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From Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC)

Zélie was three when she saw her mother murdered along with the other maji in Orisha. Their deaths severed the links with the gods of the ten maji clans. As a result, young diviners like Zélie, identified by their white hair and disparagingly called maggots, can’t come into their magic. Amari is the daughter of King Saran. Her father killed the maji, believing magic a threat to Orisha. When Amari sees her maid and best friend Binta, a diviner, murdered by her father after Binta touches a scroll that awakens her power, she steals the scroll. She asks for help fleeing her pursuers from the first diviner she sees: Zélie. A fast-paced fantasy set in a world that draws on African cultures and geography (the almost-lost language of magic is Yoruba), follows Zélie, Amari, and Zélie’s brother, Tzain, on their quest to reestablish the connection between maji and their gods. The king’s guard in pursuit is led by Amari’s brother, Inan, who loves his sister but falls easily under the spell of their cruel father’s logic. Inan is also desperate to keep his own magical gifts, awakened by the scroll, hidden. While the plot isn’t wholly original, the opening volume of this series offers twists, turns, and surprises as Zélie, Amari, and Inan, haunted by their separate pasts, each seeks to change the future, although not necessarily in the same way. (Age 11 and older)

CCBC Choices 2019 © Cooperative Children's Book Center, Univ. of Wisconsin - Madison, 2019. Used with permission.

From Horn Book

July 1, 2018
Amari, daughter of maji-persecuting King Saran, has stolen a magical scroll, which awakens divnner Zilie's latent maji power to command the dead. Joined by Zilie's brother Tzain and pursued by Amari's brother Inan, the young women set out to restore magic to the kingdom of Orosha. References to Nigerian culture and geography give this fantasy a distinct flavor; impassioned prose evokes intense emotion.

(Copyright 2018 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

From Horn Book

May 1, 2018
When magic suddenly disappears from the kingdom of Or�sha, King Saran seizes the chance to murder all the maji (rare and powerful magic-wielders), leaving alive only the div�ners (children born to be maji but too young to have yet developed their powers). Eleven years later, Z�lie, a div�ner whose mother was murdered in the raid, is at the market when Saran's daughter Amari begs for her help. The princess has stolen a magical scroll, which, when Z�lie touches it, awakens her power to command the dead. Joined by Z�lie's brother Tzain and pursued by Amari's brother Inan (whose own power comes to life when he accidentally touches the scroll), Z�lie and Amari set out to use the scroll to restore magic to Or�sha permanently. Z�lie, Amari, and Inan share narrative duties, and each has a compelling growth arc, particularly Z�lie, whose initial self-doubt is eased by reliance on her hard-won martial skills and her increasing love of magic, but who suffers a paralyzing crisis of confidence at the climax. The delicious romantic tension that develops between Z�lie and Inan and between Amari and Tzain adds extra layers of complication and reader engagement. References to Nigerian culture and geography (Yoruba is the language of magic here) give this fantasy a distinct flavor, further distinguished by the intensity of emotion evoked by the impassioned (if occasionally overly dramatic) prose. anita l. burkam

(Copyright 2018 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

From Publisher's Weekly

Starred review from April 23, 2018
Turpin's bold reading of Adeyemi's Afro-futurist fantasy solidifies her reputation as one of the best voice actors working today. Since he took power 11 years earlier, King Saran has brutally suppressed the use of magic in the fictional African kingdom of Orïsha. When his 17-year-old daughter, Amari, is motivated by her father's violence to flee the palace and head for the unknown, she teams up with the embattled teen diviner Zélie to restore magicâ€"and justiceâ€"to Zélie's people. Turpin is a star at voicing the novel's characters, but the contralto depth she employs for Zélie stands outâ€"particularly during religious rituals, in which Zélie cries out to the gods for help in her quest. Turpin's sonorous incantation of prayers, as well as her brisk pacing during exciting moments of danger, will have listeners on the edge of their seats. Her depiction of the king's rage is also downright terrifying, as Turpin is unafraid to roar. Her hypnotic performance is one to be reckoned with. Ages 14—up. A Holt hardcover.

From School Library Journal

March 1, 2018

Gr 9 Up-Zélie Adebola, 17, remembers the night of the raid in her village 11 years earlier. Her mama was chained by her neck and lynched with other maji by the forces of ruthless King Saran of Orisha. King Saran hates magic and considers it the source of all evil, so he targets and exterminates the maji, who worship ancestors and practice magic. Now, they live hopelessly as servants, slaves, stockers, and prisoners. Zélie strives to bring back magic in Orisha, so she becomes the main target of King Saran's maji cleansing campaign. She sets out on her spiritual journey with her athletic brother Tzain and pet lioness Nailah. They encounter an unexpected ally. Princess Amari of Orisha escapes from her estate of Lagose after witnessing the murder of Binta, her maji best friend and handmaiden, at her father's merciless hands. Zélie, Tzain, and Amari go on the run to restore magic in Orisha. Adeyemi's debut and series opener is a revelation. She has brilliantly woven the Yoruba language and culture into a complex and epic tale. Readers will appreciate the intergenerational cast. Teens won't feel lost in this lengthy tome because of the excellent use of flashbacks and backstories. The violence can be extreme at times, but it doesn't feel exploitative, and themes of female empowerment make this especially relevant. VERDICT This extraordinary literary work offers a refreshing YA fantasy with an all-West African cast of characters that should be on every shelf.-Donald Peebles, Brooklyn Public Library

