Children of Blood and Bone (Legacy of Orïsha, #1)

by Tomi Adeyemi

“They don’t hate you, my child. They hate what you were meant to become.”

“I teach you to be warriors in the garden so you will never be gardeners in the war. I give you the strength to fight, but you all must learn the strength of restraint.” Mama turns to me, shoulders pinned back. “You must protect those who can’t defend themselves. That is the way of the staff.”

When your opponent has no honor, you must fight in different ways, smarter ways.”

Strength cannot always roar, she said that day. Valor does not always shine.

He wants to believe that playing by the monarchy’s rules will keep us safe, but nothing can protect us when those rules are rooted in hate.

They wear their secrets like glittering diamonds, embroidery woven through their lavish buba tops and wrapped iro skirts. Their lies and lily-scented perfumes taint the honeyed aroma of sweet cakes I am no longer allowed to eat.

“On earth, Sky Mother created humans, her children of blood and bone. In the heavens she gave birth to the gods and goddesses. Each would come to embody a different fragment of her soul.”

“Your people, your guards—they’re nothing more than killers, rapists, and thieves. The only difference between them and criminals is the uniforms they wear.”

I won’t let your ignorance silence my pain.”

We are all children of blood and bone. All instruments of vengeance and virtue.