K. Ibura's Tempest is a fresh, clever, coming-of-age fantasy in which a Black teen must learn to control her wind-wielding powers while dodging an evil organization.
During the devastating Hurricane Katrina in 2005, Veronique's parents "built a float and attached it to the bars on the attic window." They placed their "tiny baby" on the float and hoped she would survive. Sixteen years later, V lives on a quiet farm outside Natchitoches with her grandmother. V is free to practice her elemental magic--controlling the wind--under MawMaw's watchful eye but always receives a stern warning to never reveal her ability. When V saves a local boy using her powers, MawMaw sends her to live with her Auntie Eve in New Orleans. Leaving is "a nightmare and a fairy tale all at once"--it's devastating to lose her "anchor" even as she finds family and friends in the city. But, of course, there is also risk; an environmentalist rebel group that believes "anyone with powers should be with them" is looking for V and if they find her, they "will try to force [her] to join their mission--and they will not give [her] a choice."
Ibura's first work for young adult readers delivers depth and danger in the shape of a coming-of-age novel. V grapples with massive issues (who should be taking care of the Earth?) and keeps a huge secret while adjusting to a brand-new life. While the novel's close feels a bit rushed, Ibura (When the World Turned Upside Down) uses V's first-person perspective to detail intriguing lore and describe the robust New Orleans setting. Tempest is equal parts suspense and self-discovery. --Natasha Harris, freelance reviewer