Reviews with content warning for Injury/Injury detail - Children of Blood and Bone

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Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi

80 reviews

mcfeinics's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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natashaleighton_'s review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Why did I take soo long to read this!? It’s definitely gonna be one of my fave reads this year — and one I won’t be forgetting for a very long time!

Drawing on her Nigerian heritage and her beautifully skillful prose, it’s easy to see why Tomi Adeyemi’s sweeping YA fantasy debut has become such a beloved book to millions worldwide.

The rich magic system, vividly detailed lore and pacy, high stakes action will have any fantasy adventure aficionado on the edge of their seats. But Adeyemi’s ability to weave such dark (yet incredibly relevant) themes into such an empowering story — imbuing her cast of characters with such depth and poignancy that had me crying (and during the lighter moments laughing) alongside them.

Zelie (one of our MCs and the first POV of character we meet) was probably my favourite of all three of our POV characters. Headstrong, short tempered but utterly invested in protecting her family from the kingdom’s oppressive regime.

Delving deep into her fears, insecurites and childhood trauma we get to explore Zelie’s connections with the Orisha, her magic and her bond to her maji powers —which really brought her to life for me and helped me to understand her motivations and thought processes.

Runaway Princess, Amari and Zelie’s steadfast older brother, Tzain were both really fascinating characters too and I look forward to following the journeys in the rest of the series, I just wish we got the explore Tzain’s POV.

With the themes of oppression, inequality and genocide at the forefront of the story, it’s definitely not hard to see comparisons to current world events— highlighting the work that still needs to be done to create a safer, more equal society for everyone.

It’s rare that a book will leave me utterly speechless (and unable to think about anything else) but this one certainly managed to , and that ending?! I won’t spoil it, but if you love your plot twists frequent and shockingly unpredictable then you’re gonna be incredibly satisfied.

Overall, a phenomenally adventurous, epic fantasy that really lived up to the hype, I’m soo excited to read the rest of the series! Though do check TWs beforehand.

Also, a huge thank you to Pan Macmillan/ Macmillan Children’s Books for the finished copy.

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whatkireads's review

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adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Oh my god this book was SO INTENSE!!
The audiobook for this is phenomenal, I'm convinced there is no other way to read this, the narrator really transported you into the story and the entire story itself?? Was so haunting and intriguing and devastating.
So much happens and it's such a good commentary on oppression and inequality.

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aclevela724's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

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sauvageloup's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

An engaging fantasy read with good writing and pacing.

pros:
- what set it apart the most I think was the Nigerian cultural influences, and how Yoruba and the gods made the magic and the worldbuilding different and interesting. There was hints of a larger world which was interesting, but it made a great change to be set in fantasy Africa.
- the writing was solid, imaginative and emotional and the dialogue was good. I didnt enormously connect to the characters, but I did like them and appreciated their complexities and back stories.
- I did like the romance between Tzain and Amari, that felt more natural, and I liked Amari's character and how she develops.
- I also liked that magic was shown through hair (as well as the usual eyes), which I think emphasised the importance of hair in Black peoples culture and how they have been the subject of racism and oppression because of it.
- Adeyemi draws attention to the parallels between the oppressive tyrant in the book and the police brutality in real life and I did feel that resonance in the book.

cons:
- throughout, I felt it very strongly had the YA revolution, fantasy, romance tropes going on. maybe it was fresher at the time, but

the romance felt shoved in there for extra drama (esp between Zelie and Inan, Amari and Tzain's felt more natural), and I did roll my eyes a little at some of the plot points (getting a "quest" for a magic stone and scroll, the bad guy flicking back and forth in alliances, Zelie randomly losing her magic for maximum effect, magic being lost to the realm, having to do a ritual on one special day, dead parents fuelling all motivation, etc.). other things were tropes, like everyone being badass with a weapon and them riding giant beasts, but those were more fun.
- also, character motivations felt weird. why did Inan fluctuate so much in his loyalties? I couldnt rly understand that. Zelie too made some odd decisions which seemed to just serve the plot.
- the last line also confused me, not sure if it was meant to or not? clearly magic wasnt lost but why was it so shocking that Amari had magic.

overall, a bit mixed, maybe just because it was written nearly 10 years ago now so didnt feel as fresh. still want to read the 2nd one.

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blckandread's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

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zluvsreading's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Holy fucking shit!!!!!!!!

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lsol8tion's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

I wanna take a deep dive into tomi adeyemi's mind to experience her process of how she created this immersive world, society caste system, and magic system. To incorporate youruba mythology into each of them , & so amazingly too??? WOW.

Reading Zelie's POV chapters & seeing her internal war holding such a huge responisbility of restoring magic in Orisha was so engrossing but also frustrating at times when she makes bad decisions, such as

her falling for Inan

. However, I think her decisions are aslo reflective of how young she is. She's only 17 & being tasked by the gods to restore magic is an INSANE responsibility.

AND LEMME GET INAN REAL QUICK. I understand he felt a familial pressure to put "duty before self" and "protect" Orisha as its future king but he shoulda known

his daddy was NAWT gon spare him when he found out about his Connector powers. Your dad is Saran, the brutal king who regularly had you & your sister fight & injure each other with real weapons & KILLS maji without a second thought. Once Saran ordered Inan to kill Amari if he found her whike Zelie was in captivity, then Inan shoulda realized that his father is mercilies & doesn't give a fuck about family. Inan shoulda tkaen the chance to run with Tzain, & Amari when they fled the fortress after saving Zelie. BUT WHAT DID INAN DO? STAYED BY HIS FATHER'S SIDE LIKE A BITCH, CONTINUOUSLY DEFEND THE OPPRESSIVE SYSTEM HIS FATHER CREATED, & TEAR THE SCROLL THAT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE USED TO BRING MAGIC BACK. I don't feel bad that Inan was killed by his father because there were so many instance that Saran showed his ruthlessness & Inan thought he would be the only exception. GOOD RIDDANCE HOE

Now Amari's a girl who STANDS ON BUSINESS. She saw

her father kill Binta & immediately sprung into action. She had the balls to go against her father's wishes (something bitch-ass Inan couldn't do).

However, she's also a princess who's unlearning her biases and imdoctrination. I hope she continues her deconstructing journey & untimately find a way end maji oprression in a way that doesn't include her famiky staying in power. Honestly I don't think the maji of Orisha will feel comfortable with another person from the same royal line who was responsible for the Raids. ALSO

SHE GOT POWERS NOW??

I hope we see more Tzain development in book 2. I would love to read flashbacks of him and Zelie's childhood from his perspective. He's Zelie's brother and protector, and Amari's potential boo thang, but what else?

That cliffhanger was DIABOLICAL OMG??? I can't wait to read more!

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jan1e's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Tomi is a beautiful writer. I could easily feel all the emotions from every character and cried and laughed multiple times. I loved the African culture throughout the entire book. I appreciated the commentary on real life issues involving police brutality. The violence and angst in here could be too much for a sensitive reader (I’m finding it was for me).

Also, the speed in which Zelie and Inan fall in love took me out of enjoying the book. Coupled with how young this books read, reading the romance between them that went beyond the first kiss made me uncomfortable.

This is Tomi’s debut though and I love seeing a Nigerian American author have such a splash in the book world. I’m rooting for her!

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jasminedaria's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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