The Splinter in the Sky

Starred review from May 1, 2023
Ashing-Giwa’s breathtaking space opera debut takes readers to the occupied province of Koriko, where Enitan Ijebu lives with her sibling, Xiang, under the cruel thumb of the Holy Vaalbaran Empire. Vaalbara and its neighboring nation, the Ominirish Republic, have finally signed a peace treaty after years of war, but when Xiang goes missing—one in a long line of disappearances from Koriko—Enitan realizes the empire is still plotting and maneuvers her way into Vaalbara’s capital, the Splinter, to investigate. Her goal is to find her sibling and get out, but matters are immediately complicated when both the nation of Ominirish and the newly appointed God-Emperor of Vaalbaran realize she could be an asset and ask her to spy for them. Caught between saving Xiang and using her newfound influence to alter the fate of all Korikese, Enitan dives into the world of political intrigue—and finds love in an unexpected place. While readers will undoubtedly be invested in this headstrong young tea expert playing spy, it’s colonialism and the effects of war on a populace that form this narrative’s hard-hitting emotional core. Delving into serious sociopolitical matters without ever losing the shine of hope, this tense adventure packs a punch. Agent: Tricia Skinner, Fuse Literary.

June 1, 2023

DEBUT Tea specialist Enitan endures the Vaalbaran empire occupying her home, Koriko, until they kidnap her sibling Xiang. After volunteering to be a hostage to suppress discontent, Enitan is taken to the floating imperial capital, the Splinter, with one goal: rescue Xiang. To do so, she agrees to spy for both the empire's enemies and the newly elevated Vaalbaran Imperator herself. She'll have to play both sides and ignore her growing connection with the Imperator if she wants to win freedom for her sibling, her people, and herself. The novel enmeshes its characters in political intrigue while exploring prejudice and empire. In the Splinter, Enitan faces cultural appropriation and tokenization but leverages her culture to survive and become a dangerous player in her own right. Developing alongside the action is an enemies-to-allies relationship between Enitan and the Imperator, complicated by questions of power and privilege with a resolution that may ring truer for some readers than others. VERDICT Ashing-Giwa's debut will appeal to fans of A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine and those who enjoy a decisive protagonist who throws herself into the action.--Erin Niederberger

Copyright 2023 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from June 1, 2023
Enitan lives a simple life as a scribe on Koriko with her sibling, Xiang. But it is impossible to forget that she also lives on a conquered world, and her Imperial oppressors always loom in the background. When Xiang is kidnapped, Enitan launches a desperate gambit to save them that takes her to the capital of the Empire she hates. Can she uncover the secrets of the Splinter while surviving the machinations of a thousand power-hungry politicians and aristocrats? Will she avoid the clutches of the newly chosen Emperor, worshiped as a god? How far will she go to free her home world? The scope of Ashing-Giwa's debut spans many worlds, a huge, complicated city, and a diverse cast of characters. The author explores the evils of colonization, as well as microaggressions and the provenance of cultural artifacts, while creating a unique voice in Enitan and her often-violent fight to survive. Highly recommended for fans of N. K. Jemisin's Inheritance trilogy and Rebecca Roanhorse's Between Earth and Sky series.

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Starred review from June 15, 2023
A polyglot from a colonized moon nation stumbles into a web of interplanetary intrigue when her erstwhile lover is murdered. Language scholar Enitan Ijebu's appointment as a scribe sent shock waves through the Holy Vaalbaran Empire's religious community. As a native from Koriko, a Vaalbara-colonized moon, Enitan has no legal right to citizenship within the Empire; her homeland has not yet assimilated into Vaalbaran culture at large, which makes her people no more than "savages" in their oppressors' minds. After her older sibling, Xiang, disappears, Enitan suspects foul play, leaving her with no choice but to turn to the one person whose help she doesn't want: Koriko's half-Vaalbaran governor, Ajana Nebaat--her ex-girlfriend. Enitan barely has time to make amends with her ex before the governor is murdered, however. Imperial forces quickly sweep her off to the Vaalbaran capital--a massive, floating structure known as the Splinter--as a scapegoat for the assassination. There, she'll join the recently coronated God-Emperor's court as a political prisoner. Unfortunately for Enitan, the court intrigue begins long before she reaches the Splinter. Emissaries from Vaalbara's biggest enemy, the Ominirish Republic, recruit her as a spy en route to the capital, and the God-Emperor herself, Imperator Menkhet, keeps her close as an "informal advisor" practically from the moment she arrives. Here, Ashing-Giwa constructs a sweeping backdrop for her characters' plights to play out against. The Vaalbarans' personal and political oppression of the Korikese calls to mind European conquests across the Americas, Africa, Asia, and Oceania. Readers will recognize conversations regarding cultural appropriation, the looting of sacred artifacts, slavery, and sexual stereotypes, among other things. Notably, the characters' racial traits cannot be used to distinguish their nation of origin. Enitan is coded as Black, both Xiang and Menkhet have "golden" skin, and many tertiary characters are White. Members of a nonhuman race--the synths, whose existence is outlawed in the Empire--emerge as secondary players in the novel's second half. A strong debut with soft SF elements offering major crossover appeal for fantasy aficionados.

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