★ 09/11/2023
Following the events of Turnbull’s No Gods, No Monsters , the whole world knows about the existence of monsters. Now, in this powerful and intricate sequel, they’ve started going missing. Could these disappearances be related to the rise of antimonster hate group the Black Hand? Nonhierarchical werewolf pack Laina Calvary, Ridley Gibson, and Rebecca Vázquez investigate. Meanwhile, young Dragon looks for a family with the rebel Alexandra “Alex” Trapp and shape-shifter Tezcat, and Senator Sondra Reed works to pass monster rights legislation while caring for her mother, who’s recovering from a trauma. The interweaving plot lines are relayed by a multiverse-traveling narrator, Calvin, who, in his own story line, uncovers more about and the role of “small gods” in the ongoing interspecies struggle. It’s a densely packed whirlwind of magic and social change, and Turnbull keeps readers on their toes throughout. The exploration of otherness, class, and race is as nuanced and robust as ever as Turnbull expands the scope of the “monsterverse,” taking on—and reveling in—the political complexities of this supernatural world. Fans of book one won’t want to miss this. Agent: Kim-Mei Kirtland, Howard Morhaim Literary. (Nov.)
★ 09/01/2023
In Turnbull's universe, monsters are real, and the world is still reeling and dealing with the revelation. While some pro-monster activist groups are beginning to show that life really has not changed, others come together to highlight the threat to the world if a monster could be one's next-door neighbor. On top of all this, members of a werewolf pack have been disappearing, and as some search for answers, they will find even more threats to their existence. Those in St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands face both natural and unnatural fears between political unrest about monsters' rights and an approaching hurricane. Meanwhile, in the darkest shadows, two old orders focus their sights on each other once again, using ancient knowledge of gods and magic, along with those who feel they have no place after the emergence. Characters both old and new continue to drive the action and emotion in this time-sliding tale as the tension builds to another heart-stopping ending—and a wait for the next book. VERDICT Turnbull continues to use his deft prose to tie themes of hate, social change, and backlash into an enthralling fantasy series in this sequel to the much-lauded No Gods, No Monsters .—Kristi Chadwick
Dion Graham narrates a dark and complex contemporary fantasy in which so-called monsters leave the shadows to share the human world. The monsters have allies who hope to push through legislation to protect them, but a malevolent cult is attempting to incite an apocalyptic war against them. Graham maintains a patient yet engaging cadence in a slightly gravelly voice that grabs the ear. When delivering the dialogue of the various monsters and humans, he enlivens his voice and shifts into an appropriate tone. The story touches on complex social and moral issues, which Graham voices with eagerness. A rich fantasy tale brimming with all-too-human monsters and vicious humans is brought to life by a capable narrator. J.M.M. © AudioFile 2024, Portland, Maine
★ 2023-09-09No Gods, No Monsters , 2021), the monsters—werewolves, witches, vampires, and other magical beings—have finally emerged from secrecy.
The Cult of the Zsouvox is fomenting a war between humans and monsters for obscure, apocalyptic reasons. On the human side, the Black Hand escalates violence against monsters. Werewolves Laina Calvary, her husband, Ridley Gibson, and Laina’s girlfriend, Rebecca Vázquez, don’t know where to find support in this rising tide of hatred, since few other monsters are willing to reveal themselves and be exposed to attack. Dragon, a tween who can shift into his namesake, has escaped the Cult of the Zsouvox’s basement cell but is being watched both by the Black Hand and a former CIA agent, Alexandra Trapp, who is only partially aware of who’s pulling her strings. And weredog former senator Sondra is hoping her husband, a current senator, can push through a bill establishing legal protection for monsters; she’s keeping a lower profile in hope of concealing her monster identity as well as her presence at a bloody pro-monster rally in Boston three years ago. Will more established pro-monster forces emerge from the shadows before large-scale tragedy strikes? Meanwhile, in a parallel universe, Calvin continues to escape his troubled personal life in sleep, where he secretly observes the events occurring in the “monsterverse” and other universes, a practice which may prove more dangerous than he knows. Turnbull packs a lot of plot and character development in a fairly compact set of pages, using his story to explore complex issues of prejudice, intersectionality, and personal identity, as well as the scars left by the darker parts of one’s past. As in the first book, he also devotes considerable time to not-so-subtly endorsing the model of worker-owned, non-hierarchical cooperative networks. Rather than a jarring insertion into the plot, this helps highlight a key intersectionality issue: Even idealists may not be open to all ideas and varieties of people, particularly when they are afraid.
