Description:
Savat is an ancient city steeped in old magic. But the once god-fearing Savati people find themselves in the tightening fist of the Sodality, a tyrannical power determined to replace magic with technology, and eradicate all devotion to the old gods.
Yet gods still move among them.
Zal, Chaos incarnate, unjustly exiled to the mortal realm, lives for revenge against his family.
Riksa, War shackled, is the tormented captive of her brother Zal in his obsessive quest to open a way between the realms.
Leksi, Nightmare disincarnate, has always resented her metaphysical family destined to cause human suffering and strives to live free of them.
In Savat's university, the scholar Niki prepares an experiment dangerous to Sodality-imposed rule. Though unskilled in the talents of the magic-wielding arkani, the fruit of Niki's groundbreaking research would harness magic through music, sound, and vibration itself, giving anyone the ability to access the arcane.
When worlds are ripe for annihilation, all it takes is one god-sized sibling rivalry to light a conflagration.
Review Quotes:
"Born of Malice is a dark delight from beginning to end: a plunge into a visceral world of spellwork and power struggles portrayed in gorgeous prose. I was instantly captivated by the characters and the extraordinarily original magic system."
--Emmi Itäranta, award-winning author of Memory of Water
"Born of Malice hooks you from the start--a fiery tale of ambition and vengeance set in a city where magic is illegal and music can unmake the universe. The story is told through the eyes of two demigods, chaos and nightmares made manifest, and a scholar-musician striving to make magic accessible to all. Expect gorgeous prose and horror aplenty, but know that it's the fascinating lore and tormented characters that will reel you in: insecure gods and ill-fated loves, centuries-old feuds and fragmented texts hinting at magical secrets... Drawing from African traditions to create a world so vivid you can smell the carnage and taste the entropy, this is Xan van Rooyen at their bold, bloody best."
--Cheryl S. Ntumy, author of Black Friday: Short Stories from Africa
"In chiseled, confident prose, the expansive world containing the city of Savat blooms to life in Xan van Rooyen's Born of Malice. Characters with the depth of the Nether that birthed them rage across the pages in this vivid tale that asks whether our motivations ultimately matter when our actions destroy even the little we might hold dear--and questions whether those motivations are as noble as we contend. An autistic academic, neglected god-child with chronic pain, traumatized siblings, and a city broiling with a history of colonization, religious suppression, and magical malpractice across class lines--what could go wrong? I was riveted. Book two now, please!"
--Naseem Jamnia, IAFA Crawford-, Locus-, and World Fantasy-nominated author of The Bruising of Qilwa
"Xan's lush prose is always a delight to immerse the imagination, equally matched by their cunning, layered characters whose motivations keep you guessing what they're really up to in the shadows. Assume nothing and trust no one. With characters you can both admire and loathe, this is a richly imagined world and a silky-smooth narrative, barbed with ancient familial angst for good measure."
--Stephen Embleton, 2024 Nommo Award winner for Best Speculative Fiction Novella for Undulation
"The musical magic echoing through this blood-tinged story is captivating, and the unique world Xan van Rooyen has built feels real and complex with its multiple languages and cultures. An epic family drama with (demi)gods, revolution, and amazingly creepy transformations of the body."
--Sara Norja, author of Kummajaisten kesä (The Summer of Strangelings)