Rust in the Root was an interesting take on urban fantasy. The world-building was quite slow to start with and the style in which it was written often lead me to believe it wasn’t the first in the series. Not sure if that makes sense but it sometimes felt like you should already know the state of affairs and who these people are.

Once I got past the first few chapters I really started enjoying Rust in the Root. Once the action kicked in and the magic system started making more sense the world of this book was very interesting. I loved the different styles of magic and how it was illegal to cast without a license or if you were proficient in more than one type.

Around halfway through the pace picks up and when given a larger cast of characters the plot really begins to shine. The idea of the blights and that Laura is a part of the team who needs to control them was fun. Also, the fights with the blight beasts were some of the most interesting parts.

I don’t have much to say about the characters as honestly, it felt like you didn’t meet some of them properly, with the expectation of Laura and The Skylark. They both had interesting arcs and I’m intrigued to see what will happen with them next. Their growing familial relationship is an area of most interest.

Rust in the Root was one of those books that I enjoyed but I’m struggling to explain why. No part of it was particularly spectacular but I had fun reading it.

Wow! This was great. I'm not going to attempt to describe what's happening because someone has been paid to do that already and the worldbuilding is intense, but I really liked this. I love a good snarky female lead and that's what we get here! Add to it that she's a Black queer woman in the 1930s and we have ourselves a VERY interesting character. She's well written, likable and she really cares for others despite, well, being a queer Black lady in the 30s and dealing with a lot of nonsense. The complicated worldbuilding is very creative and ties in existing mythologies in a fun way. It also seems to be a standalone which actually bums me out a bit, since I'd love to read more about Laura and her newfound friends/family. Anyway, if you like humorous YA fantasies with strong lady leads and complex worldbuilding, you should check this one out!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Once again, Justina Ireland delivers an excellent story set in an alternate universe America that is very similar to ours- but more fantastical. I loved Dread Nation and Deathless Divide, so I was excited to dive into this one, and I was not disappointed.

The magic system in this series is really well detailed and thought out. The references to real historical events that went just a little bit differently were very fun to come across, as well. The story had a satisfying, if maybe somewhat rushed conclusion.

I can’t wait to see what this author does next! Whatever it is, you know I’m going to be one of the first in line to read it.

Ireland does great character work, and they shine particularly well here. The motivations of all of her characters make excellence sense in world, even the villain. I do love when an author can make a villain where you can read why they are doing these things and know they are horrible wrong, but still see how they came to their very bad conclusions. The strongest character connection here is between Laura and the Skylark. The growing into the mentorship there feels natural for both of them. I don't know how many more volumes Ireland will write to explore this world, but I'm hoping for several.

If this book was used to go over the course of black history one would never be bored. I learned so many terms and ideas under the guise of magic it made my head spin. Peregrine and Skylark are absolutely unexpected protagonists. I could go on and on about all the elements that make this book fantastic. I leave it with this BLACK UNITY always makes my heart melt.

I really enjoyed this twist on history. Vibrant writing, fantastic action, excellent details, all described wonderfully.

This took me a bit to get into and understand the magic, but it was really good once I got it.

Laura leaves her home for NYC. She wants to get a mage's license and open a bakery. She fantasizes about serving famous people and that everyone would love what she makes. But after a handful of months, she's almost out of money and loses the place she was living. When she finds out that she can apply to the Bureau of Arcane's Conservation Group, she visits someone called Skylark. At first, Skylark sends her away. But then she's told that she needs an apprentice right away so they can go to the blight in Ohio. Skylark knows that Laura is keeping something from her, but she helps her get clothes and gives her a monthly salary. But she's also throwing Laura into things way too fast. The bureau members from Chicago went to Ohio and they haven't been seen again. There are other mages and apprentices that join Skylark and Laura (Peregrine). When they get to the blight, it's like nothing they've dealt with before. It feels like their energy is being drained and that they are almost falling apart. They can't find many other people, just piles of leaves and rot. Peregrine has more than one specialty with her magic. They aren't supposed to do what is called Craft, but Peregrine is strong and they need to use whatever they can to survive and maybe even save the earth. Especially when they find out what is really happening in Ohio.

I really liked so much of this book. The characters were great and I liked most of them. I liked the magic and the society issues (racism) included in it. There was a little politics, too, but not too much.

I gave this book 4 stars.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for my earc.

