Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi – Book review!

Hello lovelies!

I am very happy that the past few days have allowed Black poeple to come forth and allowed their voices to be heard. I have always wished for more representation in the book community, especially in YA. Children of Blood and Bone is the kind of book I would have loved to grow up with and I wish there had been more books like this, that is to say featuring fierce, strong and brave Black characters, especially women.

Title: Children of Blood and Bone

Author: Tomi Adeyemi

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

Rating:

I loved the writing style. Tomi Adeyemi painted a beautiful magical world. I liked how she explained how the magic works through the characters discovering their own magic. I really wish Orïsha were a real kingdom I could visit. The story kept me on the edge of my feet even if I suspected some parts. I also liked how the author dealt with pain and loss, especially since we can transpose that loss in our own world, through the Black Lives Matter movement. I was deeply moved and touched by the author’s note at the end of the book. This book was everything I hoped for and it brought me to tears many times.

The characters were definitely the best part of this book. I loved how the characters interacted with each other, especially when they were in the camp with Zu and the other divîners. The characters were all fleshed out and I loved reading every character’s point of view. My personal favourite character was Amari. Her character development was beautiful to read about; she was always the fierce warrior she turned out to be (if that makes sense) but she just needed to accept and love herself. And I loved how Tzain and Zélie helped her achieve that. I loved Tzain’s protectiveness and kindness, especially towards Amari. I really appreciated how Zélie was the spark in many people’s lives, how selfless and brave she was. Despite everything I still love Inan and I cannot wait to see what happens to him – or his relationship with Zélie. I am also very intrigued by Roën, I cannot wait to see what he has in store for us.

This book had enough action, which made it a page-turner, as well as a good dose of romance. The enemies-to-lovers trope was carried out perfectly. I liked how realistic the trope was; despite their feelings for each other Zélie and Inan were still conflicted and didn’t let their love blind them.

This book will stay with me for a long time. I loved how it was uplifting and how it pushed us to believe in ourselves. The message that I took away was: even when the world is against you, even when the world has pushed you to hate yourself, you still have some worth and value, you still deserve a voice. This book is punctuated by quotes that will resonate with me forever. Here are a few of them:

“Reality told us we would fail. But again and again, we fought. We perserved . We rose.” 

― Tomi Adeyemi, Children of Blood and Bone

“Children of Blood and Bone was written during a time where I kept turning on the news and seeing stories of unarmed black men, women, and children being shot by the police. I felt afraid and angry and helpless, but this book was the one thing that made me feel like I could do something about it. I told myself that if just one person could read it and have their hearts or minds changed, then I would’ve done something meaningful against a problem that often feels so much bigger than myself.” 

― Tomi Adeyemi, Children of Blood and Bone (Author’s note)

“I won’t let your ignorance silence my pain.” 

― Tomi Adeyemi, Children of Blood and Bone

Hope you liked this review!

Karla xx