Duey, Kathleen - Skin Hunger

Book one of the trilogy A Resurrection of Magic

Sadima can talk to animals, but because someone claiming to be a magician robbed the family and left her mother for dead at her birth, her father and her older brother have hated magic and any hint of it since. Hahp is a younger son sent away by his rich father to a school for magicians; his parents are told that they will never see him again.

The book begins very slowly, although the short chapters made me read it quickly, since I always wanted to know what happened next to the other character. It also doesn't seem that interesting at first; Sadima's story in particular feels like a fantasy standard with the beautiful, kind girl who grows up on a farm, loves animals, and wants to learn about her talents. It takes a little more time to even begin to figure out what Hahp's story is about, and his proves the more interesting of the two.

Like rachelmanija, I'd recommend not reading the cover copy, as it's much more fun piecing together how Hahp and Sadima's stories are related.

I'd also warn that the book is very dark, even though it takes a while to get there. Even though I was spoiled about the nature of the school, it still was horrifying, largely because Duey takes the time to build up to it. And there are more than a few abusive relationships in the book, some more obviously so than others. I also liked the exploration of class within the school; it touches on concepts that I think many fantasy novels skip over, especially when it comes to magic.

( Spoilers )

Also, there is a tragic and emotionally disturbing rat death. At least to me! If it only hadn't put its paw on Sadima's cheek, I wouldn't be stuck thinking of my cute rats' faces when it died!

This was a gripping read, and though sometimes the prose and characterization aren't great, the worldbuilding is.

Links:
- rachelmanija's review (linked to tag to preserve spoiler cut, 'ware spoilers in the comments)