I loved this book! I wish there was a book like this when I was a kid obsessed with Harry Potter and that world but wishing I could see myself and more kids that look like me in it. I loved the world building of the school to the point where I could even picture the campus and found myself wishing the classes were real and I could attend. I also loved that after everything Malik went through he was able to find family (blood and not blood) and come into his own. I loved the magic system and how it was rooted in ancestry. The pop culture references and references to current event was also a nice addition. I enjoyed the pacing but I do wish it was a bit faster but I t still kept me engaged and continually wanting to know what was going to happen next . I look forward to more from this author. What a debut!

I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley and Random House Children's in exchange for an honest review.

Let me start by saying that I was really excited for this book. I love magic and fantasy stories, especially ones geared toward middle grade and YA readers. This book was a huge disappointment.

I found the way the characters spoke to be very hard to read and follow. I hestitate to write this because I am not a POC, but I saw another reviewer who is a POC note that it was written as if a white person wrote how they think Black people talk so I think it's safe to say that the character's speech was a negative and distracted from the story. Most of the characters are very one-dimensional.

There was too much repetition particularly references to the night Malik's powers manifested and his mother disappeared. There was too little of Malik actually learning magic. He went from not being able to control it at all to being an expert without the reader seeing how that happened. There was no explanation as to what the "Kaave" is or does.

The Bokor battle reads like a lame ripoff of the Battle of Hogwarts and all the references to characters' super speed and super strength reads like a ripoff of the Avengers.

There were also some statements that were just so ridiculous, such as "like Dippin' Dots, the Bokor leader disintegrates." Also, "This is something they don't tell you in church or school: when you're at the end of your life, everything that happened to you while you're on earth, you see your entire life flash before your eyes." That sentence makes absolutely no sense because "seeing your life flash before your eyes" is one of the most common cliches about death that exists.

It seems like there are plenty of readers who enjoyed this book and I'm happy for them, but it was not for me.

I ended up loving this book!

I wasn’t so sure how I was going to feel and the beginning felt a little slow, but once I got a little further in, I didn’t want to put it down! There were absolutely parts that I anticipated happening and could see from a mile away, but that didn’t take away from the book. The story building was so good that even though I knew what was coming, I enjoyed the build up!

It’s definitely blackity black! So be prepared for that but I definitely recommend this one!

4.5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Giving this book the normal grace I give to debut authors. It was refreshing and different enough to be unique in its space. I think most people's issue with this book will be in the marketing portrayal rather than in the writing or plot, however, I found it enjoyable and not too heavy of a read. Will certainly follow the authors work.

This was a phenomenal debut. I cannot wait for book 2.
This is a book by a black author for black readers, and while I am not that and not familiar with some of the cultures in this book, the author made it very accessible to those who aren’t.
The world building and magic system in this was phenomenal. There are so many interesting characters.
This will for sure be in my top 5 reads for the year.

I was a little skeptical at the beginning, but I just got so absorbed in the world that I kept going. And that was the right decision! The best parts: the writing in dialect, the suspicious people, the twists and the magical school tropes.
I love the way he wrote in dialect. A few times I had to stop and reread the line out loud to hear it, but I liked that because it really made this world come alive. It is hard to know who to trust because there are so many people with so many of their own goals. That lack of trustworthiness helped connect me to Malik. There were a few twists that I saw coming and some that I didn't. By the end of the book, those twists all came together logically. Several of them are painful, but Malik is determined, so I am excited to see what happens next in book two.
There were several places in the book that reminded me of pieces of Harry Potter and then the author turned that piece into something special in his world. So I really enjoyed recognizing a trope or characteristic and then seeing how Williams used that creatively in his book. He doesn't overdo it and it isn't obvious to the point of campy. So it is a perfect balance in my opinion.
I enjoyed the various languages that show up and the history moments that we see as well. That was another thing that helped create the world.
So great world building, well built characters, and lots of interesting moments to create the overall plot. I can't wait for book 2.

I've been waiting for Blood at the Root for so long. The idea of a magical HBCU of long overdue so I was glad to get an ARC and read this book so early in it's publishing life.

For me as a reader there were parts of the book that were a little slow but I think that's because I had so many questions and there was so much I wanted to know. I wanted to see Malik uncover more of his moms past and learn more about why she left school. I knew his family knew more than they were telling him and it killed me that they wouldn't just come out with it. That being said, I wish we'd spent more time with the family. Uncle Sam (although I'm not sure if he was an uncle or great uncle??) Brigitte, what was their story???!!! I started wondering very early in the book who Malik's father might be, and I'm almost positive I know who it is! I felt like there could have been a million side quests in the book and I wish he had seen more of them, but that's alright.

