We Are Blood and Thunder

A quarantined mountain city-state beset by a pestilent storm cloud blames magic for its plight in this YA fantasy debut. Lena, who cares for Ancestors in the city’s crypts is, at 17, convicted and jailed for being a mage; escaping, she seeks a life outside the castle, in a place where magic is revered. Meanwhile, mysterious Constance, daughter to the Duke, returns to the castle to claim her spot as heir and bring an end to the cloud that has been ravaging the area for six years. When the two cross paths in the uninhabitable foothills of Duke’s Forest, neither is privy to the other’s connection to the storm. Constance struggles to find a way to save her home and ascend the throne without revealing her own dealings with magic. Lena, training for control over her own unusual powers, discovers she might be able to help stop the storm cloud—if she wants to save the people who sentenced her to darkness and death. Deftly sweeping between Constance and Lena’s journeys of sacrifice and empowerment, Lupo weaves together a promising tale of magic, mourning, and betrayal, delicately showing how grief can be the most powerful magic of all. Ages 14–up. (Mar.)