Blood Debts combines a celebration of Black personhood and culture with deep questions about justice. With a very genuine New Orleans vibe, this book explores an imagined intersection of race and magical ability which provides a parallel to real dynamics in American society. The magic system had certain elements of freshness that should interest readers, though at times it was lacking in explanation.

Readers may struggle to distinguish between the twins' voices until further into the book or get lost in the multiple sub-plots. The sub-plots do not always complement each other, and because this is multi-POV, dragged the book down at times and made me question what the main story was about. There is definitely an extended level of suspension of disbelief required for this book, as in the span of two weeks the protagonists solve a 30-year-old cold case. I was frustrated by the level of "insta-love" between Clem and Yves, as I felt it undermined the emotional payoff and significance of that relationship, particularly given the end of the book.

Worth a read if you are a fan of magic, Black culture, the American South, and books that leave you wrestling with big questions through morally gray characters.

Trigger Warnings: knife, death of family member, illness, cursing,
gun violence, murder, homophobia, racism, sexual assault, sex, lynching, loss of bodily autonomy, bullying

Representation: Black, Gay, Twins,

Blood Debts is a young adult, queer fantasy. Clement and Cristina Trudeau are the twin heirs to a throne stolen from their family thirty years ago. When they accidentally discover their ailing mom is actually cursed, they must work together to figure out who is coming after their family. With tensions high in the city already, New Orleans depends on the twins to avoid another massacre or worse.

I want to start by saying this book was very good. It’s written well and very enjoyable. That being said, this isn’t my normal cup of tea. I struggled to get invested in the storyline but it’s not the book’s fault. I tried my best to keep an open mind but in the end, I couldn’t connect enough.

Overall, this is a great story- just not meant for me. The magic and setting are great, the writing is very clear and concise, the author gets so many things right with this one. I think any fan of this type of surreal fantasy will enjoy this story!

This is a knock out and sure fire smash hit! From the brilliant representation on the cover, to the action packed breathtaking events of the story itself - this will be a new favourite for my students, I have no doubt

What a stunning debut. Blood debts blew my breath away. To be honest, it’s more accurate to say blood debts knocked the breath right out of me and then gave me life again. I loved everything about this. The politics, the magic system, the characters, the allegory for racism. It was phenomenal. I love reading stories set in New Orleans and exploring voodoo because the culture is so rich and there’s so much to explore. I screamed during the plot twist and I need the second book NOW.

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

Blood Debts is an exciting new book in the YA space about reclaiming your power when it is unjustly taken from you. It started a bit slow for me but I’m glad I stuck with it as the story unfolded. Lots of lovely moments of first loves, sibling dynamics, and families working through tough times to cash in their “blood debt”. I did thoroughly enjoy the climactic scene- without any spoilers- justice was fully served.

A few things that fell a bit flat for me- that I will chalk up to it being a debut novel: dialogue was very basic and a bit choppy, a lot of the aunts felt a bit hollow (and I genuinely forgot about one of them until the last few sentences), and the pacing felt a bit off kilter.

Overall- would recommend and will keep an eye out for other books by the author

Actual rating: 3.5 stars
This was a really fun fantasy book. There were lots of parts that I loved seeing, like the magic system and the New Orleans setting. The author took care in writing this book and it’s definitely noticed throughout the novel.
I loved seeing the diversity in the characters, as well as seeing the difference in opinions and how they got to conclusions as well. It was very well done.
I feel that there were a few too many perspectives and it got confusing at points because of that, but other than that I enjoyed it.
Thank you to NetGalley and Tor Teen for an eARC copy of this book.

DNF 25%

I tried so hard to get into this book. The concept is amazing, but what I didn't realize is how much of a young adult book this YA would be. The writing style is very immature, which was surprising considering the fact that the main characters are 17, there is talk of them fooling around with different partners, and it alludes to teenage characters having killed people.
I thought there would be more focus on what happened 30 years ago, to the adults, vs the current woe-is-me of the present time teenagers.

I found myself just trying to speed read the book to get it done with since I received an ARC from NetGally, but it's honestly not worth it for me so I'm DNFing it.

A note, I'm 30, so it's possibly that I've officially passed my ability to enjoy poorly done YA novels, so this might be for you.

