Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse is a fantasy tale set in a world heavily influenced by pre-Columbian cultures. Four great clans reside in the holy city of Tova: Golden Eagle, Water Strider, Winged Serpent, and Carrion Crow. It is the Carrion Crow from which Black Sun‘s story has its genesis, beginning with a young boy named Serapio who is effectively unwillingly made into an avatar of the Crow god. Years later, we meet Serapio as a man–hidden for years and grown more powerful through training in hand to hand combat, shadow magic, and far seeing through crows. Serapio journeys across the Crescent Sea in time for the Conjunction (eclipse,) back to Tova to fulfill a prophecy. Xiala is the captain of the ship, an interesting character herself in her “Teek” race. She has rainbow eyes and the ability to perform magic to control wind and water through Song. Xiala and Serapio form a unique friendship, their cultures and histories clashing in unexpected ways.
In Tova, the Sun Priestess of the Celestial Tower Naranpa resists being usurped by those born to the Golden Eagle clan. They view Naranpa as unworthy of her station due to her birth origin of “Dry Earth” in the “Maw” – the lowest part of the city where people live among poverty, darkness, and underworld crime syndicates. Also in Tova, we meet Okoa, son the late Carrion Crow matron, who is recalled home to deal with the rising tensions between the clans in a city about to explode like a powder keg.
Rebecca Roanhorse has created a fully realized world, creatively drawing in aspects of MesoAmerican cultures, such as the use of cacao as a trading item. Roanhorse has successfully balanced apt world building while fleshing out her cast of characters. I particularly loved Xiala and Serapio. While we might be supposed to view Serapio as a “villain” in this story, he is crafted in a way that makes him sympathetic which makes him all the more complex and interesting. I also loved the relationship between him and Xiala. The Teek race and culture seems fascinating and I hope we learn more about them in the other books! Another world building detail I loved was the giant crows the warriors of Carrion Crow ride. I will definitely be reading the rest of the books in this trilogy.
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