Akata Woman

This book is just on the verge of trying too hard. Lots of events, most of them interesting, keep the four young people busy and in difficulties and the eventually are on their way to retrieve the giant spider's mobius strip book and get even busier as they are more in danger.

Nnedi Okorafor is one of my favorite authors. And the Akata series is one of my favorite. I devoured it in a few hours and already wanted to read more. The book is infused with magic and paranormal interwoven with a core Nigerian attitude.

This is the third book in the series that started with Akata Witch and it was compared to Harry Potter and I can kind of see why, but at the same time, this is very different with the magic system and everything too.
I kind of was a bit lost when I read this book and so I wasn't as interested as I

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thought I'd be. This is best to be read after reading the other two books otherwise you'll likely get a bit lost and then lose some interest.
I did pick up on things after reading for a bit and enjoy it in the end, but not as much as I would have if I'd read the other books in the series. Anyway, this book being the third in the series has a lot to live up to and cover in it. It's about Sunny and how she discovers she has mystical energy in her blood and has to learn to use, control, and understand her magic. After learning a lot in the previous two books with her adventures and life, things are put to the test in this book. She has to go on a dangerous quest to obtain a precious object hidden deep within an otherworldly realm and as things happen along the way, she and her friends learn and grow and have a fantastic journey to obtain this precious object.
If you liked the other two books, then for sure check it out. Thanks so much to NetGalley and Penguin Group Penguin Young Readers Group for letting me read and review this interesting book

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This installment of the Akata series was lackluster in comparison to the others. While there was growth in the main character, the supporting characters were incredibly weak and one-dimensional. It was incredibly plot-focused without development of theme, except for the strong and frequent

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reminders that "sucking teeth" is evidence of disapproval.

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Sunny and her friends continue in their training as Leopard People and have a new challenge: the spider, Udide, reappears and demands that Sunny and Chichi return an item that their relatives stole some time ago. They knew this was coming, but now they have a deadline and a threat that Udide will

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destroy an entire village if they don't comply.

This is a solid installment in the series, whose world-building is inventive and grounded in traditional Nigerian beliefs. I enjoy following Sunny, Chichi, Orlu and Sasha as they discover more about their abilities, and as Sunny deals with her family not being able to know about this part of her life. The ending left on a little bit of a cliffhanger, so I hope there are more to come soon.

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Sunny is now 15, and she and her friends continue to progress in their juju studies. But the threat of Udide, the giant spider creature, still hangs over them -- Udide has demanded that Sunny and Chichi restore her missing item to her, and now, she's given them a deadline. Sasha and Orlu aren't

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about to let the girls have an adventure alone, so the four set out together on a journey that will take them first to Nimm Village, home of the female warriors whose blood runs through Sunny and Chichi's veins, and then to an entirely different world.

It took me a bit to get back into this since it's been a while since I read the first two books in the series, but once I settled back into the world, I was hooked. A solid entry in the series and I look forward to the next one. Okorafor's writing is always so inventive and fresh-feeling. No wonder the blurbs on this book's dust jacket are so insane -- she has endorsements from Neil Gaiman, Diana Wynne Jones, Ursula K. LeGuin, and Rick Riordan. 4 stars.

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Akata Woman is the third book in Nnedi Okorafor's "Nsibidi Scripts" YA fantasy series, and the second to be a finalist for the Hugo-adjacent Lodestar Award for Best Young Adult Book (in fact, the second book won the first award). I thought the first book was just okay, but found the second much

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more enjoyable. Unfortunately, I thought this was back to the level of the first one. The cast of characters, protagonist Sunny aside, seemed largely interchangeable to me, and the plot never really took off. Basically, Sunny and her friends go to a place, it gets described, then they go to a different place, repeat until suddenly the book comes to an end. An okay travelogue, but it did little for me.

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Akata Woman by Nnedi Okorafor is the stunning finale to the mystical Nsibidi Scripts trilogy that blends African folklore, and Nigerian culture/ traditions with contemporary life.

Themes of friendship, identity, and personal growth take center stage, as Sunny and her Leopard Knocks friends navigate

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complicated magical politics and face immense battles. The world-building resonates with vibrant life, creating a captivating backdrop for the complex challenges and growth Sunny faces.

Through her vivid writing style, Okorafor shines a light on gender and cultural complexities, and exploration of the diaspora experience and cultural struggle add substance to the narrative. A finale well worth the wait, Akata Woman is a story you're not gonna want to miss.

***Purchased and read for my own enjoyment.

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