A magical story set in 1937 of a country girl finding her way in the big city and all the possibilities waiting for her. Magical creatures are weaved into the plot and there's always a little extra just when you think the story cant get more twisted.

It is 1937, and Laura Ann Langston lives in an America divided—between those who work the mystical arts and those who do not. Ever since the Great Rust, a catastrophic event that blighted the arcane force called the Dynamism and threw America into disarray, the country has been rebuilding for a better future. And everyone knows the future is industry and technology—otherwise known as Mechomancy—not the traditional mystical arts.
Laura Ann finds work with the Bureau of the Arcane’s Conservation Corps under a mage known as the Skylark and begins to explore the range of her own powers. Ordered to fight a blight in Ohio, Laura Ann, the Skylark, and a group of other mages enter the fight of their lives. Exciting, dynamic, and original, Rust in the Root is fun yet deep, and another excellent work by a brilliant writer.

Thanks NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC of this novel! 3.5/5 stars.

This just seemed really intriguing, and I haven’t gotten around to reading the author’s other word - Dread Nation. I love historical fiction, and this acts as revisionist history by changing the Great Depression and segregation into something relating to magic while still representing the race relations of the time. It amounts the struggle of the depression and the dust bowl to an issue with magical branches and the rise of industrialization, and it was interesting to see how the different magical castes worked in the world.

There was a lot of world building though, and a lot of the magical things simply weren’t explained. It also felt really rushed toward the end, and I think this would have been better as a duology to really explore the lore and the magic system. It does a good job, but I want to be able to understand the magic and the history more than I was able to. A lot of the lack of the explanation also made the plot fall flat and didn’t create a story that pulled you in.

Laura is a witch from the country who dreams of earning her mage’s license in order to become a baker in the big city. However, upon arriving to New York, she finds out how difficult survival is - especially for a young, Black girl trying to make it on her own. After a conversation in Central Park, she is led to the Skylark of the Bureau of the Arcane’s Conservation Corps. After all, military service will automatically grant a mage their license. With a magical system that sets historical prohibition against Black ancestral magic, Laura and her team have to fight a monster from the depths of fairy stories.

This book was incredibly layered and discusses America’s fraught history with racism and continued systems of white supremacy. It was an extremely clever way to integrate history with fiction, especially as it applies to magic and mages. I don’t want to say too much about the story beyond that. There were times where a lot of background was necessary and sometimes those parts dragged just a bit for me, but oh how necessary that background was. Justina Ireland builds this incredible, magical world with danger that lurks in every shadow. The characters were great and I enjoyed how this book tackles all systems of white supremacy, even today! PLEASE check trigger warnings. Ones I can remember are: racism, racial slurs, violence, and blood Highly recommend!

Justina Ireland's first book, Dread Nation, has been on my TBR forever and I'm definitely going to have to prioritize it now that I've seen what she can do. This book was awesome, and weird, and intense. In an alternate history version of the late 1930s, magic is real but practicing it without a license is prohibited (in this reality, Prohibition was about magic and not alcohol). Laura Ann Langston, a young Black woman from rural Pennsylvania, has moved to New York to get licensed as a mage because she wants to be able to ravel (which is basically like casting) beautiful bakery creations. Out of money and down on her luck, she begrudgingly applies for a job with the Bureau of the Arcane’s Conservation Corps, which is focused on repairing major problems with the force called Dynamism that allows magic to happen, so that a more technologically focused version of magic called mechomancy can thrive. She's taken on as an apprentice by the powerful and mysterious Skylark, given the name the Peregrine, and sent along with several other Black mages from the Corps to repair a "Blight" in Ohio. It's sounding really complicated as I try to explain it, but it really flows pretty easily in the narrative. This deals head on with racism, pitting the Black mages at the center of the story against the Klan, who are, in this universe, not just white supremacists but also Necromancers. It also deals with concerns about technological advancement and the way those connect with powerful social forces. Just a really imaginative, powerful book.

3.5 stars

In general, I don't care for stories in first person point of view, but it worked for this one. I've never read anything by this author, and I don't know much about the Chinese culture, so I enjoyed being entertained and educated.
Zephyr was a complex and enjoyable character. I enjoyed watching her develop throughout the story. There was at least one unexpected twist.

