One of my top reads of 2019 so far. Rena Barron writes so beautifully that you are immersed in the storyline, so much so that you actually feel as if you are there in the book with all the characters. The visuals in this book are some of the best I've read, you can really imagine everything around you and you soon become attached to the MC Arrah and really hope that everything goes well for her.
That ending though shook me, and I definitely can't wait for the next in the series.

I received an eARC from the publishers via Netgalley in return for an honest review.

The story is about Darrah who grows up in a family where both her parents hold and can wield magic, and quite a bit of it. Only Darrah is exempt of claiming and using any kind of magic even though she tries as hard as she can.

But then things start to happen in her city and she has to get hold of magic no matter the cost. The consequences of what her one action sets in motion is astonishing. We see a whole world taken out of its comfort zone and thrown into a time of upheaval and turmoil.

The story is far from finished by the end of the book.

I loved the first part of the book. It was what I would term a fast paced US American YA fantasy novel that turns darker and darker, touches down in horror and then transports the story to a completely different place.

The second part was much more difficult to read. I felt there were issues with the pacing and the story got much more complex specially with the expansion of the magic side of this world.

By the end I wondered if this book had not benefitted if the main character had been made a few years older, going from new adult into adult. At times I felt I was reading a teenage character, then I was faced with an adult beyond any age to then be returned to absolute and complete teenage behaviour.

<spoiler>
It also felt to me like this book was trying to bring too many things together, like the story lines of growing up and family, relationship to father and mother, to siblings and to friends and potential love interests, all valued topics for a YA book, and then on the other hand the story line that evolves around beliefs and belief systems, having or not having magic, how to get hold of magic anyway and the self discovery of the main character.

Also, the introduction of yet another point of view towards the end of the book found me confronted with one point of view, then with the complete opposite and I felt I as reader was being slashed around, one way, the other way. It was confusing. Also, it was not obvious for me why the main character did what she did in the end, she as well could have gone for the other option. For me she seemed to opt just for what maintained what was she saw/understood as being status quo, and that is, I am sad to say, the mediocre solution. </spoiler>

Otherwise, if you are looking for a fast paced YA fantasy novel with some horror involved, an interesting story line and a world that is at times very well built (specially the first part with this market and its smells and flavours and its vendors), then go for it, this book just might be for you.

I was so pleased to be able to read this, as it sounded like something I'd love. To start with, it was just that, I loved the rhythm of the writing and the evocation of the African landscape, the gentle pace. But then I found the pace too slow and I began to struggle with what was going on - apart from lack of magic, which I felt was over-laboured. Then there were just too many names and places and relationships for me to get my head round - sorry.

I want to preface this review with the usual disclaimer that I'm a white lady reading a book written by a woman of colour and inevitably there will have been nuances and other things that I cannot hope to appreciate in the same way that a reader of colour might. As ever, I urge you to seek out own voices reviews along with this one. 

So, Kingdom of Souls, how did it go? Overall, I thought this book was good - I'm not sure that I timed reading it well because I was quite tired and coming down with illness (check out my latest reading vlog to see how that went...) so it took me a while to get into this book. This was, in hindsight, in part because of my impending illness, but also I do think this book is quite slow to start, it felt to me as though the main character took around 100 pages (of a 400-page book) to make a decision to do anything? I wouldn't say it was a dealbreaker for this book, I've certainly read a number of much slower books, and the latter half of this book picked up the pace, but worth noting for those picking this up - persevere!

I personally enjoy books where the main character doesn't have magic and has to process feeling left out - I think a lot of people can relate to not feeling as skilled as their peers (I certainly do!) and it makes for a great theme, especially for a YA book. In this case, I thought this was particularly interesting since so much of this book is to with heritage and tradition, it adds a whole additional level to this theme, with ideas about identity and belonging coming into it as well. 

