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A review by syllareads
Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.5
I think the best way to sum up my feelings on this book is: I am very glad it exists and I hope it brings people, especially the underrepresented, joy and closure, it just wasn't for me.
The worldbuilding of this first book in the Orïsha-Series is beautiful, the magic system is intriguing, and I have to yet again remark on how important storytelling is in this story (as I did in my Raybearer review) - much of the backstory, especially when it comes to the magic system, is told to both us and the characters itself via a story, or a legend, or both, often accompanied by beautiful visualization of said story. I was a big fan of that!
Another, though definitely sadder aspect, were the parallels between what Zélie and her friends, as well as the other Divîners, had to go through and still suffer throughout the story itself, and the very real oppression of black people (mostly documented in the US at this moment and the moment these books were written, but also generally throughout the world). The author, Tomi Adeyemi, even says so in her Author's Note by the end of the book. I am glad she was able to put her pain, her tears, and her suffering into words, even though I wish she didn't have to.
While all of this is definitely why I am glad this novel exists for the ones who need and want it, it just personally didn't click with me. I liked the characters well enough (I have complicated feelings about Inan) and their personal struggles were painful to read about. Overall, though, the story progressed too fast for me, especially when it came to some of the love stories - I personally like to have some time with that sort of thing. I'm still going to read book 2 at the very least since I got it from the library, and I'm interested to see if that, for instance, changes throughout the series.
Generally speaking, there were enough things for me to at least like about this book that I'm glad I read it, even though it didn't spark as much joy and as many feelings as I'd hoped it would.
Another, though definitely sadder aspect, were the parallels between what Zélie and her friends, as well as the other Divîners, had to go through and still suffer throughout the story itself, and the very real oppression of black people (mostly documented in the US at this moment and the moment these books were written, but also generally throughout the world). The author, Tomi Adeyemi, even says so in her Author's Note by the end of the book. I am glad she was able to put her pain, her tears, and her suffering into words, even though I wish she didn't have to.
While all of this is definitely why I am glad this novel exists for the ones who need and want it, it just personally didn't click with me. I liked the characters well enough (I have complicated feelings about Inan) and their personal struggles were painful to read about. Overall, though, the story progressed too fast for me, especially when it came to some of the love stories - I personally like to have some time with that sort of thing. I'm still going to read book 2 at the very least since I got it from the library, and I'm interested to see if that, for instance, changes throughout the series.
Generally speaking, there were enough things for me to at least like about this book that I'm glad I read it, even though it didn't spark as much joy and as many feelings as I'd hoped it would.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Racism, Racial slurs, Child death, and Death of parent