Descendants of War: Magic’s Demise by Ruby Fitzgerald

I was sent a review copy of Descendants of War: Magic’s Demise by the author in exchange for an honest review. 

Title: Descendants of War: Magic’s Demise
Author: Ruby Fitzgerald
Publisher: Soldier Bear Entertainment
Pages: 110 pages
Publication Date: June 27th 2018
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
Rating:

   

Thousands of years ago, the Ancients bestowed the Nine Energies of Magic to certain humans known as Descendants. When Aurora, briefly in possession of all Nine Energies, defeated King Zagan during the Battle of Venom, peace returned to the war-torn queendom of Thurnadan. However, a new adversary has emerged: The Jinx. Far more threatening than Zagan and his army, The Jinx is a disease with a one hundred percent mortality rate. The race to find a cure is on; it is only a matter of time before the disease mutates and becomes capable of killing every living thing in its path. Terror spreads. The Jinx seems to be unstoppable, especially when fate rests in the hands of the disheartened. A disturbing Seer’s vision and long-neglected maps are the only guidance the people of Thurnadan have in their frantic search for a cure. Turning to lore of the Ancients for answers, a dark Prophecy threatening the end of mankind’s reign is discovered, but a sliver of hope is also found within its riddle of verses. Do the Ancients still live? Will the disease mutate and grow more powerful? And how much time does the queendom have before all are certain to perish?

I didn’t realized that this is actually the second book from a series, even though the story is not connected to the first book but I feel really lost at first because the characters are already developed and I don’t know their history at all.

Months after Thurnadan win the Battle of Venom and defeated King Zagan, a new mysterious disease is spreading and killing every Descendants. A prophecy from a long time ago predict that humanity will someday perish because of the disease called Jinx, the prophecy might come true if they don’t find a cure soon. Panic and terror are spreading, the Queen gather her best army to search for the cure that lays in the riddle of the prophecy.

I think the story is quite unique because in this book human are facing the battle with a powerful unseen force instead of with their own kind. Because I grew tired of the story in which people betraying one another for crown or the uprising of the oppresed people, or any trope that YA fantasy usually used. So this kind of story is kind of refreshing and make me really curious to find out how the story will end. However the plot is rather slow which make me slightly bored. The adventure is thrilling, it kinda remind me of PJO with the prophecy and people with magic to fulfill it, but in a more mature, intense and serious way.

It’s hard for me to understand the world at first because I haven’t read the first book, and the story is a little bit connected with the Battle of Venom in the previous book so it took so long for me to finally understand it. The magic system is pretty basic, nothing new, there are nine elements of magic like Water Weaver, Fire Sculptor, Wind Whisperer, Earth Grounder, Seer, Mind Handler, Shape Shifter, Healer, and Spell Spinner.

I didn’t feel connected to any of the characters because there are a LOT of main characters in this book and all of them have the same amount of important role, nobody really stands out. I also often got confuse by the transition of the PoV.

All in all I think this book deserve more attention because it’s a great book with a good plot and worlbuilding. I think you’ll like this book if you like adventure, prophecy, magic, a squad with badass men and women, and morally grey characters.

Chicago-based author, Ruby Fitzgerald, grew up in a small town in Oregon, As a teenager, Fitzgerald turned to writing as a outlet for her thoughts and emotions. Her stories served as an escape from what she would later find out were bouts of depression alongside chronic anxiety. Stories, books, and grand tales grew to be her way of analyzing and coming to terms with many of the more difficult details of reality. And they still are.

 

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