I love audiobooks, listen to them all the time. I like this story but I prefer audiobooks that are just reading - not additional music or noise. That’s my personal preference. If you don’t mind that this is a good book for you.

✨ R E V I E W ✨

Thank you to Bandele Books and Netgalley for access to this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

TJ Young & The Orishas: The Gatekeepers Staff by Antoine Bandele

4/5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐

I am so grateful for the opportunity to review this book and I was not disappointed. TJ makes for an interesting and dynamic main character who experiences normal teenage struggles such as thinking he doesn't fit in and also trying to make friends. The characters in this book were well developed and I feel like I got to know them all very well. I enjoyed our side characters a lot and getting to know them and their experiences added dept to the overall story.

In terms of the setting this story takes place in New Orleans at a MAGIC CAMP!! This gave me all the magical school setting vibes I've been missing.

Throughout this book I found the plot to be greatly paced, we got to see different aspects of the camp without losing the main focus of the story. It kept my attention and I was able to follow without confusion which can happen with audiobooks sometimes.

I found Antoine Bandele's writing to be very engaging and easy to follow. I really enjoyed the writing style and TJs POV.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. This story takes place in our world but with magic. I found it very interesting learning about the different types of diviners and Orisha. As this story takes place at a magic camp we get all the magical class vibes with seeing how young diviners learn and develop their skills. I would highly recommend this book especially to those who love Percy Jackson or Taran Matharus Summoner series.

This audiobook won't go past the 9th cheaper I really want to finish it so I will be buying it. It is very good reminds me of Rick Riordan. It seems to me that fans of his books would enjoy this very much. The writing and the narration was very good I got drawn into the book fast I enjoyed it very much.

I completely enjoyed this book! The moment I started the audiobook, I thought that the music and the narrator were perfect accompaniments. There was a phenomenal blend of adventure and magic as well as just overall cultural references. This is definitely going to be added to my highly recommend list.

I liked the narration and the story could be good but I just couldn't get into it which is to bad really

The Gatekeeper's Staff, Book 1 in TJ Young & The Orishas was an epic adventure, up there with the sagas of old.

Set in a world very like ours, where magic is practiced but hidden, we meet our hero TJ. TJ is the second of three children and the only one without magical ability. After the tragedy of his sister's death, TJ is thrust front and centre into the mystery of this untimely event.

It was heroic, dramatic full of suspense and the best thing yet was that this world was a mystery.
I know about the standard heroes, Viking, Greek, Roman, Marvel, DC, etc. But this world of West African mythology and folklore is new to me.

I'm so pleased that I listened to the audio version which allowed me to emesh in this richly detailed world, plus I would never have been able to have benefitted from the full effect of the spoken Yoruba words
It's too easy to compare The Gatekeeper's Staff to similar YA books with magic and Gods (Harry Potter, Percy Jackson, etc) however this series is in a class of its own. It's illustrating culture, educating as well as entertaining

If I had a complaint, I would say it was too long: 15 hours and 32 minutes is a long journey to take with someone you've just met and not sure of yet. Then when it got to the end, I wanted more. It was fantasy, folklore, YA, family dynamics, friendship, betrayal and magic all rolled into one satisfying read.

Thank you Antoine Bandele for a great read, one which I will be sharing with my kids and for the audio production Nekia Renee was amazing, Yoruba good, USA accents excellent. Nigerians speaking English abit wobbly. But all in all fantastic narration

This was a great book. Full of intrigue and magic, I learnt so much of African Mythology. The characters are children - and Antoine Bandele did a great job at portraying them as such, unlike most authors I've read. The plot twists were very interesting, even the ones that seemed obvious had something more to it, something else to keep us curious. The narrator did an excellent job. Each single voice she gave to a character was full of personality, I absolutely loved it. Something that didn't feel quite right with me was some really blunt cuts in the reading, the editing is clearly lacking a bit. Sometimes it felt like I accidentally skipped some seconds, but it was simply a weird cut in the voice. Also, for some reason the 16th chapter simply wasn't working for me and I wasn't able to listen to it at all. Regardless, I think this is a beautiful book and the listening experience is simply gorgeous.