Copyright 2018 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

From Kirkus

Starred review from February 15, 2018
Seventeen-year-old Zelie and companions journey to a mythic island seeking a chance to bring back magic to the land of Orisha, in a fantasy world infused with the textures of West Africa.Dark-skinned Zelie is a diviner--someone with latent magical abilities indicated by the distinctive white hair that sets them apart from their countrymen. She saves Princess Amari, who is on the run from her father, King Saran, after stealing the scroll that can transform diviners into magic-wielding maji, and the two flee along with Zelie's brother. The scroll vanished 11 years ago during the king's maji genocide, and Prince Inan, Amari's brother, is sent in hot pursuit. When the trio learns that the impending solstice offers the only chance of restoring magic through a connection to Nana Baruku, the maternal creator deity, they race against time--and Inan--to obtain the final artifact needed for their ritual. Over the course of the book allegiances shift and characters grow, change, and confront traumas culminating in a cliffhanger ending that will leave readers anxiously awaiting the next installment. Well-drawn characters, an intense plot, and deft writing make this a strong story. That it is also a timely study on race, colorism, power, and injustice makes it great.Powerful, captivating, and raw--Adeyemi is a talent to watch. Exceptional. (Fantasy. 14-adult)

COPYRIGHT(2018) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

From Booklist

Starred review from February 1, 2018
Grades 9-12 *Starred Review* Magic is gone in Zelie's kingdom; it was violently eradicated by power-hungry King Saran, and anyone with the capacity for magic abilitiesthe maji, who all have snow-white hairis now a second-class citizen. But Zelie holds tight to the old stories, and she's secretly learning to fight, unwilling to take the unjust treatment of her people lying down. Meanwhile, Saran's daughter, Amari, has escaped her cruel father's palace with a relic containing the power to reignite magic among maji, and after a chance run-in with Zelie and her brother, Tzain, the trio traverses the kingdom, hoping to use the relic to restore magic to every maji. But Amari's own brother, Inan, who's convinced magic is too dangerous to permit, is hot on their trail. Adeyemi's expansive debut plunges readers into a dense, vivid world full of intriguing politics, evocative magic, and brutal violence. Cinematic pacing, alternating viewpoints, and well-choreographed action make the pages fly toward the cliff-hanger ending, which will surely leave readers eager for the next installment. Though she often uses tried-and-true fantasy tropes, Adeyemi keeps it fresh with an all-black cast of characters, a meaningful emphasis on fighting for justice, a complex heroine saving her own people, and a brand of magic made more powerful by the strength of heritage and ancestry. Perfect for fans of the expansive fantasy worlds of Leigh Bardugo, Daniel Jose Older, and Sabaa Tahir. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: This debut trilogy opener is already building lots of buzz, thanks to a movie deal in the works and a huge marketing campaign.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)

From Publisher's Weekly

Starred review from January 1, 2018
Eleven years ago, King Saran cemented his grip on the throne by banishing magic from Orïsha and slaughtering the realm's maji-Zélie Adebola's mother included. The maji's descendants-dark-skinned, white-haired people called divîners-have lived under tyranny ever since, but now there is cause for hope. Thanks to information gleaned from Saran's kindhearted daughter, Amari, 17-year-old Zélie has a chance to restore magic to Orïsha and activate a new generation of maji. First, though, Zélie, Amari, and Zélie's brother Tzain must outrun the crown prince, Inan, who is determined to finish what his father started by eradicating magic for good. Book one in the Orïsha Legacy trilogy, Adeyemi's devastating debut is a brutal, beautiful tale of revolution, faith, and star-crossed love. By making tangible the power that comes from embracing one's heritage, Adeyemi conjures a story that resonates with magic both literal and figurative while condemning apathy in the face of injustice. Complex characters, colossal stakes, and a kaleidoscopic narrative captivate, and the book's punishing pace catapults readers to a jaw-dropping conclusion that poses as many questions as it answers. Ages 14—up. Agent: Alexandra Machinist and Hillary Jacobson, ICM.

From AudioFile Magazine

Bahni Turpin's breathtaking narration of this exhilarating novel will keep listeners rooted to their seats, listening intently. The story is told through the shifting perspectives of three teenagers in a West-African-inspired world that had magic until it was stolen away by a fearful and destructive king. Z�lie is a diviner, a white-haired, black-skinned girl who is destined to help restore magic to Or�sha. Turpin imbues her with an impassioned voice, artfully portraying her rage, fear, hope, and determination. Turpin's distinctive voices for Princess Amari and Prince Inan change as they grow in their strength and convictions, though on divergent paths. Turpin's captivating narration, with incantations sung in Yoruba, intense battles, and lively, devastating dialogue, makes this an audiobook not to be missed. E.E.C. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine