In this follow-up to Children of Blood and Bone (2018), Zlie and company are back, and the future of Orsha hangs in the balance.Zlie, now a maji Reaper, has achieved her goal and brought magic back to Orsha, but at great cost. Grief and loss are strong themes throughout the book, compounded by guilt for Zlie, who feels responsible for her father's death. Zlie and her older brother, Tzain, try to help Princess Amari ascend the throne, believing her family deadbut Queen Nehanda, Amari's mother, is very much alive and more formidable than they could imagine. The trio join the Iyika, a band of rebel maji working to protect their persecuted people from threats new and old. Though the characters' trauma reads as real and understandable, their decisions don't always feel sensible or logical, often stemming from a lack of communication or forethought, which may leave readers frustrated. Though still commendable for its detailed worldbuilding, with an ending compelling enough to keep fans interested in the next installment, much of the book feels like navigating minefields of characters' ill-advised decisions. All characters are black except for a secondary character with silky black hair, tan skin, and gray eyes "like teardrops."Second installments in trilogies sometimes slumphere's hoping the third book is a return to the vibrancy of the first. (Fantasy. 14-18) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Gr 9 Up--Readers return to Orïsha in Adeyemi's second book in the trilogy. Zélie and Amari have succeeded in returning magic to maji and, surprisingly, some nobles now known as tîtán also have gained powers. As they plan for maji to regain their power and have Amari ascend the throne after her father's death, Amari's mother presents a challenge with her army of tîtáns, starting a civil war between the nobles and the maji. Zélie is accepted as the natural leader of the Iyika, the rebel maji who are fighting the nobles for power in Orïsha. This creates a rift between Zélie and Amari, who both originally thought Amari would regain the throne and reunite Orïsha. As the war continues, the characters delve into the value of relationships, honor, and the challenge of choosing what is right over what has been done in the past. The story in alternating viewpoints is read by Bahni Turpin, whose narration ensures that every character is unique and distinguished from the others. VERDICT Listeners will be taken into the land of Orïsha and experience the magic through the gorgeous storytelling combination of Adeyemi's writing and Turpin's flawless voice acting. Essential for middle school and high school libraries.--Erica Coonelly, Monroe Township Middle School, NJ

In Orsha, where magic has recently been restored (Children of Blood and Bone, rev. 5/18), Princess Amari tries to unite the kingdom to prevent it being torn apart by the magic-using rebels called the Iyika, the revolution. Unfortunately, her authoritarian brother Inanthought dead at the end of the last bookreturns to reinstate the anti-magic crackdown started by their late father, and hes backed by his mother, now a powerful magic-wielder. Zlie, the maji who worked the spell to restore magic, has her own problems summoning up her new abilities. The passion and drama in the writing are as powerful as ever, and Adeyemi has invented some distinctive new ways to deploy her gods-and-clan-based magic. A vivid setting and strong-willed characters propel the action; though Zlies romance with royal prince Inan crashed and burned in the previous volume, this time around the author hints at her finding love with a soft-hearted mercenary. Readers delighted by the complex, politically sophisticated kingdom of Orsha will cheer its return in this alluring sequel. Anita L. Burkam March/April 2020 p.76(c) Copyright 2020. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

This sequel to Children of Blood and Bone picks up three weeks after the clash that dispatched Zélie's father and brought loss to Orïsha's royal family. Zélie hoped that restoring magic to Orïsha would end the subjugation of its white-haired maji clans; regrettably, however, Zélie's ritual also triggered the latent abilities of nobles with maji ancestry, including Princess Amari and the tyrannical Queen Nehanda. These "tîtáns" need no incantations to wield magic, rendering them unspeakably powerful--and dangerously volatile. With a civil war brewing, Amari makes a bid for the crown, promising peace and equality; Nehanda enthrones another, however, and contrives to use an army of tîtáns to eradicate the maji. Meanwhile, maji rebels dubbed the Iyika aim to assassinate Orïsha's nobles and install Zélie as queen. Adeyemi's thrilling second Legacy of Orïsha novel ups the stakes and expands the series' mythology while extolling unity and illustrating the futility of hatred and retribution. Shoehorned romance and manufactured friction between protagonists aside, Adeyemi delivers a vivid, visceral tale studded with action and capped with a literary gut-punch. Ages 14--up. Agent: Alexandra Machinist and Hillary Jacobson, ICM Partners. (Dec.)

After Zélie and Amari successfully completed the ritual that restored magic to magic-wielding majis, they soon find that they weren't the only ones bestowed with powers as a result. Some nobles have developed powers, too, and ironically enough they're building an army to carry out the legacy of King Saran and eliminate majis by any means necessary. Led by Prince Inan, Amari's big brother and Zélie's toxic yet electrifying love interest, the nobles wage a war against the Iyika, a group of maji rebels, testing the strength of blood, loyalty, magic, and love. Adeyemi's propulsive writing will have readers aching for resolve as twists and turns hit unscrupulously and without pause. While the first installment builds the narrating characters' foundations and familiarizes readers with the Yoruba orïshas, this follow-up gets into their psyches and unleashes the power of the deities and their respective maji as they fight for claim of Orïsha. From the beginning, Adeyemi has hinted that the fight for Orïsha would be won by either the monarchy or the maji, a political reality that will likely be all too familiar to today's readers. Terrifyingly enough, however, this sequel seems to ask: What if neither wins? Relentless even beyond its finish, this is a sure-fire hit. Endpapers include maps of Orïsha, which will delight those looking for a little extra to color the reading experience.HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Children of Blood and Bone (2018) was a runaway hit, and fans of the first book have been waiting with bated breath for this one. Definitely have more than one on hand.--Melanie Kirkwood Copyright 2019 Booklist