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thereadingskeleton's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Thank you to B2Weird Book Club and Harper Voyager for an ARC in exchange for an honest review and promotion. All opinions are my own.
Rep: Black MC, biracial LI, Black side characters
What. A. Ride.
Honestly, what else can I say?
Actually, a lot.
First of all, this book is extremely violent, bloody, and gory. It follows Ikenna Amari as she enters the Praetorian Trials, a brutal military initiation, to search for her grandfather’s murderer. With a premise like that (not to mention a name like The Blood Trials, amiright?), I went in expecting violence—but, even so, there was A LOT. I wasn’t particularly bothered by it, but if you’re squeamish, you might want to skip this one.
If I had to choose one thing about the book to gush over, it would be the blending of science and magic. I love science fantasy; it’s a genre I never get enough of. In The Blood Trials, Kenna’s home country of Mareen has eschewed magic in favor of technology—so much so that they’ve executed anyone in the country born with magic. This is a big problem for Kenna, since she secretly has a blood gift—one of the most reviled forms of magic. Throughout the novel, Kenna embraces her gift more and more, and I’m hoping that, in Book 2, that extends to the world and we get to see more mixing of magic and technology.
There were a couple of things I wasn’t as big a fan of. For one, Kenna hardly experiences any character growth. I expect we’ll see more in the second book, but it was frustrating to see her consistently making the same kinds of mistakes without learning a single thing. I was extremely frustrated with her for most of the book. That honestly didn’t detract much from my enjoyment of the story, because I was really here for the action-packed (if not always the least predictable) plot, and I’m excited to see the plot threads that were left dangling get picked back up in the sequel.
I also highly recommend the audiobook version! The narrator, Jeanette Illidge, did a fantastic job.
As a last note, this book is not YA. It is firmly in the adult category, and I definitely wouldn’t recommend it for younger teens. Some older teens will probably enjoy it, though.
Rep: Black MC, biracial LI, Black side characters
What. A. Ride.
Honestly, what else can I say?
Actually, a lot.
First of all, this book is extremely violent, bloody, and gory. It follows Ikenna Amari as she enters the Praetorian Trials, a brutal military initiation, to search for her grandfather’s murderer. With a premise like that (not to mention a name like The Blood Trials, amiright?), I went in expecting violence—but, even so, there was A LOT. I wasn’t particularly bothered by it, but if you’re squeamish, you might want to skip this one.
If I had to choose one thing about the book to gush over, it would be the blending of science and magic. I love science fantasy; it’s a genre I never get enough of. In The Blood Trials, Kenna’s home country of Mareen has eschewed magic in favor of technology—so much so that they’ve executed anyone in the country born with magic. This is a big problem for Kenna, since she secretly has a blood gift—one of the most reviled forms of magic. Throughout the novel, Kenna embraces her gift more and more, and I’m hoping that, in Book 2, that extends to the world and we get to see more mixing of magic and technology.
There were a couple of things I wasn’t as big a fan of. For one, Kenna hardly experiences any character growth. I expect we’ll see more in the second book, but it was frustrating to see her consistently making the same kinds of mistakes without learning a single thing. I was extremely frustrated with her for most of the book. That honestly didn’t detract much from my enjoyment of the story, because I was really here for the action-packed (if not always the least predictable) plot, and I’m excited to see the plot threads that were left dangling get picked back up in the sequel.
I also highly recommend the audiobook version! The narrator, Jeanette Illidge, did a fantastic job.
As a last note, this book is not YA. It is firmly in the adult category, and I definitely wouldn’t recommend it for younger teens. Some older teens will probably enjoy it, though.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Violence, Blood, Sexism, Bullying, Racism, Cannibalism, Gun violence, Torture, Confinement, Misogyny, Death, and Grief
Moderate: Xenophobia, Classism, Death of parent, Racial slurs, War, and Sexual content
Minor: Colonisation and Genocide
foreverinastory's review
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Thank you to B2 Weird Bookclub and Harper Voyager for an arc in exchange for an honest review and promotion. All opinions are my own.
4.5/5 Y’all this book took me on a ride.
This was so bloody, but I loved it all! The Blood Trials is an immersive, bloody military fantasy that follows Ikenna Amari. She has just graduated her training and is planning to take time off to grieve the loss of her beloved Grandfather. When she learns he was murdered, she decides to pledge to the Praetorians to find out who killed him. But she’ll only find out if she survives the fatal trial process.
