The Tower Unbroken - A West African Xianxia

Self-Published

Community Rating

Description

For as long as he can remember, Somadina has wanted to be a dibia – A cultivator of magic and power.

But being the last surviving member of a tribe with a sick mother to boot has since made such dreams impossible. That is, until he stumbles upon the cave that changes everything.

Now a wielder of magic, Somadina soon finds that being a dibia is a lot harder than he anticipated, what with the random monster attacks, hostile dibias that won’t stop attacking him, and above it all the mythical Tower that might hold the answers to all of his questions.

Danger lurks in every corner, and if Somadina and his allies are to safely make it there, they must learn to rely on one another. Even if they think the other is a little weird.

[Participant in the Royal Road Writathon challenge]

What to Expect:

Fast Progression

Queer characters

Black/African coded cast

Deep worldbuilding

Relatively long chapters

Information

Status: Ongoing
Year: 2024
Author: witchdoctormike

Royal Road Stats

Rating: 4.6/ 5.0
Followers: 30
Views: 8,433

Reviews

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Community Reviews(1)

KyshiesRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
This is actually the second piece of African literature I've read in my life. The other work in question is No Longer at Ease by Chinua Achebe, and that was many, many years ago.
I think the author does a fantastic job at world-building and character dialogues. The various aspects of the setting (e.g. terminology) are introduced incrementally and organically, which helps the reader immerse themselves in the story. I also like the little cultural tidbits in the end of chapter notes. The author is pretty knowledgeable about West African culture, and the story serves as a medium to show it in an albeit fantastical setting. The plot is unfolding at a steady, slow-burn pace, and is fairly easy to follow (albeit of a dense read, though!).
The characters and dialogue are pretty well-written and witty. I especially enjoyed the scene where the MC was bartering with the shopkeeper. The exchanges are sharp and (mostly) natural, and I found myself smiling while reading some of the conversations.
That said, I feel like the presentation of the overall story can be better. As mentioned two paragraphs ago, the story is quite a dense read - the chapters are quite high on wordcount, with each chapter featuring multiple parts and POVs. I would thus suggest that the author consider breaking up the various parts of the long chapters into separate chapters, wherever doing so would make sense.