Rich, brilliant, and often sad, because this contemporary fantasy pulls no punches; blood will regretfully be spilled.
The stakes grow higher in this sequel to No Gods, No Monsters , so does the death toll. The only things unchanged are the sharp prose, and the stunning portrayal of otherness and change. Turnbull’s work is addictive. The deeper we dive into this monstrous universe, the harder it is to let go. I want more, always more.”
author of the Themis Files and Take Them to the St Sylvain Neuvel
Many have wondered what magic would do to our world, and Cadwell Turnbull’s vision in We Are the Crisis brings a level of realism, empathy, love, and terror that will leave readers breathless. His narrative feats are only made more impressive when you understand how hard it is to write a book this engaging, this readable, while actively asking the reader to trust you at every page. But Turnbull never loses focus on the beating, human heart at the center of this book of monsters in crisis. It is that clarity of purpose, that keen insight as sharp as claws, that causes his star to burn and ascend ever higher. I’ll read anything Cadwell Turnbull writes.”
Ignyte-nominated writer and reviewer Martin Cahill
Turnbull’s plotting keeps the pace moving, his characters are interesting, and his ambition is vast. It’s a good combination of qualities.”
We Are the Crisis by Cadwell Turnbull follows his excellent No Gods, No Monsters , and it’s every bit as good as its predecessor…Marshaling many characters, factions, and realities into his narrative, he gives almost every scene the intimate gravity of a tête-à-tête.”
We Are the Crisis is the best kind of sequel. The kind that takes everything you loved about the first book and amplifies it, deepening the shadows and sharpening the edges. Here, vampires and werewolves, shapeshifters and monsters, gods and entities we might not have true names for, mingle with humanity in a multiverse riven with hidden wars, secret terrors, and open conflict. In that harsh landscape, Turnbull turns our minds to the things that can hold the universe together: love, friendship, compassion, cooperation, and resistance, even in the face of death and defeat. This book is a masterful feat of bold, original, and utterly compelling storytelling.”
author and translator Maria Haskins
Turnbull’s Convergence Saga delivers compelling characters, unique structure, and literary lines. On top of that, the way he plays with the urban fantasy genre is a great combination of entertainment and more literary fantasy.”
Flock Together Nerds of a Feather
Cadwell Turnbull has written a hurricane of a novel, a swift and sprawling storm system of intrigue, horror, and wonder. Few books have captured the human stakes of being inside momentous social change like We Are the Crisis. In the great tradition of speculative fiction exploring social division and solidarity, from Butler and Le Guin to the X-Men, the Convergence Saga is utterly, powerfully singular.”
author of Uranians Theodore McCombs
A stylish literary take on urban fantasy…Remarkable, relentlessly provocative, and often beautifully written.”
Graham maintains a patient yet engaging cadence in a slightly gravelly voice that grabs the ear…A rich fantasy tale brimming with all-too-human monsters and vicious humans is brought to life by a capable narrator.”
Horrifying but satisfying…We Are the Crisis is replete with secrets.”
The stakes grow higher in this sequel to No Gods, No Monsters , so does the death toll. The only things unchanged are the sharp prose, and the stunning portrayal of otherness and change. Turnbull’s work is addictive. The deeper we dive into this monstrous universe, the harder it is to let go. I want more, always more.”
author of the Themis Files series Sylvain Neuvel