I thought that this book was very interesting and found it very entertaining. I think it did a great job of pulling the reader in and I was hooked into the story early on. I also really enjoyed the narrator and though they did an amazing job.

I got halfway through this audiobook and it stopped working. I asked for help and it seems to be lost in space as it continues to give me a file error. I do want to say that what I read really had a hold on me so I hope to get the audio at another time,. Yes. It's that good. :)

Rating; Really Enjoyed It/Absolutely Loved It = 4.5 Stars!

This book was such a delight! I received a copy of the audiobook from the author via NetGalley in return for an honest review. That being said, at about 65% of the way through, I purchased a Kindle copy on Amazon because I didn't have any time left that night to listen to the audiobook and I needed to know what happened! I don't regret it one bit, and I look forward to following this series!

The Gatekeeper's Staff is the first entry in the new YA series, TJ Young & The Orishas by Antoine Bandele. It follows 14 year-old Tomori Jomiloju, or TJ, Young, the only non-magical member of his family (besides his dad). He has wanted to go to Ifa Academy like his sister and learn to be a full-fledged Diviner, but he just doesn't have the Ashe that his mother and siblings do. When his sister dies in a mysterious way; however, TJ begins to show some skill with magic, and he is sent to Camp Olosa to improve and hone his skills. TJ is determined to use this new manifestation of Ashe to make contact with his sister and to learn the truth about how she died.

What I Liked:
* I thought that this was an incredible story. I have seen some comparisons to Harry Potter and to Percy Jackson, which I understand due to the male protagonist and the magic school/magical summer camp aspect as well as the magic's connection to the Orishas. However, I felt like this story was completely original. While some elements may be similar to those seen in other books, these characters, and the magic system were completely unique
* I loved the West African folklore inspiration, and Bandele did an incredible job fleshing out the lore and the magic system. I'm not super familiar with the lore that this is based on, but from the other books I have read that include Orishas, it definitely had a unique spin to it, and I loved the world of the Diviners that he created.
* This was Young Adult in which the characters are truly YOUNG ADULTS. TJ and his friends are 14, and some of the interactions were so chalk-full of secondhand embarrassment that it had me cringing and remembering why I would never want to go back to being a teenager! He gets hotheaded and makes the type dumb decisions that we all make when we are still developing that prefrontal cortex, and it was just great. It felt so perfectly written that I just had to admire that ability of Bandele to capture that so well, even if I was cursing him mildly for the high school flashbacks!
* I loved the characters and the relationships that they built amongst themselves. It was so wonderful seeing TJ grow from the beginning of the story to the end, to make friends, and go from this super insecure and friendless teen to someone who is slowly figuring out who they are and making a place for themselves.
* Once things start rolling a little over halfway through, there is not one dull or down moment, it is just go-go-go, and it was fantastic!

Things I Didn't Love:
- In my opinion, the pacing was not super consistent between the first and second half of the book, but there was a lot that needed to be set up and introduced, so I understood why that happened. I just felt very unsure of what the end goal was for a while and was unsure at first if this was going to distinguish itself from some of the other giants in the genre. It eventually did, but a lot of that came in the middle and the end
- Didn't change my rating at all, but I was able to guess most of the twists, and that disappointed me a little bit because it felt like it was a big reveal, and I really wanted to be shocked by it, but I am able to call twists in most books, so that's not unusual. It was just a bit more disappointing than usual.

The Audiobook:
*The Audiobook was fantastic! I highly recommend giving this a listen if you are able. The narrator, Nekia Renee, was incredible and really brought the characters and world to life. I loved her use of different voices for the characters, and the use of accents between them depending on where they were from. Top notch voice-acting!
* Another fun element of the audiobook was the use of sound effects to set the scene at the beginning of each chapter! They were not overused throughout the entire narration, but using them at those intervals added some ambience that I really enjoyed.