I wasn't totally sold on the romance in this story - purely a matter of personal preference and timing, but I would go in expecting a 'will they won't they' kind of a romance. Unlike many other YA fantasy books, it doesn't totally take over the entire plot - but it definitely stuck with me as an element of the book I found less than amazing. 

I thought that Arrah was a great main character - particularly in the latter half of the book when she started making (arguably increasingly reckless) choices. I loved that Rena Barron wrote the YA main character she would have loved to have seen - you can feel that passion and that love coming through in the descriptions of Arrah, her world and her culture. I'll also add that this is one of the very few times I've seen 'witch doctors' done well (typically it is at best cringy and at worst incredibly racist). This is why we need ownvoices books. 

One thing I definitely enjoyed was the main plot of this book, I don't want to go into too much detail because I think it's something you should experience for yourself, but it definitely spoke to the side of me that likes things a little creepy and with a heaping spoonful of ethical dilemma. 

I think this book is great, it brings together a lot of things I enjoy about fantasy and manages to make them feel less stale than other authors do. My main criticism is that the pacing feels a tiny bit off, particularly at the start of the book, but otherwise, I thought it was wonderful. I think this is a book I will add to my 're-read' shelf as I don't doubt I'll get something more out of it with each read. 

My rating: 4/5 stars

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher. All opinions are my own. 

Kingdom of Souls is out September 3rd

A great book, I was worried with all the hype that it wouldn't live up to my expe. But boy did it! It was great learning all about this new magic system and witch doctors. Arrah was an awesome lead and brought such strength to the book.
A wonderful read .

Just from the description, it sounded like Kingdom of Souls was a book I'd be interested in - unfortunately, there were a couple of things about it that mean I'm unlikely to carry on with the series, which is a shame as it also did a lot of things that really worked for me.

We experience the whole story through the perspective of Arrah, a teenage girl who is the child of two powerful magic-users and who has been spending her childhood just waiting for the proverbial shoe to drop, when she will gain her own magic powers. As she reaches her teens, she starts to accept that this may not happen and this realisation coincides with major problems in the city where she lives - children are going missing and Arrah is determined to find out exactly what's going on and how her over-critical mother is involved. As part of this, she makes a decision that she will risk herself to gain magic illicitly, since it doesn't look like she's going to get those powers any other way.

I enjoyed probably the first half of this book very much, though to be perfectly honest I found Arrah annoying - there's plenty going on, a lot of interesting world-building, and it boded quite well for the rest of the book. The characters overall needed quite a bit of work - in particular Arrah's father was too perfect, while her love interest struggled to become two-dimensional, which is always a bit of an issue with first person if more care isn't given to the characterisation. In all, this was very much a YA-style love sub-plot and both the book and I could have done without it.

Then the wheels started to come off the wagon as more and more stuff got crammed into it and the pace of the book fell away in response - a shed-load more world-building details, the introduction of a major new character and a plot twist that means Arrah goes from having powers she has sacrificed her future for (interesting) to being the most powerful person around (dull). All of this while she's moping for her lost love in exile and then, when they are reunited, he has a big secret too (yes, another sub-plot!). And that's before the rape scene, the aftermath of which doesn't actually get played out as a rape scene because it's a female perpetrator and a male victim with magic involved to disguise who he's having sex with. Yeuch.

So, 3 stars out of 5, could have been so much better and the plot deserved more interesting characters than it got, not to mention a more even sense of pacing. It's the first book of a series but I'm not convinced I'll pick up the rest.

This is one of the best fantasy books I've read for a while. Thanks so much to NetGalley and HarperCollins for allowing me to read it. The best way I can describe it is think Children of Blood and Bone, but add a little extra darkness, some more present Gods and demons, and a whole lot of trickery.

Our protagonist Arrah faces some huge life altering events in this book. She has grown up without magic, much to her dismay, resulting in her becoming an outcast. Her parents are two powerful witch doctors, and to have a child without magic is rare, so she has spent the majority of her life trying to overcome that. As her story progresses, she tumbles into chaos and magic that she never knew was possible.

