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taratearex's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
This had a bit of a slow start for me in ebook format, but I picked up the audiobook and restarted and the amazing narrators really brought the characters to life, I definitely recommend the audiobook. I ended up reading along with the ebook- this helps me a lot when there's a lot of characters in a book and there are A LOT of characters to follow in this book.
An urban fantasy and murder mystery centered around a magical family living in New Orleans. The plot is thick with a complex history, tense politics, and family secrets. I loved learning about the different magic systems and their history and connection to people and the world- generational, sun, and moon- and the racial dynamics this brings into the world, this was a really interesting take on magic systems layering in conversations about racism and cultural appropriation. The murder mystery kept me interested, while I had some things I guessed correctly, there were so many twists and turns that were unexpected.
This book is dense and rich and at times this works so well- when it weaves in politics of white supremacy, cultural appropriation, generational trauma, homophobia, trust, grief, community care, and a lot more. Sometimes there is also A LOT going on with A LOT of characters that made it a bit hard to follow- there are multiple POVs, multiple subplots, and a lot of people to keep track of. I think the author does a good job of trying to keep you following along by explaining or repeating information, but it can still be a lot to follow and I did lose my bearings here and there.
But overall it's a great story with great worldbuilding and complicated messy characters that you root for.
CW: Racism, Murder, Violence, Sexual assault/coercion, Sexual content (references to and on page scene), Death of parent, Gun violence, Car accident, Bullying
Thank you to net galley and the publisher for an e-arc of this book to review.
An urban fantasy and murder mystery centered around a magical family living in New Orleans. The plot is thick with a complex history, tense politics, and family secrets. I loved learning about the different magic systems and their history and connection to people and the world- generational, sun, and moon- and the racial dynamics this brings into the world, this was a really interesting take on magic systems layering in conversations about racism and cultural appropriation. The murder mystery kept me interested, while I had some things I guessed correctly, there were so many twists and turns that were unexpected.
This book is dense and rich and at times this works so well- when it weaves in politics of white supremacy, cultural appropriation, generational trauma, homophobia, trust, grief, community care, and a lot more. Sometimes there is also A LOT going on with A LOT of characters that made it a bit hard to follow- there are multiple POVs, multiple subplots, and a lot of people to keep track of. I think the author does a good job of trying to keep you following along by explaining or repeating information, but it can still be a lot to follow and I did lose my bearings here and there.
But overall it's a great story with great worldbuilding and complicated messy characters that you root for.
CW: Racism, Murder, Violence, Sexual assault/coercion, Sexual content (references to and on page scene), Death of parent, Gun violence, Car accident, Bullying
Thank you to net galley and the publisher for an e-arc of this book to review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Grief, Death, Cultural appropriation, Racism, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Gun violence, Car accident, Sexual content, and Sexual assault
Minor: Bullying
legalplanner's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-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? It's complicated
5.0
Run, don't walk to pick this up if you have not.
I was thoroughly impressed by Benton-Walker's ability to weave a magical realism story in with a murder mystery cold case. The two protagonists are twins, who should be next in line to rule the magical community they are a part of. These 16 year olds felt real to me, especially living in a big city like New Orleans, this didn't feel unrealistic in their sleuthing around like some mysteries feel like.
I loved the dynamics between the characters in that they were messy. They had real issues amongst family and even though they were "close" they weren't perfect and had to work to be family. Even the twins who should have been their biggest allies to each other instead were often failing to see each other in their truest light.
Benton-Walker's writing was beautiful. I felt the heaviness that needed to be present in the tough topics of race relations, political oppression, and many other tough topics. More than that the multiple points of view were excellently well done. They didn't feel forced but didn't make me feel like it messed up the book either. I was invested as soon as I got through the first 30 pages.
I cannot wait for the next book and the series and will be patiently waiting, as much as I can, to read the next installment.
I was thoroughly impressed by Benton-Walker's ability to weave a magical realism story in with a murder mystery cold case. The two protagonists are twins, who should be next in line to rule the magical community they are a part of. These 16 year olds felt real to me, especially living in a big city like New Orleans, this didn't feel unrealistic in their sleuthing around like some mysteries feel like.
