The Ballad of Perilous Graves by Alex Jennings follows Perry, his little sister Bendy, their mysterious friend Peaches, and Casey Ravel, a trans man who recently moved back to New Orleans after leaving the city during Hurricane Katrina. Casey has a mystery of his own when he and his cousin, now a famous artist, notice that the graffiti they made as teens seem to be coming to life. The songs that keep NOLA alive have been stolen, and it’s up to Perry, Bendy, and Peaches to help the city’s resident undead musician Doctor Professor retrieve the songs before the city begins to break down.

review

Jennings creates an even more magical and musical picture of New Orleans in this delightful urban fantasy. Those who call the Big Easy home will especially love this book with references to locations and events that locals will know. However, it is also written in a way that those who may not be familiar with the city will be able to follow along.

Jennings has created a magical love letter to New Orleans while not being afraid to mention its not-so-great parts, yet the love for the city is always prevalent. New Orleans has always held the imaginations of those who have a love of the supernatural, and The Ballad of Perilous Graves takes those magical elements and puts them to song; with descriptions so clear, you can almost hear the jazz as you’re reading along.

The first couple of chapters of the book can be a little difficult to follow along with the various POVs and jumping almost immediately into action; however, as the story builds, it becomes easier.

I have called New Orleans home for nearly ten years, and I appreciated a story that, while set in a fantasy version of the town, still told a story that portrayed the real NOLA and managed to avoid the stereotypes associated with the city and its culture, yet still celebrating the things the city does well; jazz, food, and community.

in conclusion

The Ballad of Perilous Graves is a great summer read, and even if you can’t travel to New Orleans, this book will take you there.

You had me at graves! Perilious, brilliant and so intriguing, this book is genuinely one of my favourite ever|

This is an imaginative, rich, original book. I didn't expect part of it to be from childrens' point of view but I ended up enjoying that part of the book the best (I wasn't always interested in Casey, and in fact don't know if he needed as much page time as he g0t). I definitely did not expect to find a Pippi Longstocking type living in NOLA and running around the neighborhood having adventures and being heroic!

The visuals of living graffiti and the sounds of jazz, the smell and taste of friend chicken, red beans and rice; they all make the book a sensual experience. I'd love to see this book as a graphic novel (which I think the author considered) or a prestige TV miniseries! The setting of this book is fully realized and you can feel that it is also loved.

The book starts off with the kids exploring and then being tasked with finding missing songs while Casey learns more about how his art might come to life. The adults end up putting the kids in a lot more danger than they wanted or meant to; the stakes in this book turn out to be high and the kids must find and learn their power quickly in order to survive. There's some deep darkness in this book along with the joy.

The book sprawls. It's a fun journey but the two storylines took a little longer to come together than I could have wished. The end feels rushed. I sank into the book in the beginning but felt more detached at the end. That's why I didn't rate it higher. Still well worth your time!

The Ballad of Perilous Graves is best summarized as imaginative and wildly entertaining. A great choice for readers looking for something off beat and completely original.

The setting in New Orleans provides background and information on a much loved, often misunderstood and misrepresented city. As the book points out, while there are many aspects of the city that may seem strange or eccentric, for millions of people its home.

This book was both entertaining and thoughtful. While the main plot is engaging and helps the book move along quickly, the author is also successful in exploring deeper themes that give the tale surprising depth.

I really wanted to love this musical fantasy novel about a magical version of New Orleans but it was so disjointed and long that I only barely managed to push through. And I think I didn't connect to the story or characters as much because of it either. I could see lots of people loving it, but it fell short for me which was disappointing because it was full of cool concepts and characters.

Overstuffed to the max and lacking on coherence. This was an author trying to get every idea ever into one story and make them connect. The atmosphere was nice and I enjoyed the characters, but the story gets lost in the weeds so quickly.

