In Tomi Adeyemi’s first book, Children of Blood and Bone, Zélie Adebola found herself on a quest to bring magic back to her people. Magic that was stolen from them as they barely lived under the monarchy of Orïsha. With the help of the King’s daughter, Amari, magic did return. But all was not as it should have been.

In the second book, Children of Virtue and Vengeance, magic has indeed returned to Orïsha, but now the nobles of the monarchy have it as well as the maji, including Amari and Inan, heirs to the throne. But a new enemy has been revealed: Amari and Inan’s mother, Nehanda. The Queen has a power like no one has ever seen, with no clear way how to defeat her. Again, it is up to Zélie and Amari to find a way to free the maji once and for all.

CVV is an exciting sequel to Book One, with several twists that made me gasp once they were revealed. The book starts off a little slow at first, but damn if it doesn’t pick up hold your attention. The author knows how to write about magic and also knows how to pull at your heartstrings. I found myself blinking back tears a couple of times and then rolling my eyes any time Zélie, Amari or Inan did something stupid. Those three made me want to pull my hair out because although their motives were for the good of Orïsha, they let their emotions and love for each other cloud their judgment, leading to mistakes that caused harm to those around them. The magical scenes throughout the book were beautiful and breathtaking, and the battle scenes were exciting, bloody and devastating. And yes, the ending was unbelievably frustrating because Ms. Adeyemi ended the book with one hell of a cliffhanger. I was so invested in this story that I had to finish it during my break at work, a break I normally use to take naps. Waiting for the next installment is going to be TORTURE.

Children of Virtue and Vengeance is out now so stop by your local bookstore or library and read it asap. I highly recommend it.

Where to buy: Amazon Barnes and Noble Indiebound