June is Pride Month, and I usually take this opportunity to read at least one LGBTQIA-friendly book. I hoped to read more this year, but Black Leopard Red Wolf was so all-immersive and long that I don’t think I will be able to squeeze in any other book in June – unless it’s a quick little queer romance or two. However, romance has never been my genre, and even to complete a list, I will not be picking up any of these books that are currently being recommended avidly on goodreads.
In addition, I am working on a little project for my blog – categorizing all my LGBTQIA-friendly reads into a separate category, making these reviews easier to find. And since I have been blogging for a long time and haven’t paid much attention to the taxonomy, this effort is taking longer.
Note: By LGBTQIA-friendly, I mean that the books feature LGBTQIA relationships, but they are not necessarily the story’s focus. For example, a book may primarily be a murder mystery, fantasy, or whatever, but it features LGBTQIA characters portrayed inclusively.
That said, on to the book review.
About Black Leopard Red Wolf
Tracker is known far and wide for his skills as a hunter: “He has a nose,” people say. Engaged in tracking down a mysterious boy who disappeared three years earlier, Tracker breaks his rule of always working alone when he finds himself part of a group that comes together to search for the boy. The band is a hodgepodge full of unusual characters with secrets, including a shape-shifting man-animal known as Leopard.
~ Synopsis from GoodReads
My Review
In the first novel in Marlon James’ Dark Star trilogy, myth and fantasy come together to explore what happens when a mercenary is hired to search for a missing child.
I must admit I struggled with this book. It’s densely plotted and written in an exceedingly confusing stories-within-stories-within-stories style. Also, I am unfamiliar with African legends and myths, so I couldn’t clearly understand some references.
The conceit of the trilogy is that it’s told from three different perspectives. Black Leopard Red Wolf is told from the standpoint of Tracker – a man who can track anyone anywhere, given a scent.
The book starts with Tracker in prison, relating his story to the inquisitor. He and a group of others are employed to seek out a missing boy abducted three years earlier. By the end, the boy is dead (not a spoiler, that’s the book’s first sentence).
The second book out recently (Moon Witch Spider King) is from the angle of the moon witch Sogolon, who is also part of the group.
The plotting and world-building are fantastic, and if you’re weary of the same old fantasy conventions, this book is sort of a breath of fresh air. The world this motley fellowship embarks into is an ancient African land, brimming with monsters, witches, demons, shapeshifters, sorcerers, armies, all those good things.
Along the way, motivations are revealed, motivations change, there’s betrayal and revelation, people change sides and change sides again, and previously obscure elements are shown in a very new light. It is dense, intricate, and interesting.
So, why do I give this book only three stars at the end of my review?
This book/series is not for everybody. Other than the tricky prose, there’s the very dark subject material: people get killed in brutal ways; there’s slavery, torture, child murder, and rapes of both sexes. One scene early on when Tracker gets kidnapped…UGH!
Marlon James said he wanted to write an African Game of Thrones, so you can expect the same (actually higher, come to think) level of brutality in the book.
That said, a tender love story also threads through it, softening the main character’s hard edges.
Overall: Recommend. If you can tolerate the gore and the prose that sounds like an African language translated into English, this book is well-reading.
