But honestly it’s an absolute rollercoaster and completely wild but while reading it I was never confused or lost.

It’s difficult to summaries the plot because it’s complex and chaotic and also I tried explaining it to my friend and it only confused her terribly haha. The hate and fear and grief and hope feels like a punch to the gut. And there is love, so much love between the characters, for each other, for their families for their histories and for their futures. There is magic and body horror, monsters and action, mystery and gore and joy even in the darkest times. This is brutal and breathtaking and it would be a disservice to the book and yourself if you don’t read it. Honestly, I don’t know what to say, any praise I can muster is insufficient. Ring Shout is set in the 1920s Macon Georgia following Marsye and her rag tag group who hunt horrifying monsters hidden within the KKK. Ring Shout weaves together history, folk lore, magic, while having a thought provoking and painful discussion about racism in America and the trauma and grief Black people experience as well as their continual oppression. I almost can’t put into words how beautiful, horrifying, disgusting and powerful this book is.

Together with a foul-mouthed sharpshooter and a Harlem Hellfighter, Maryse sets out to save a world from the hate that would consume it. But to confront this ongoing evil, she must journey between worlds to face nightmares made flesh–and her own demons. When she’s not running bootleg whiskey through Prohibition Georgia, she’s fighting monsters she calls “Ku Kluxes.” She’s damn good at it, too. Luckily, Maryse Boudreaux has a magic sword and a head full of tales. Now, rising in power and prominence, the Klan has a plot to unleash Hell on Earth. Griffith is a sorcerer, and The Birth of a Nation is a spell that drew upon the darkest thoughts and wishes from the heart of America. Djèlí Clark returns with Ring Shout, a dark fantasy historical novella that gives a supernatural twist to the Ku Klux Klan’s reign of terror.ĭ. Publisher & publication dates: October 13th 2020 by Tordotcom Representation: All main/major characters are Black, a main supporting character is a lesbian (or at least sapphic/ wlw), minor supporting character is JewishĬontent warnings: murder, death, gore/mutilation/body horror, violence, racism, white supremacy, racial violence, religion used to justify racial violence, references to hate crimes/ murder/ lynching, hanging/lynching, trauma, PTSD, grief, death of parent/family member, use of the n-word and racial slurs, reference to off the page rape of character’s mother, references to animal abuse, references to antisemitism

Ring shout review