The mechanics of magic in this book are very interesting - I like that some magic comes with a price whereas some doesn't. I like that there's different kinds of magic for different purposes, and I like the background of where magic came from.

I also love how your opinion changes throughout the book. It's not just clear cut 'good' and 'bad' by the end, you really begin to understand the choices and decisions that Arrah must make. Fantasy books can often overwhelm you with the sheer expanse of the worlds they're set in. But this book doesn't do that. It has a wonderful focus on the specific places it visits, and because of this you are really able to imagine what's going on. You can see the people in the markets and the gardens of the buildings, and the riverbank where they visit. Honestly, I just really enjoyed this whole book and can't wait for the second one.

The only constructive criticism I would give it is that sometimes when the Orishas start talking to each other, it's not immediately clear who is talking. That might be due to the formatting though.

5 stars!

I wanted to love this book so badly. I had seen nothing but raving reviews, and it sounded absolutely fantastic. But unfortunately, it wasn't my cup of tea. It just felt like such hard work to read this book. The plot and world building felt messy and confusing, and I had a really hard time getting into this. Because of that, I DNFd the book at around 100 pages in. I might give it a second chance at some point, but for now, this really wasn't for me.

Sadly, this is going to be a DNF for me. I have a lot of books waiting to be read, and I don't have the patience to go on with something I am not enjoying. I gave this a fair 100 pages, but my feelings did not change in those 100 pages, so I am gonna put this one down.

Firstly, this was a first-person POV, which is something I don't like in Fantasy, because I think it leads to clunky and disjointed world-building and that's what happened here. The world-building in here was really exposition-heavy and info-dumpy. We got told a lot of things and not really shown anything, and I really don't like that in Fantasy novels. Moreover, there was so much information thrown at you, without real sense or structure to it, so I never felt like the world was something tangible, or something I could immerse myself in. And there were so many characters getting introduced without any point or purpose, it was just a lot of names thrown around. I think it was meant to give more grounding to the story, but it made it confusing and jarring.

I also feel like the characters fell really flat and there wasn't anything to keep me engaged in the story. Arrah did not have a personality beyond wanting magic for herself, and I felt like her relationships with other characters were very one-dimensional and one beat.

I am sad to be DNF-ing this one, but I don't see myself enjoying it. I will say that I have seen some really positive and lovely reviews, so don't be discouraged by mine.

Vivid, magical, and utterly thrilling. Kingdom of Souls is a story of a girl born to a powerful bloodline of witchdoctors with no powers of her own who discovers that she may be the only one who stands a chance to save her kingdom from being ruined - but she finds this battle to be more personal than she expects. While flawed at times (e.g. pacing was a bit off, middle part did drag a bit, stakes were a bit undermined at times), Kingdom of Souls is a gripping, riveting, and ambitious dark fantasy epic that definitely slithered its way to greatness - promising much more chaos for the world of the Orisha's. It does not pull its punches even when it is barely halfway through the book, and doubles it down to downright-depressing levels - but that is all the more reason the main character Arrah is determined to make things right, no matter the cost. It is a book that while it blows your mind early on, promises to do more and actually delivers - soaring towards a beautiful chaos. Kingdom of Souls is an absolute thriller and Rena Barron is definitely a tour de force to be reckoned with.

Kingdom of Souls is a sweeping new fantasy which will captivate you. Whether you can relate to Arrah's feelings of being left out - waiting for your life to start like you imagine it or her determination to save her family. Last chances, betrayal, and unknowing compromises. What will we do to taste the magic out of our grip? Barron will take you on a journey that will you leave you gasping. There are plot twists that leave your heart wrenching, betrayals that will leave your jaw hanging open, and emotions that leave your stomach in knots.

