Book Review: Blood Like Magic by Liselle Sambury

Blood Like Magic

Blood Like Magic by Liselle Sambury is about a Black Canadian teen named Voya who has to kill her first love or her family’s powers will be lost forever. The only catch? Voya’s never been in love before.

I have to say it was incredible to read about a Sri Lankan family in a fantasy book, which is something I have never seen before. Perfect for fans of Legendborn and Matched.

Trigger Warning: A whipping scene in the context of slavery, gun and police violence, a character with an eating disorder, blood/gore violence, death, substance abuse/addiction, and mentions of child neglect.

 

Highlights

  • A genetic matchmaking program.
  • One of the best world-building I’ve seen in a fantasy book!
  • Enemies to lovers.
  • Urban fantasy.
  • A diverse group of characters! I love how Sambury included characters with different cultural backgrounds and large families.
  • Sacrifice.
  • Magic!
  • Unlikeable characters (this can be a pro or con for some)! Voya is not a perfect character- she makes mistakes and she doesn’t always do the right thing, but I loved that about her. Voya’s just trying her best. She wants to do the right thing, which is what makes her so believable.
  • High-stake fantasy that will keep you up all night!

Lowlights

  • Slow start, but it picks up!

 

Overall thoughts: This was a magical debut novel and I can’t wait to read the sequel whenever it comes out! If you’re a fan of enemies-to-lovers fantasy books with a dysfunctional family dynamic then this is the perfect book for you.

Amani Salahudeen

Amani is pursuing a Master's in Teaching (Secondary English Education) and enjoys writing about YA books in her free time. Her favorite authors include S.K. Ali, Chloe Gong, Sabaa Tahir, Hafsah Faizal, Sandhya Menon, Angie Thomas, Lamar Giles, Nic Stone, John Green, and many others!

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