I was so excited to get an ARC of Blood Like Magic! Witches living in futuristic Toronto? What's not to like! Sambury is a talented writer, and I look forward to reading the sequel!

First off, this book will make you VERY VERY VERY hungry! The main character, Voya, is a talented chef, and a lot of this book is about her cooking delicious food for her family or in cooking competitions etc. You will probably be getting on UberEats at least once while reading this; I know I did!

As someone living in Toronto myself, I loved all the details of the setting. I was especially a sucker for the stuff at OCAD, where I've taught some classes! The parts at the Dixie mall was also excellent. I love low-fantasy books where the magic is right there under your nose in ordinary places, but no one notices!

BLM is not a fluffy YA book. Despite me just saying it will make you hungry, it will also make your stomach turn at parts! Sambury does not shy away from the bloody imagery that the title "Blood like Magic" suggests! The author describes her style as writing stories about "messy Black girls in fantasy situations," which is precisely what you get here! There are no easy decisions or tidy bows. Definitely check out the content warnings that Sambury provides because this book has some heavy scenes.

The first 100 pages or so of the novel are heavy on exposition, making all the narrative threads a bit hard to hold in your head. When it clicks, it clicks, but it took me a while to get into the book for that reason. Every member of Voya's family is very well developed, but to such an extent that it's sometimes hard to keep track of. No one could ever accuse Sambury of having underdeveloped characters.

This brings me to my last point. Voya is a girl with PROBLEMS. No one could argue that there isn't enough conflict in this book. But she maybe has a few too many problems. To the extent that one of her close friends being missing is almost at the bottom of the list. BLM is a fantasy novel about witches, but it is also a sci-fi novel, a romance at times, a multi-generational family drama, a futuristic dystopia, a coming of age story, a mystery novel/ who-done-it. It looked at all sort of issues, from LGBTQ issues, gender issues, racial issues, economic issues, the undervaluing of the arts, drug addiction etc.

It also has a sub-narrative that seems inspired by Octavia Butler's Kindred, in which Voya sees and experiences the pain and suffering of her ancestors first hand. And another subplot that seems inspired by the sci-fi novel Timer, in which people wear something on their wrist that helps them find their soulmate. I think I'm forgetting some more layers; that's how many there are! These are all very cool ideas, but it is a lot. I found myself feeling like the book was turning to me and saying, "and another thing!" I feel like Sambury had a ton of great ideas and tried to cram them all into her first book. I think a few of these threads could have been removed, and it would not have harmed the book whatsoever.

All overall, I enjoyed reading Blood like Magic, and I recommend you check it out when it comes out on June 15th 2021!

Thanks to the publisher for providing an eARC of Blood Like Magic in exchange for an honest review.

What the hack! I have no idea how Sambury managed to seamlessly throw so many awesome things in one book, but she did a fantastic job. Blood Like Magic has everything you could possibly want in a YA fantasy. Witches! Quests! Enemies to lovers! 'I love you, but I also have to kill you! Strong family relationships! Past and present racism commentary told through both directly and throw magic and metaphor! Casual queer rep! Canada (okay, I'm biased on that one but I live for seeing place names I recognize in YA).

I absolutely lived for every second of this and can't wait to see it blow up.

Blood like Magic is a Young Adult fantasy book, with science fiction and paranormal aspects. Set in future Toronto, It follows Voya, a young witch from an honoured witch family. A witch's calling is the biggest, most important moment of their life and the last thing Voya expected was to fail, shamed and disappointed, Voya prayed for something better to happen. Unexpectedly, Mother Jova -Voya's ancestor- visits her and gives her an almost impossible task, Voya must kill her first love and if she doesn't, her entire family will be stripped of their magic and left helpless. Through technological advances, Voya is able to find her genetic match, the frustrating and arrogant Luc. Now, she must fall in love with him, then kill him or her entire family will fall apart. Blood like Magic is a story of love, blood and the power of advanced technology.

Going into this, I expected a paranormal fantasy book and that is why I got, but what I didn't expect was the depth of the scientific technology used in the time the book is set. The science-fiction aspect (however unexpected) was a lovely surprise and a really good added bonus. I loved that this was set in my city because it allowed me to connect and relate to the story more than I would have if it was not.

