Can’t-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted over at Wishful Endings to spotlight and discuss the books we’re excited about but haven’t yet read. Most of the time they’re books that have yet to be released, but not always. It’s based on the Waiting on Wednesday meme, which was originally hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine.
This week my Can’t-Wait-For Book is The Maid and the Crocodile by Jordan Ifueko!
Genres: Fantasy, YA
Representation: West African-inspired setting, West African-coded cast
Published on: 13th August 2024
Goodreads
The smallest spark can bind two hearts . . . or start a revolution.
In the magic-soaked capital city of Oluwan, country bumpkin Small Sade needs a job—preferably as a maid, with employers who don’t mind her unique appearance and unlucky foot. But before she can be hired, she accidentally binds herself to a powerful god known only as the Crocodile, who is rumored to devour pretty girls. Small Sade entrances the Crocodile with her secret: she is a Curse Eater, gifted with the ability to alter people’s fates by cleaning their houses.
The handsome god warns that their fates are bound, but Small Sade evades him, launching herself into a new career as the Curse Eater of a swanky inn. She is determined to impress the wealthy inhabitants and earn her place in Oluwan City . . . assuming her secret-filled past—and the revolutionary ambitions of the Crocodile God—don’t catch up with her.
But maybe there is more to Small Sade. And maybe everyone in Oluwan City deserves more, too, from the maids all the way to the Anointed Ones.
Fans of the Raybearer series, Howl's Moving Castle, and Beauty and the Beast will enjoy The Maid and the Crocodile–no prior knowledge of the Raybearer series necessary.
Raybearer blew me away, so when I heard that Ifueko was writing a new book in the same setting??? I MIGHT HAVE SHRIEKED A LITTLE.
(This book will apparently contain major spoilers for Raybearer and its sequel, so if you’re interested in them, you should probably read them first!)
I’m fascinated by the idea of someone whose magic is performed by cleaning – I’ve never heard of anything like that before! How much can Sade affect someone’s life? Do they have to be cursed first? If a very fancy inn wants her on staff, presumably her power is pretty coveted…
And I’m definitely tired of reading about royals and nobles – a country bumpkin working as a servant, a cleaner, is something we don’t see often, a perspective on Big Events that most stories never consider. The Maid and the Crocodile would be interesting for that alone, I think! But also: I’ve been assured there is at least one animal companion I’m going to fall in love with! What kind of animal? No idea, but all the early reviews are very adoring!
We’ve gotta talk about it – a god who wants revolution? We don’t see that often either! Is Crocodile not being worshipped the way he wants? Somehow I doubt it’s that simple, and I am INTENSELY curious about what could be making Crocodile want to upend society. What does he want changed???
I’m looking forward to finding out!
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