Skin Hunger and Sacred Scars ('A resurrection of magic' Books 1 & 2) by Kathleen Duey

Genre: fantasy

Skin Hunger is the first novel  in the fantasy trilogy A Resurrection of Magic by Kathleen Duey. The novel alternates between telling the story of Sadima, a farm girl who lives in a world in desperate need of magic, and Hahp, the son of a cruel merchant who's lives centuries after her, in a society corrupted by magic.

Sadima has the ability to communicate with animals in a country where magic has been banned and it's knowledge lost. She meets Franklin, a servant of a young nobleman named Somiss, who believes that magic will solve the world's problems. Together, the three try to resurrect magic. Many years later, Haph is sent to the academy of magic with nine other boys, to learn to become a magician. Subjected to brutal treatment, the boys must learn to make their food by magic or starve - as only one boy will survive to graduate.

This is a dark book which some readers may find disturbing, however it is beautifully written with strong characters. The story ends without any sort of resolution, leading the reader straight to the next book in the series - Sacred Scars. Unfortunately, the third book is yet to be published, so the wait is on.

Caroline @ Kew Library.

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