I love reading books set in places I’ve lived. Bonus points if I loved the place - and New Orleans was definitely a great place to live! The magic realism and overall storyline were fantastic! Love love love the rich culture woven into the story. The book fell short with starting in the confusing dream/magic space for too long and not really unraveling the weirdness to make some sort of sense of things. For as much as I wanted to give this one 5 shout from the rooftops stars - I just can’t. I’d definitely read more by this author, and of course, would love more books set in New Orleans!

Perilous "Perry" Graves lives in a magical New Orleans where dead musicians appear and play their song, zombies walk the earth and people use graffiti that has come to life to get high. He, his younger sister Brendy and the super-strong girl next door Peaches are tasked to track down some runaway songs that are loose and in danger of being destroyed by The Storm, which will destroy Perry's Nola forever.

Alex Jenning's tale of Nola is a slow starter that turns into a beautiful chaotic mess of music, alternate dimensions, a city that gets in your blood and the family that will go to the ends of the earth to protect you and allow you to become your potential. Perry, Peaches & Brendy are all great kids with so much potential and have some dangerous tasks thrust upon them but they all rise to the occasion in their own way and learn about themselves in the process. Perry & Brendy have a great family behind them and this family gives them the support and tools to their magical inheritance. Peaches is both a lone figure, but is bolstered by her faith in her missing father and the fact that Perry's family looks after her and treats her as one of their own while still allowing her to be herself.

I'll admit that I wasn't too certain that I'd like this book at first since it starts out slow and then just gets massively confusing but I was sucked in to the story through the confusion which for me enhanced the danger and mysticism of New Orleans that the characters were a part of. While the confusion never really left, the story did tie up loose ends and was all around fascinating.

I received a free ebook copy from NetGally & Redhook.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and Redhook Books for the gifted e-book ❤️

Read this book if you like: Magic, New Orleans setting, stories of growth and grief

This is an interesting read. It's different and intriguing. Very different concept filled with magic. The characters are dynamic. The New Orleans setting was good. My biggest issue is that it's far too long. It also got confusing. It lost me a few times. The descriptions are too vast. It needed a bit more editing. I do recommend it.

The Ballad of Perilous Graves by Alex Jennings drew me in because of its New Orleans setting and the integration of magic in an already magical city (and let’s face it… that cover!). Jennings plays with music and magic in an interesting way that is certainly brimming with that Nola feel. Continue reading to get a more in-depth take on this new novel by Alex Jennings.

World Building & Characters
What I enjoyed the most in The Ballad of Perilous Graves was the fantastical and inventive reincarnation of New Orleans. The role that music and art played in magic and lore was really well and interestingly integrated into the heart of this story. The world kept expanding with more and more aspects of folklore and mythos being created and introduced.

I also really liked the characters in The Ballad of Perilous Graves. I’m not always a fan of children as main characters, but Jennings wrote Perry, Brendy, and Peaches so well, adding depth to the narrative. For a while, Casey (loving the trans representation!) is just kinda popping up as a POV, but his final integration with the rest of the group was a welcome turning point.

Complicated Plot
Honestly, there was a lot of jumping around in The Ballad of Perilous Graves, making it complicated to follow at times. My phone was reading it to me and with the dialect in tow, it could be hard to follow. Throughout I thought “where am I?” but I eventually accepted my confusion. Because you don’t have time to be lost with all of the songs escaping from the piano and New Orleans possibly falling.

Overall
I would say this book is kind of a niche book and not quite in my niche. I still would recommend The Ballad of Perilous Graves to someone looking for an interesting read. The magical realism is fascinating! I love the way Jennings captures and enhances the eerie mystical feel of the city. The characters are all compelling, interesting, and well thought out.

The writing was not for me but overall it is a fun book to dive into. I love how Jennings blended New Orleans, the dead, and music into the story. Pacing and characters are executed wonderfully but it wasn't memorable enough for me. It felt really fun reading the book from start to end. Will probably recommend this book to other people that will enjoy it much more than I do.

Really liked the concept but I found myself confused after reading the first few pages. It's probably worth a try but not looking to read something that will take some much time to get into at this point.

