A review by storyorc
The Sorcerer of the Wildeeps by Kai Ashante Wilson

adventurous challenging emotional funny sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

Rarely do I get invested so quickly as I did for Demane. I blame the perfect storm of
  1. A fascinating background - this man is out in the desert with a spear talking about how an ascended human taught him about proteins and faster-than-light travel
  2. Being a joy to be around - not only does his infectious love for the romantic interest ooze out of him at every opportunity, he's also playful and helpful to the other guards in their group despite being miles ahead of them in understanding what's going on and his ability to deal with it
  3. The immediacy of the language - Ashante Wilson's prose is one formatting change away from poetry, keeping us relentlessly in Demane's thoughts, reactions, and feelings, even at the detriment of clarity; he becomes a lighthouse in a storm to the reader as much as the other guards.

That said, I would have benefited from about 20% more clarity in what actions are actually taking place. I wouldn't want to sacrifice the closeness to Demane or the dreamlike, mythical style of this book for standard prose, but there were a few points where my ability to sympathise with the implications of an event was hindered by not being sure I'd correctly interpreted what that event was. Not asking to be told how to interpret actions, just the action itself; like the difference between knowing someone fell overboard and whether you think they survived is up to you vs. not being sure if they just got soaked or actually fell.

Finally, I have to shout out the delightful way Ashante Wilson uses different dialects to quietly but profoundly display differences in classes, cultures, and relationships. Code switching galore.  One character even literally uses a different voice to speak to a loved one! The AAVE surprised me but it really locks in that feeling of a group and the different flavours within (one man uses some French, one some Spanish, the younger ones use certain words more, Demane less) get across the feeling of these people being a true mish-mash of backgrounds so well. Not many authors would be bold or informed enough to pull it off.