There is so much action in this story, and a shit ton of graphic and violent content. I loved going on this journey with Ikenna. She was a character I enjoyed getting to know. She doesn’t have everything figured out, but she has a goal in mind and nothing will stop her from getting there.
The magic and world building was really well done. There are so many cool parts to the societies to explore and I cannot wait to learn more about them all in the sequel! I really hope we get to see more of the other countries besides Mareen, because I am so curious about them all. Especially Ikenna's friendship with the Crown Prince. I need more details Ikenna!
Overall, I highly recommend this book.
Rep: Biracial Black cishet female MC, white cishet female side character, biracial cishet male side character, various Black male side characters.
CWs: Racism, racial slurs, xenophobia, violence, gore, blood, injury/injury detail, cursing, death, cannibalism, misogyny, sexual content (on page and discussions), classism, sexism, grief, war, bullying/hazing, torture, murder, death of grandparent/parent, gun violence, medical content. Moderate: vomit, alcohol, alcoholism, confinement, gaslighting, colonisation, genocide, abandonment.
4.5/5 Y’all this book took me on a ride.
This was so bloody, but I loved it all! The Blood Trials is an immersive, bloody military fantasy that follows Ikenna Amari. She has just graduated her training and is planning to take time off to grieve the loss of her beloved Grandfather. When she learns he was murdered, she decides to pledge to the Praetorians to find out who killed him. But she’ll only find out if she survives the fatal trial process.
There is so much action in this story, and a shit ton of graphic and violent content. I loved going on this journey with Ikenna. She was a character I enjoyed getting to know. She doesn’t have everything figured out, but she has a goal in mind and nothing will stop her from getting there.
The magic and world building was really well done. There are so many cool parts to the societies to explore and I cannot wait to learn more about them all in the sequel! I really hope we get to see more of the other countries besides Mareen, because I am so curious about them all. Especially Ikenna's friendship with the Crown Prince. I need more details Ikenna!
Overall, I highly recommend this book.
Rep: Biracial Black cishet female MC, white cishet female side character, biracial cishet male side character, various Black male side characters.
CWs: Racism, racial slurs, xenophobia, violence, gore, blood, injury/injury detail, cursing, death, cannibalism, misogyny, sexual content (on page and discussions), classism, sexism, grief, war, bullying/hazing, torture, murder, death of grandparent/parent, gun violence, medical content. Moderate: vomit, alcohol, alcoholism, confinement, gaslighting, colonisation, genocide, abandonment.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Xenophobia, Death, Misogyny, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Gun violence, Grief, Racism, Bullying, Torture, Racial slurs, Blood, Cursing, Cannibalism, Classism, Sexism, Death of parent, Violence, Gore, Sexual content, War, and Murder
Moderate: Gaslighting, Colonisation, Alcoholism, Confinement, Genocide, Abandonment, Vomit, and Alcohol
bookinitwithahtiya's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This book here, y’all! I loved Ikenna within the first ten pages, point blank period. She’s bullheaded, driven, rash, and can definitely back up anything that comes out her mouth, no questions asked. I definitely feel like her and Rue from Wings of Ebony would get along or be the most dynamic sister duo 🤣 Kenna’s evolution is realistic and understandable, and I’m super excited to see her journey continue in Book 2. This (New) Adult SFF novel jumps right in and gives us the mission right in Chapter One; there’s no unnecessary exposition and it’s packed full with fleshed out and memorable characters. I’m excited for whatever N.E. Davenport puts out next. THE BLOOD TRIALS is already out in the world, so make sure to go grab your copy from your local bookstore or put in a request at your library; you’re not gonna wanna miss out on this one. That’s a promise 😉
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Sexual content, Blood, Cannibalism, and Bullying
Moderate: Sexism, Grief, Racism, Misogyny, and Colonisation
Minor: Death of parent
internationalreads's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
fast-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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Blood, Body horror, Abandonment, Classism, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Cannibalism, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Gaslighting, Genocide, Gore, Murder, Racial slurs, Racism, Colonisation, Grief, Bullying, Sexism, Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual content, Torture, War, Violence, Vomit, Medical content, and Misogyny
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