The writing was eerie and beautiful and very detailed. It was written from the first-person perspective of Voya and I really liked how it brought out her strength and weakness, making her a flawed but lovable character. I love the way things are described and how well the narration was able to summarize the places and give beautiful descriptions of them. I think the book could have been a little shorter because it was dragged quite a bit (will talk about this later in the review) but overall, I liked the writing.

The plot was well executed but was just a little slow at certain times in the book. I felt that the beginning was really dragged out but I also understand that it was used to set the setting and the world building of the book. There were times where I wanted to put it down because it felt like the plot wasn't really progressing but I'm glad I didn't because it got much, much better after the 50% range. The world-building was really interesting because though it is set in this world, there are so many unusual aspects to it, including the community of witches that live in the streets unnoticed and the fact that the story is set in the future. I loved the magic system and how unique some of the powers are, I liked that the whole premise is blood because it shows the ties the family has with magic. I really liked the plot and most of the aspects of it but I think the book could have been shortened a little bit and the beginning could have been a little more action-packed.

I LOVED the characters of this book very much. The diversity was natural and beautiful and very accurately represented the true diversity of Toronto. Voya, the protagonist, was a caring and and female but she was also fierce and was willing to make sacrifices for her family and give up everything to keep them safe. I connected with her through her determination and her struggles with a large family. I love how the author made her characters flawed because they are realistic and they directly correlate with the people in our real world. I also loved Luc because of his love for science and technology but also because of how strong he was and how he has overcome so many challenges in his life, with his identity and with his family. Despite their flaws, I really like Voya's family because they remind me so much of mine, everything isn't perfect and not everyone gets along but together, they were able to do what needed to be done and that makes for a wonderful family relationship.

Overall, I really liked this book. The writing was beautiful and honest, the plot dragged a little but was good nonetheless, the world-building was fantastic and the characters were diverse and flawed but still very lovable. I am really excited for the next book in the series and I cannot wait to see where Liselle Sambury takes this storyline!

Thank you for reading my review and I hope it helped!

The author has recreated many of the sites and sounds of Toronto during Catrina. This deliciously written tale of a young girl coming into her own while focusing on her family and at what lengths she will go to to preserve it are enveloping. I want more.

Publication Date: June 15, 2021
TW: Slavery, Whipping, Gun Violence, gore, death, substance abuse, child neglect

Every witch has a calling, a trial arranged by one of their long dead ancestors when they hit puberty that tests their worthiness. If successful, the ancestor will award the witch with a magical gift, if they fail, they lose their witch status forever.

Voya has waited a long time for her calling. She’s blown away when one of her more notorious ancestors sets out her trial. She has 30 days to kill her first love, except Voya hasn’t experienced her first love yet. What follows is a story of family, love, loyalty and hardship.

Firstly, thank you for including content warnings at the beginning of the story. I also want to shout out the author for writing such wonderful, loyal, messy and diverse characters. Voya has entered my list of favourite female characters in literature.

I’ve never read a book that takes place in Toronto nor did I ever realize how much I craved a fantasy story to take place where I’m from. While this story takes place well into the future, Liselle’s inclusion of future Toronto as almost a character itself in the story was really neat. From the inclusion of the TTC arrival jingle, to famous landmarks and our unabashed multiculturalism, it was so interesting to see how years into the future the best of Toronto still shines.

As for the plot, it was a bit of a slow start in terms of the story. There was a lot of worldbuilding thrown at the reader all at once. I do appreciate when authors flesh out the world before they introduce the stakes in the plot. However, the story didn’t really pick up until about 20% in. It was bogged down by repetitive details about the same concept.

The premise of the story was definitely what intrigued me about this novel and it continued to keep me interested throughout the book. I’m normally the type of reader that guesses how the story is going to turn out long before the ending but this was not the case in this book.

I’ll be keeping my eye out for the next book in the series. I’m excited to see where the story goes and what happens to a number of characters.

Thank you to #NetGalley and @SimonandSchusterCanada for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Feel free to send any future books my way…. but actually.