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I enjoy the worldbuilding and this desert society
I like the discussions around disability and how Kai isn't just a character to be pitied or OP
Rasia's hardheadedness and unpredictability makes her a fun protagonist
This is Kai and Rasia's story. Nico is mostly in the background

The number of times I have dry heaved... the gore in this book is disgusting... Go head, Amanda, do your thing!!!

2 PoV characters Tabitha & Irene. Irene's powers showed first, Tabitha not until 1/2 way mark. Kinda weird jumping between perspectives because differences in maturity

CW for sexual assault and child abuse

Recently got out of the apartment search, so I felt for Tabitha

If you liked the writing style, focus on academia, and atmosphere from Tam Lin by Pamela Dean, you'll like this too

Writing style is descriptive and metaphorical, which works great for setting. It does make the fights confusing, also wish we'd seen Tabitha use her powers prior cuz of unconventional magic system.

Could use some editing (misspellings and flow of sentences), but I'm very invested and enjoying the read. It's cool that Bellamy is a female protagonist who's a bloodthirsty fighter. I also feel like she's a full character - she's still annoying because she's sheltered and learning more about the world.

There's intrigue with this prophecy around the elemental magic. Can't wait to find out what's going on with that!

Starting to drag. It seems like the main conflict happened, and it was anticlimactic.

Worldbuilding and pantheon are imaginative, although I'd like more atmosphere when the lore is introduced. Moira and Nailah have good chemistry. I can see why the empathize with each other and connect and enjoy each others' presence, even though they have very different personalities and upbringings.

Handling of the ube "addiction" is jarring. For now it's brushed off as a joke, but it seems like an actual issue.

I think the main draw of this magic system is the araeri. It's a great way to develop characters by showing the animals they're assigned and the bond between Magik and araeri.

Writing is starting to get confusing. Some of the action and explanations are getting hard to follow.

Also the in-universe words for LGBTQ identities seem clunky. They're synonyms that don't add much from a world building perspective. It would've been nifty to make a word for 'platonic girlfriend' but for some reason the author didn't.

I've seen Viano Oniomoh's writing recommended a few places over the years, so I picked up this novel. Thus far, I'm enjoying the writing style. It's descriptive but still flows well.

The magic system is intriguing. There's chalk and runes (which I'm partial to), but it's also been adapted over the years as practitioners face persecution, which feels real. Excited to learn more about the world.