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A review by ehmannky
Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This was a wild ride and I loved it. Zélie is a member of the oppressed magi class, hated because of their magic lineage. Together with her brother Tzain, and her newfound friend and runaway princess Amari, she rushes across Orisha in an attempt to bring magic back to the land. The book toggles between Zélie, Amari, and Inan's (the crown prince) points of view. I don't particularly know how I feel about Inan's POV, as he continues to irritate me, but I do think it adds an interesting level to your understanding of the plot and internalized hatred of oneself.
I've made no secret of my love for female protagonists that are unabashedly angry at the world, and the protagonist Zélie was so angry all the damn time I loved it. Adeyemi writes a brilliant afterward that creates a tie between real-world events (the murder of black people at the hands of police) to the anger in her novel. The book does have very brief mentions of sexual violence and a whole lot of physical violence/torture and death. If those are not things you would like to read, then perhaps this book isn't for you.
I've made no secret of my love for female protagonists that are unabashedly angry at the world, and the protagonist Zélie was so angry all the damn time I loved it. Adeyemi writes a brilliant afterward that creates a tie between real-world events (the murder of black people at the hands of police) to the anger in her novel. The book does have very brief mentions of sexual violence and a whole lot of physical violence/torture and death. If those are not things you would like to read, then perhaps this book isn't for you.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Genocide, Slavery, Torture, and Violence
Moderate: Sexual assault and Sexual violence