I went into this book with the very little knowledge of what it was about besides having a dark academia setting, and I appreciate that as it afforded me the opportunity to experience it at firsthand.

My favorite thing about M. L. Wang’s works however shall always be her unique ability to seize the most specific, unsettling, and devastating emotions and bring them to life through her words. Before I had any inkling of what the plot could be about, I cared about the characters she introduced me to and what would happen next. Unfortunately except towards the beginning, while I was interested in the events that would happen next I rarely found myself genuinely invested in the stakes. Perhaps, it’s easier for me to feel emotionally connected to smaller-scale, more personal conflict. Luckily, despite not relating to the main character, Sciona, much at all, I found her perspective and thoughts to be captivating, her boldness and willingness (stubbornness) to stand by her values admirable. The great character work really did a lot of heavy lifting in this book.

While I do think the messaging about sexism and colonialism was a little heavy handed, I don’t think that it’s any less enjoyable or important. I think her depictions of the truths and emotions that underly these things were realistic and necessary for to get the purpose of this particular book across. To compare it to Sword of Kaigen would be doing a disservice to both novels because they are fundamentally different in what they are trying to accomplish. 

This woman-in-STEM approach to the story and world was surprisingly interesting considering I generally prefer more traditional fantasy environments. Still, my heart is set on softer magic systems that bring wonder to my eyes and heal my soul. 
Overall, it was a good experience that I’d recommend.

 [This review can also be found on my BLOG]

**I was provided with a digital copy of the book through the author in exchange for an honest review**

CW: violence, blood, gore, body horror, murder, death, genocide, suicidal ideation, racism, xenophobia, misogyny, sexism, sexual assault, sexual harassment, classism, colonisation
--

M.L. Wang has done it again, where do I even begin?

Blood Over Bright Haven, her newest novel is wholly unique but follows in The Sword of Kaigen’s footsteps in that it packs a real punch and will come for your emotions.

The book follows Sciona, a young and conceited woman who has worked hard to climb the ranks of Tiran’s patriarchal society to become a Highmage, a position of the High Magistry never held by a woman before. Her prowess is met with nothing short of mockery by her male colleagues and she is appointed Thomil, a Kwen janitor as an assistant over someone actually qualified to offer her help.
The Kwen hail from nomadic tribes outside the magical wards of the city, a race shunned by the people of Tiran for their beliefs and lifestyles. Underestimated by his superiors, Thomil steps into his new role easily and forms an agreeable working relationship with Sciona that leads them down a dangerous path of discovery that could upset everything they know about their world and its magic forever.

Now I would personally describe the book as more of an gaslamp/urban fantasy with dark academia elements, as though there was a lot centring around the research and study of magic the overarching plot was more along the lines of following the characters as they manoeuvred through the socio-political climate of the world as well as unravelling its history and secrets.

The worldbuilding is absolutely phenomenal. The setting at times reminded me of the Dead Djinn universe with how the workings and technology of the world were imbued with magic however, everything about the magic was so original. The system itself is intricate, involving elements of both intuition and science and though at the start we’re kind of thrown into the mix without much to go on I really enjoyed how the details of the world and its lore and backstory were peeled back and explained the further you got into the book. I especially love it when author’s include scenes where one character catches the other up to speed with all the basics as has been done in this book with Sciona and Thomil, as moments like this being included make everything feel all the more immersive.

The character arcs and relationships are what kept me the most compelled though. I want to avoid giving too many details away as Wang’s characterisations and how she brings emotions to the page are so masterful they deserve to be experienced first-hand. Paired with a narrative heavy on the themes of morality and sacrifice, imperialism and prejudice, Sciona and Thomil are characters that will stick with you for a long while. Their journeys will frustrate and horrify you but also make you hope on the possibility of change.

I’ll admit I was able to guess some of the big reveals that came along but all in all this was a well-rounded standalone that truly showcases the versatility of Wang’s writing. I hope we get more from this world in the future as it’s really interesting and feels like it can definitely be expanded on!
Final Rating – 4.5/5 Stars 

I enjoyed this. I wasn't sure I would after my early impressions of the direction this book would be headed in, but a good plot twist subverted those impressions and worked to deliver a satisfying story. This was also my first "dark academia" fantasy book, so I'm pleased that I found some enjoyment in this subgenre when I wasn't sure I would. 

The characters were pretty solid too. Sciona and Thomil make for a compelling partnership, and offer two clashing but constructive viewpoints of the world they live in. They have some very interesting conversations, although it did feel a little overly expository at some points. 

The magic was neat too. It took me a minute to grasp, but I like the complexion and possibilities of it while still maintaining a sense of simplicity from the way M.L. Wang effectively explains it to the reader. 

AMAZING – easy 5 stars - This was a great read -A NEW ALL TIME FAVORITE BOOK

I have nothing bad to say about this book other then I wish there was more, this is now one of my top favorite books.

The characters were amazing, the story was amazing, the world was amazing. 
This book made me feel sad, it made me smile, a rare chuckle here and there between the darkness of the story, M. L. Wang made me mad at characters (the bad guys) but then happy when they got their comeuppance. This book was a roller coaster of emotions, and I will defiantly re-read it again in the future. 

(I was given a free earc , but i was planning on buying this book anyways as i loved the sword of kaigen and M. L. Wang’s writing style. I was not disappointed in this book and the second this book is available to buy as a physical copy i am buying it for my personal library)

This book is a standalone dark fantasy (very dark academia with some sifi-fantasy elements). Warning there are some dark topics and some heavy stuff in the book so please check the end of the review for trigger warnings if you are concerned. 

The story follows two characters. The first is Sciona a woman who has been spending her whole life in academia studying magic trying to work her way up to the highest position in her field a Highmage which historically woman have never been allowed this position. You follow her fighting her way through a misogynistic society, where her new colleagues don’t want her there and every turn her sex is being used against her. This brings in our second character Thomil. Thomil is a janitor that Sciona’s colleagues force upon her as her new assistant, as a joke on her and on Thomil. Thomil is from a group of people call the Kwen who are refugees or descendants of refugees from outside the city of Tiran who have been decimated buy a destruction call the Blight. Thomil is consider a second-class citizen and doesn’t have many rights in society. The story follows the two having to work together to help Sciona survive the world of being a highmage and to discover the mysteries of magic. 

The main theme of this book is looking for the truth – the main character is a researcher, “a magical scientist researching how magic works and to how better use magic.” This bring up topics and questions of is all truth good, what should you do with the truth and is it better to be ignorant of the truth or knowingly ignoring it. 

What I loved about the book was the magic system, it reminded me very much of science and statistics and coding (and maybe I am a little bias as I am scientist working in research) it was so very clever. The best way to explain the magic system is the Law of matter or equivalent exchange. 

M. L. Wang is amazing at character development, she writes her characters so realistic with flaws and vices and realistic reactions to terrible and happy events. It made the story feel so real, which is amazing for a standalone book. 

As I have said this book was amazing, I can’t wait to see what M. L. Wang writes next. 
I would recommend to anyone. 




TRIGGER WARNINGS (can be spoilers)
Suicidal thoughts, sexual assault, suicide attempt

M. L. Wang has written two of my favorite books of the last year now. The writing itself is not the greatest on a technical level, but it’s more than enough to convey the emotion that she writes raw into her stories. From the first two chapters of desperate running and magic school, I was in on this book. I saw the twist coming pretty early, but seeing how it would be executed and followed through was fascinating. 
I received an eARC of this book and am grateful to the author for the early chance to review this book!