Masquerade

I have received an e-ARC by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Thank you, Solaris/Rebellion Publishing!

4.75 stars

This story is set in a reimagined 15th century West Africa and inspired by the Hades and Persephone myth, minus the Underworld and a couple of other twists to it. I’d say this is more historical fiction than fantasy. You might be disappointed going in expecting this to be fantasy because there isn’t much if anything of it in this book.
The writing is really good, having made the story come alive in front of my eyes so vividly that I completely forgot that I was reading words. I can’t believe this is the author’s debut novel and I definitely am interested to read more of her work in the future. There’s a glossary for those who aren’t familiar with some words but I think they were explained well within the text without slowing down the story.
Òdòdó is an interesting character. She wants to break out of her life as a looked-down-upon daughter of a blacksmith mother, and a blacksmith in her own right, which does explain a bit why she isn’t quite as bothered by having been kidnapped and declared the bride of the warrior king against her will as others might have been in the same situation. She is complying with a lot more initially in order to not lose her new position than I expected and can come across as rather passive at first. She can also be frustratingly naïve, even when one might think that she might have learned better later on. I loved her character development all the more for it. It’s a subtle process, the little and bigger things coming together nicely in the end. I found her to be a fascinating character, even though I wanted to shake her in frustration sometimes. She is 19 though, not having had any experiences beyond her little blacksmithing world before being thrown into her new life, so I think she’s allowed a bit of naivety as long as there’s character development, and there definitely is. There is something deeply satisfying to watching a character grow into their badassery over the course of the story, with some smaller and bigger bumps on the road, and then rising like a phoenix from the ashes. Love it.
I also enjoyed reading about the other women Òdòdó is surrounded by and whom she has different relationships with, be they antagonistic, more friendly, or a mix of both. They are all connected being women in a world where women have little freedom or rights and it’s equally frustrating and satisfying to see their individual approaches to gain more freedom.
The relationship between Òdòdó and the warrior king is not a healthy one and this book is definitely not a romance, so if you’re looking for a healthy relationship or a romance in general, this is not the book for you. I like to read about power dynamics, and the further along we get, the more we can see a push-and-pull, Òdòdó trying to level the playing field. Will she achieve it? Will she achieve more than that? I’ll not answer that lol. Are they in love? It is hard to say. But as I’ve said, this is not a romance book. It is a book about Òdòdó’s fight for her own freedom.
The pacing is somewhere between medium and slow, I think. It’s not an action-filled book, more one of intrigue, politically and otherwise, but also leaning quite a bit towards being character-driven. I personally really enjoyed it this way.
The cover is even more stunning now that I’ve read the book. It fits the story so well.
I can wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone who is interested in West African history and mythology, the Hades and Persephone myth, badass women, (political) intrigue, as well as power dynamics and power struggles. I’m not sure whether there are more books planned for this, but this works well as a standalone.

The following content warnings contain mild spoilers, so proceed with caution:

Content Warnings: blood and gore, violence, loss of a body part, SA, finding out that you’re the result of SA, misogyny, (forced) infertility, kidnapping, confinement, toxic relationship, gaslighting, slavery, murder, death, grief, animal death, death of a parent, war, betrayal

“Long live the queen”

One of the most incredible debut novels I’ve read in a while. It was so well written and such an original take on a story that’s been used thousands of times.
I think it is important to mention that this is not a traditional love story. After all, it is a retelling of Hades and Persephone’s story, so I thought that was a given from the start. While I was reading, I literally never trusted any of the characters and my emotions were constantly conflicted, but I also thought that was the point. If you get into this book with that in mind, and you’re looking for a complex, strong female character, you will not be disappointed.

I can’t wait to read more from this author.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with the arc!

I was so excited to read Masquerade and so grateful to be given the opportunity to read it early via netgalley. It did not disappoint.
It is written so richly and I felt all the emotions that were being conveyed through Òdòdó. The rage, the betrayal, the power.
I very much enjoyed Òdòdó's character growth throughout the story and was so happy that she ended up where she did at the end.
I highly recommend reading Masquerade.