Overall, I highly recommend this book, especially if you are looking for something for a younger male in your life! I definitely think that girls would love this too, but I know that the YA Fantasy field is dominated by female protagonists at the moment, and TJ is such a wonderful character to give younger audiences to follow! I love the themes of friendship and courage throughout, and it was just a really good time!

This review will be immediately posted to my Goodreads page, and a shortened version will be posted on my instagram page @jemofabook within the next month.

What a wonderful story.

TJ is the perfect main character: he's funny, quirky, humble and very friendly, it's impossible to not fall in love with him. All the characters are likeable in their own way, you can sympathize even with the villains.

The story is very engaging and well built, the world is very diverse, the magic and the Orishas were a bit hard to understand at first, considering the vast ammount of information there is about them, but it just complements our and TJ's confusion nicely, making us empathize with him even more.

Although some conflict points in the story were predictable to the avid YA reader (we know it almost never works out when a bunch of teenagers run to save the world on their own without a responsible adult present), the ending was still surprising to me, and it has a nice buildup to the sequel, which I can't wait to read.

Side note: I just want to applaud the quality of the audiobook, it's really amazing. There are several sound effects that give a new life to the story, alongside the perfect narration of Nekia Renee. I'm not sure if they're the only person who narrated this story, because the multitude of voices and accents displayed during the story make me doubt only one person can do this, and so well. Kudos to everyone involved, especially to Nekia for the amazingly perfect job.

This was not the book for me. The world building needed more attention. The Magic system was confusing. I never felt connected to the characters. Unfortunately, I just feel like this book will disappear into the sea of new middle grade fantasy.

Loves this book and will definitely be recommending. Really looking forward to now reading the second book to see where the story goes next. This book kept you wanting to know more and was very interesting the narrator of this audiobook was really good.

TJ Young is the black Percy Jackson with all the character flaws I missed in the Percy Jackson series. TJ is not the hero you expect him to be. He’s a 14-year-old boy struggling with the loss of his hero sister who TJ and his family think should have been there to save the day. Instead there’s TJ, his magic has yet to develop, he has no friends at school and is grieving his sister. But, when his magic might finally start to flourish, he gets accepted into a summer camp, where he can train with other kids.
I love how TJ’s magic doesn’t ‘magically’ gets stronger in this camp. He’s still bad, which is realistic (and another thing I disliked in Percy Jackson). TJ has his struggles with magic, but also his social awkwardness and Puberty insecurities to deal with. TJ acts exactly his age and so do his friends.
The plot was also very fun to experience, as it revolves around Nigerian mythology. I have no prior knowledge, but it’s explained in simple ways that it was very easy to understand. Still, this simple explanation didn’t dull the story. This magic being set in our world made it easier to forget that you’re reading, and the characters make you feel like you’re truly there with them.
The plot twists were well thought out and I only saw one of them coming. The ending was great and the chapters leading up to it were so well written I was clenching my fists whenever things got tense and I couldn’t believe it was over at the end. The humour as well was written at the exact moments I needed them, and it’s been an amazing adventure reading this book.
As I’ve listened to the audiobook, I will say some things about that experience as well. I loved how it was read to me and it was clear and understandable when you sped things up a bit. I listened for the most part at two times speed, because I’m a monster and insane like that, and the quality of the reading didn’t go down at all. I loved the accents and different voices for characters. It was almost perfect.
There’s one thing I disliked about the audio recording. I have Misophonia, which means that I react to certain sounds. If you struggle with this too, I have a slight warning for you. A lot of characters suck through their teeth and the recording demonstrates it every time someone does. It bothered me to say the least.
But concluding this review, I really enjoyed this book, I can’t wait for a sequel, TJ is awesome, and I loved reading about Nigerian mythology. I definitely want to find out more about that now and of course I give it five stars. Well done!
I was given access to this audiobook by Netgalley in exchange for and honest review.

