My Ratings:
Characters: 4.8
Setting: 4.2
Plot: 4.0
Style: 4.0
Overall: 4.7
“The last witch in our family who failed, poor Wimberley, was called by Mama Jova almost a hundred years ago. And now Mama Jova is here for me.”
Summary:
Magic takes the form of blood. A portion of blood witches base their entire careers on the gifts they earn. Nothing is given in this world. Witches work for their magic. The harder the task, the more powerful the gift. Voya, our lovely black protagonist, is presented with one of the hardest tasks. “Killing someone.” Voya could not do this and avoid scarring herself for life, as well as her entire household. It’s a serious decision to carry out. And things only get worse.
Thomas:
The Thomas’ are not a perfect family. In fact, I found it shocking that a woman could live with her ex husband and family. The flaws and disagreements between this household are compelling. This family doesn’t just feel authentic, but they bring excitement to the story. I want to know more about them. There are several unanswered plot points I want cleared up. We have themes of sisters fighting, cousins fighting, and even the fear of abandonment. My favorite character is Kies and her magic abilities. Her talents are intriguing, which is what got my attention. Then there’s her point to demonstrate to her family that magic does not rule the world. It’s a shame what happens to her at the end of the novel.
LGBTQ:
Using LGBTQ characters and their adventures in the book is very smooth. The writer presents us to trans characters without them facing some kind of disrespectful prejudice. They present themselves and show the audience that they are ordinary people. It is normal to be trans in fact, they’re the most interesting characters. Seeing characters like Alex and Luc succeed and work is heartening. One of my favorite scenes is where Kiesa is dating someone and justifies her sexuality.
Future:
The year is 2049, and it’s creepy. There is so much machinery and it makes me nervous. There is a limited plot point involving androids, and it’s living in the basement. Technology has so much sway over the world. I found it fascinating that it was in a Fantasy book. The city itself is pretty big and hard to follow while hopping around. That being said, the creativity put into these literary devices and rules is entertaining.
The Witches:
The story focuses a lot on the black witch community. It captures how people operate in a city. Everyone knows each other because the characters give back to society. There are several info dumps and flashbacks that justify the history. I’m not a fan of over exposition, but the author placed descriptions where they were required. The writing focused more on information than imagery. They did not paint pictures for me. I would have loved to see the witches of the community. More magic. Overall, there wasn’t enough magic in the magic community. Finally, some magic families do shady things. Have non-magic individuals not notice their things? I would think there are some conspiracies floating around. Magic can’t hide everything.
About the Author:
Liselle Sambury has a YouTube channel. The Trinidadian-Canadian author makes videos to help aspiring authors. Home sickness drove parts of this story and you can tell. They’re descriptions of culture are entertaining to read. The Fantasy half of the story is unlike anything I have read about. Representation is important. I can not stress that enough. Even Sambury wants more black girls in fantasy. This book bridges the experiences with the audience. There are readers who have never been around a certain black culture and through a story like this, we can learn more about the theme. The magic system intrigued me. I was expecting an outline or a rule book, but it’s simple and to the point.
