A sprawling fantasy notable for its complex worldbuilding and exploration of social issues.
After leaving her prestigious school, a gifted mage must rely on her wits and resourcefulness to protect herself and those close to her.
In the Empire of Dageis, mages don’t usually look like Rosha Tar’elian. Her brown skin and dark hair, inherited from her Gorenten father, set her apart from the light-complected Dageian majority. Though she has a natural-born talent for magic, she struggles to be seen as more than a member of a subjugated group. Thanks to her undeniable skill (and her merchant father’s dubiously gained fortune), Rosha is the first Gorenten to be admitted to Eheldeth, Dageis’ premier school for mages. Unfortunately, the community resents the outsider in their midst, and Rosha’s reputation as a ruthless hothead earns her no favors. Fed up with being undermined, she leaves, making her not only a dropout, but also an outlaw: Every spell she casts is now illegal. She succeeds in disappearing for a time, but when her family is threatened, she realizes that her father’s and her own shady behavior may be catching up to them. Rosha sets off across the empire to investigate, making allies and enemies and uncovering a political conspiracy far beyond what she could have imagined. This series opener sets up more plot threads than it closes; those who enjoy the intricate worldbuilding and thoughtful treatment of class, race, and colonialism will be eager for the next installment.
A sprawling fantasy notable for its complex worldbuilding and exploration of social issues. (character sketches, map) (Fantasy. 13-adult)Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2023
ISBN: 9781958051207
Page Count: 380
Publisher: Snowy Wings Publishing
Review Posted Online: May 24, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
A sweet if muddled tale of the magic of Appalachia.
A teenage witch goes up against the evil king of the mountain to save a cursed village.
Witch-in-training Verity Vox has spent a year apiece in different villages, helping in any way she can as she learns her art. When it’s time to move on, she receives a sign that shows her where to go next. When the latest sign appears in the form of a note begging for help that floats down on a leaf, she’s eager for the challenge. Verity winds up in Foxfire, a village in the Appalachian mountains that’s been magically cut off from the rest of the world for years, leaving its people close to starvation. The root of their suffering is a man they know as Earl, who lives in the hills and strikes deals with the townspeople that ultimately cause crops to wither, folks to disappear, and the only bridge out of the valley to crumble. Verity is determined to change the villagers’ fortunes, but to do so she’ll have to face off against not just Earl but the ancient power of the mountains itself. Loosely based on the Germanic Erlking legend and told in a voice reminiscent of folktales, the story features a queer romance and a cast that presents white. The convoluted magic system undercuts the strong themes of reciprocity, poverty, and privilege, but Appalachian readers will instantly recognize home.
A sweet if muddled tale of the magic of Appalachia. (Fantasy. 13-18)Pub Date: Aug. 5, 2025
ISBN: 9798890032706
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Page Street
Review Posted Online: May 30, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2025
SEEN & HEARD
Read this for the action-packed plot, not character development or worldbuilding.
On the orders of her mother, a woman goes to dragon-riding school.
Even though her mother is a general in Navarre’s army, 20-year-old Violet Sorrengail was raised by her father to follow his path as a scribe. After his death, though, Violet's mother shocks her by forcing her to enter the elite and deadly dragon rider academy at Basgiath War College. Most students die at the War College: during training sessions, at the hands of their classmates, or by the very dragons they hope to one day be paired with. From Day One, Violet is targeted by her classmates, some because they hate her mother, others because they think she’s too physically frail to succeed. She must survive a daily gauntlet of physical challenges and the deadly attacks of classmates, which she does with the help of secret knowledge handed down by her two older siblings, who'd been students there before her. Violet is at the mercy of the plot rather than being in charge of it, hurtling through one obstacle after another. As a result, the story is action-packed and fast-paced, but Violet is a strange mix of pure competence and total passivity, always managing to come out on the winning side. The book is categorized as romantasy, with Violet pulled between the comforting love she feels from her childhood best friend, Dain Aetos, and the incendiary attraction she feels for family enemy Xaden Riorson. However, the way Dain constantly undermines Violet's abilities and his lack of character development make this an unconvincing storyline. The plots and subplots aren’t well-integrated, with the first half purely focused on Violet’s training, followed by a brief detour for romance, and then a final focus on outside threats.
Read this for the action-packed plot, not character development or worldbuilding.Pub Date: May 2, 2023
ISBN: 9781649374042
Page Count: 528
Publisher: Red Tower
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2024
SEEN & HEARD
BOOK TO SCREEN
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