This was fantastic. Vivid, fast-paced, rich in tone and world. A new favourite. 

Written with crisp prose and pacing, Okungbowa drops me into a changed Lagos, crawling with fallen Orishas and the like, and does not let up until the last.

The dialogue is lively and sparks with the timbre of Lagosian dialect, the characters are grounded, sure, uncanny, sinister, and oh so captivating.

There is a certain irreverence and practicality to how our protagonist interacts with and sees his city. He is well aware of its shortcomings as well as the inherent style that makes Lagos exactly what it is, and that there is no place like it. Even as I was saying 'slow down David', as my heart raced, my mind was saying 'I want more'. And even when I thought there couldn't possibly be more, Suyi Davies delivered.

His elder and father (for lack of a better descriptor) embodies what I love about elders: they are constant, salty, with a certain verve and brashness that comes with time lived and people and places experienced. Give me more Papa Udi.

What cannot be ignored is the human experience that is exemplified in this story: the struggle, choices, relationships, spirit, the formation of community, bonds of friendship, and the search for belonging in the midst of upheaval and chaos. How hard can it be to face down and fight beside a pantheon of gods? Pick this one up to find out. 

Would that every fantasy novel could read as this one did.