Masquerade truly surprised me. I thought Òdòdó’s story would be a couple steps above a story about a damsel in distress: one where the damsel saves herself instead of waiting to be saved by someone else. But I couldn’t have been more wrong. She’s one of the most powerful and ambitious main characters I’ve come across. Òdòdó’s character arc went places I could never have guessed as I learned she’s not one to simply exist as a king’s beautiful captive and I loved it. 

I also really enjoyed the contrast between the vibrant and colorful world of Masquerade and the dark political intrigue and unrest building just beneath its surface. There was a lot of mystery, some unexpected twists, and that ending… it gave me chills.

In some ways, the book is as much about West African mythology as it is about Òdòdó. It’s so interesting to me that I ended up looking into these things independently of the book and I learned a lot about this period in history. Masquerade is a great starting point if you have interest in learning about the mythology, especially! 

The majority of the books I’ve read this year have been by debut authors and Sangoyomi has to be among the best. Her writing is so engaging and the story so fascinating, that even though it isn’t super fast-paced and there were plenty of slower parts that would have been a good place to take a break, I couldn’t stand to put this book down. If Sangoyomi never releases another book, I will cry.