Books: The Ballad of Perilous Graves By Alex Jennings (2022)

“Nola is a city full of wonders. A place of sky trolleys and dead cabs, where haints dance the night away and Wise Women keep the order, and where songs walk, talk and keep the spirit of the city alive. To those from Far Away, Nola might seem strange. To failed magician, Perilous Graves, it’s simply home. Then the rhythm stutters. Nine songs of power have escaped from the magical piano that maintains the city’s beat and without them, Nola will fail. Unexpectedly, Perry and his sister, Brendy, are tasked with saving the city. But a storm is brewing and the Haint of All Haints is awake. Even if they capture the songs, Nola’s time might be coming to an end.”

The Ballad of Perilous Graves is the debut novel of Alex Jennings, and it’s both brilliant and frustrating. The first half is really great, as we see the adventures of Perry. His sister Brendy, and superhero-ish young lady, Peaches as they battle for the soul of New Orleans, or as the book goes along, Nola, which is New Orleans but magic, and is attached to our world as a kind of pocket dimension. A lot of this is not fully explained and was perhaps why it took me longer to finish it than it should’ve. Jennings slips between these two universes with –as noted- no elucidation. But you do get swept up in the story to certain extent and the three kids are wonderfully drawn –especially Perry (say what you will about authors who create alternate universe versions of themselves and put them in their books, but it seems clear to my Perry is version of Alex Jennings). The book does require you pay attention then, if only because little is clarified until the last quarter of the book.

Despite the beauty of blending music, magic, street art in what amounts to an imaginative and vivid way, the book does have a bunch of secondary characters that distract from the main narrative (as much as I like Casey and Jaylon, they seemed only there to represent the “real” New Orleans, a lode stone for the non-fantasy reader to latch onto). And while it’s clear this tale is about Perry (it’s in the title), I think both Brendy and Peaches are up to equal tasks. I would be curious if the title of the book was a publisher’s choice or the writers.

Still, the book is magical and different from what is out there. It does not quiet get the “epic” fantasy label, but in the end, I enjoyed it. It may also be a book I might revisit, if only because I probably missed some stuff.