Jordan Ifueko (born August 16, 1993) is a

Nigerian American Nigerian Americans ( ig, Ṇ́dị́ Naìjíríyà n'Emerịkà; ha, Yan Najeriyar asalin Amurka; yo, Àwọn ọmọ Nàìjíríà Amẹ́ríkà) are an ethnic group of Americans who are of Nigerian ancestry. The number of Nigerian immigran ...

writer of fantasy and

young adult fiction Young adult fiction (YA) is a category of fiction written for readers from 12 to 18 years of age. While the genre is primarily targeted at adolescents, approximately half of YA readers are adults. The subject matter and genres of YA correlate ...

. She is best known for her novel '' Raybearer'', which became a ''New York Times'' bestseller, and its sequel, ''

Redemptor ''Redemptor'' is a 2021 young adult fantasy novel by Nigerian American writer Jordan Ifueko. It is the sequel to '' Raybearer'' and the last book in the Raybearer duology, it was published on 17 August 2021 by Abrams Books. Plot Set after t ...

.'' She also writes short stories, which have been published in ''

Strange Horizons ''Strange Horizons'' is an online speculative fiction magazine. It also features speculative poetry and nonfiction in every issue, including reviews, essays, interviews, and roundtables. History and profile It was launched in September 2000, and ...

''.

Early life

Jordan Ifueko was born in

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most populous urban a ...

to two Nigerian parents who migrated to the United States; her mother is from the

Yoruba The Yoruba people (, , ) are a West African ethnic group that mainly inhabit parts of Nigeria, Benin, and Togo. The areas of these countries primarily inhabited by Yoruba are often collectively referred to as Yorubaland. The Yoruba constitute ...

tribe while her father is from the Bini tribe. Ifueko stated she grew up listening to West African folktales which were narrated by her mother. She was home schooled by her parents and attended

George Fox University George Fox University is a private Christian university in Newberg, Oregon. Founded as a school for Quakers in 1891, it is now the largest private university in Oregon with more than 4,000 students combined between its main campus in Newberg, it ...

Oregon Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idaho. T ...

. She is married and lives in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

with her family.

Career

Ifueko's debut novel '' Raybearer'', inspired partly by her West African heritage and other world cultures, was published on August 18, 2020, by Abrams books, and became a ''New York Times'' bestseller. It was nominated for the

Andre Norton Award The Andre Norton Nebula Award for Middle Grade and Young Adult Fiction (formerly the Andre Norton Award for Young Adult Science Fiction and Fantasy) is an annual award presented by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) to the ...

and the Goodreads Choice Award for best Debut Novel and best Young Adult Fantasy & Science Fiction. The novel was honoured as one of the American Library Association's (ALA)

Amazing Audiobooks for Young Adults The American Library Association's Amazing Audiobooks for Young Adults, formerly Selected Audiobooks for Young Adults, is a recommendation list of audiobooks presented yearly by the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) division. The Y ...

and ALA Top Ten Best Fiction. was followed by a sequel, ''

'', published in 2021 which was nominated for Ignyte Awards, Lodestar Award and

. In September 2021, it was announced that

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fi ...

will be adapting ''Raybearer'' into a television series, under a new overall deal with Gina Atwater. The project will be produced by Suger23 and Macro Television Studios with Atwater as writer, director and producer. Other works In July 2022,

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...

announced that Ifueko will be writing a new Moon Girl & Devils Dinosaur comic; it will be drawn by Alba Glez and scheduled for publication in December.

Bibliography

Novels

* '' Raybearer'', Amulet Books (2020) * ''

'', Amulet Books (2021)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ifueko, Jordan 21st-century American novelists 21st-century Nigerian novelists American women novelists Living people American people of Nigerian descent American writers of young adult literature Nigerian fantasy writers American fantasy writers Afrofuturist writers 1993 births 21st-century American women writers Writers from Los Angeles Women science fiction and fantasy writers Black speculative fiction authors African-American novelists 21st-century African-American women writers 21st-century African-American writers Nigerian women writers George Fox University alumni