Absolutely chuffed to get my wish granted by the publisher for this gorgeous African-inspired fantasy. Arrah is a daughter of two magical bloodlines, granddaughter of the Chieftain of Heka's tribes in the tribal lands and daughter (on the other side) of the ka-Priestess in the city. With such strong magical heritage, it is a source of constant pain to her that her magical gifts show no sign of appearing. But magic in this world can be obtained another way - if you're willing to pay the price, magic can be traded for your life, or part thereof. Charlatans who gain magic in this way are shunned by most of society, and Arrah knows she would never harm herself in this way. That is, until children start disappearing in Tamar, her home city. When her friend is threatened, Arrah is forced to confront her deepest self to find out just how far she'll go to save a friend. Worse than that, the long-imprisoned Demon King is stirring, and Arrah is much more intimately connected to him than she ever would have guessed.

There is SO MUCH in this book that's really wonderful. A rich, vibrant world with two vastly different cultures - the bustling city of Tamar in the Kingdom contrasts sharply with the opening scenes set at Heka's temple in the tribal lands. Arrah is a child of both cultures, daughter of two tribal parents, but raised in the city, and as such she's also caught between two different religions. The orisha of the city contrast sharply with the single god Heka of the tribal lands, and Arrah is forced to confront both of these elements of herself as the stakes rise and the action gets going. The worldbuilding here is first class, with the city of Tamar almost being audible as I read the book, the bustle of the East market giving way to the shrine to the Orisha in the Temple. Arrah's parents Arti and Oshe are caught up more deeply than Arrah can imagine in the sinister goings-on in the city, and Arrah will get dragged in before she knows what's good for her.

As the story progresses, the action proceeds at a steady clip, with intrigue and mystery, and a rich cast of backing characters. Arrah's friends and sometimes more (*cough*, Rudjek, *cough*) are equally deeply drawn, with backstories that are only touched on, and nuanced relationships, both with Arrah and with each other. Their support will be crucial to her in the trying times ahead.
And then... Efiyah. Ah, what is there to say about this magnificent, enigmatic, whimsical, cruel character? Well, without spoilers, not too much. But she's a personality who is at once sophisticated and naive, terrifying and endearing, and utterly compelling. Arrah's complex relationship with her is a pleasure to behold.

The relationship of Arrah's story to the wider mythology throughout the book becomes clear as the story progresses, with a variety of twists and turns which kept me gasping. The unravelling of the mythology of the Demon King, the orisha and Heka's grace is slow and complex, and the snippets from the perspective of other characters really added to the depth of this book. I felt like I was alongside Arrah on her journey as she fights demons, discovers magic, experiences crazy things, and discovers her true destiny.
Absolutely wonderfully written, tightly plotted, and promising greater things yet to come, this is a spectacular debut full of black girl magic, diverse, complex characters, and incredible atmosphere. I'm already awaiting the second in this planned trilogy, and KoS hasn't even been published yet. Absolutely one of my favourite books this year.

What a good opening there is to this book - it had shivers running down my spine. Arrah's parents are witchdoctors however it seems as though she will never get magic herself. She is in her teens and magic has still not come to her. However something evil may be coming that will affect her, her family and her friends. Will she be able to deal with it without magic or will she have to take a darker path? The book follows Arrah and her family as the Kingdom's children start to disappear. There are also signs that the long imprisoned Demon King is stirring. I was hooked!

Initially Arrah seems to be a fairly ordinary teenager. She loves her father dearly but finds her mother rather cold. She likes being with her friends some of whom already have magic powers. There is a boy who she likes too. Other than the opening this started to feel like something a little more ordinary if fairly colourful. The settings, customs and life generally are wonderfully described and gave me a feeling of being there. There is quite a bit to understand in this book - magic and magical creatures are not generally the sort of ones I've met before but I found the discovery interesting.

BANG - then the book starts to get more magically and the roller coaster starts. You really do need to hang on - your very being is at risk. I found this became a book that was increasingly hard to put down. It also becomes very very intense and even a somewhat upsetting read at times.

