Weekly Reader: Offset Children of the Gulf Written by Delvin Howell Illustrated by Hans Steinbach; Despite Some Flaws, An Excellent Continuation to Bimshire's Legendary Heroes and Villains

 Weekly Reader: Offset Children of the Gulf Written by Delvin Howell Illustrated by Hans Steinbach; Despite Some Flaws, An Excellent Continuation to Bimshire's Legendary Heroes and Villains

By Julie Sara Porter

Bookworm Reviews

Spoilers: When last we left the island of Barbados AKA Bimshire in Delvin Howell and Hans Steinbach's Offset: Mask of the Bimshire, Kyle Harding studied a form of martial arts that uses a sugar cane as a weapon.

With his new friend, Damien Collins and a group of friends and family members including his kid brother, Damien, Kyle had to face human gangs and various monsters from Bajan myths. Most frightening of this rogue's gallery is the Heart Man, a man transformed into a creature who removes hearts from his victims and Mrs. Pringle, a witch who transformed and controlled the Heart Man.

In the second volume, Children of the Gulf one year has gone by. Kyle and the others are trying to adjust to a normal life. But now some potentially supernatural events such as someone disappearing into thin air and Kyle being attacked by invisible enemies suggest that Bimshire's legendary monsters have returned to fight Kyle, "The Inheritor." Kyle has to fight both human and supernatural enemies while Collins and young Damien have their own encounters that set their own fates and destinies. Kyle also receives some unlikely help from Sniper, a former enemy to face the latest group of villains.

The Mask of Bimshire is a great volume. Children of the Gulf however is good but not great. It has some great terrifying moments and many of the characters, particularly the supporting ones, receive more depth and twists in their individual paths. However, it stumbles particularly with antagonists who are not as interesting or as memorable as those in the previous volume. Perhaps The Mask of Bimshire's excellence is a detriment to Children of the Gulf. The first volume left such a memorable impression that its successor either had to match it or falter. Unfortunately, in this case it pales in comparison.

In this volume, the supporting characters really shine through when their own paths are revealed. Collins discovers that his chance meeting and friendship with Kyle might not be coincidental after all when he is recruited by a secret organization known as the canecutters and is taught abilities that could help Kyle or cause him even more trouble. Their divergent paths may pit Kyle and Collins against each other.

Sniper, an antagonist from the first volume, shows some depth and vulnerability in this volume, saving Kyle a couple of times and questioning his life as a pelt-ing (a gang member that throws bottles at victims). He seems to emerge as an anti-hero and potential frienemy of Kyle's. Sniper could end up becoming a potential future sidekick if Kyle and Collins end up at odds. Sniper's trajectory is good, but Collins is a great character and his and Kyle's friendship is one of the highlights of the series. It's just a possibility hanging in the air.

Damien Harding however has a more potentially disturbing development. He is also being noticed by the dark spirits and they see potential in him. Damien is also going through a rebellious questioning phase against Damien and their guardian, Mr. Beckles. Damien begins meeting the spirits in secret and appears to be starting a darker nature. We could see the young boy develop as a potential villain selling his soul to the darkness around him. There is a potentially terrifying future for this young man.

Unfortunately, because the supporting characters are built up more in this volume, it emphasizes more how bland a lead Kyle is. There is one great moment when he reunites with a relative and instead of greeting them with a warm hug, he lets them have it for this destiny that Kyle ended up inheriting that he didn't ask for, wasn't consulted on until he was left alone to deal with it, and puts him and his friends in constant trouble.

However, except for this moment, Kyle does very little except fight villains. It was like once his hero story was revealed, there was little left for him to do, so instead the other characters got built up.

Kyle isn't the only character who is a distinct letdown. The villains are nowhere near as developed as The Heart Man and Mrs. Pringle in The Mask of Bimshire. For the most part these villains are practically interchangeable and their backstory isn't as compelling as The Heart Man's bargain with Mrs. Pringle in the previous volume. There are some pretty creepy moments when some sinister little spirits called the baku demand payment. But they aren't as memorable as the Heart Man's terrifying transformation from regular guy to heart stealing monster.

Also, this volume does a major misstep in failing to recognize a regular primary antagonist in Mrs. Pringle. She was a sinister delight pulling the strings behind the Heart Man's actions and viewed Kyle as an "Inheritor" and worthy opponent. Unfortunately, she is removed anticlimactically and her full potential is never realized. 

