Children of Blood and Bone is a 2018 young adult novel written by Tomi Adeyemi, a Nigerian-American author. It is the first book in her Legacy of Orïsha trilogy and marks Adeyemi’s first published work. The story follows Zélie Adebola, a young girl who tries to bring back magic to the kingdom of Orïsha after the ruling group, called the kosidáns, forcefully stop the use of magic by people like Zélie, who belong to a group called the maji.

Tomi Adeyemi spent 18 months writing the book and made changes to it 45 times. She was inspired by books such as Harry Potter and An Ember in the Ashes, as well as traditions and stories from West African cultures, especially the Yoruba people. She was also influenced by her feelings about the unfair treatment of Black Americans by police. The book was sold to a movie company before it was even finished, making it one of the most valuable young adult books ever published. It became the top-selling young adult book on The New York Times bestseller list. Reviewers praised the book for showing how unfair treatment, racism, and slavery can affect people, with the kosidáns and maji representing real-life groups. The story also follows the characters as they learn about their powers and how their choices can change the world.

Plot

The story takes place in the fictional country of Orïsha, likely inspired by pre-colonial Nigeria. The people of Orïsha are divided into two groups: divîners, who can become magical maji and have white hair, and kosidán, who do not have magic. Eleven years before the story begins, King Saran discovered a way to stop magic and ordered the killing of many divîners, including Zélie Adebola’s mother. Since then, divîners have faced harsh treatment. Zélie and her brother Tzain travel to Lagos, the capital city, to earn money to pay higher taxes on divîners. There, they help a noble girl, Princess Amari, escape from guards. Amari had stolen a magical scroll that can restore magic to any divîner who touches it. She stole the scroll after her servant, Binta, touched it and gained magic, which led King Saran to kill Binta. Zélie, like her mother, can awaken her magic as a Reaper, allowing her to control undead spirits.

Pursued by guards led by Prince Inan and Admiral Kaea, Zélie, Amari, and Tzain travel to the temple of the maji, Chândomblé. The temple’s remaining priest, Lekan, tells them they must use the scroll, a bone dagger, and a sunstone to perform a ritual to restore the connection between maji and the gods, who are the source of all magic. Lekan performs a rite on Zélie to help her complete the connection and sacrifices himself to protect the group as they escape. Unbeknownst to others, contact with the scroll gave Prince Inan the ability to sense the feelings and memories of others. Kaea discovers Inan using this power to track the group, and Inan accidentally kills her with his magic.

The group reaches Ibeji, where the sunstone is used as a prize in dangerous water games. They agree to compete, and Zélie uses her powers to win the sunstone. With all three artifacts, they continue their journey until Inan catches up. In the chaos, Tzain and Amari are captured by an unknown group. Inan agrees to help Zélie rescue their siblings. During the rescue, they discover the group is a settlement of divîners, some of whom have regained their powers after touching the scroll before the king’s forces took it.

Learning of the group’s mission, the divîners plan a festival for the Sky Mother, where remaining divîners can touch the scroll. Inan, who has developed feelings for Zélie, agrees to help restore magic. However, King Saran and his guards attack the camp, capturing Zélie. During the battle, Kwame, a maji who controls fire, burns himself to destroy guards. This display of magic scares Inan, who decides to hide his powers, fearing his father’s punishment. Saran tortures Zélie to learn how to destroy the scroll, which removes her magic.

Tzain and Amari gather a team to rescue Zélie. She hides her power loss and hires mercenaries led by Roen to infiltrate the secret island and temple. Inside, they are ambushed by Saran and Inan, who have captured Zélie’s father. Feeling helpless, Zélie agrees to surrender the artifacts in exchange for her and her father’s lives. As she leaves, Saran orders her father’s death anyway. Her father’s spirit and blood magic revive Zélie’s powers, allowing her to attack the kosidán. Inan uses her rage to provoke an attack that destroys the scroll. Inan accidentally stops an attack on Saran with his magic. Saran then tries to kill Inan for being a maji, but Amari kills him instead.

Unable to repair the scroll, Zélie uses blood magic and a spell of her own creation to complete the ritual, which kills her. In the afterlife, she speaks with her mother, who praises her and sends her back. The story ends with Zélie learning that Amari now has magic.

Characters

• Zélie Adebola: A brave and determined young woman from the floating village of Ilorin. As the daughter of a powerful sorceress, she has a natural ability to use magic. However, her special connection to forbidden spirits makes her different and catches the attention of King Saran, a cruel ruler. Zélie decides to fight against the unfair treatment of her people and begins a dangerous mission to end the king’s harsh rule.

• Tzain Adebola: Zélie’s older brother, a skilled warrior who protects her. He shares her desire to fight for justice and supports her throughout their journey. Tzain strongly believes in Zélie’s strength and is ready to give up everything to help her succeed.

• Princess Amari: A kind and strong-minded young woman who grew up in a wealthy environment. Despite her comfortable life, she feels compassion for those who suffer. When she meets Zélie and Tzain, she joins their cause. Her knowledge of the royal court and ability to handle difficult political situations help the group fight against the king.

• Prince Inan: Amari’s mysterious brother, a skilled swordsman and a natural leader. He keeps a secret that troubles him deeply. As Zélie’s mission continues, Inan must make difficult decisions that affect both the revolution and his kingdom.

• King Saran: The ruler of Orïsha, a cruel and powerful tyrant. He rules with fear and has a connection to Ogun, an evil god of war, which gives him great strength. Zélie and her friends must find a way to stop his harsh rule and bring peace to Orïsha.

• Admiral Kaea Roen: A skilled naval commander who joins Zélie and her allies. She brings a strong fleet and deep knowledge of the sea. Her ability to plan and her strong determination make her an important helper in the fight against King Saran.

Development and inspiration

Tomi Adeyemi tried to write a book for three years before starting Children of Blood and Bone. The idea for the novel came after a trip to Brazil, where she saw African gods and goddesses shown in a beautiful and sacred way in a gift shop. This made her think about the lack of positive images of Black people in stories. She wanted to write an epic story with roots in West Africa and also wanted to address police violence against Black Americans. The violence made her feel helpless and afraid, and she wanted to create a story that showed strength and hope. In the book's note, she asked readers to remember the lives of real children who were harmed by police, like Jordan Edwards, Tamir Rice, and Aiyana Stanley-Jones.

Adeyemi was inspired by Yoruba culture, Western fantasy stories like Harry Potter and Avatar: The Last Airbender, West African myths, and the Black Lives Matter movement. She also said that books like Shadowshaper and An Ember in the Ashes influenced her. She was also affected by the negative reactions to Black characters in the movie The Hunger Games, and she wanted to write a story so good that even people with unfair views would want to read it.

While writing the book, Adeyemi worked as a creative writing coach. Her first draft was missing parts of the story, but the second draft, which she finished quickly to enter a writing competition, was the one she felt met her goals. She believed the book had to be perfect because of the challenges Black creators face. She said she would not give readers a story that did not show Black people as strong and beautiful, because children who rarely see themselves in stories need to know they are valuable. She wrote the book while watching many episodes of The Good Wife. The hard work made her very tired, and at one point she even thought she was a lawyer. The editing process took eighteen months and involved 45 drafts.

Like J.K. Rowling, Adeyemi wanted to create a complete and detailed world. She did not like being called the "Black J.K. Rowling" and preferred phrases like "the new J.K. Rowling." She carefully planned details, such as how long it would take for a horse or lion to travel between cities, and thought through the logic of her story, like characters riding big cats. She also had to find ways to show issues like skin bleaching in a world without white people. Her Nigerian mother helped her with naming spells that used the Yoruba language.

Publication history

Adeyemi joined Pitch Wars, a contest that connects new writers with editors and experienced authors to help them improve their work before sending it to literary agents. She was represented by Alexandra Machinist and Hillary Jacobson from ICM Partners. In 2017, the publishing rights to The Children of Blood and Bone were sold as a trilogy to Tiffany Liao at Henry Holt Books for Young Readers. The rights to make a film version of the book were sold to Fox 2000 Pictures. The deals were worth millions of dollars, and Deadline magazine called it "one of the biggest YA debut novel publishing deals ever." Adeyemi was 23 years old at the time.

Children of Blood and Bone was published on March 6, 2018, by Henry Holt Books for Young Readers. It was called "the biggest fantasy debut novel of 2018" and one of the most anticipated books of the year. A sequel, Children of Virtue and Vengeance, was published in December 2019.

Themes

The conflict between the kosidán and maji, with the kosidán having lighter skin and enslaving parts of the maji, shows problems related to race and class. In the story, class takes the place of race. The book does not avoid showing how power can be connected to harsh treatment. Saran believes that to keep control, he must oppress and enslave the minority. For Saran, controlling the maji is not enough—he also tries to take away their hope and plan to kill many of them.