I loved the dynamics between the characters in that they were messy. They had real issues amongst family and even though they were "close" they weren't perfect and had to work to be family. Even the twins who should have been their biggest allies to each other instead were often failing to see each other in their truest light.
Benton-Walker's writing was beautiful. I felt the heaviness that needed to be present in the tough topics of race relations, political oppression, and many other tough topics. More than that the multiple points of view were excellently well done. They didn't feel forced but didn't make me feel like it messed up the book either. I was invested as soon as I got through the first 30 pages.
I cannot wait for the next book and the series and will be patiently waiting, as much as I can, to read the next installment.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Toxic friendship, Death, Murder, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Gaslighting, Gun violence, Homophobia, Cultural appropriation, Bullying, and Car accident
Minor: Death of parent and Panic attacks/disorders
hobbithopeful's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
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
Magic, justice, and racism take center stage in New Orleans, where power struggles and backstabbing are a daily occurence.
To say this book went above and beyond my expectations would be a lie. It BLEW my expectations out of the water! This is one of the best debut novels I've read, and if I could read it for the first time again I WOULD! The storyline was tense and kept me on the edge of my seat, and even though there was a wide and varied cast of characters, it was never too confusing. Each person introduced felt like they were so different and complex, it was never hard to keep track of them. I couldn't even tell you the amount of times I flipped to the family tree to try and suss out the mystery before it was revealed on page. I loved the inclusion of history, of queer characters, and the depiction of intergenerational trauma. This is one of the best magical systems I've seen depicted in books. All the rituals and spells that are shown felt so real, I almost expect to see people harvesting moonlight the next time I look outside at night.
This is definitely a heavy read. Benton does not shy away from discussions of race, appropriation, and injustice. I saw so much of myself in Cris, realizing justice is reserved for the white and privileged has been the hardest pill I've had to swallow. (And it's still stuck in my throat to be honest...) I would burn down cities if it meant getting justice and vengeance for those I believe are truly evil.
The book had the perfect amount of loose ends, not too many where you felt the story wasn't resolved, but the right amount where it sticks in your brain and you wonder what's going to happen in the next book. (I have so many theories it's insane!)
I truly cannot wait for the sequel, I know it's going to put me through the emotional wringer, and I will thank it when it does so!
A must read! SERIOUSLY! READ THIS!
To say this book went above and beyond my expectations would be a lie. It BLEW my expectations out of the water! This is one of the best debut novels I've read, and if I could read it for the first time again I WOULD! The storyline was tense and kept me on the edge of my seat, and even though there was a wide and varied cast of characters, it was never too confusing. Each person introduced felt like they were so different and complex, it was never hard to keep track of them. I couldn't even tell you the amount of times I flipped to the family tree to try and suss out the mystery before it was revealed on page. I loved the inclusion of history, of queer characters, and the depiction of intergenerational trauma. This is one of the best magical systems I've seen depicted in books. All the rituals and spells that are shown felt so real, I almost expect to see people harvesting moonlight the next time I look outside at night.
This is definitely a heavy read. Benton does not shy away from discussions of race, appropriation, and injustice. I saw so much of myself in Cris, realizing justice is reserved for the white and privileged has been the hardest pill I've had to swallow. (And it's still stuck in my throat to be honest...) I would burn down cities if it meant getting justice and vengeance for those I believe are truly evil.
The book had the perfect amount of loose ends, not too many where you felt the story wasn't resolved, but the right amount where it sticks in your brain and you wonder what's going to happen in the next book. (I have so many theories it's insane!)
I truly cannot wait for the sequel, I know it's going to put me through the emotional wringer, and I will thank it when it does so!
A must read! SERIOUSLY! READ THIS!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Racism, Violence, Alcohol, Toxic relationship, Hate crime, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Death of parent, and Gun violence
Moderate: Cultural appropriation, Colonisation, Sexual assault, and Bullying
Minor: Domestic abuse and Slavery
betweentheshelves's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
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
3.0
This book had so much potential for me, but I think there were too many narrators and there was too much going on with the plot. Like a few other reviewers have mentioned, I also thought this was going to be more of a historical fantasy than a modern one, given the cover and the description. But it is definitely more urban fantasy.
