveling with erudite and sensitive mage-ish outsider far from his homeland), only minus the typical tired faux-Celtic trappings - this world is explicitly African in inspiration and Kai's chorus of pitch-perfect voices are all un-apologetically Black American. And the love show more story (because it is a love story...just one that contains more skull-smashing and battlefield gangrene than most) is so, so real. Not that any words are wasted on describing the state of being in love; it is just shown, beautifully, in tiny sharp shards of interactions - soul-deep love on the DL between two warriors in an intolerant world. This love story is tender in the way that a rare steak is tender - all bloody muscle and seared outsides, primal, sensual, and raw at the core. This little book is like the Sorcerer Demane's magic bag - physically slender but capable of holding unbelievably vast quantities of content. I can't wait for someone I know to read it so the full unpacking can begin. show less