Lost Ark Dreaming

December 1, 2023

Nommo Award--winning Okungbowa writes a postapocalyptic novella that fuses African politics, climate fiction, and mythology into a story in which those who've survived the rise of the ocean live in partially submerged towers, while those who were left for dead in the Atlantic seek vengeance after being reawakened by an ancient power. Prepub Alert.

Copyright 2023 Library Journal

Copyright 2023 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from February 1, 2024

In near-future Nigeria, the world has succumbed to extreme climate change. With the region underwater, five towers, known as the Fingers, rise out of the floods and are home to thousands. The affluent live on the top floors, while many more poor people are crammed into the levels submerged under the Atlantic Ocean. When a report of a breach causes midlevel analyst Yekini and upper-level bureaucrat Ngozi to travel underseas to follow up, they meet Tuoyo, an undersea mechanic who once lived above. As the breach is discovered to have been caused by one of the Children, transformed descendants of those left to the water, all three must find a way to bring their disparate perspectives and lives together and reveal the truth about the past--no matter who wants to hide it. The novel's multiple points of view, along with interspersed news articles leading to the present, showcase the themes of class and disparity through tense action. VERDICT Okungbowa (Warrior of the Wind) offers readers an amazing, character-driven story set in a vivid, dystopian world.--Kristi Chadwick

Copyright 2024 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

March 11, 2024
In this powerhouse tale of social inequality from Okungbowa (the Nameless Republic series), survivors of the Second Deluge, an environmental catastrophe that destroyed the city-nation of Lagos, are now holed up in the Pinnacle, a self-sustainable high-rise surrounded by ocean. Rigid protocol ensures near-totalitarian order within the Pinnacle, limiting interaction between its three socioeconomic strata: the Uppers, the Midders, and the “paler, vitamin-D-deficient” Lowers, who are forced to reside below sea level. Chaos erupts when a sea monster, believed to be the offspring of the devil Yemoja, claws its way inside the building, infiltrating Lower level nine. Three Pinnacle residents—Tuoyo, the level nine foreman; Yekini, a special operative from the mid-level; and Ngozi, a high-ranking government official—are assigned to the case. Okungbowa skillfully probes the trio’s immediate distrust of each other, exposing their prejudices and ignorance, while ramping up the action to almost Dune-like intensity. The author packs this story with so many meaty themes—among them the power of history, gods, memory, and story-telling—that some inevitably get short shrift. Where the writing really shines, however, is in the small details, like the orange-peel necklace Ngozi wears in memory of his lost sister. Readers will be gratified.

April 1, 2024
Yekini was born into life in the Pinnacle. The tower was once one of five, protecting its residents from flooded, climate-beaten Earth. But slowly, the Pinnacle became the only one still standing, and the socioeconomic stratifications within it became more and more stark. When Yekini and a higher-floor employee, Ngozi, are called all the way down to undersea to investigate a possible breach, they and level supervisor Tuoyo will be drawn into something they couldn't have anticipated--first contact with the terrifying undersea monsters that are only rumored to exist, the Children of Yemoja. The disaster that ensues will force all three to reckon with the legacy and reality of the Pinnacle and decide whether they're willing to accept the status quo. Okunbowa's latest (after Warrior of the Wind, 2023) is action packed and bold, a Mami Wata folklore-inspired story of capitalist, green-washing corruption and of postapocalyptic revolution, reminiscent of Rivers Solomon and Ursula K. Le Guin. This novella is thought provoking and will spur readers to challenge their own complicities and take action, while also featuring a fast pace and a compelling narrative.

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