Tracker is… well he’s ornery, apathetic, misogynistic, and his mouth is too big. The search for the boy is the main driving force of the story, but honestly I had a hard time connecting to this aspect of the book. There are spider-monsters, monkey-monsters, vampire-like creatures, and shapeshifters – none of which feel odd or out of place. James ties real-world inspiration and imagination together wonderfully.

Through Tracker’s tale, we travel through this incredible (and incredibly dangerous) fantasy world. He is relating his story to a person known only as the “Inquisitor”, who wishes to know of Tracker’s search for a lost child. The story is told in the first person by our main character, Tracker – famous for his ability to find lost things and lost people. And that pretty much sets the tone for what follows. In fact, the book kicks off with the death of a child. And these aren’t just your run-of-the-mill atrocities, James adds a lot of weird and disgusting fantasy flavourings. There are rapes, gang rapes, torture, and a whole lot of murder. There are some really, really dark scenes in this book, and James doesn’t hold back with them. That’s not something which should surprise anyone, but the book is filled with quotable passages, lush description, and charming dialogue.

And it’s certainly unique.įirst off, the writing is gorgeous.

Ever since the supremely talented Marlon James, hot off the back of a deserved Man Booker Prize win for the fantastic A Brief History of Seven Killings, announced that he was going to write the “African Game of Thrones”, literary fiction and genre fiction fans alike have been waiting to see just what the hell such a book would look like. This book… Where to start with this book?īlack Leopard, Red Wolf has drawn a lot of attention since before it was even written. As he struggles to survive, Tracker starts to wonder: Who, really, is this boy? Why has he been missing for so long? Why do so many people want to keep Tracker from finding him? And perhaps the most important questions of all: Who is telling the truth, and who is lying? The band is a hodgepodge, full of unusual characters with secrets of their own, including a shape-shifting man-animal known as Leopard.Īs Tracker follows the boy’s scent–from one ancient city to another into dense forests and across deep rivers–he and the band are set upon by creatures intent on destroying them. Engaged to track down a mysterious boy who disappeared three years earlier, Tracker breaks his own rule of always working alone when he finds himself part of a group that comes together to search for the boy. Tracker is known far and wide for his skills as a hunter: “He has a nose,” people say.

Black leopard red wolf by marlon james