Title: Blood Rising
Author: Markus Redmond
Genre: Historical Fiction
Rating: 5 ⭐
Book Links: Goodreads | Amazon
My initial thoughts:
Some stories ask what it means to fight for freedom. Blood Rising asks the even harder question: what happens after you've won? This sequel challenged me in ways I wasn't expecting.
The Vibe:
Historical Fiction, Paranormal elements, Fantasy, Mystery & Horror
My Review:
Blood Slaves was about fighting for freedom… Blood Rising is about what comes after.
I've always believed it's one thing to overthrow the people who've oppressed you. It's another thing entirely to build something better in its place. That's exactly what this story explores.
Kwadzo is no longer just fighting to survive... he's carrying the weight of an entire people on his shoulders. He wrestles with leadership, responsibility, and the kind of man he aims to become.
Freedom comes with impossible choices. Every decision carries consequences, every victory comes with a new challenge, and the line between justice and vengeance is never as simple as it appears.
Kwadzo never has to carry this story alone. The people around him continue to shape the journey in meaningful ways, each adding another layer to the story and reminding us that no battle is ever won alone.
I've always believed it's one thing to overthrow the people who've oppressed you. It's another thing entirely to build something better in its place. That's exactly what this story explores.
Kwadzo is no longer just fighting to survive... he's carrying the weight of an entire people on his shoulders. He wrestles with leadership, responsibility, and the kind of man he aims to become.
Freedom comes with impossible choices. Every decision carries consequences, every victory comes with a new challenge, and the line between justice and vengeance is never as simple as it appears.
Kwadzo never has to carry this story alone. The people around him continue to shape the journey in meaningful ways, each adding another layer to the story and reminding us that no battle is ever won alone.
The way Mr. Redmond blends history, horror, and fantasy continues to amaze me. Each element feels equally important to the story, and together they create something that feels incredibly unique.
The alliances that are formed and the cultural dynamics throughout the story are constant reminders that the Ramangans are still viewed as monsters. For me, that became a metaphor for the world we live in today. I couldn't help but relate it to the experiences of Black people. No matter how much progress is made, no matter how hard we fight for equality and justice, there will always be people who choose to see us through the lens of their own prejudice instead of our humanity.
If you're coming into Blood Rising expecting nonstop bloodshed, it's definitely here. But for me, the heart of this story was what happened after the battle was won.
In all my years of reading and reviewing, I don't think I've ever read a story quite like this. And I can't wait to see what Mr. Redmond has in store for us next.
5⭐
Thank you, Kensington Publishing, Dafina & Markus Redmond, for providing this arc in exchange for my honest review
Synopsis:
Kwadzo Okoro never believed the bloody legend of Ramanga was real. Now, he stands as the leader of a new Ramanga Tribe, one that sieged the Barrow plantation in a storm of righteous carnage, liberating its formerly enslaved Africans. Reclaimed as the Crimson Plantation, it is now also home to the wronged Natives who fearlessly aligned with the Ramangans.
But Kwadzo knows that freedom is not secure. Bartholomew and Constance Crabtree, the most influential slaveholders in the region since the demise of Big Jim Barrow, are galvanizing the Lakeside community to strike back—violently. The threat they pose pales in comparison to the insidious menace of Penelope Knudsen. Her white-hot hatred, now fueled by Ramangan blood, and an ability to survive the sunlight—a power Kwadzo doesn’t have—threatens to upend Kwadzo’s advancement of Ramangan might throughout the colonies, especially as she builds a white vampire army of her own and wages an all-out war against him.
But the gravest threat comes from Rafazi. His blood fathered the rebellion, but he will not take orders from his own creation. And when Rafazi makes a deadly deal with the Crabtrees, Kwadzo is forced into a battle with his maker that he may not survive, while the everlasting freedom of every enslaved person in the colonies hangs in the balance.