I tried to read this book a few months ago, got a little more than 100 pages in and did not finish. There was too much going on and I couldn't follow the story line/characters. Then my husband mentioned he wanted to read the book so he read it, and the remainder of the review will be his thoughts.

ALERT: SOME SPOILERS BELOW

I agree with my wife the beginning of the book is a bit hard to follow. It's almost like this could have been a book of short stories and coalesce at the end to make it easier to follow and more enjoyable. The beginning of the story develops Perry, Peaches and Brendy's dilemma in conjunction with Casey's backstory, while making a bit of detour to Jaylon's backstory and it's a lot to take in at first. After the first 100 pages the book starts to do a better job of coming together into this magical realism type story where it becomes more apparent what the plot is & how all these main characters and "haints" are connected. I enjoyed the references and descriptions of New Orleans and NOLA culture and how there is conflict between the music and culture that arises from the storms. I really like these types of books and am a huge fan of NOLA (have visited several times) so for me i had more of a connection to the book than my wife.

hope this helps

This book was WILD and I mean that in the best possible way. I was hooked by the description (wraiths! sky trolleys! haints!) and I'm so, so glad I took the plunge into Jennings' stunning urban fantasy world.

It is chaotic, so I can understand how some readers might end up feeling overwhelmed or lost. But with a book like this, I find the best thing is to simply let go, trust the author, and let the chaos rush over you ... which is probably why I felt a little dazed after finishing.

I don't know where to even start describing the plot -- seriously, just read the description, and if it appeals to you at all, READ THIS BOOK. It's dark and magic and creepy and so SO deliciously voicey. It's got some of the most vivid, unique worldbuilding I've come across in a long time. Alex Jennings is one hell of an ambitious writer, and you can bet I'll read whatever he comes up with next.

This is my first time reading anything by this author and I was pleasantly surprised. Magical and Dreamy with great representation. New Orleans is such a fun setting!

I wanted to love this book, but the idea and ambiance of the story far exceeded the actual execution of the novel. I found the plot to be pandering and convoluted and had a difficult time latching onto the characters. The magical realism elements of this story were stunning, but the story itself suffered.

Although creative in atmosphere, I had a difficult time following the story. The writing was lovely and magical, however it just did not seem to connect with me.

I wanted to like this one more than I did. I much preferred the storyline of the kids and would have preferred if we stayed in their story. It would have flowed better for me.

We interviewed Alex Jennings for Episode 466 of The Skiffy and Fanty Show.

This is 100% on my Hugo Awards ballot. A stunning work!

In a story spanning the experiences of multiple characters, the strong connection among them all is the city they love, New Orleans. It's a fantasy that elevates the artists of the city to magicians, especially musicians and taggers. On one side of the tale, we follow Casey, a trans man in a contemporary world grappling with the sparks of magic he's seen in his art. Afraid but following his cousin's example, he won't be able to ignore that part of himself anymore, especially in the wake of tragedy. On the other side, we follow Perilous Graves, his sister Brendy, and his best friend Peaches. The children are more familiar with magic than Casey, and they take on a task of mythic proportions to save their city. This half of the book has a strong storytelling feel that beckons readers closer to listen up and pay attention. It feels timeless but with its own unique flavor and message to impart. Between the two storylines, there are moments of overlap and entanglement and other aspects that feel worlds apart despite the similar geographic locations. I won't say much beyond that because I think the reader is meant to grapple with that confusion and work through each clue as it's revealed. Just know the connection between both plots gets more pronounced with explanations eventually provided. It's part of the journey to wonder.

One thing I admired was the way the author threaded together the different elements of the story with clear love of the material: the setting, the music, the centrality of Black American culture and experiences, and the power within each person to achieve great things for humanity all shine through. A particular refrain that brought me a lot of amusement is Peaches' pronouncement that grown-ups are just big kids who don't know what they're doing any more than younger kids. I don't think I'll argue with that.

This is a powerful debut with a strong voice and memorable characters. The journey is twisty and the ending a bit open. After the cataclysmic events of the book, there's a sense of walking into the future, whatever that may be. Thanks to Redhook for my copy to read and review!