Dark Academia is a movement/subset of fantasy where the setting is often universities and other places of learning and education. While the “label” has emerged only recently (roughly the last decade, the mid 2010s), stories featuring students and magic tinged with darkness are not necessarily new. But it is a popular subset of the genre with superstar writers like Leigh Bardugo and V.E. Schwab as two names whose work in this area has garnered both popularity and critical praise.
The first woman ever admitted to a prestigious order of mages unravels a secret conspiracy that could change the practice of magic forever, in this standalone dark fantasy.
For twenty years, Sciona has devoted every waking moment to the study of magic, fueled by a mad desire to achieve the impossible: to be the first woman ever admitted to the High Magistry at the University of Magics and Industry.
When Sciona finally passes the qualifying exam and becomes a highmage, she finds her challenges have just begun. Her new colleagues are determined to make her feel unwelcome—and, instead of a qualified lab assistant, they give her a janitor.
What neither Sciona nor her peers realize is that her taciturn assistant was not always a janitor. Ten years ago, he was a nomadic hunter who lost his family on their perilous journey from the wild plains to the city. But now he sees the opportunity to understand the forces that decimated his tribe, drove him from his homeland, and keep the privileged in power.
At first, mage and outsider have a fractious relationship. But working together, they uncover an ancient secret that could change the course of magic forever—if it doesn’t get them killed first.
Blood over Bright Haven by M.L. Wang plays in this literary sandbox, set in an industrialized land called Tiran, the novel captures a very momentous time in this land’s history. The ascension of Sciona Freynan as the first woman to achieve the title of High Mage. There’s an old adage that can apply here: while it is a challenge to get to the top, staying there is a different story. Wang reveals that very different story. Being the first (and only) women amongst men of power does not come without difficulties, least of which is that she is not wanted amongst these men. She’s got one of the High Mages on her side as a supportive voice, but that’s about it.
One way the High Mages demonstrate their disdain for her is to assign a member of the maligned race of the Kwen as her assistant. Not only is this person (Thomil) looked down upon because of his race, but he is also “only” a janitor and not seemingly qualified to be a lab assistant for a high mage. Thomil has his own story, we actually meet him in a prologue before meeting Sciona, and is essentially the secondary protagonist. Both Thomil and Sciona are marginalized characters, but perhaps by their thrown-together alliance, they can successfully navigate the harrowing situation in which they find themselves and which Sciona exacerbates.
Tiran is an enclosed city, keeping out the wastelands that surround it and the Blight that is all consuming. The university is charged with the protection of its citizens, harnessing magic, and these two “responsibilities” have made the High Mages extremely powerful. Make no mistake, this novel is very much about power dynamics, how those who have it lord it over those who don’t and the barriers they construct and maintain to keep that power to themselves.
I’d say the gender dynamics is a pretty obvious way the power is held. Sciona is continually reminded that she is a woman, both though blatant means and passive-aggressive means. What makes the aggressive sexism she experiences and faces so disturbing is how casual it is, how accepted it is. Some of her “fellow” high mages continually tell her as a woman, she might not have the temerity to be a high mage, women aren’t strong enough which is why there hasn’t been one previously.
The racial power dynamics are just as casually aggressive. The Kwen are very much seen as outsiders, refugees to Tiran who escaped the wasteland and were only accepted into society as servants and practitioners of menial labor. Thomil lives his life trying not to be noticed, trying to work within the expectations the Tiranish people have for his Kwen people, he knows if he steps out of line his life (and that of his daughter) could be forfeit.
The magic is unique. The cover of the US Edition from Del Rey depicts what appears to be something like an old fashioned typewriter with a strange disc where the paper might be standing. What this device actually is amounts to a magical coding device, it is how spells are written and created. It is a fascinating take on magic and an interesting scientific approach to magic.
The relationship between Thomil and Sciona is a powerful, unique dynamic. They are uneasy allies, but because of the racial prejudices that have been ingrained in them their entire lives, there’s a lot to essentially get over for both of them before any kind of trust can be built. As their trust begins to form, they make a discovery about magic that reinforces some of the racial and gender power dynamics that define Tiran. This discovery is a closely guarded secret that only those in the highest power truly know and keep from the general populace – it would shatter society, to put it bluntly. That’s not much of a spoiler because the jacket copy largely states this.
As my fingers were turning the pages at an increasingly rapid pace, I came to a realization. This novel doesn’t have too much “action” in it. I say that as a bit of a warning, but also to indicate that a novel concerned largely with philosophical arguments about power dynamics, gender and racial inequality, and spell-craft is incredibly gripping and addictive with a magnetic, narrative pull. Part of this is the intensity Wang has imbued into the characters of Sciona and Thomil. They are fierce, powerful, driven people and they just demanded this reader’s attention.
While I haven’t read very widely in this emerging subset of fantasy, I’ve read some. As I navigate this “aesthetic” of fantasy, I think I will be hard-pressed to find any that are as timely, powerful, engaging, or near perfect as M.L. Wang’s Blood over Bright Haven. Wang packs so much into this single-volume fantasy novel. It is a complete, powerful, and intensely thought-provoking story. I dare to say it could even be worthy of the title Modern Masterpiece. A few months ago, I read/consumed Wang’s highly-acclaimed self-published single-volume fantasy masterpiece The Sword of Kaigen. At this point, Wang is an immediate-buy/must-read for me.
Highly, highly recommended.
© 2024 Rob H. Bedford
Del Rey Books | Hardcover
July 2024 | 422 Pages
https://mlwangbooks.com/
Excerpt: https://reactormag.com/excerpts-blood-over-bright-haven-by-m-l-wang/
Review copy courtesy of the publisher
