A Song of Wraiths and Ruin by Roseanne A. Brown: Book Review

A Song of Wraiths and Ruin by Roseanna A. Brown was released only one month ago, and I was lucky enough to get my hands on a copy before they started flying off the shelves, and I mean it when I say that. This book has been on backorder in so many book stores for quite some time. With reviews starting to trickle in, I saw so many positive things, I already knew that this would be one of my favorites.

This fantasy novel provided so much more than I was expecting. Along with the magic and mystery, there was heart and connection. I can’t wait to read more from this author in the future.

Rating: 4.5/5 Stars

Lately, I have been avoiding reading new releases with a lot of hype. I have often been disappointed, and most of the reviews I see are skewed positive. However, I am so glad I didn’t do this with A Song of Wraiths and Ruin. This book had everything I have been missing with my brief break from fantasy. I have been enjoying the contemporary fiction I have recently divulged in, but I do miss completely escaping into a brand new world.

The first thing I wanted to mention is that at the very beginning of this book, the author has included a list of trigger warnings such as panic attacks, self-harm, and more. As soon as I saw this, I was thrilled. I won’t go into it much, but trigger warnings are so important and keep people safe, so I appreciated this SO MUCH.

Okay, into the story. This novel follows two characters from two very different walks of life. Malik is escaping his home destroyed by war in hopes of finding work to send money home to his parents. Karina is the daughter of the Sultana, living in a rich palace, dealing with grief, and the prospect of one day ruling. Throughout the story, the lives of these two seemingly opposite characters wind together in unexpected ways.

The magical system that the author presents in this story was beautiful and subtle. I am tired of the stories with dramatic magical systems, where the characters say spells or control forces of nature. These can be well done, but they are done over and over again. In this story, it is much smaller, in the best way possible. It is intertwined with the world, which makes beautiful storytelling. The world would not be the same without the magic, and the magic would not be the same without the world.

I think the aspect of this story that made it top-notch, for me, was Malik. Malik has anxiety, and this is present throughout the whole story. From the beginning we see him dealing with panic attacks and using coping strategies such as repeating, “breath, stay present, stay here.” This is the first fantasy I have read where the main character, the one who is supposed to save the day, has anxiety. As someone with anxiety, this made me stop in my tracks. This aspect of the story gets even better towards the end, but I won’t say any more to avoid spoilers.

I absolutely adored so much about this book. the only thing that held me back from giving the story 5 stars was the characterization. And this is just me being picky because it is definitely there, but I don’t feel like I know anything about the characters other than what it is immediately related to the apparent story. I am a stickler for characterization, so I need more. I want to know little things about the characters that you don’t think are necessary, but make the character who they are, and inevitably impact the decisions they make.

Deciding the pick up this book was such a good decision. I am not usually one who reads books so close to the date of publishing. But now, I am impatiently waiting for the release of the sequel sometime in 2021. There are so many questions I have, and I can’t wait to see where Malik and Karina will end up.