Beasts Made of Night

Gr 7 Up—In the walled city of Kos, the royal family makes the laws, but the Mages are the enforcers. Mages often call upon the "aki" to purify the royals by eating their sins. Taj is the best aki in Kos, and when he is called to eat the king's sin, he becomes involved in a covert operation to take over the city. Told from the perspective of Taj, this debut novel is set in a mythical world where sins take the form of shadow beasts and become tattoos on the skin of the sin-eaters. Onyebuchi's world-building is strong, and the details leap off the page; readers will witness the poverty, smell the delicious food, and feel the physical pain of being a sin-eater. However, the author spells out the motives of the antagonists and the reasons for characters' behaviors, rather than letting teens infer them from the text. The romance between Taj and the princess is charming but too quick. Although this work is full of desperate people in dire situations, the narrative lacks intensity and reads more like a prequel than a series opener. Still, this title has strong female characters and a beautiful and well-crafted setting and absolutely fills the void of diversity in YA fantasy fiction.