I have to say, I really love seeing male friendships. Malik and Taye were wonderful, but I also really like the relationship between Malik and his roommate. We don't see enough male friendships that viewers or readers don't start shipping (I really hope that doesn't happen here), seeing a boy and his friends doing their best is one of my favorite things!

The end of this book took off! A million things happened all at once and I loved it. I wish we had seen a few more battle scenes to balance the introspection in the book and learning about the the magical world, but I thought this was a great book and I can't wait for the second on.

When I heard about this book I marked it down as one of my most anticipated. I have been waiting on pins and needles since I read them. And let me tell you IT DELIVERT. I really, really liked this and I am LOVING the way y’all showed up and showed out for the author! Now, let’s give more Black authors the same love.

Even though I did love this, I did have some problems with it. Like the editing…. My goodness this was too long. It seemed like every time something was solved and it could be over, something else happened and there was more. It was longer than that run on sentence lol It really took me out of the story. I had to take breaks from it every few days because it just was taking too long. And it was weird because it started out good. But it just got bad as it went on.
The other thing about this I didn’t like was the writing style? Or the editing again, I’m not sure which it was. When he said it was like HP if he went to an HBCU, he wasn’t lying. This was literally like HP but Black. Everything that HP did, it also happened in this book too. I wouldn’t have a problem with this, BUT, I have also read HP and it was just too similar for me? Sometimes it’s ok, but when its as similar as it was? And for something I don’t actually care for anymore….. Well you get the picture.

I also was hella confused too. The author kept saying it wasn’t filled with trauma, but in the very beginning he steals a car and goes to get his brother from the foster care family that harms him and used to harm the MC. Is that not considered trauma??? What more does it need? And like, spoiler, but his mama is also gone. And he thinks she’s dead, but she’s actually not and is actually helping the villain? HOW IS THAT NOT TRAUMA? Is there another definition out there or something?

And the way the main character was so wishy washy annoyed me. He kept saying he had no one. Which I could see and understand. He grew up in a foster family. But then he kept fucking saying he didn’t learn none of this magic stuff, that everyone who knew it didn’t help him. And then when they tried, he still didn’t trust them. And then when things happened the way they did, he tried to be like “See I trusted y’all and y’all did me like this!” But he didn’t acutally like trust them at all? It wasn’t believable.

And the way he kept his grandma at a distance and acted like he didn’t like her, all while she still was helping him and taking care of him, but then he was so distraught when what happened to her happened?! Bruh if you’re going to say you don’t care and then actually act like you don’t care, I need you to have at least some internal thoughts that make it seem like you like her. The entire book he acted all tough and like he didn’t need anyone and that’s all fine, but don’t act like you’re distraught when something happens to them! Ugh teenage boys lol But he definitely nailed how they act and how annoying they are sometimes lol

However, I don’t think it was all bad. There were some really good things about this. I loved all the haints and the hoodoo that was in this. And I loved the way there was so much BLACKNESS! There are NO stories like this out there and this one is a pleasure to have as the first. I LOVED seeing this Black man as the main character in a fantasy novel. I still remember how I felt when I read Tomi Adeymi’s novel, Children of Blood and Bone, and I loved it. I imagine this is going to have the same effect on Black boy/theys everywhere and I love this for them. I hope to see them sharing this more and more.

I do think there’s going to be people out there who love this more than me tho. I can see this winning a lot of awards next season. If it doesn’t WIN, it will definitely be in the running. And I really, really hope that it wins something. It deserves its flowers, its best seller listings, and it’s medals! AND IT’S MOVIE! Don’t think I didn’t tell them that it’s already becoming a movie too! Maybe. They should have asked when he asked them lol

This book IS the start to a bomb series tho, I can feel it. Hopefully the kinks that were in this first one will be gone from the next few. (Because there’s more than one right?!) We shall see. And I can’t wait for them to come out. This series is definitely going to be a wild ride!

It start out kind of slow for me and i had a little trouble with the heavy use of ebonics but i think that had more to do with my age then anything else but once you get past the first few chapters the book takes off and its enjoyable ride the rest of the way.. You become invested in Malik and his journey to connect to his magic and his family roots. I loved how the author also took you an a thru the history of african americans in such a way it didnt feel like a history lesson or that it was misplaced. Cant wait for the second book in the series.

This title was AMAZING! A perfect young adult fantasy that is centered around Black culture. I’m so glad this is a trilogy!!!

The character development is everything! I loved the plot and world building!!!

(3.5/5 stars) This book's blurb pulled me in and I *had* to request an advanced copy. " A teenager on the run from his past finds the family he never knew existed and the community he never knew he needed at an HBCU for the young, Black, and magical. Enroll in this fresh fantasy debut with the emotional power of Legendborn and the redefined ancestral magic of Lovecraft Country."