This is the best audiobook I have ever listened to! The accents were on point and they clearly put the time and effort to make every chapter sound like you were right there experiencing things with the MC TJ. From the sounds on the court, to the airport loudspeaker and kids all hanging out it all felt so authentic! This book did it right! No robotic voice here, and it made the story so enjoyable! I liked the story although it seemed to slow at points and felt very very close to Percy Jackson. Still, it was quite imaginative and thorough in world building. I can’t wait to see what comes next and would highly recommend others check this story out.

I enjoyed this book for several reasons. It told a story of family and determination. It was wonderfully written as a group of 14 year olds learning of trust, friendship, and grief. It was filled with magic and mystery.
As an audio book the voices truly let you imagination come to life.

Thank you to NetGalley for the audiobook ARC of TJ Young and the Orishas 1: The Gatekeeper's Staff.

I loved this story. First of all, the audiobook was fantastic. There was sound effects, different variations in voices and some music. I honestly don't know why more audiobooks don't include these effects! It The Gatekeeper's Staff such fun to listen to.

I really enjoyed learning about the West African Orishas mythology. It was such an interesting topic with some amazing lore. (The author does state at the beginning of the book that the mythology is used in a fantasy based way, so may not be 100% accurate).

TJ is our main character, and I found him instantly likable and easy to go on an adventure with. We see TJ go through a life changing experience right at the beginning of the story, and you root for him to succeed at once as well as sympathise with his woes and hardships.

I also adored the adults in TJ's life. His parents were a wonderful couple with some solid life advice. I also really enjoyed the camp instructors!

This book was like an amazing mash up of Harry Potter and Percy Jackson and it worked really well.

Antoine Bandele also includes mention of current events in American culture, specifically those effecting Black Americans which works well to remind you of the real-life issues amongst the fantasy story.

The Gatekeeper's Staff is so well written, and so wonderfully read in the audiobook, and I devoured it in a couple of days.

This is a book I would love to bring to the classroom for story time, and will have to get myself a hard copy!

This is a wonderful adventure with self discovery at its very heart.

Tj is a very relatably teenager that I think every reader will find a piece of themselves in. Whether it's his awkwardness or his ability to bring out the best in others.

Also the chance to know more about a diffrent system of faith and magick is fantastic.

Absolutely brilliant !

I thoroughly enjoyed listening to Antoine Bandele’s The Gatekeeper’s Staff. The story follows a young, 14 year old boy named TJ Young who seems to be the only one in his family that can’t tap into their magical heritage. However, everything changes when TJ’s sister mysteriously passes away and he embarks on a journey to uncover the reason for his sister’s death as well as unlock the power that’s been inside him all along. The narrator does a great job at bringing the characters to life and the special effects included were a nice touch to make the story more immersive. Furthermore, I think it’s cool how this story is based on West African mythos with the Orishas, and I like how later in the book this is important in TJ’s journey. I recommend this book for any middle grade reader, especially if they’re a fan of the Percy Jackson series or even Harry Potter.

Bandele has created a rich and inviting world that swirls with magic, friendship, and family. The audiobook experience enhanced my enjoyment of this story.

T. J. Young is trying to find where he fits, within a family of magic on his mother's side: an older sister that was venerated in their world and a younger brother who is a genius and just as gifted with Ashe. When tragedy strikes, T. J. makes it his mission to uncover what happened and what this means for the wider world, as well as uncover why he seems to lack magic.

Bandele pays just as much attention to crafting his characters as he is committed to introducing his magical world. The bonds of family is strong and comes through clearly, the awkwardness of teen years and friendships, the yearning to belong among his magical peers and to fit in at his school. The characters are lively, relatable, and their interactions were reminiscent of my own teen years.

I was rapt as the story unfolded, the mystery, air of danger and adventure kept my attention, the formation of friendship and the support that grew around T. J. was done really well and the love and family dynamic felt very warm and familiar.

My one gripe was the overuse of metaphors and there was a lot of telling which comes with the territory of this being for early teens.