No Shelf Control

By Terry J. Benton-Walker

Thanks so much to Tor Teen for giving me an ARC copy upon my request for review considerations! All opinions are my own.

Blood Justice is coming April 23rd! Preorder now wherever you get your books!

Warning: Due to the nature of this review, the are some minor spoilers for Blood Debts, the first book in the series.

What’s it about?

Cristina and Clement Trudeau have conjured the impossible: justice. 

They took back their family’s stolen throne to lead New Orleans’ magical community into the brighter future they all deserve. 

But when Cris and Clem restored their family power, Valentina Savant lost everything. Her beloved grandparents are gone and her sovereignty has been revoked—she will never be Queen. Unless, of course, someone dethrones the Trudeaus again. And lucky for her, she’s not the only one trying to take them down.

Cris and Clem have enemies coming at them from all directions: Hateful anti-magic protesters sabotage their reign at every turn. A ruthless detective with a personal vendetta against magical crime is hot on their tail just as Cris has discovered her thirst for revenge. And a brutal god, hunting from the shadows, is summoned by the very power Clem needs to protect the boy he loves.

Cris’s hunger for vengeance and Clem’s desire for love could prove to be their family’s downfall, all while new murders, shocking disappearances, and impossible alliances are changing the game forever. 

Welcome back to New Orleans, where gods walk among us and justice isn’t served, it’s taken.

Summary from The StoryGraph

Why I Started This Book

I absolutely adored the first book on the series, Blood Debts! I was so excited to start this book!

My First Thoughts

This book picks right back up, and I loved it! There was also a touch of sadness due to the events in the last book.

My Rating

This book was amazing, but there was a couple of things I didn’t love.

What I loved

Blood Justice brutally depicts racial injustice without all of the fluff that many other books have. It shows that the world isn’t always kind, and that people have to overcome struggles. It shows that with time and effort, it is possible to stand up for yourself and be comfortable with who you are.

I loved them in the first book and I love them again! The characters and the character dynamics were are wonderful, and perfectly written. It definitely did not disappoint!

The writing style and quality is absolutely amazing. I really loved how this novel was written, and the overall tone that Terry J. Benton-Walker conveys is truly wonderful.

Blood Justice has so much empowerment throughout the entire story, but it is perfectly subtle. It didn’t stand out so much that it became cliche, but it still made a wonderful impact. The empowerment featured so many different aspects, such as women, people part of the LGBTQ community, black community, and more!

I loved how the politics of magic are weaved throughout the entire story. I always love it when novels talk about the government of fictional worlds, and this novel did it perfectly.

This isn’t really a characteristic I loved, but the ending broke me. Some part of me was left shattered in the pages. The ending was filled with so much emotion, and it caused me so much sadness, truly talented writing. I NEED a sequel now! 😭

What I Disliked

The beginning of the book is tinged with so much sadness, making it almost hard to read. Due to the events of the last book, there was this hint of sadness that felt so real and heartbreaking. While this isn’t necessarily a dislike, I actually applaud the Terry Benton-Walker for writing this aspect of the story so well, it was simply hard to read at times.

The middle of the book felt a bit bland. The story became rather slow-paced, and I felt like not much was happening. I wish there was something more in those middle pages.

Book vs. Movie

I wish there was a movie, but sadly there’s not.

Should You Read It?

Yes! Assuming you’ve read Blood Debts, the first book in the series, you should 100% read Blood Justice! The sequel is amazing and totally worth reading.

Conclusion

Blood Justice is a wonderful book that depicts many themes with a wonderful and unique writing style. It talks about difficult topics, such as racial injustice, without glossing over the hard truths. The novel is tinged with sadness, so much so that it hurts sometimes. You should definitely read this amazing book, just be sure to check out Blood Debts first!