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booksthatburn'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
karenreadsbooks's review
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Death of parent, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Violence
amethystandherbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Death, Murder, Toxic friendship, Cursing, Grief, and Death of parent
Moderate: Infertility, Medical content, Alcohol, Sexual content, Classism, Chronic illness, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Car accident, and Gun violence
trippyotter's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Siblings, Clem and Chris, are still grieving their father's death when their mother becomes ill. No treatment - magical or otherwise - has been able to save their mother from her ailment.
After a grim medical check-up, they discovered their mother wasn't ill. She'd actually been cursed.
Left reeling the from the betrayal, they're determined to discover who could and would set out to destroy their family.
The level of deceit and hatred amongst the characters and community is twisted over the generations into a raw and tangible thing about to combust.
I really wanted to rate the book higher, but there's so many point of views and loose threads that are condensed into such a short timeframe, that it's a lot to unpack and doesn't necessarily flow smoothly.
After a grim medical check-up, they discovered their mother wasn't ill. She'd actually been cursed.
Left reeling the from the betrayal, they're determined to discover who could and would set out to destroy their family.
The level of deceit and hatred amongst the characters and community is twisted over the generations into a raw and tangible thing about to combust.
I really wanted to rate the book higher, but there's so many point of views and loose threads that are condensed into such a short timeframe, that it's a lot to unpack and doesn't necessarily flow smoothly.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Death, Sexual content, Grief, Hate crime, Homophobia, Murder, Racism, Cultural appropriation, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Gaslighting
nemoslittlelibrary's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
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? No
4.5
“For every child of color who was denied the justice they deserved. You always matter.”
Blood Debts had me gripped from the minute I read the dedication and the author’s note at the beginning!
The magical world within Blood Debts was so unique to me - that Gen Magic was created for those oppressed to survive colonisation, slavery and lynching. We have on the other hand the white mages that work with light magic (the sun) and then of course the non-magic folk. Everything in this book was so carefully orchestrated and explained so well. There are multiple subplots within this book as well that add to the overall plot of the book (the mystery of who is coming after Cris and Clem’s family) and keep the story moving at a nice pace. The world building was phenomenal and the writing was beautiful - the imagery in some of the spell casting scenes is just pure perfection!
I think this book is so interesting with a wonderful fictional plot however it does clearly bring light to some very real and non-fictional issues that minority communities still face in the present day. The history to the Gen community and, of course Cris and Clem’s grandparents, is so relevant to real history and I think this book truly helps bring those discussions to light through a fictional world. The pure poc rage and also feminine rage within this book really moved me emotionally because so much that happened are unfortunately, still real problems.
Main things I liked about the book:
- Multiple pov, we not only get to see Cris and Clem’s perspective on things but also a couple of the side characters. It’s always a nice insight on how the scene is playing out from different point’s of view.
- The familial bonds! Yes there is romance in this book but I would say the main relationships are within the family, specifically sibling bonds. Any reader who loves to see unconditional love for family members will really enjoy this.
- The strong poc, and female, characters. I loved, especially Cris, who would not back down and see her family suffer or be further oppressed. She quite literally fought until the very end and stood up for what was right.
- The history! The way this story was written and gave so much magical historical context to the present life in New Orleans was done so well that at no point did I think the author was just giving a history lesson and trying to get as much information in as possible. It was appropriately mentioned at the right scenes of the book but done often enough that I did have the full picture of their history by the end.
- Clem and Yves, No words. They have my heart.
- Jean-Louise was such a tender character, his development was adoring to see and I loved how he kind of took Clem under his wing.
I genuinely got so emotionally invested with the story line and a few of the characters. I will now eagerly be waiting for the second book because what was that cliffhanger!!!!
Some of my favourite quotes:
• “Gen gods literally created our magic to survive colonization and slavery and lynching—all because of white people. Pokémon are cool. Generational magic is my heritage, Oz.””
• “but let me make myself quite clear: Before I allow a group of limp white dicks to lord over my gods-given right to wield magic, I will decimate the entirety of New Orleans and every one of your cute little thrones along with it.”
• “A woman’s worth is not tied to her ability to conceive, nor are we obligated to pop out children to serve the patriarchy.”
• “You thought your brother was a rainbowed whore.”
Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an earc of this book⭐️
Blood Debts had me gripped from the minute I read the dedication and the author’s note at the beginning!
The magical world within Blood Debts was so unique to me - that Gen Magic was created for those oppressed to survive colonisation, slavery and lynching. We have on the other hand the white mages that work with light magic (the sun) and then of course the non-magic folk. Everything in this book was so carefully orchestrated and explained so well. There are multiple subplots within this book as well that add to the overall plot of the book (the mystery of who is coming after Cris and Clem’s family) and keep the story moving at a nice pace. The world building was phenomenal and the writing was beautiful - the imagery in some of the spell casting scenes is just pure perfection!
I think this book is so interesting with a wonderful fictional plot however it does clearly bring light to some very real and non-fictional issues that minority communities still face in the present day. The history to the Gen community and, of course Cris and Clem’s grandparents, is so relevant to real history and I think this book truly helps bring those discussions to light through a fictional world. The pure poc rage and also feminine rage within this book really moved me emotionally because so much that happened are unfortunately, still real problems.
