Saturday, October 6, 2007

Blood Magic by Matthew Cook


Blood Magic
Matthew Cook
Juno Books
September 1, 2007
ISBN# 978-0-8095-7200-7

After finding her twin sister murdered, Kirin leaves her life behind and soon joins the battle against the Mor. The vicious Mor are creatures who know nothing but death and destruction to every human they encounter, and for Kirin they’re helping to strengthen her ability to use blood magic. It’s difficult being a female in combat, but Jazen Tor becomes special to Kirin and during their time together she feels more than the vengeance coursing through her veins.

Often seen as an abomination for creating her sweetlings, the dead she raises to fight by her side, Kirin has little acceptance among the people she encounters. Then she meets Lia Cho, a powerful woman with a gift of her own, and for the first time has someone by her side who doesn’t view her as a monster. There will always be those like Brother Alto who see evil when they witness her blood magic, but Kirin will continue her fight against the Mor to live another day.

Blood Magic is dark fantasy that at times crosses the line into horror. Kirin has seen and caused more than her share of death and destruction, but the battle against the Mor rages on. Set in a fast pace of alternating timelines, Mr. Cook builds a strong world for his heroine’s dangerous journey and fills it with dark magic, fatal combat and just a touch of love to encourage hope. Compelling, dark and most certainly deserving of a sequel.

Kimberly Swan, Darque Reviews

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'm unsure as to how I feel about this book. I'm not positive that I want to embark into horror territory.

Kimberly Swan said...

It's not what I'd label paranormal romance. It's well written, dark and bloody. The 'living dead' are not gorgeous, they're decaying zombies like you'd expect more in horror, but I think that the over-all theme would be suited to someone who likes dark fantasy. Hope that helps you decide. :)