Ring Shout, by P. Djèlí Clark, (Oct. 2020, Tor Books), $19.99, ISBN: 9781250767028
Ages 16+
Nebula Award Winner P. Djèlí Clark (The Black God’s Drums) creates an incredible alternate America, where the Ku Klux Klan are actual monsters, in his latest book, Ring Shout. It’s 1922, DW Griffith is a sorcerer whipping legions of demons into a frenzy with his film The Birth of a Nation, and a trio of young Black women are all that stands in their way. Maryse Boudreaux is a woman with a gift for seeing the real faces of the Ku Kluxes – the demons who feed on the Klans, who are the racist humans whose black hate leaves them open to possession. Teaming up with a gloriously profane sharpshooter named Sadie and a WWI vet, Cordelia, who goes by the nickname Chef, the three have a gift for taking down the Kluxes, until Butcher Clyde, a Klan leader, makes it personal with Maryse. The Ku Kluxes have plans for Maryse, but so do the mysterious Aunties that appear to her. Ring Shout is incredible dark fantasy, loaded with Gullah tradition and African-American folklore and main characters that readers will immediately take to. The storytelling is rich and haunting, filled with humor, action, and body horror. The characters are so vivid, so strong, they could be sitting next to you, whispering their tale. If you loved Justina Ireland’s Dread Nation and The Deathless Divide, make sure to get Ring Shout on your reading list, STAT.
Want more Black Girl Magic suggestions? Epic Reads has a good list; consider navigating over to Black Girls With Magic & Books Club.
Ring Shout has a starred review from Publishers Weekly.
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