01/04/2021
Set in a dystopian London separated into haves and have nots, this mystical coming-of-age tale from Newland (The Gospel According to Cane ) offers its protagonist a view into myriad alternate worlds. Markriss Denny, a young resident of a poor district in the Outer City of Londinium with the unusual ability to astral project, aspires to earn his Excellence certification and gain entry to the monolithic Ark, home to the elite Inner City. But once he’s in, he learns that the working poor within the Ark suffer inhumane conditions, and, in his new job as a reporter, Markriss must choose whether to lie for the corporate rulers or to tell the truth of the disenfranchised. Fighting against the pods that give the Ark’s inhabitants artificial dreams, Markriss uses his power to embark on a dream quest that brings him into different versions of Londinium (one of which is present-day London), allowing him to meet the repentant inventor of the pods, to find (and lose) his soulmates, and to uncover the truth of his unusual power and stratified world. Newland smoothly incorporates elements of Egyptian mythology into his layered, multicultural world, and though the climax feels somewhat unearned, the fragmented timelines and multiple versions of Markriss are skillfully handled. This is sure to please fans of thought-provoking speculative fiction. (Apr.)
"What would London be like if the UK had not colonized half the world? That’s the question that drives Courttia Newland’s A River Called Time . When young Markriss has the opportunity to move into the Ark—a massive structure that promises a utopian existence for the invited—he takes it, only to find that the world of his dreams isn’t as idyllic as he was promised."
"A deftly crafted dystopian science fiction novel by an author with a genuine flair for originality and the kind of narrative driven storytelling that reaches out and grabs the reader’s totally engaged and compulsive page turning attention from cover to cover."
"No one can doubt the sheer energy and verve of Newland’s vision."
Book of the Day selection The Guardian (UK)
"Class, race, different iterations of self, the power of the imagination, Afrofuturism, politics, spirituality, physics and philosophy—it's all here in a high-concept novel blending sci-fi and speculative fiction with the self-critique of memoir."
"Newland...imagines a world where colonialism never happened at all...It's speculative fiction that genuinely made me speculate."
04/02/2021
Set in a dystopian London parallel, A River Called Time uncovers the truth about the Ark, a structure that was built to provide a haven for the aristocracy, yet is revealed to be much more disturbing. Markriss Denny has worked hard to win a spot inside the Ark. His enthusiasm wanes immediately when he's assigned a job revolving around political uprising and government deception. Markriss's only path forward is to embrace a newly discovered secret ability to leave his body and experience parallel universes beyond physical limitations. VERDICT Newland's (The Gospel According to Cane ) premise and his alternative world where Africa was not colonized by Europe are intriguing, however the plot is slow going and never quite reaches the potential teased from the beginning. Newland's writing is stylish but tends to be overly descriptive, making the explanation of Markriss's travels to parallel universes confusing and hard to follow. Markriss is a difficult protagonist to connect with, only adding to the disjointed feel of the book. Clearly a missed opportunity on the author's part. Library collections should pass on this one.—Carmen Clark, Elkhart P.L., IN
2021-01-13
Markriss Denny grows up in the city of Dinium, dominated by the Ark, built to provide sanctuary from the crumbling, polluted world outside. For most, admission to the Ark is an impossibility, but Markriss’ mother pushes him to succeed in school, a pursuit that distances him from Nesta, his best friend, but does result in a one-way ticket to the Inner City. There, Markriss learns that the Ark is not the haven advertised, that it contains deep inequalities that mirror the world outside. Markriss, nevertheless, is content with the role laid out for him until a strange encounter on the astral plane—similar to ones he experienced as a child—reveals that he has a rare ability to "move between spiritual and physical states." He's told by an ancestor that there's another being like himself, but one who's evil, whose existence threatens everything. Given the task of finding this "dark spirit," Markriss begins a journey between parallel Londons. Incorporating African cosmology, and in particular Kemetism, Newland explores a noncolonial London that adopted African beliefs and values, juxtaposing this alternate—yet also flawed—London with our own. On the heady levels of twisting timelines and spirit planes, this novel excels, revealing Markriss in all the worlds he traverses. There is little time left, however, to explore his connection to other characters, including the pivotal women in his life and Nesta. This is an ambitiously imagined book that, by removing the European lens on African cultures, creates a new reality that allows us to question how we view our own.
Complex and multilayered, this novel opens the door to the possibilities of noncolonial worlds.
Narrator Michael Obiora shows off his talent in this time- and space- bending work of speculative fiction. The prose is exposition heavy in parts. Obiora delivers those sections with such passion that listeners will believe the fantastical aspects of the story are fact. When dialogue does appear, it is often in the middle of a long passage of exposition. Obiora slips into character voices with such ease that listeners will have to check to make sure the speaking parts are not done by another narrator. Occasionally, the timelines in this audiobook reset to the beginning, making for a complex story. Obiora's steadfast narration creates a welcome guide, making for a superior listening experience. A.R.F. © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine
