This is my first introduction to Tochi Onyebuchi. I was quite impressed with this book for the most part because of the very nature of this type of work it represents. It being, that it’s a West African Dystopian Sci-Fi war thriller. I mean, when has that ever been done?? This book has some Wakanda, Terminator (Sarah Conner emphasis), Guardians of the Galaxy vibes all through this, and it made for some great action scenes. The story is told in a side-by-side view of Onyii and Ify, who are two young women that have bonded as sisters through this war ravaged country. They have lived under the radar for some time, and now, war has visited upon them again, and the two of them will have some pretty unique situations that will test their sisterly bond. Onyebuchi takes this time to educate his readers on the Nigeria and Republic of Biafra, civil war. I had previously read about the Biafran civil war in Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s book, Half of a Yellow Sun, that focused on individual people that were affected by the war that started in 1967. However, Tochi’s perspective and how he weaves the devastating history of this civil war in Nigeria, is masterful. He brings in a historical fiction aspect and melds it with a contemporary, futuristic, and dystopian aspect that works very well in this story. There is a constant revisiting of the past that occurs in this book, which may be metaphorical, as Nigerians and Igbo people constantly look back at this war and the loss of documentation in this period and wonder what happened. I really enjoyed the feminism perspective in this story. Usually when you think about war, you think about men going off to war. It was really engaging to see women go off to war, and be involved in the murder and mayhem that goes on and for it to be completely normal and expected. The ending kind of threw me for a loop, but I’m expecting that the next installment will hopefully tie up any loose ends, my lingering questions, and also bring in more character development. I loved the twists and turns the plot took, and I’m really looking forward to the next installment of Onyii and Ify. #wargirls #tochionyebuchi #dystopian https://www.instagram.com/p/CP30yNMrxuY/?utm_medium=tumblr