Kemi Ashing-Giwa

Thank you to Saga Press and Colored Pages Tour for the copy I read.

I’ve long been drawn to the epic blend of sci-fi, fantasy, and mythology—ever since Dune first swept me into its layered universe. There’s something timeless about stories steeped in the Hero’s Journey, especially when they’re dressed in the imaginative textures of speculative fiction.

The King Must Die isn’t just a triumph of world-building and character development—it’s a story that creeps under your skin and show more stays there. And this time, I get to root for a female hero, Fen, whose journey through rebellion, family dynamics, and empire-building is as emotionally rich as it is politically charged. Loyalty and betrayal, power and vulnerability—every beat is earned.

Fen’s growth is especially compelling for readers who love the uncertainty and experience-gathering that define the best of YA fiction. I found myself flipping pages faster than my Kindle could keep up, fully invested in her evolution into the kind of hero I love to read about: one who’s flawed, fierce, and deeply human.

Kemi Ashing-Giwa has written a novel that speaks across generations. As an older reader, I felt seen and stirred—and I know younger readers will fall into this story just as willingly. It’s a perfect gift for anyone who craves a Hero’s Journey that breaks the mold: one that centers a Black female protagonist and reimagines what heroism looks like today.

This book is filled with drama, wonder, intrigue, and resilience. It reminds us why good fiction matters: to inspire change, to honor both found and blood families, and to help us become architects of the futures we dare to imagine. show less

A young woman from a culture violently colonized by an empire that considers her religiously impure and culturally inferior ends up as a hostage in the main Imperial palace. Both the empire’s enemies and the Emperor herself want to use her. It leans a lot on colonialism is bad, actually, and also on the main character being really attractive to powerful women.

If one has done enough reading in a given genre of fiction, at a certain point it can be turned into a drinking game, or, if one is being more polite, a contemplation of what works the story in question is in conversation with. After awhile I started thinking about classic "New Wave" downer stories such as "The Genocides" by Theodore Disch, or "We Who Are About To..." by Joanna Russ; real "affirmations" of the human spirit!

The contemporary twist on the deeply pessimistic vein of a certain show more flavor of sociological science fiction that Ashing-Giwa is mining, is the lesbian couple that are at the core of story. Yes, it is a love story, if one defines love as being deeply obsessive and jealous, as the negative waves coming off Vinh and Amara are intense; and wearying. These two turn out to be quite the piece of work.

So, is this novelette worth of effort? On the whole, yes, though that isn't clear until Ashing-Giwa goes into her attack trajectory on the way to the climax. show less

Enitan from Koriko, a moon whose population has been subjugated by the Vaalbaran Empire, is thrust into a pivotal role when her sister is kidnapped and the colonial governor, her former lover, is murdered. Enitan volunteers to be the hostage sent to Vaalbara while the investigation of the murder proceeds. She is perceived at best as a curiosity and more generally as some sort of barbarian, as are all Korikese. With this status she manages to become the confidant (spy) of both Vaalvara’s show more enemy and its leader, the Imperator and God-Emperor, and thus is embroiled in political intrigue. Enitan’s motivation is not only to free her sister but the people of her home from the colonial yoke of Vaalvara. Through Enitan, the novel explores the damage wrought by colonialism. It is a page-turning, engaging read. show less