Don’t ever cross a conjurer! That’s the clear warning of the nineteen short stories collected by Hopkinson in this anthology. Some of the tales, such as Marcia Douglas’s “Notes from a Writer's book of cures and spells,” are horrific, some like Andy Duncan’s “Daddy Mention and the Monday skull,” are filled with sly humor, and some evoke a powerful emotional response, most notably, “Trial Day,” by Tananarive Due. Several tell the tale from the point of the helpless victim, and several show slaves outwitting their masters with the aid of the supernatural. All rely on the power of west and central African spirits to produce results, but with the exceptions of “The Skinned” by Jarla Tangh and “Asuquo, or The winds of Hartmattan,” by Nnedi Okorafor, these spirits have made the infamous middle passage across the Atlantic with their enslaved believers, and have been transformed into the powers of Voodoo. ( )

Good stuff. ( )

MOJO is a gathering of stories about the power and perils of the kind of earth and soul magic conjured with the word mojo. Power, control, taking back the things and respect that were yours (or that you think you deserve).

I've been a fan of Nalo Hopkinson since I first read Brown Girl in the Ring. A.M. Dellamonica, Tananarive Due, and Neil Gaiman are authors whom I recognize and who have stories included here. I was not familiar with all the other writers but NOW I am beckoned to read more of their work.

This is a colleciton of short fiction which touches on various aspects of vodou, African and African-American folklore and magic. The stories all have strikingly different takes on subjects such as shape shifters, spirit possession, loas (deities in vodou), and folk magic. Some of the stories are creepifying and others are hilarious. A wonderful collection of short fiction. There are one or two stories that aren't to my taste, but it's definitely worth purchasing. ( )