They killed my mother.
They took our magic.
They tried to bury us.
Now we rise.
Zélie Adebola remembers when the soil of Orïsha hummed with magic. Burners ignited flames, Tiders beckoned waves, and Zélie’s Reaper mother summoned forth souls.
But everything changed the night magic disappeared. Under the orders of a ruthless king, maji were killed, leaving Zélie without a mother and her people without hope.
Now Zélie has one chance to bring back magic and strike against the monarchy. With the help of a rogue princess, Zélie must outwit and outrun the crown prince, who is hell-bent on eradicating magic for good.
Danger lurks in Orïsha, where snow leoponaires prowl and vengeful spirits wait in the waters. Yet the greatest danger may be Zélie herself as she struggles to control her powers and her growing feelings for an enemy.
Amazon Link: Children of Blood and Bone (Legacy of Orisha #1)
Author: Tomi Adeyemi
Genre: YA Epic Fantasy
Rating: 5/5 stars
This is a vibrant, original fantasy world with wonderfully developed characters. I appreciated that we not only got the perspectives of the two female main characters, but also the prince’s, to help explain his shifting motivations and the struggle he goes through.
I wish there had been more information about the gods. I was a little familiar already with Yemaya the sea goddess and I heard more of the names of the Orisha, but since they were so important to the plot, I think there could be more background.
The story was very exciting with the race to bring back magic. I wasn’t sure how far the characters would get with the odds stacked against them so much and with the end of the book coming up, or if they could succeed at all.
Even the king’s motivations were understandable even though I didn’t agree with his actions because of what he had been through and the fear of magic. So there was no pure good vs evil in this story. It had a lot of complexity. And after the ending, I can’t wait for the next book!
I recommend this series to fans of epic fantasy and powerful magic. This is more like what I wanted Game of Thrones to be.
Here is the book in my reading journal:
