Blood Over Bright Haven: A Novel
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The first woman ever admitted to a prestigious order of mages unravels a secret conspiracy that could change the practice of magic forever in this “provocative stand-alone novel [that] deftly incorporates elements of science and philosophy into dark academia” (The Washington Post), from the author of The Sword of Kaigen.
“Bears comparison to groundbreaking works by Ursula K Le Guin . . . the best fantasy novel of the year”—The Guardian
Features gold and red foil on the jacket, a full-color endpaper map, and an interior illustration of an in-world magical item!
AN ELLE BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR
For twenty years, Sciona has devoted every waking moment to the study of magic, fueled by a mad desire to achieve the impossible: to be the first woman ever admitted to the High Magistry at the University of Magics and Industry.
When Sciona finally passes the qualifying exam and becomes a highmage, she finds her challenges have just begun. Her new colleagues are determined to make her feel unwelcome—and, instead of a qualified lab assistant, they give her a janitor.
What neither Sciona nor her peers realize is that her taciturn assistant was not always a janitor. Ten years ago, he was a nomadic hunter who lost his family on their perilous journey from the wild plains to the city. But now he sees the opportunity to understand the forces that decimated his tribe, drove him from his homeland, and keep the privileged in power.
At first, mage and outsider have a fractious relationship. But working together, they uncover an ancient secret that could change the course of magic forever—if it doesn’t get them killed first.
“Bears comparison to groundbreaking works by Ursula K Le Guin . . . the best fantasy novel of the year”—The Guardian
Features gold and red foil on the jacket, a full-color endpaper map, and an interior illustration of an in-world magical item!
AN ELLE BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR
For twenty years, Sciona has devoted every waking moment to the study of magic, fueled by a mad desire to achieve the impossible: to be the first woman ever admitted to the High Magistry at the University of Magics and Industry.
When Sciona finally passes the qualifying exam and becomes a highmage, she finds her challenges have just begun. Her new colleagues are determined to make her feel unwelcome—and, instead of a qualified lab assistant, they give her a janitor.
What neither Sciona nor her peers realize is that her taciturn assistant was not always a janitor. Ten years ago, he was a nomadic hunter who lost his family on their perilous journey from the wild plains to the city. But now he sees the opportunity to understand the forces that decimated his tribe, drove him from his homeland, and keep the privileged in power.
At first, mage and outsider have a fractious relationship. But working together, they uncover an ancient secret that could change the course of magic forever—if it doesn’t get them killed first.
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Readers say *Blood Over Bright Haven* features a richly detailed magic system, a dark academia setting, and sharp social themes like gender injustice,...
When I started this book, I was quite ill and struggling to read, but it still kept me interested. The premise compelled me to move through the first 100 pages despite my body being too tired.
It tells the story of a great, magical, super religious, extremely misogynistic nation called Tiran, and it is run and governed by Highmages – who are all men until our FMC Sciona becomes the very first woman to enter their ranks. The world outside this nation is plagued by a phenomenon called Blight, which basically eviscerates the people living beyond Bright Haven’s protective barrier. People outside this barrier are collectively called Kwen, and those who manage to escape the Blight and enter Tiran are used for their labor and grossly mistreated. Sciona was born and raised by her aunt within this barrier – this is a woman who has never seen the world outside. At one point she’s genuinely shocked to learn that people can have different hair and eye colors than the ones she’s grown up around. Right from the start, Tiran gives off very cult-like vibes, with a steady pipeline of xenophobia and religious certainty that never really gets questioned.
The story, world building, and characters were all fascinating. Yes, I’ve heard more than a few times about how terrible the FMC Sciona is, but honestly, I think some of us are less forgiving when such characters are women because we automatically expect them to be nicer, kinder, caring, nurturing, and all the rest of it. Meanwhile male characters get to be flawed and complicated without nearly the same backlash. If you just pause for a moment and see her as a person raised in a society that oppresses women and feeds its citizens a constant IV drip of religious and xenophobic dogma, with no real access to other perspectives, it’s not that surprising that she starts out a bit of an arse who needs some serious rewiring of beliefs. So no, I’m not buying the “she’s terrible” argument. She’s human. You don’t have to like her or root for her every second, but her flaws and her growth serve a purpose. They work as a mirror for anyone who has grown up with sheltered views and defended them fiercely until something forces them to develop a little empathy.
Overall, the book is engaging, pushy, and an excellent read, albeit with some notes for pockets of overdone philosophy. Still, the way it ties magic, power, faith, and prejudice together makes it a pretty sharp piece of fantasy.
Wow this book was absolutely fantastic. So thought provoking with so many relevant and important topics. I feel like everyone needs to read this book and reflect.
I really enjoyed this a lot more than I thought I would. The magic was pretty complex at first but then I thought of it like coding and it started making more sense for me. I think the two main characters were really well written and I liked the hard journey they went on. I called someone being bad from the start but I definitely started doubting that for a minute in the middle. Overall it was a cool premise, cool characters, and an interesting ending.
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