First off, I wanna say I went into Blood Debts thinking it would be a historical fantasy. It is very much not 🤣

Secondly, I loved the concept behind the book, and think that the magic system is stellar. The execution though? Lacking.

Bummed I didn’t enjoy this as much as I hoped I would!

That ending was 🤯
Starting the book with so much grief and pain and insecurity over their gifts and their families place in society. The community had brutally ended their grandparents life and they were trying to prove their innocence. Just loved the journey they all went on finding their power and voice.

The power hunger and double-crosses were everywhere. And that cliffhanger wow!

Thank you turnthepagetours and torteen for the gifted copy and including me on this tour.

Let me start off by saying that I love the cover for Blood Debts, though it did make me think it was going to be historical fantasy rather than contemporary given how the two characters are dressed. But still, A+ cover!!

Now on to the actual review. Blood Debts is about two teens, twins Cris and Clem, whose grandmother once ruled the Generational magic council in New Orleans, but was accused of murdering a white woman and lynched thirty years ago. They grew up with their parents and a whole lot of aunts, but after their father died a year ago the aunts all left and neither sibling is dealing well. Cris has given up magic, thinking she is at fault for her fathers death, and Clem is lonely, anxious and depressed, and dates various guys without letting himself ever get close. But what if their grandmother was framed for the murder, and their family should still be ruling the gen magic council?? Throw in a reclusive necromancer, a showboat with some major showdowns, and an answer trapped in the mind of a girl who's been crossed, as well as the family of the new ruling queen and a serious quest for revenge, there's excitement and drama for sure.

I really liked the concept of the book, but I think it suffered a bit from trying to tackle too many intense subjects and storylines in one volume. I never felt like we learned enough about any of the various plots and subplots, as one would be dropped for a bit to focus on another, and then yet another would come up seemingly out of nowhere. This also makes the pace of the first half of the book rather slow, as various elements all have to separately develop. The pace of the second half is much better, and the main storyline is resolved at least.

The magic system was really interesting, and the setting of New Orleans was an excellent backdrop. In fact I am sorry we did not get to see more of the magic use, though that is for a reason in the book. And without spoilers there is some pretty significant magic usage during the last quarter.

One significant thing that I did not love was the relationships between most of the characters. Their family has all fallen out with each other, and I was expecting Clem and Cris especially to be learning to work together and overcome what separated them in the past. However this doesn't happen for most of the book, so mostly its two siblings who don't get along well and their dysfunctional family who also don't get along well. The villians are also pretty much one hundred percent awful without nuance, even Cris's ex-best friend, the daughter of the current gen council Queen. We get a few chapters from her perspective which I think are meant to humanize her but mostly it was like, here is an awful person who has also happened to have some bad things happen to her. There were also a couple chapters from a minor characters perspective and I am honestly unsure of their purpose at all. Perhaps that will become clear in the next book.

The end of the book is also very surprisingly violent. I was not really prepared for it to be quite that brutal. So just a heads up there for anyone who may be a little squeamish.

All in all, a decent but not amazing debut. I don't regret reading it but I probably won't remember to look out for the sequel.

Magic. Black rep. New Orleans setting. These are things I should want. These are not really the things I got. This is YA and you can tell. Every POV, and there are way too many of them, is extremely petty, from the teens to the boomers. The twist didn't even phase me. I stopped caring far too long ago. I skimmed the last half. I just realized I started this book a month ago. It doesn't take me long to read things. That should've been a sign.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher.

I am not an own voices reviewer so I will not be speaking much on this book as I have no authority to speak on many of the subjects addressed in this book.
I want to say that I absolutely adored this book. The magic was cool and I really liked the characters. I read this whole book in one day because I just could not put it down. I would definitely recommend this book!

Ohhhh, I just want so much more of this! The worldbuilding is so great - you get such a vivid sense of how the different magic systems work through the community, how gen magic weaves through the families and the ages - and the characters are so vivid that you love spending time with them.

