Title: A Song of Wraiths and Ruin
Author: Roseanne A. Brown
Rating: 5/5
Retelling of: Ghanaian Folk Tales
The Twist: I’m not sure what the twist is for particular folk tales, but the biggest draw of this book is the African-inspired setting, cast of color, and unique magic system!
A Song of Wraiths and Ruin is a breathtakingly gorgeous tale that I discovered just a few days before the book’s release. I was so excited when this book came out that I bought it immediately on release day, and y’all, I have no regrets.
But I have to admit something. Although Roseanne A. Brown has admitted to using Ghanaian folk tales as an inspiration for her book, this story isn’t really a fairy tale or folk tale retelling. Several people have suggested that it’s a retelling of Aladdin (mostly the Disney version), as the story follows both an impoverished refugee boy and a princess whose life and future as queen of her people are in jeopardy. But it’s not really set up as a retelling of the original tale, even if Aladdin was an accidental or purposeful influence.
What the story does contain, however, is magic, trickery, storytelling, dancing, and a slow-burn romance that keeps you on your toes.
Even though I can see some connections to Ghanaian folk tales and Aladdin, this will technically be my first book review that isn’t tied immediately to a fairy tale. Still, I think it’s a gorgeous piece of fantasy literature and I can’t talk enough about how refreshing it is to dive in a world that isn’t centered around European fantasy tropes.
The General Overview
A Song of Wraiths and Ruin alternates chapters between the perspectives of Malik, a refugee hoping to find work in the glittering and wealthy city of Ziran alongside his two sisters, and Karina, the seemingly spoiled princess of all of Sonande, the country where Ziran sits as the seat of power. Their two stories collide (literally) fairly early when Malik and his sisters disastrously manage to enter the city amidst a chaotic distraction and Malik crashes into Karina as she’s navigating the streets in disguise after performing in a tavern.
But this is not immediately a romance. From nearly the beginning, their goals and actions are at odds with one another.
The chaotic distraction was a result of Malik’s younger sister, Nadia, making a wish to get inside the city. But wishes are dangerous (as anyone with a lamp or a genie would know) and Nadia ends up being the payment for such a wish. Now Malik and his older sister, Leila, must make a deal with the obosom, a sort of minor god or spirit in certain Ghanaian tribal folklore and religions, who has decided to collect Nadia as his payment for fulfilling her wish. His request? That Malik kill Karina to get Nadia back.
Meanwhile, Karina is dealing with the headache of courtly politics and planned revelry. She feels she was inadequately prepared to be queen, and also struggles with lingering trauma over the deaths of her older sister and father to a palace fire years ago. Not only that, but Karina soon finds herself completely in charge of the week-long Solstasia festival, in honor of the return of a 50-year comet, after the assassination of her mother.
The Solstasia festival is Malik’s chance to get close to Karina, and it wraps the entire story in a heady, exhilarating, colorful celebration. Central to the festival is a competition among the seven alignments (Sun, Moon, Wind, Earth, Water, Fire, and Life). When Malik rigs his way into the competition as the Life-aligned champion, he guarantees a place closer to Karina. Especially when Karina announces the prize the final champion will receive upon winning all three trials — her hand in marriage.
But Karina doesn’t just need a husband. She needs a king. Or rather, she needs the heart of a king for a very special magical ritual to resurrect her mother.
Though it seems Malik and Karina are destined to kill one another, their stories become tangled and complicated as they cross paths and learn more about one another. Both realize that it is easier to kill someone you don’t know well (and who you’re not attracted to), and both come to a point where they have to weigh winning back what they’ve lost against the possible future that could be built if they worked together. The story takes several surprising turns, and doesn’t at all end the way you’d expect.
But I’ll let you read all that for yourselves.
