Wings of Ebony (Wings of Ebony #1)
by J. Elle
368 pages
Published Jan 26, 2021
About the Book:
“Make a way out of no way” is just the way of life for Rue. But when her mother is shot dead on her doorstep, life for her and her younger sister changes forever. Rue’s taken from her neighborhood by the father she never knew, forced to leave her little sister behind, and whisked away to Ghizon—a hidden island of magic wielders.
Rue is the only half-god, half-human there, where leaders protect their magical powers at all costs and thrive on human suffering. Miserable and desperate to see her sister on the anniversary of their mother’s death, Rue breaks Ghizon’s sacred Do Not Leave Law and returns to Houston, only to discover that Black kids are being forced into crime and violence. And her sister, Tasha, is in danger of falling sway to the very forces that claimed their mother’s life.
Worse still, evidence mounts that the evil plaguing East Row is the same one that lurks in Ghizon—an evil that will stop at nothing until it has stolen everything from her and everyone she loves. Rue must embrace her true identity and wield the full magnitude of her ancestors’ power to save her neighborhood before the gods burn it to the ground.
My Review:
This cover is simply gorgeous! Fits perfectly with the storyline and is really just stunning. Much like the overall storyline, I could easily see this in a marquee poster on the side of a movie theater.
I loved how the magical elements blended in with our normal world. The setting of the story taking place in a low-income city, where crime and drugs are prevalent in every day lives made this story take on a realistic edge. The storytelling and writing was so natural that I felt like I was in this world, just watching people live out their lives.
The main character, Rue, a black female lead was perfect! I read in another’s post that she is unapologetically black, language and all and I couldn’t agree more. This is actually what drew me in the story. Half human and half magical, she is a fierce protector of her family, her friends and her neighborhood. Really excellent heroine!
There were only a small handful of drawbacks for me with this story which mostly revolved around some of the ‘teen’ attributes of the character. Unwilling to communicate with her father to her detriment, several times. Not embracing her magical gift fast enough, basically fighting everything and everyone because life wasn’t going the way she wanted it to – ugh! I have too many teenagers in my household that exhibit this trait every day. It’s frustrating enough in life, I have zero patience for it in my reading! LOL
The overall story however was fantastic, gripping and I’m so excited that Book 2, Ashes of Gold, is publishing Jan 11, 2022.
A wonderful duology for fans of YA and Fantasy!
Thank you to Books Forward for this gifted copy.
Website – https://authorjelle.com/
Amazon – https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0984221KK/
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