From the first page of this impressive debut novel, I was drawn into the dark world of Kai. A boy from a family ruled by drugs and petty crime that live on a council estate in Somerset.
No-one warned me how much I would laugh throughout this book. It is laugh out loud funny with perfect comic timing, combining hilarious slapstick with a moving story about the trials of getting through teen life. Hats off to Alex Wheatle.
Now Zélie has one chance to bring back magic and strike against the monarchy. With the help of a rogue princess, Zélie must outwit and outrun the crown prince, who is hell-bent on eradicating magic for good.
“She imagines the cocoa brown of Nnedi's eyes lighting up, her lips moving quickly, explaining that riots do not happen in a vacuum, that religion and ethnicity are often politicized because the ruler is safe if the hungry ruled are killing one another.”