Throughout the book, the maji react to this oppression in different ways. Zélie, who has seen her mother killed, her father beaten, and her freedom taken by guards, decides to fight against the unfair system. Her actions show how real-life activists might act. Inan, being both a maji and kosidán, wants the two groups to come together. The maji's magic connects humans to the gods.

The story also shows children trying to earn their parents' approval. Inan wants to please his father and be a good prince, but he also feels connected to other maji through Zélie. The story shows how teenagers face adult problems while trying to find their identity. Even though they face big responsibilities, the main characters show more wisdom, bravery, and kindness than the adults they want to impress.

In the end, the female characters overcome their pain and lead the way. At first, Zélie thinks Amari is weak, but later sees that Amari has found ways to cope with her abusive father. Many important characters die, but Zélie and Amari keep working toward their goals.

Reception

Publishers Weekly gave the novel a starred review, praising its complex characters and changing story. Kirkus Reviews also gave the book a starred review and nominated it for the Kirkus Prize. It described the novel as "Powerful, captivating, and raw." Charisse Jones of USA Today gave the book four out of four stars, saying, "While Tomi Adeyemi's Africa-inspired fantasy was written for young adults, readers of all ages will be captivated by this exciting story." David Canfield of Entertainment Weekly called the novel a "phenomenon" because the author is new and the book was very successful. Kiran Millwood Hargrave, an author and poet writing for The Guardian, praised the book's "hate-to-love romance" with high stakes and a relationship that is realistically and passionately shown. She also called it a "tightly plotted, action-packed adventure." Less positively, The A.V. Club said the book did not meet high expectations, criticizing how magic works in the story and the book's length.

In 2018, viewers of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon chose Children of Blood and Bone as the first-ever "Tonight Show Summer Read." Adeyemi later appeared as a guest on The Tonight Show on July 24, 2018, to talk about the book.

Audiobook

An audiobook that is 18 hours long, narrated by Bahni Turpin, was released in March 2018. The audiobook received positive reviews. It won the 2019 Audie Award for best audiobook and was a finalist for best Young Adult audiobook. Ron Charles, a judge for the award, said, "The sound of Turpin's voice is magical and matches the imaginative parts of this story. I felt like I was in the world of Children of Blood and Bone." Hayley Schommer, writing for Booklist, noted that Turpin's changes in speaking speed helped enhance the story's pacing. Maggie Knapp, from School Library Journal, wrote that Turpin gave each character a unique and clear voice. A review from Publishers Weekly said, "Turpin's strong performance of Adeyemi's Afro-futurist fantasy story shows she is one of the top voice actors today." AudioFile magazine listed the audiobook as one of the best of the year, praising Turpin's voices and her ability to capture parts of the story, such as Yoruba incantations.

Film adaptation

Before the book Children of Blood and Bone was published, it was chosen for a movie version produced by Fox 2000 Pictures and Temple Hill Productions. The author, Tomi Adeyemi, admired the work Fox 2000 and Temple Hill had done on films like Love, Simon and The Hate U Give. In February 2019, Rick Famuyiwa was named the film’s director. Adeyemi mentioned that her ideal cast would include Idris Elba as Saran and Viola Davis as Mama Agba.

However, when Disney bought most of 21st Century Fox, Fox 2000 was closed. This caused the movie project to move to Lucasfilm, which was now part of Disney. This was Lucasfilm’s first original live-action film since 2012. Kay Oyegun, known for her work on the TV show This Is Us, was hired to write the film’s script. In September 2019, Alan Horn told The Hollywood Reporter that Kathleen Kennedy was working with Emma Watts, the leader of 20th Century Fox, to develop the film. By December 2020, Kennedy announced that Lucasfilm would co-produce the film with 20th Century Studios.

By January 2022, Paramount Pictures had bought the rights for an exclusive movie release, with Temple Hill Entertainment and Sunswept Entertainment as producers. Adeyemi would write the script and act as an executive producer. However, The Hollywood Reporter reported that Adeyemi was unhappy with how slowly Lucasfilm was making progress on the film and asked to write the script herself. Lucasfilm refused this request. Because Lucasfilm wanted to focus on its own projects, such as Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and Willow, it and 20th Century Studios let the film rights for Children of Blood and Bone expire in late 2021. In December 2023, Gina Prince-Bythewood was named the film’s director.

In November 2024, Prince-Bythewood released a casting call for actors aged 10 to mid-20s living in Nigeria. The film is planned to release on January 15, 2027. In January 2025, the following actors joined the cast: Thuso Mbedu, Amandla Stenberg, Damson Idris, Tosin Cole, Cynthia Erivo, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Lashana Lynch, Idris Elba, and Viola Davis.