Children of Blood and Bone (Legacy of Orïsha #1) by Tomi Adeyemi
They killed my mother. They took our magic. They tried to bury us. Now we rise. 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.
I realized two things while reading this book. I might not be that into the fantasy, magic genre, but in spite of that I can still appreciate a great plot. This was exciting and action-packed. The details were extremely well constructed. I would highly recommend this book to all those who love fantasy and young adult books because even though it might not have been my cup of tea, it kept me invested enough to finish it completely. I felt it was geared to more younger adults because it held a young female protagonist, who was represented well. It was empowering and beautiful to listen to as an audiobook. The narrator had a great dialect to match the setting and it helped me not get caught up in trying to figure out how to say each name.
“I won't let your ignorance silence my pain”
“I teach you to be warriors in the garden so you will never be gardeners in the war.”
“gods are nothing without fools to believe in them.”