Book Review: Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi

Zelie Adebola remembers when the soil of Orisha hummed with magic. Burners ignited flames, Tiders beckoned waves, and Zelie's Reaper mother summoned forth souls. But everything changed once magic disappeared. Under the orders of a ruthless king, the maji were targeted and killed, leaving Zelie's  without a mother and her people without hope. Now Zelie has one chance to bring back magic and strike against the monarchy. With the help of a rogue princess, Zelie must outwit and outrun the crown prince, who is hell-bent on eradicating magic for good. Danger lurks in Orisha, where snow leopanaires prowl and vengeful spirits wait in the waters. Yet the greatest threat may be Zelie herself as she struggles to control her powers--and her growing feelings for an enemy.
(Children of Blood and Bone)

Before I really get into this review I first have to say...where has this book been all my life? Seriously, where was it when I was ten, eleven, twelve, searching for a strong literary heroine of color to aspire to? "Children of Blood and Bone" is a book I wish I'd had when I was younger. My girlish youth consisted of books like "Anne of Green Gables", "Little House on the Prairie", "Chronicles of Narnia", all decent books to have as a kid, but I'm genuinely upset I didn't have awesome characters like Zelie Adebola to fall in love with.

Author Tomi Adeyemi said in an article in Entertainment Weekly that she loved to read and write her own stories as a child. However, the stories she'd write would always star white protagonists because she didn't feel that someone who looked like her belonged in the adventures she wrote. After all, no one who looked like her was placed in the adventures she read. It took her awhile to change that mindset. I related to this completely. I too loved (and still do love) to write stories as a kid, but never wrote characters starring a brown girl like myself. What place did someone like me have as the protagonist of my adventures? When I did read about people of color, it tended to be in an academic setting, where the story consisted of recollections of slavery, the civil rights movement, or perhaps the character of color was simply a side-character of little importance.

VERY RARELY did I ever find myself represented in popular YA literature. Which is why this book is so important. It is important to me and a lot of other readers of color who have always wanted to feel seen in literature, seen as kings and queens and warriors and creators and survivors.

And so with that said...

This book was fantastic. The characters were strong, the world was vibrant, and I didn't want the story to end! Thank god it continues with a second book! Of course, there was a lot of hype following this book and word on the street is there's already a movie deal in the works! HOW AWESOME WOULD THIS BOOK BE AS A MOVIE!!!!! With that kind of hype (and of course the amazingly stunning book cover) how could I not pick this book up?! Why on earth would I pass up on a West African inspired, multi-perspective fantasy about a warrior heroine on a quest for magic?

Our main character, Zelie, remembers a time when magic was everywhere, practically coursing through the veins of her people. Her own mother was a powerful maji who could summon and control the souls of the dead. All of this, including her mother, is ripped away from Zelie when an evil fearmongering king discovers a way to be rid of magic. Not only does this leave our protagonist and her people powerless, they are also oppressed and seen as less than by the king and those born without magic. After crossing paths with a rogue princess named Amari (daughter of the ruthless king), and discovering the gods themselves have a plan for Zelie and the hopeful return of magic, our heroine sets out on the adventure of a lifetime.

“You crushed us to build your monarchy on the backs of our blood and bone. Your mistake wasn't keeping us alive. It was thinking we'd never fight back.”

This book was so rich, so dark, and I loved every moment. I especially loved how Adeyemi used this story as a platform for addressing some very political themes: race, oppression, class, colorism, privilege, even police brutality. It gets pretty heavy throughout many of the chapters. I also loved how I couldn't really predict how the story would develop. Every time I thought the story was going to turn left, it swerved right. Tomi Adeyemi kept me on my toes! The plot was well paced, the characters were well developed, the West African inspired culture was rich, and I couldn't put this book down (well...I did when I had to go to work. BUT, I hated being pulled away by reality.). 

Also, reading the story from individual character perspectives proved to be very effective in building the plot and keeping the reader sucked in. This book was written in first person and first person, every now and then, tends to bug me, mainly because I feel it's sometimes very hard to build a world when you're stuck in a character's head. But Adeyemi tells the story from three great perspectives: Zelie, the fiery warrior driven by loss and the hurt of her people to bring back magic, Amari, the timid princess stepping out of her sheltered walls, and let's not forget Amari's brother Inan, the crown prince with a huge secret and a raging desire to please his cruel father, capture his sister and kill magic. Each perspective brought something new and exciting. I loved the developing relationships and friendships between the characters. Amari and Zelie, were two opposites who drew from strengths in each other, Zelie from Amari's gentle hope and Amari from Zelie's strong determination. The sibling relationships between Princess Amari and Prince Inan vs. Zelie and her brother Tzain were also great.  

I also really enjoyed being introduced to the different types of magic throughout the story. The whole time I was reading though, I sort of got this Avatar: The Last Airbender kind of vibe. (Just a teeny vibe.) You've got maji who could summon fire, maji who controlled the winds, some had the power to heal while others had the power to spread death and disease. SO FREAKING AWESOME!

There were also a few plot twists that made me want to throw the book at a wall (but in a good way. P.S. Don't throw books at walls. They don't deserve that abuse). And while I do have a few tiny complaints, I can't really give too many of them without revealing spoilers. I will say there is a romance that I personally felt made no sense--do with that what you will. I'm also not a huge YA fan, so my complaints are petty and not big enough to ruin my love for this book. All in all, this was great.  Plenty of action, chases, conflict, and inner-struggles. If you do give this book a read, make sure you read it from beginning to the end, and by the end I mean Author's note included. It's powerful, inspiring, encouraging and a darn good debut for Tomi Adeyemi. Check it out!

                                                                            xo Nina