Where the Black Flowers Bloom - by Ronald L Smith (Hardcover)

About the Book

When ghoulish creatures kill twelve-year-old Asha's guardian, her dying words launch Asha on a quest to stop an ancient evil, and along the way, she uncovers shocking secrets about the family she never knew and begins to find her place in the world as she discovers her own untapped powers.

Book Synopsis

A gripping, richly imagined fantasy set in an alternate ancient African world in which a Black girl finds her power and saves her people from evil, by the Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe New Talent Award-winning author of Black Panther: The Young Prince.

In the land of Alkebulan, twelve-year-old Asha is an orphan, raised by Madame S, the proprietor of a traveling carnival. When Madame S is attacked by ghoulish creatures, she manages to tell Asha before she dies, "Seek the Underground Kingdom, where the black flowers bloom."

Asha doesn't understand the mysterious words, but they launch her onto a page-turning quest to protect her people and stop an ancient evil. Along the way, she uncovers shocking secrets about the family she never knew and begins to find her place in the world as she discovers her own untapped powers.

Review Quotes

(Where the Black Flowers Bloom) "Inspired by African mythology and folklore, this lushly wrought hero's journey touches deftly on themes of family, fate, forgiveness, and justice." -- Publishers Weekly

(Where the Black Flowers Bloom) "Elaborate worldbuilding will draw readers in. . . . Hand this to young readers seeking adventurous new fantasy." -- School Library Journal

(Where the Black Flowers Bloom) "A wild and beautiful coming-of-age story of a girl who has far more power than she knows." -- Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

(Where the Black Flowers Bloom) "A captivating quest for family, magic, and belonging." -- Kirkus Reviews

About the Author

Ronald L. Smith is the Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe New Talent Award-winning author of Hoodoo, The Mesmerist, The Owls Have Come to Take Us Away, Gloom Town, and Black Panther: The Young Prince. He lives in Baltimore, Maryland.

www.strangeblackflowers.com
Twitter: @RonSmithbooks
Instagram: @ronsmithwriter