Anyway! There were some great characters, and I appreciated the family history/mystery aspect of the plot. Those parts were the most interesting to me, and narrowing the focus would have let that part of the writing shine. There's a hook at the end that hints towards another book, but without that, you could mostly read this book on its own.
All in all, this was a book with potential that just fell a little flat for me.
Anyway! There were some great characters, and I appreciated the family history/mystery aspect of the plot. Those parts were the most interesting to me, and narrowing the focus would have let that part of the writing shine. There's a hook at the end that hints towards another book, but without that, you could mostly read this book on its own.
All in all, this was a book with potential that just fell a little flat for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Death of parent, Sexual content, and Sexual assault
Minor: Car accident, Bullying, and Gun violence
Also a brief mention of lynchingbooksthatburn's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
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
5.0
Clement (Clem) and Cristina (Cris) are twins, Gen(erational) magic users living in New Orleans. Cris has recently pulled away from her magic because she thinks a spell she performed is responsible for their father's death. It's a secret so terrible that she hasn't shared it with anyone, leaving Clem adrift and frustrated, not understanding why his sister refuses to do this thing she's so good at and used to love. Their family has been displaced from their previous position in the Gen Magic Council, of which their grandmother was the queen before she was killed and blamed for someone else's death. BLOOD DEBTS deals with trauma from racism, cultural appropriation, and self-interested cruelty, and how connection and family ties can help the Trudeau family withstand everything hurled against them.
Clem and Cris are the two main narrators, but occasional sections follow other perspectives, such as the girl who used to be Cris's best friend. Echoing what played out between their grandmothers decades ago, she turned cruel and seems to have made it her mission to wreck Cris's life. Clem has his own problems, frustrated with how his sister has pulled away since their father died, he's trying to feel connected with her seemingly revolving cast of brief links. He doesn't understand Cris dating a white boy and she doesn't understand him dating so many boys. I love the way their dynamic is written, because it really feels like teenage siblings who want to connect to each other but don't have the experience to understand the way that their mutual teasing is alternately a barrier as much as it's a connection. They're also stressed out by their mother's illness, but almost as soon as the story begins they discover it was unnaturally caused and the only way to protect their family is to get all of their aunts to come home and help cast a protection. There's a wonderful mix of showing and specifically processing the way the ways that the discord and difficulty communicating between their mother and her sisters has then made it harder for Clem and Cris to navigate their relationship with each other.
Digging into the past unearths old wrongs and tangled threads, highlighting misery in the present. The twins are following their own paths of restitution, reconciliation, and resolution as they work, not quite at cross-purposes, but on parallel tracks of investigation as they each try to find out who was hurting their mother, and whether anyone is still trying to hurt them. Cris is navigating her relationship with her with her boyfriend, and Cris meets a new boy who sweeps him away.
I love the ending, things are wrapped up in a way that feels immensely satisfying for 95% of the story, and then rather dramatically unresolved for a plot point so tantalizing that I'm eager for the planned sequel. The dangling threads make it feel real and alive, but the way in which it's unresolved sets it firmly back in the realm of drama and fantasy in a way that I find very pleasing.
Clem and Cris are the two main narrators, but occasional sections follow other perspectives, such as the girl who used to be Cris's best friend. Echoing what played out between their grandmothers decades ago, she turned cruel and seems to have made it her mission to wreck Cris's life. Clem has his own problems, frustrated with how his sister has pulled away since their father died, he's trying to feel connected with her seemingly revolving cast of brief links. He doesn't understand Cris dating a white boy and she doesn't understand him dating so many boys. I love the way their dynamic is written, because it really feels like teenage siblings who want to connect to each other but don't have the experience to understand the way that their mutual teasing is alternately a barrier as much as it's a connection. They're also stressed out by their mother's illness, but almost as soon as the story begins they discover it was unnaturally caused and the only way to protect their family is to get all of their aunts to come home and help cast a protection. There's a wonderful mix of showing and specifically processing the way the ways that the discord and difficulty communicating between their mother and her sisters has then made it harder for Clem and Cris to navigate their relationship with each other.