There's a bit of a slow start as the groundwork for everything is laid - why Cris has turned her back on her magic, why Clem craves connection, why their family, after being so close, is scattered across the city, as well as introducing all of the aspects of the complex relationships between the gen magic families as well as the broader New Orleans community - but once it takes off, boy does it take off. Trying to figure out who crossed their mother almost to her death starts to unravel a whole tapestry of lies and old motives that surround Clem and Cris and touches almost every aspect of their lives, both past and future. It's not so much of a whodunit mystery as everyone involved getting their agency and power back, and boy is it satisfying to watch that power be reclaimed.

I also have to shoutout to the beautiful imagery of some of the ritual descriptions, especially those involving raw moonlight (there's particularly a description of an instagram post that I wish actually existed), but also to how much love and care has clearly been taken in crafting this world and these characters.

My one quibble is the shifting PoVs. Between Cris and Clem is fine, but every now and then we get a chapter from a side character, which are all in a different tense and person from the twins' chapters, which always threw me a little. Some of them also felt disconnected from the main action, to the point that once I finished, I see them more as setting the stage for events in future books, which felt a little jarring. But that's a minor flaw in the scale of what a treat this book was to read.

THIS WAS SO FUN. Wildly dramatic, like watching a CW teen show. If this doesn't get optioned for film/tv I am rioting.

I finished my NetGalley arc of BLOOD DEBTS by Terry J. Benton-Walker and loved it—⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

It was UNFLINCHING as far as really showing the emotions behind family dynamics, anxiety rep, representation of generational secrets blooming into curses. It has messy family drama that reminded me of the movie SOULFOOD. Be ready to clutch your pearls. Clem and Cris really said— they tired of being told to stay outta grown folk business. I really enjoyed seeing that and found it relatable. I loved the mystery, the lore, and inspiration of Black culture and Voodoo.

There’s a lot to love about BLOOD DEBTS. There were so many relatable moments, and nuanced conversations. I would read ten more books in this series. LOVE.

A contemporary fantasy novel with magic, mystery and curses. Set in New Orleans, the novel sets out to uncover a murderer who has been targeting families. Clement and Cristina Trudeau are sixteen-year-old twin heirs to a powerful, magical family. It comes as a shock to them to find out their mother is cursed.

A fantastic, thrilling read.

I want to start off thanking NetGalley and the author for an advance copy of Blood debts in return for an honest review.

Blood debts is such a great read! I found myself completely submerged within this story. I love the characters developments, their grief, their love, their fierceness , and their happiness. I felt like I was with them every step of the way trying to solve so many things at once.

I have so much to say about this beautiful piece of work but don’t want to give to much away.

Blood debts has so much going on from murders, voodoo, curses,magical wars, twins, queens being dethroned,necromancy , and blood debts being settled. The power that was displayed by the Trudeau family gave me chills! The author understood the assignment!

Favorite quotes:

“ Lenora savant is undeniably one of the black people Harriet Tubman would have shot.”

“ am I good enough now!?” ( sir excuse me!?)

Rating:4/5
Drama:4/5
Romance:2/5 (not a romance)

A voodoo inspired magical YA mystery set in New Orleans. The rep is great - queer characters galore, mostly BIPOC POVs aswell as mental health/grief. A great story & I'm looking forward the sequel.

Thank you Macmillan-Tor/Forge and Netgalley for letting me read and review this book. This book was amazing. I love Terry's writing style and the world that he builds. Blood Debts is about magic, racism, a stolen throne, intergenerational curses and trauma, and a couple mysteries. Cristina and Clem try to solve a 30 year old murder. Along with that murder a family was lynched, there was a brutal magical massacre, and a throne was stolen from a queen. Clem and Christina are taking care of their sick mother and find out that she is cursed. Tensions are rising between magical and non-magical users, and between magical users.

This story is intense and intriguing. I couldn't put this book down. I loved Christina, Clem, Eve, and Ursula. There are a lot of well written characters to hate, all of the characters are fleshed out well. I loved the world building and the build up to the end of the book. There were some twists I did not expect, and enjoyed how many layers there were. There is magic, necromancy, secrets, trauma, amazing character development, and mystery. One of my favorite reads of the year so far.

I can't quite put my finger on what I'm dissatisfied about with this book. I just had a lot of questions at the end - and not plot questions, just general ones that I did not understand about this world. There was also a lot in this book - the plot was all over the place.

Overall the story was great and I really liked the two main characters and their family. The magical systems were confusing to me - along with all the people and their roles within this system.