There is an unmistakeable African feel to this which I really enjoyed. Reading around a little I realise that some of the magic in this book is normal in African based tales. This book definitely makes me want to read more of this kind of writing so my thanks to the author for that.

There is a real feeling of evil here which you don't come across all that often; this indicates a very high quality of writing. I guess because I'd not read anything African based this felt genuinely fresh to me. Coming from a European perspective I felt the end (really unputdownable) had some element of Norse like mythology by the end. I do see some criticisms of this and maybe it isn't perfect. For me though it was a book I simply loved so a possible 4.5 star is very happily rounded up and I would love to read this author's next book.

"so dark, so magical, so desperate"

Fascinating Sci-Fi/Fantasy story. Very detailed with some great characters and storylines. Gods and Demons, nothing as it seems and a great conclusion. Open ending with the possibility of a follow on.

2.5 / 5

Interesting premise and magic system that in theory I should have loved, but I never really warmed to the story.

In part, the pacing is to blame. At times things felt like they were happening too fast, other times far too slowly and I never particularly cared about any of the characters - they were all incredibly bland and the side characters were forgettable and I struggled to put a face to their names. The story also felt far too long and stretched out which made it hard to keep my interest.

I didn't care for the 'twist' either - in fact, for the last 10-20% I couldn't really follow what was happening and it felt like the author had tried to squeeze an entire series worth of things into one book, or rather into the the last 100 pages.

Bit of a disappointment. Not sure I'll continue with the series.

There was so much I liked about this novel - the fantasy world, the magical elements, the mystery surrounding Arrah's magic, the search for the child snatcher and its awful reveal, the back story of Arrah's mother, and the atmosphere created by Barron all entice you in very qiuckly. However I felt that Barron needed to explain her magical world a bit more, there were too many alien names and references to back history that needed to be revisited in order to make sense and put into context within the present narrative.. The impression I got was of a world with a mix of tribal African and Ancient Egyptian influences where benevolent gods, 'orishas' had once mixed with humans. I liked the first half of the story more than the second half - after the birth of Arrah's demon sister Efia the story became more predictable as Efia is a less interesting and more 2-dimensional character than Arran's parents or the Vizier and the royal family. I was hoping that her mother would be more of a central character than she eventually became. However it is an enjoyable story and an interesting world.

*eARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

I have some conflicting feelings about this book, but first let me say that reading it stole my time like I was trading it for magic (you'll understand later). I sat down with this book and didn't get up until five hours later when it was finished. An entire afternoon, gone.

So, let's start with the good. Firstly, the world-building in this book is beyond amazing. Fully fleshed out culture and mythology, and yes, the story depends on this world-building (which some books don't do, for some reason). Kingdom of Souls is set thousands of years after a great battle between the orisha (godlike figures) and the Demon King. Throughout the book, we get little tidbits of storytelling from them (which is confusing at times), but the best part is putting all the pieces together at the end and realizing the impact that it has on the story. Readers, pay attention to the little details!

The Goodreads premise is a little misleading, as there is so much more to the plot of the book than Arrah getting magic (or even the Demon King awakening)! This is great, and I love how much it explored; however, there is definitely something off with the pacing of the book. There are three major sections of the book (though I believe technically it is divided into four sections). The first is very well paced, the second is slow and strange, and the third is very fast. Books that leave all of the reveals towards the end tend to cause the end to be information heavy, and this was no different. Even worse, the reveals were only partial, they revealed half of something and waited another chapter or so to reveal the rest of it. This led the last part of the book feeling fragmented and it was hard to reconcile the new information with the plot. It didn't wrap up neatly enough for me, but left a gaping hole for book two. There were times when I wasn't sure whether this would be a series or a standalone while reading it, but the ending leaves no question. This is only the beginning of Arrah's story.