While there is some supernatural presence throughout this volume, it mostly remains in the shadows and isn't fully involved in the characters which means the dark and light magic in the previous book gives way to more physical action fights which are nowhere near as compelling or entertaining as they were before. That could be the point as the real villains may be saved for next time. But these antagonists are pretty lackluster.

Sometimes the second volume in a book series has greater characterization by developing the characters' journeys and widening the ensemble. Sometimes it has a weaker plot because it contains repetitive fights and little resolution to be saved for the next volume. In Children of the Gulf's case it has both: better development but a weaker plot and antagonists. That averages out to okay but could be much better. At the least the flaws aren't large enough to get in the way of good expectations for volume three.

New Book Alert: Shadows in the Light by Sophie Shepherd; Fascinating YA Dystopia About A World of Dance

 

New Book Alert: Shadows in the Light by Sophie Shepherd; Fascinating YA Dystopia About A World of Dance

By Julie Sara Porter

Bookworm Reviews

Spoilers: Many people value the Arts over any other activity. They offer free expression, free speech, are mostly non combative, and it is assumed that the people who practice them are tolerant and believe in equality, and would therefore make effective leaders. Well, Sophie Shepherd's YA novel, Shadows in the Light shows that's not always the case. In a world built entirely on the Arts, the wrong people could use those arts to become just as much a dictator as any other, especially in their means to control that art.

In the country the Realm of the Light, everything belongs to the Dance. There are more dance studios than we have Walgreens, Wal Marts, and Dollar Generals. Everybody is trained from when they are young to study dancing. Those who make it to be Dancers are considered the elite. Every year a competition is held to determine the best dancer. That dancer is then selected to be a Grace and lead their own colony. All other positions and interests such as education, medicine, computers, and production design are only meant to encourage the art of dancing and no other reason. Anyone who can't fit their talent into dancing in some way is labelled an Alternative and is exiled or made to disappear. The country is ruled by Mrs. Wren who would be what would happen if Martha Graham ruled the world. She insists that her people follow light and beauty and not the combat and competition of the old days. Anyone who disagrees has a funny way of either suddenly conforming or disappearing.

In true YA dystopian fashion, it takes a young teen to wake up and suddenly see the cracks in this so-called perfect society. In this variation, that character is Rowan Cole. She begins to recognize the cracks when she overhears one Dancer told by his lover that he doesn't want to lose him in a way that doesn't mean a break up. She also questions it when she, her father, and her brother, Leon try to communicate with her mother who is a Grace, but her chirpy assistant keeps insisting that she is unavailable.

Finally, Rowan has a personal reason to go against the Realm's Dancer Only policy. She studies martial arts and boxing in private, two abilities that are outlawed by Mrs. Wren. Her friend, Mica, hacks into computers to study the world before the change to focusing solely on dance. It isn't long before these young ladies are being followed by sinister characters and people who are part of a rebellion against the despotic Mrs. Wren. Rowan quickly learns that Mrs. Wren is less Martha Graham and more Eva Braun and needs to be stopped.

Shadows in the Light is an interesting concept in dystopian fiction by placing the arts as the preferred pursuit by the dictatorship instead of military or combat sports like in other such works. Those choices show that anything, even those that seem the most innocuous and creative can be used in the worst ways by people with the worst motives. Mrs. Wren is the type of character who uses the dance solely for her own benefit so people look to her as a Goddess figure and no one else. She is a diva, primadonna with power and had the means to make sure any potential threat to her order is exterminated. There are times where she comes across as a scenery chewing villain, probably intentional because of her diva superstar fixation. (If Shadow in the Light ever becomes a movie, the actress playing Mrs. Wren would have a blast playing such a character who appears all sweetness and light and then acts so broad that she would put most Disney villains to shame.)

It is also no coincidence that the protagonist studies martial arts and boxing: fighting competitive sports. These chosen talents show that a little competition and aggression can be a good thing. Hiding those drives can be just as destructive as relying solely on and giving into them.

It also explores how important it is to explore and nurture different talents to make a better and complete society. 

Shadows in the Light is a fascinating foray into the YA dystopian genre. While that genre is extremely oversaturated, sometimes an author can give a new fresh look and perspective. Sophie Shepherd does just that.