Digging into the past unearths old wrongs and tangled threads, highlighting misery in the present. The twins are following their own paths of restitution, reconciliation, and resolution as they work, not quite at cross-purposes, but on parallel tracks of investigation as they each try to find out who was hurting their mother, and whether anyone is still trying to hurt them. Cris is navigating her relationship with her with her boyfriend, and Cris meets a new boy who sweeps him away.
I love the ending, things are wrapped up in a way that feels immensely satisfying for 95% of the story, and then rather dramatically unresolved for a plot point so tantalizing that I'm eager for the planned sequel. The dangling threads make it feel real and alive, but the way in which it's unresolved sets it firmly back in the realm of drama and fantasy in a way that I find very pleasing.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Forced institutionalization, and Confinement
Moderate: Sexual assault, Drug use, Death of parent, Rape, Alcohol, Bullying, Racism, Injury/Injury detail, Cursing, Car accident, Death, and Medical content
Minor: Pregnancy, War, Body shaming, Mental illness, Vomit, Fatphobia, Infertility, and Self harm
sarahsbookss's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
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? It's complicated
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder, Gore, Sexual content, Toxic friendship, Body horror, Car accident, Cultural appropriation, Death of parent, Homophobia, Bullying, Infertility, Injury/Injury detail, Racism, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Violence, Vomit, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Grief, Hate crime, and Cursing
takarakei's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
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
3.5
I didn't love this as much as I was hoping which is a shame. The magic in this book is really amazing, and there were some truly fascinating parts to read. Also a few 'gasp' moments that surprised me (in a good way). However, there were far too many background characters and their roles were not adequately described, so even though I took notes I was still confused. For example, there are these magical 'councils' that oversee the different types of magic and there are people on these councils who are mentioned ex: 'so-and-so is priestess of etc' but there's no explanation of what that means? So I felt the world-building could have been fleshed out more.
3/5 🌶️ - there is one explicit sex scene
3/5 🌶️ -
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Sexual content, Car accident, Gun violence, Homophobia, Racism, and Violence
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Blood, Death of parent, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Bullying, Sexual assault, Grief, and Hate crime
Minor: Slavery, Addiction, and Alcohol
SA/rape:jouan87's review
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying
Moderate: Religious bigotry
Minor: Child abuse, Alcoholism, Car accident, Death of parent, Forced institutionalization, Homophobia, Racism, and Racial slurs
patricktreads's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
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
5.0
Blood Debts I went into knowing nothing about it other than it was a YA story that had magic. I was BLOWN away by the intricacies of the story, the magic system and the magical factions that our characters come from. It is a very dark story, but in the best way. The writing was smooth and very easy to follow, but at the same time it was still complex with plenty of detailing to keep the story intriguing and moving.
The arc I received (special thanks to the publisher and Netgalley) was an audio edition of the book. The narration was done amazingly, and I think the production was pretty spot on to how well it was also written. I really hope that in the next book, the same narration and production team are used to keep that same stellar performance going.
The arc I received (special thanks to the publisher and Netgalley) was an audio edition of the book. The narration was done amazingly, and I think the production was pretty spot on to how well it was also written. I really hope that in the next book, the same narration and production team are used to keep that same stellar performance going.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Body horror, Gaslighting, Grief, Murder, Death, Drug use, Racism, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Chronic illness, Abandonment, Bullying, Classism, and Death of parent
purplepenning's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
There is a lot going on in this dark, contemporary urban fantasy. It's a great concept, but it didn't end up working for me. (I'm not giving a star rating because I'm definitely not the target audience.) Blood Debts is, as promised, absolutely dripping with generational magic, trauma, and family and community drama. But the cast and scope felt too big, and the characters managed to feel both underdevoped and belabored. I hope it works better for other readers, or that the series as a whole comes together better than this first part.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Murder
Moderate: Blood, Confinement, Drug use, Infidelity, Toxic relationship, Violence, Alcohol, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual content, Car accident, Death of parent, Gun violence, Forced institutionalization, Toxic friendship, Body horror, Bullying, Cursing, Grief, and Infertility
Digital bullying, necromancy