Main things I liked about the book:
- Multiple pov, we not only get to see Cris and Clem’s perspective on things but also a couple of the side characters. It’s always a nice insight on how the scene is playing out from different point’s of view.
- The familial bonds! Yes there is romance in this book but I would say the main relationships are within the family, specifically sibling bonds. Any reader who loves to see unconditional love for family members will really enjoy this.
- The strong poc, and female, characters. I loved, especially Cris, who would not back down and see her family suffer or be further oppressed. She quite literally fought until the very end and stood up for what was right.
- The history! The way this story was written and gave so much magical historical context to the present life in New Orleans was done so well that at no point did I think the author was just giving a history lesson and trying to get as much information in as possible. It was appropriately mentioned at the right scenes of the book but done often enough that I did have the full picture of their history by the end.
- Clem and Yves, No words. They have my heart.
- Jean-Louise was such a tender character, his development was adoring to see and I loved how he kind of took Clem under his wing.
I genuinely got so emotionally invested with the story line and a few of the characters. I will now eagerly be waiting for the second book because what was that cliffhanger!!!!
Some of my favourite quotes:
• “Gen gods literally created our magic to survive colonization and slavery and lynching—all because of white people. Pokémon are cool. Generational magic is my heritage, Oz.””
• “but let me make myself quite clear: Before I allow a group of limp white dicks to lord over my gods-given right to wield magic, I will decimate the entirety of New Orleans and every one of your cute little thrones along with it.”
• “A woman’s worth is not tied to her ability to conceive, nor are we obligated to pop out children to serve the patriarchy.”
• “You thought your brother was a rainbowed whore.”
Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an earc of this book⭐️
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Death of parent, Death, Murder, Violence, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Sexual assault, Colonisation, Grief, and Racism
Moderate: Rape, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Car accident, and Fire/Fire injury
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, necromancyacwhite's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I struggled getting into the first 25-30% of this book, but once it took off it was tough to put down. A fascinating tapestry of plots that came together in a beautiful tapestry.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Death, and Violence
Moderate: Blood, Bullying, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Homophobia, Racism, Chronic illness, Cultural appropriation, Hate crime, Sexual content, Toxic friendship, Car accident, Cursing, Death of parent, Toxic relationship, and Confinement
marleywrites's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
fast-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
4.5
It was foolish to think he could outrun a god.
Thank you to NetGalley and TorTeen for this e-arc!
O.M.G. This book!!
This story was incredible. I loved every second. The magic was so cool to learn about, and I loved the characters. The whole family was amazing, even Justin 😂.
The fast pace really worked well for this story. I didn’t want to stop reading!
Benton-Walker’s writing style was so great- the action scenes were good and punchy and the descriptions were fantastic. The way the tension built up over this story was incredible as well. The ending was worth the build up for sure!
I will definitely be reading more that this author writes. I loved the Black excellence in this book, and the anger and what the characters did with it was possibly one of my favorite parts.
The only reason I withheld a half star is because Clem’s stubbornness absolutely killed me! It was frustrating at times but that’s Clem I guess 😂 But:
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Cultural appropriation, Cursing, Car accident, and Violence
Moderate: Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Mental illness, Forced institutionalization, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Alcohol, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Bullying, Death of parent, Infidelity, Chronic illness, and Medical content
mshiiken's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-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? Yes
4.0
BLOOD DEBTS floated across my inbox from Booklist Delivers, and I am SO GLAD it did. NetGalley provided a galley in exchange for an honest review and this book rules. A fuller review will be posted to Mzinigan Mshiiken, but brief incredible points:
- fascinating magic system
- political intrigue, both mundane and magical
- New Orleans
- LGBTQIA+ representation and love
- messy family ties
The only reason this gets 4 stars rather than 5 is because the writing at times was a little tough to get into. It was a little bit like getting a firehose of description to the face, and I found myself having to re-read sections to parse what was being said. Granted, the chapter titles helped a lot with perspective and the character changes were fascinating. Others have noted that the beginning is slow and I agree - that said, the latter half of the book had me on the edge of my seat for the few hours it took me to speedread. I think teens will really like this book (although a few scenes are a liiiiiittle more explicit than I like to recommend), and plenty of adults will too. I'm excited to see what comes next in the series!
- fascinating magic system
- political intrigue, both mundane and magical
- New Orleans
- LGBTQIA+ representation and love
- messy family ties
The only reason this gets 4 stars rather than 5 is because the writing at times was a little tough to get into. It was a little bit like getting a firehose of description to the face, and I found myself having to re-read sections to parse what was being said. Granted, the chapter titles helped a lot with perspective and the character changes were fascinating. Others have noted that the beginning is slow and I agree - that said, the latter half of the book had me on the edge of my seat for the few hours it took me to speedread. I think teens will really like this book (although a few scenes are a liiiiiittle more explicit than I like to recommend), and plenty of adults will too. I'm excited to see what comes next in the series!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic friendship, Panic attacks/disorders, Gore, Death of parent, Racism, Murder, Homophobia, Grief, Violence, Toxic relationship, and Death
Moderate: Sexual content, Gun violence, Terminal illness, Abandonment, Bullying, Infertility, Drug use, Religious bigotry, Sexual violence, Car accident, Sexism, Alcohol, Cursing, Forced institutionalization, and Infidelity
Minor: Vomit