Blood Like Magic

Lore & Background

Set in the year 2049 in Toronto, the plot follows Voya Thomas, who is called by her ancestors and given a challenge in order to receive her magic. Afraid of being banished and humiliated because she refused her calling, her ancestor Mama Jova forces her to witness her execution as a slave and commands her to kill her first love or else magic will be taken away from her family. Voya is given 30 days to finish the plan and as she forms a bond with a boy named Luc, whom she plans to kill, she soon learns more secrets about her family and begins to question the original intention of the act.

Reader's Guide

Blood Like Magic received several positive receptions from reviewers and readers and was one of the most anticipated books of 2021. A review from Locus Magazine stated that it is a 'novel that embraces technological advances while wholly immersing the text with magic.' Another review by Culturess praised its contents, saying 'It’s a story that effortlessly weaves together different cultures, sexualities, and gender identities to create something that feels fresh and necessary.' Kirkus Reviews called it 'A breath of fresh air for the genre; readers will be spellbound.' The novel was a shortlisted finalist for the Governor General's Award for English-language children's literature at the 2021 Governor General's Awards, and for the Amy Mathers Teen Book Award at the 2022 Canadian Children's Book Centre awards. Its significance lies in its integration of speculative technology with magic and its representation of diverse cultures and identities within the young adult genre.

Did You Know?

• Blood Like Magic is Liselle Sambury's debut novel.
• The novel is set in the year 2049 in Toronto.
• The protagonist Voya must kill her first love within 30 days to save her family's magic.

The Impossible Mandate at the Heart of the Story

Blood Like Magic places its protagonist, Voya Thomas, in an impossible moral bind that drives the entire narrative. Set in Toronto in the year 2049, Voya is summoned by her ancestors and presented with a devastating ultimatum: she must kill her first love within thirty days, or the magic that sustains her family will be stripped away. The weight of this command is compounded by the fact that her ancestor, Mama Jova, forces her to witness her execution as a slave, a traumatic scene designed to break her will and ensure compliance. What makes the conflict so compelling is how it unfolds in real time—Voya begins forming a genuine bond with a boy named Luc, the very person she was ordered to murder. As she uncovers more about her family's history and the true origins of the act she has been commanded to perform, her certainty erodes and she starts questioning whether the mandate was ever meant to be carried out as instructed. The novel turns a dark fantasy premise into a deeply personal story about loyalty, identity, and the stories families tell themselves.

A Debut with Cultural Roots and Major-Label Backing

Liselle Sambury, a Trinidadian Canadian writer, made her debut in the young adult science fantasy space with Blood Like Magic. The novel was released on June 15, 2021, through Margaret K. McElderry Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. As a first novel from a writer with Caribbean roots, the book carries a distinct cultural perspective that reviewers would later highlight as one of its defining strengths. The story is set in a near-future Toronto, grounding its speculative elements in a recognizable, lived-in city. Sambury blends technological advancement with a rich magical tradition tied to Voya's family lineage, creating a world where ancestral power and modern life coexist. The debut was widely anticipated before its release, positioning Sambury as a notable new voice in the genre. The combination of a major publisher's imprint, a culturally specific setting, and a high-stakes personal narrative gave the book significant visibility from the moment it hit shelves.

Critics Called It a Fresh Wind for the Genre

Blood Like Magic earned consistently favorable reviews from both critics and readers, with many noting its fresh approach to young adult fantasy. Locus Magazine highlighted the novel's ability to embrace technological progress while simultaneously saturating the narrative with magic, suggesting Sambury found a balance between sci-fi and fantasy that felt natural rather than forced. Culturess praised the book for weaving together diverse cultures, sexualities, and gender identities in a way that felt both fresh and necessary, underscoring the novel's commitment to representation without making it feel like a checklist. Kirkus Reviews went so far as to call it a breath of fresh air for the genre, predicting that readers would be spellbound by its execution. The book was widely regarded as one of the most anticipated titles of 2021, and the critical consensus pointed to a debut that managed to be both personally intimate in its emotional stakes and ambitious in its world-building.

Shortlisted for Canada's Top Literary Honors

The critical acclaim surrounding Blood Like Magic translated into meaningful institutional recognition in the Canadian literary landscape. The novel was shortlisted as a finalist for the Governor General's Award for English-language children's literature at the 2021 Governor General's Awards, one of Canada's most prestigious literary honors. It also earned a finalist spot for the Amy Mathers Teen Book Award at the 2022 Canadian Children's Book Centre awards, further cementing its standing within the young adult category. These nominations placed Sambury's debut alongside established voices in Canadian literature and signaled that the book resonated beyond casual readership into the formal recognition structures of the country's publishing world. For a first novel from a relatively new author, the dual shortlistings represented remarkable validation. They also reflected a broader cultural moment in which diverse, culturally specific storytelling was gaining the kind of institutional support that had previously been harder to secure.

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