BLACKHEART MAN

An ambitious young man tries to protect his magical homeland from external invaders and internal secrets.

Veycosi’s future is bright—at least, according to Veycosi. A citizen of the island nation of Chynchin, he’s in training to become a “chantwell,” someone trained to gather and share knowledge. And while the people around him, including his superiors and even his two fiances (Chynchin marriages are usually in threes), think Veycosi is overly confident in his schemes, he knows he’ll impress them with his plan to use explosives to clear the blockage in one of the pipes that brings water to the city of Carenage. And while Veycosi’s plan works—mostly—he accidentally destroys a precious book. His punishment is a fool’s errand: collect folk tales about the legendary witches who saved Chynchin from invaders. But when mysterious ships appear at the harbor, the question of saving the island from outside invaders becomes frighteningly urgent. Hopkinson fills Chynchin to the brim with immersive details, from the oral tradition of the chantwells, to the tensions between different social groups, to the distinctive and engaging voices of her characters. However, there is too much of a good thing, and the story might have been served better by spending more time with one plot thread rather than splitting into several more after the invaders arrive.

A magical adventure with a few too many twists and turns.