“She was going to show Tiran something they have never seen before. She was going to show them Hellfire.”

M.L. Wang’s The Sword of Kaigen is one of the books I loved so I just had to pick up Blood Over Bright Haven. Sadly, I didn’t love this one as I did TSoK but it is still a good book. Blood Over Bright Haven discusses racism, classism, feminism, and religious bigotry.

Thomil’s POV started the book and it set my expectations higher. It was so dark and intense that I was literally on the edge of my seat as I read on. Unfortunately, the pacing after that felt slow for me, especially during the first half of the book. 

Sciona grew up in a very religious society that is deeply misogynistic and racist. As much as Sciona cries misogyny, it doesn’t change the fact that as a Tiranishwoman she has more privilege than the Kwen—especially the Kwen women. Even though I dislike Sciona, I still couldn’t help but root for her. The Tiranishmen are a hundred times worse, I wanted to squash them all especially Cleon Renthorn, that man is my enemy I don’t care if he’s fictional.

I felt like the talks about feminism and racism were only discussed through the experiences of Sciona and Thomil. I am in no way dismissing their experiences or belittling them but I would’ve loved this more if Sciona interacted with women outside her family but she’s not like other girls. With Thomil, I felt like his character only revolved around Sciona. I wish we were shown more of the Kwen community in Tiran. Also, the romance??? That was a weird addition and felt unnecessary to the story.

I understand why people gave this five stars, but it sadly didn’t work for me.

Mind blowing dark fantasy. 
The prologue was very intense, heartbreaking and gory, introducing us to the Blight - a lightning kind of death magic that falls from the sky and thorns skin from muscle, muscle from bone, until only a puddle of blood remains, and to Thomil and the remains of his tribe as they make the crossing to the only place safe from the Blight, the magically protected city of Tiran. 
Then the first chapter, which we assume is a few years later, introduces us to the MC, Sciona, a very stubborn, very intelligent, very interesting and determined young woman who wants to be the first highmage.
She eventually achieves it but her male, mostly misogynistic, colleagues don’t want her to succeed and in a prank style have a janitor become her assistant in the project that is supposed to increase the size of the city by finding more magic in the Otherworld to siphon. That janitor is none other than Thomil, as the tribes people can only have low jobs and bow to their masters and protectors. 
This book is filled with relevant themes and complex events and decisions. From colonialism, misogyny, racism and exploitation. And, it doesn’t shy way from the gore, violence, and abuse that these themes encompass. But, it also shows how an intelligent person faced with the real facts can understand the errors in their conditioned reasoning and change their whole view of things, it also portrays the ways in which love can save a person, and how a culture can survive even when all try to bury it.
I was only somewhat bored with the complex magical system, that is until I understood it completely, until the realisation broke through and my mind exploded, not only at the brilliant idea of it but also at the fantasy-reality correlation. It was again, mind blowing.
The end was terrific, heartbreaking, and hopeful. 
Brilliant writing, brilliant exploration of the chosen themes, and a great imagination, plot, and characters in this not that big standalone. 
Anyone who loves fantasy, particularly the heavy lifting kind, needs to read this indie author, and this book. I can’t wait to have a minute to get into her debut The Sword of Kaigen. I mean, just see the reviews. Golden! Definitely a new author to follow!

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
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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