Black Leopard, Red Wolf
Dark Star Trilogy Book 1
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4.4 • 27 Ratings
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- £6.99
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- £6.99
Publisher Description
THE SUNDAY TIMES NO.1 BESTSELLER
Escape into a world of magic and danger with THE DARK STAR TRILOGY. Drawing on a rich tradition of African mythology, fantasy and history, this is the story of a lost child, an extraordinary hunter, and a mystery with many answers . . .
*Perfect for fans of Pratchett, George R. R. Martin and Octavia Butler*
'The kind of novel I never realized I was missing until I read it. A dangerous, hallucinatory, ancient Africa, which becomes a fantasy world as well-realized as anything Tolkien made' Neil Gaiman
*****
Tracker is a hunter. Known throughout the thirteen kingdoms as one who has a nose, he always works alone. But he breaks his own rule when, hired to find a lost child, he finds himself part of a group of hunters, each stranger and more dangerous than the last.
As the mismatched gang follow the boy's scent from perfumed citadels to enchanted darklands, Tracker starts to wonder:
Who really is this mysterious boy?
Why do so many people want to stop him from being found?
And, most important of all, who is telling the truth and who is lying?
Marlon James weaves a breathtaking tapestry - at once ancient and startlingly modern - exploring the fundamentals of truth, limits of power, excesses of ambition, and our need to understand them all.
Chronicling the same events but telling a very different story - who will you believe? Read THE DARK STAR TRILOGY in any order! Book two, MOON WITCH, SPIDER KING, is available to pre-order now.
*****
'Complex, lyrical, moving and furiously gripping . . . This new book will propel James into a new galaxy of literary stardom' Observer
'A game-changing modern fantasy classic' Financial Times
'James has thrown African cultures, mythologies, religions, histories, world-views and topographies into the mighty cauldron of his imagination to create a work of literary magic' New Statesman
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
High fantasy unfolds in a magical, dangerous land that looks a lot like South Africa. The first book of Marlon James’ Dark Star trilogy introduces us to Tracker, a wanderer who can find anyone…even if they’re in the land of the dead. Tracker’s quest to find a boy who has gone missing puts him in contact with many allies—including a fearsome shapeshifting leopard—and also with his even more terrifying enemies. The story takes a hypnotic and winding path, one that throws truth and reality into question at every turn, adding an element of mystery to an already riveting adventure story.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Booker winner James (A Brief History of Seven Killings) kicks off a planned trilogy with a trek across a fantastical Africa that is equal parts stimulating and enervating. Centering on the search for a lost boy, the plot is relatively straightforward, though the narrator, Tracker, moves his story obliquely "as crabs do, from one side to the next." Tracker is a "hunter of lost folk," an ornery loner with an extraordinary nose that lets him pick up the scent of his quarry from miles away. Along with several other mercenary hunters, he is hired by a slave trader to find a kidnapped boy, though who the boy is and why he is so valuable are mysteries to Tracker. Storytelling is a kind of currency in this world, as people measure themselves not only by their violent feats but also by their skill in recounting them, and they have plenty of material: giants, necromancers, witches, shape-shifters, warring tribes, and unspeakable atrocities. Indeed, there is a narrative glut, which barely lets readers acclimate to a new, wondrous civilization or grotesque creation before another is introduced. It's altogether overwhelming, but on the periphery of the novel are intriguing ideas about the performance of masculinity, cultural relativism, kinship and the slipperiness of truth. Though marred by its lack of subtlety, this is nonetheless a work of prodigious imagination capable of entrancing readers.
Customer Reviews
Curious Book
I found this one of the most challenging books to read I’ve ever come across. So much is almost stream of consciousness and quite opaque in the way it’s presented. I was expecting more of a classically presented saga. Having said that I kept with it and read to the end, as the main characters are very compelling. Will I read the second instalment? Not sure.