The Original Story Factor
Like I said, this isn’t really a set retelling of any one thing. Brown did admit to being inspired by Ghanaian folk tales told by her parents and grandparents, and if you’ve read my fairy tale spotlight on Anansi then you’d recognize an example of similar Ghanaian folk stories. But as far as I’ve read of tribal folk tales (which, like I admitted in the Anansi post, is ashamedly very little), they don’t tend to center around romance the same way that European fairy tales do. Instead, they’re tales of trickery, clever riddles, and moral lessons, and feature more animal characters than human.
That said, I could see traces of Ghanaian folklore woven into the story. Hyena, the trickster figure of Sonande’s culture, reminded me in many ways of Anansi, and the story that Malik tells of one of Hyena’s adventures is largely reminiscent of the humorous tales that often go along with Anansi stories.
If I had to draw connections back to Aladdin, I would have to admit that Malik and Karina’s relationship does read similarly to Aladdin and his princess (or Aladdin and Jasmine, if we’re going with Disney). But Malik doesn’t rely on the wishes of a genie or jinn to trick his way into winning Karina’s hand. In fact, the jinn-like obosom is more his enemy than his ally. Instead, gets by with his own sharp wits and a little help from some unexpected friends.
Even though I can’t trace the folklore in this book back to any one specific tale, the heavy infusion of African cultures in Sonande, Ziran, and the characters within just makes this book sparkle. Even the book’s map itself creates a sense of exciting new worlds, with the Snowlands to the south, the masks in the corner, and jungles to the north. All of the characters are black or brown, with cultures, clothing, and appearances inspired by tribal African, ancient Egyptian, and Middle Eastern cultures.
But perhaps the most enchanting element of the book is how it begins, with a storyteller’s call.
“Abraa! Abraa! Come and gather — a story is about to begin!”
The Criticism
I have absolutely no criticisms when it comes to the coherence of the story, the fantastic worldbuilding, or the motivations of the characters. Although sometimes Malik or Karina would act in surprising ways that I sometimes had difficulty understanding in the moment, those moments never felt untrue to their characters. Since they’re teenagers, I expected them to be a little irrational at moments. Since they’re also complex teenagers dealing with mental illnesses, trauma, and high-stress environments, I could hardly blame them for moments of irrationality.
If I had to pick any one critique, however, it would be pacing. I know, I know, you hear that from me all the time. Listen, I’m a girl who likes long books. I like to linger in the worlds for a while. My friends will tell you I’m a slow reader when it’s something I enjoy. And I really enjoyed this book. I wanted to linger over moments of beauty, yes, but I also wanted to linger in pockets of drama, in moments of mystery, in those little scenes where the characters stopped and took a breath to re-evaluate or recenter themselves and their goals.
This story barrels along like a high-speed train, its energy reminiscent of Malik’s fidgeting anxiety or Karina’s frenzied fixation on the increasingly shrinking time she has left to perform her ritual. These characters feel like they don’t have time to ponder mysteries, but a part of me still kind of wishes that we lingered over certain things, and didn’t rush other scenes just to get to the next interesting plot point.
But that might just be me.
Final Thoughts
Altogether, A Song of Wraiths and Ruin is just a dazzling, refreshing book. Malik and Karina are compelling characters with complicated goals and aspirations. The magic of Sonande feels new and exciting, but also dangerous and dark. The trials of the Solstasia competition weave together with the lavish parties of the wealthy as well as the riotous revelry of the lower city in Ziran, creating a complex tapestry of culture that is simply enchanting and original.
I would recommend this book to anyone wanting an original fantasy story without all the stale elements of your typical fantasy. I would recommend this book to people of color, especially writers of color, who are looking to get into fantasy novels but are tired of seeing the same white cast over and over again. I would recommend this to anyone, just in general, because it’s just a really good story.
There is a sequel planned, as the story is being marketed as the first of a duology, and I cannot wait for the next book (although I’ll obviously have to). Until then, I hope you all enjoyed a slight break from fairy tale retellings to read a review of a mostly-fantasy story. Check back in two weeks to see what else I’ve been reading!