Rust in the Root is a spectacularly well-written historical fantasy set in an alternative version of 1930s America. In this universe, an event known as the Great Rust has blighted large swathes of the nation, leaving them uninhabitable and destroying their mechanical infrastructure. Uncontrolled magic use has been blamed, and the practice is now heavily regulated. Those who get to wield this power, those left begging for scraps, and those greeted with suspicion fall along America’s traditional fault lines–allowing for a brilliant, if not bleak, exploration of the ways in which Black bodies and talents have always been exploited and sacrificed in the name of American industry.

Enter into all of this, 17 year-old Laura Ann Langston, a small town girl struggling to survive in the Big Apple as she pursues her dream of gaining a license to open a magical bakery. Fate, however, has far greater plans for her. It’s not long before she’s caught up in the effort to mediate the effects of the Great Rust and begins to uncover the dark secret at the heart of the American Blight.

It must be said that Laura Ann makes for a wonderful chosen one–headstrong and resourceful, confident and forthright; she’s got all of the bravery of an archetypal hero but refreshingly lacks the self-sacrificing tendency shared by so many protagonists in her position. And her flaws only make her more engaging. She is surrounded by an excellent supporting cast, the majority of which are African American, and any romances to be found are queer.

There is quite a bit of world-building at the beginning of the book and a decent amount of jargon to assimilate. This may be off-putting for some readers, but once through the first few chapters, the book moves at a nice pace. This is a fantasy, as has been said, and there is a certain delight that comes from seeing unicorns in Central Park; but there are also strong elements of horror and definitely some gore. Just as she did in Dread Nation and its sequel, Ireland again proves herself very adept at creating a sense of creeping dread and inescapable wrongness. This is a dark story, make no mistake.

That said, however, the story is not without light. Indeed, this is ultimately the tale of a girl who looks into the darkness, sees all the horror, and says, “Enough. No more. I’m changing things.” It’s a joy to watch her fly.

I loved the Dread Nation series and enjoyed the way Justina Ireland wrote it, so I was excited to read Rust in the Root. This was a wonderfully done novel, it had what I enjoyed from the previous books and the characters were what I expected from the Dread Nation books. The story was really well done and loved getting to know Laura. The magic elements were unique and I appreciated that this was a unique take.

"For once, the Skylark and I are in complete agreement. Despite the Skylark’s words, I still think Necromancy is the foulest of the mystical arts, an ability mired in death and destruction. I don’t know why the bottle works or even how, but I sure as hell am not about to start embracing it."

Alternate Depression-era history with mages and magical Blight instead of just the Dust Bowl and Prohibition that covers most magic, especially most Black people’s magic; a young Black mage comes to NYC to seek her fortune. She finds danger and adventure with the Black magicians sent to dangerous areas to solve the government's problems (of which they are one).

I gave this one a try but couldn't maintain interest in it. I loved the author's Dread Nation books so don't know if it's me this time. The ideas of Floromancers and root magic was interesting, I liked the fact that the book was set during the 20th century. I just didn't attach to the characters for some reason and didn't find anything that hooked me.

It is 1937, and Laura Ann Langston lives in an America divided—between those who work the mystical arts and those who do not. Laura is a talented mage from Pennsylvania who dreams of doing something more than her small town life will allow, so she heads to New York City to earn her mage's license. But four months later, she has little to show for it and so she applies for a job with the Bureau of the Arcane's Conservation Corps, a branch of the US government dedicated to repairing the Dynamism so that Mechomancy can thrive.

As Laura works with Skylark, a powerful mage, they discover in the heart of the country a mystery that includes the work of mages that hasn't been used in a long time, not since Black mages were killed for their power. The mystery could kill Laura and Skylark and all that they are working for.
A magical twist on our country's own history. The author does a wonderful job of creating the world of the book. This is an enjoyable book and fantasy lovers who also enjoy history will enjoy the mesh up of the two.

This was such a cool concept. Sometimes there was a lot of world building, but once you understood the dynamics, it moved at a fun pace. If there was a sequel, I believe more of this would make sense.

I received a complimentary copy of this book through NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own

Justina Ireland doesn't disappoint with this new speculative historical fiction title. Her world-building is phenomenal and she deftly integrates aspects of fantasy into actual historical events. She does this so well that I actually wondered at one point if maybe her version *was* the real one. I just loved this!

I discuss this book on episode 19 of This Podcast is Overdue, which will be released in early July: https://www.podpage.com/this-podcast-is-overdue/