Thursday, November 25, 2021

SciFi/Fantasy Book Review: Wings of Ebony by J. Elle

 


Wings of Ebony is a young adult modern fantasy novel written by author J. Elle, and as is fairly typical of YA SF/F these days, is the first part of a duology (the second part comes out next year).  The story features a black girl named Rue caught between two worlds - our human world, where she and her sister live on the streets of Houston, where Black lives aren't cared for, and a gang of drug dealers haunts the streets & a magical fantasy land called Ghizon, where her father apparently came from, and where a rule-dictating leader gifts magic to his followers....all of whom show gray skin and look little like Rue.  As you can guess from just this setup, Wings of Ebony is in no way subtle about its own themes, like a lot of young adult novels, and like a lot of these YA duologies, it of course leaves part of the story unfinished at its conclusion.  

But here's the thing: Wings of Ebony does the YA SF/F duology format right - the book may not be subtle, but its characters are extremely well done, its themes are well brought out and powerful and very relevant to today's era, no matter how cringy they might be done this unsubtly.  The book's handling of the essential White "ally" character is particularly well done, in showing how flawed such characters can be when they're called on their bullshit, and all of Rue's conflicts in both worlds feels entirely real.  An unlike most duologies, this ends on a very satisfactory note, with one area of conflict complete, and what's left open being a clear tease for a new stage in Rue's story.  The book isn't perfect, and certain elements didn't quite work for me at times (the romantic subplot possibilities, one part of the resolution), but well, it's very good.  


--------------------------------------------------Plot Summary-----------------------------------------------------
One year ago, Rue's mother was shot and left for dead on her doorstep in Houston, leaving Rue and her sister Tasha without their only caring parent.  But before Rue could find a way to take care of the sister she loved, she found herself whisked away from Houston by the father she's never met to a hidden magical island known as Ghizon, a place that features no people of color like herself.  And while Rue enjoys the idea of gaining magical power - gifted by Ghizon's beloved chancellor to its grey-skinned people with magical onyx - and gains a friend in the tech wizard Bri, she knows she isn't and doesn't want to be a part of this world.  What Rue wants is to be back with her people in Houston, where she can protect the sister she left behind.  

Now, with Bri's help, Rue finds a way to return to Houston, only to discover her sister and her people are being preyed upon by a gang of ruthless drug dealers.  But when Rue uses magic to save her sister, she finds herself hunted not just by the drug dealers, but by the Chancellor's men in Ghizon as well, who seek not only to punish her for breaking the rules, but for existing in the first place.  Because the chancellor's rule in Ghizon, and the acts of his second in command, the General, hides a secret that could change the magical world forever.  

Torn between two worlds, Rue will have to decide whether she can try to save either, and who she really is, as the magic she discovers may be the key to the salvation of everyone and everything she cares about.....
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Wings of Ebony is not a subtle book.  In its Houston setting, Rue has to deal with a gang-led violence in a Black area that is ignored by the police and the public - despite all the lives that are lost (with the gang being led by a White guy, and featuring nice looking white women as agents).  In its Ghizon setting, Rue has to deal with a culture who insists its charismatic leader, the Chancellor, brought all their people together and gave them magic, and that nothing historical worth knowing happened before any of that.  And even for the Chancellor's people, there's a caste system where there are people deemed unworthy, others given magic and forced into labor, and then a higher class who exploits them all, with the laboring class basically being led to believe they're blessed just to have magic.  There's a lot wrong going on in both worlds that should feel very familiar to anyone familiar with our world, and Wings of Ebony is not subtle about it all.  

But Wings of Ebony works really well because in Rue it has a character who can experience it all and show quite clearly how wrong it all is, and how hard it is to change.  Rue cares for her friends and family, particularly her sister and the people on the streets she used to hang with and care for (or who cared for her).  She's bold and brash with her behavior, and may not care about book learning, but she's quick to realize when lessons she's being taught aren't quite right.  And her caring and street smarts make her determined to do what she can to change things for the better, no matter how dangerous it is.

And so with her at its core, Wings of Ebony is able to have a plot that can handle these unsubtle themes of its setting, even when elements of its plot are really predictable (gee the Gangs in Houston are connected to the magic in Ghizon?  The Chancellor stole the magic from the indigenous people of color on Ghizon?  Who could've seen those things coming!).  The story deals strongly with themes of imperialism and colonial theft, with rich and poor white ignorance of problems faced by those who are poor and of color, and with how, when confronted with these injustices, supposed White allies will still find a way to center the issue and wrongs around them, instead of on the people who really suffered.  This last part is done really well, as it shows a character who just can't seem to understand that while her whole understanding of the world may have been shattered, she benefitted from that world and doesn't have the right to pity when others suffered while she was ignorant.*

*This may be me reading too much into things, but this character, who serves as Rue's tech-savvy sidekick for most of the novel, feels very much like a commentary on Gear from Static Shock, a white ally tech savvy superhero who was basically shoved into a black superhero show because of executive meddling, without any reckoning for the problems and pains he wasn't a part of.*

There are some elements of the plot that don't work to be fair.  Most notably, the book sets up two love interests for Rue, one in each world, and doesn't really take time to develop either - and so while it doesn't really set up a conflict-driven love triangle that matters all that much, neither does the romance feel natural or like it has any point being there.  The book also uses a classic trope as a way for Rue to prove to ignorant white/gray people what's going on, which the cynic in me these days doesn't really believe would work, but well....eh, that's a minor complaint.  

Still, overall Wings of Ebony works really well, and it ends on a satisfactory note that closes the first act of this story, while still leaving work to do for the sequel.  I will be back to check that out.  

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