The Blood Spell

Starred review from January 1, 2019

Gr 7 Up-Blue works hard to disguise the magic in her blood, especially when she's working on her attempts at turning metal into gold. Magic has been illegal in the kingdom of Balavata for 16 years, ever since a blood wraith was imprisoned on the outskirts of the royal city, not far from the cottage where Blue and her father live. She's worried about the homeless children in the city, who have started to go missing. The protagonist is also giving alchemy lessons to Nessa, the young princess and Blue's dear friend. Who has time for magic when Kellan, the irritatingly charming crown prince, is suddenly hanging around all the time? This reimagining of "Cinderella" presents all the markers of the fairy tale, complete with a magical shoe that secures Blue's fate, but Redwine has crafted a world filled with dark magic and intrigue as the setting for her story. Blue is an active and passionate protagonist who is invested in helping others, frequently at her own expense. The romance between Blue and the prince is a slow, simmering burn as childhood antagonism turns to something that is deep and true. VERDICT For general purchase and fans of romantic fantasy.-Jen McConnel, Queen's University, Ont.

December 1, 2018
An unlikely duo tackles power plays both political and magical.Alchemist Blue hides her magic (illegal since Balavata suffered a blood wraith) and devotes herself to discovering how to turn lead into gold to help her city's impoverished orphan population. Although good friends with the princess, Nessa (who cannot speak and communicates with sign language), Blue can't stand Nessa's rakish brother, Kellan; the feeling's mutual, as Kellan regards her as a killjoy. Crown Prince Kellan has only weeks to select a bride from among the nine head families before his 19th birthday. Dinah Chauveau offers an occasional third viewpoint: well-positioned to match her daughter with the prince only to find her schemes crumbling with her husband's murder as his gambling debts bring her family to the verge of ruin. After Blue's father is murdered, Dinah sweeps in with shady paperwork to claim Blue and all of her possessions, hoping to use her alchemy to save her standing. Blue finds surprising solace from Kellan as she comes to understand how high the stakes are for his outwardly frivolous political gamesmanship; the expected romance is slow burning and satisfying, with some fun fairy-tale twists as the danger crescendos. Despite certain predictable plot points, the charming leads carry the day. Most characters have varying shades of brown skin, with occasional white people, and race isn't given weight.Frothy romance with dashes of intrigue and magic. (Fantasy. 12-18)

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