And I did say I had conflicting thoughts, let's summarize. The worldbuilding is amazing, but the pacing is a little off. A few somewhat important side characters are unmemorable, and there were a lot of important characters that I didn't really care about at all. The magic system seemed really fascinating, but I understand it was hard to explore when the main character doesn't have powers (need more magic focus in book two!). The focus of the book took several turns throughout, and the end result was... not completely unsatisfying, but (again) I think it will be better in book two.

Final thoughts:
1. It's so nice to see a black woman on the cover of a YA fantasy! Even better, all of the characters are POC (well, duh, it takes place in Africa)!
2. Arrah and Rudjek are my couple of choice for this book, and I am very interested in seeing how their relationship progresses in the next book.
3. I've already preordered this beauty from Goldsboro (their special edition is gorgeous!), and I am looking forward to putting this book on my shelves

Thank you to Harper Voyager and Netgalley for granting my wish to read this. I was so excited to read this book and it didn't disappoint!

I knew I'd love this book from one word, Witchdoctors.

I loved this book, it was such a great read with a fascinating world and I have already preordered it.

This book really gripped me, the plot was amazing and I read it it one sitting. This is a book that will stay with me for awhile. The characters were great and I found the main character Arrah to be likeable and I wanted her to succeed! The other characters are also good, I preferred some other others. The villains are complex and sinister which I really enjoyed. The magic and world-building in this book is really good, I loved the different types of magic, the tribes and I also loved the kingdom. I fully enjoyed this book and I cannot wait to get my hands on a finished copy.

Overall I will happily reread this book again and it is such a great debut novel.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.

It's been so nice recently to read more fantasy that isn't set in the Western European world, and this book is no exception. By diving into the world of witchdoctors and demonology, Barron creates a unique setting for her novel which drives the plot forward. I never knew where the plot was going, which was enjoyable, and the main characters felt three dimensional. However, some of the introspection did feel rather repetitive and this book lacks the narrative detail and lushness of books like the Daevabad series and The Priory of the Orange Tree. Hopefully this is something Barron will develop as she goes along, as a fairly new writer. I will definitely read the next installment of this series.

I was incredibly lucky for harper voyager to grant my wish for this book on Netgalley. It is a great addition to young adult fantasy. And especially that US cover made me really excited.

Oh gosh where to start. If people say that Kingdom of Souls is like any other young adult fantasy don’t listen to closely. If you stripped it to its barest bones they would be right. But isn’t that the case for many other stories? Isn’t it how you fill in things that make or break a story? There are some plot elements regarding reincarnation and the gods that made me go hmm. However this is very clearly being set up for the overall story and for that reason I am reserving my right to judge on them. Pacing wise I think the middle dragged.

What stands out in this book are the world building, magic system and characters. The world building regarding the different cultures, regarding the differences between the tribal life and the city life. The cultural differences between the various tribes. The various bond and relationships within the city and even across towards the tribes. It was all such a great enrichment to a new world. The magic and the orisha are all very interesting. And the author has said that it is only the tip of the iceberg. I can’t wait to dive in even deeper.

Arrah is our main character who can’t seem to come into her magic at all. It is her vocal point at the start of the book. However as the plot starts to stretch out beyond her, not having magic might be the last of her problems. She is head strong but has a secret insecurity running deep through her. Lively and stubborn. A bit impulsive at times. There is a lot to like about Arrah. And she makes her mistakes, like we all do. Most of all I enjoyed her in interaction with her friends. Rudyek, Maika and so on. There is a certain loyalty between this group, where they are safe to make jokes with each other. To relax. But they don’t hesitate to protect each other either.

An interesting relationship is that of Arrah with her sister. One that I think could have used a lot of deepening out to make that ending work even better. I just don’t think the bond was there as the author wanted at the end and it made the impact less for me. It was a shame.

All in all however, this book is a great read and I can’t wait for the next one to come.