I really appreciated the thought and care that went into Williams' debut, and I applaud his ability to write characters that felt distinct and authentic. This book intentionally centers Black voices and I really enjoyed reading it! I felt like I could be a fly on the wall in this world and really visualize the setting and plot. I do worry that the pop culture references could quickly date the book, and I wish that the magic system had been more developed to the level that it felt like Malik's character journey and the plot were. Perhaps the magic system will be further explained in the sequel once Malik returns to Caiman - I hope it will!

I am soooo happy I took a chance on Blood at the Root — it achieves the goal of telling all young Black kids that magic is meant for them too. It’s hard to not make this comparison, and I didn’t really want to either, but think of this story as Black Harry Potter. He’s from the South, mostly grew up without family present, learned he has magical abilities and attends a HBCU where he meets other people like him. Now we’re gonna add on some big baddies, a school bully, and modern day slang that will engage young readers.

Looking forward to reading the rest of the series. I’ll listen to the audio version before reading the next release and will definitely buy a physical copy for myself.


Seriously, thanks to everyone for the early review copy!

This book was such a let down. I am unfortunately DNF'ing. I have followed the author and the journey of this novel for a while now so I was expecting something great and this was not that. I am a black reviewer so I was extremely excited for another black fantasy novel and this fell flat. My main gripe was that the book was not coherent culture wise. For example, the use of certain AAVE phrases were extremely outdated. Due, to this that was very jarring. The book was originally a screenplay and that was evident throughout what I read which made the novel even more jarring. I would not recommend this unfortunately...

Malik springs his foster brother from the abusive home they lived in and goes on the run after displaying super powers. He ends up in New Orleans and meets his Grandma that he didn't know existed. In order to find out more about his mother, he attends a magical university.

Mr. Williams portrays Malik and the other characters very well. The author has written the story in a southern dialect and made current references used by young folks today, which made it feel somewhat authentic in trying to represent the culture. It did take some getting used to, and I found myself rereading sentences. The story is action-packed, and the twists will keep you guessing till the end!

This is a black YA fantasy that’s going to have you on the edge of your seat ! One of my anticipated read of 2024 and it definitely live up to all the hype for me.

I absolutely loved this book! It had me hooked from the beginning and I finished it in 24 hours it had me so hooked! Everything about this book was so interesting and I'm so glad I got the chance to arc read this! This book was a 4.5 star read for me; I am so glad I had the opportunity to read this. Thank you to Net Galley and Labyrinth Road!

What a way to make an entrance! This book was MaGiC!! 🪄 Our MMC, Malik’s journey was captivating and inspiring. I’m not a big fantasy reader, so most of the time if romance is not involved I tend to get a little bored. That was NOT the case with this story line. I was instantly rooted! As a character driven reader, I enjoyed the complexity of Malik’s journey. The story was adventurous, entertaining, and seasoned with suspense, magic, and history. There were several twists and turns that I did not see coming. And that ending! I Cannot wait to add this to my bookshelves.

Ok no lie when this first started off i was a little worried. The use of pop culture, AAVE, and vernacular was so cringy and a bit OD. I think the reason for some of the low ratings was that reasoning, but once we make it to the magical school it is wayyy less.

I also don’t like how this was said to be not trauma porn but in fact it was. Malik had a lot of traumatizing revelations and betrayals throughout this book. And also he made that be known a lot in the beginning. To the point where it was almost too much and depressing.

Those were the only critiques I have. What i loved was how descriptive this author was. Everything seemed so magical and the world building was on point.

I also loved how unapologetically black this book was. Like another reviewer said, this is not about Malik this is about all of us! And the realization of this was beautiful.

Lastly the epic plot was head spinning. Never was there a dull moment with this book. From the betrayals (some I saw coming, and some were a total surprise), to the interesting magical school system and even the romance!

Overall this was an awesome debut, besides the little blibs I gave it a 4 star.

First let me start off by saying I truly enjoyed the complete black magical experience!!! Although this is a fantasy book, however I felt like it gave you a peak in to the HBCU world. Totally still wish I would have went to an HBCU. Malik Baron had a rough start with life after his mom disappears when he is 7 years old however many years later, his family finds him. Soon Malik is introduced into a brand new world with the magic he was always afraid of. The story was a slow start with character and plot building, however I feel that was still done right as we were being introduced to a new world through Malik's eyes. So many twists and turns happened and things were revealed. Some things that were revealed I was right about all along, some shocked me, and some I still need answers to. Hopefully book two isn't too far out because I needed it released like yesterday! Job well done on your debut book Mr LaDarrion Williams! You have a new fan in me! 😊

This book was def interesting. as someone who attended an HBCU I enjoyed the school aspect. I will say I think at times I felt like it was trying too hard. the lingo , the slang. I think he was trying to be too WOKE but I was invested in the characters and I did laugh and giggle and I had a fun black time hehe I could relate to majority of the book for sure!