The Last Bloodcarver

 By: Vanessa Le

Location: FIC LE

Genre: Fantasy, Romance, Mystery

Nhika is a bloodcarver. She has the power to alter human biology – to heal or to harm with just a touch.

'You’ll gasp, you’ll scream, you’ll cry, and you’ll be begging for the next book.' Chloe Gong, New York Times bestselling author of These Violent Delights

In Theumas, Nhika is seen as a monster who kills for pleasure, and her gift is highly prized in the city’s criminal underworld. When Nhika is finally captured, she is sold to the highest bidder – an aristocratic girl dressed in white. But her mysterious buyer is not looking for an assassin. She needs Nhika to heal the only witness to her father’s murder.

Nhika vows to hunt down the killer and all signs point to Ven Kochin, an alluring yet entitled physician’s aide. Despite Kochin’s relentless attempts to push her away, Nikha can’t help feeling drawn into his opulent world. But she soon finds herself in a fight for her life – and for the future of her own kind.

🫀 Healing magic
🫀 Depiction of racism (check the TW)
🫀 Found family/friends
🫀 Murder mystery
🫀 Found romance (they both think they’re among the only heartsooths left)
🫀 Fierce FMC who gets things done (she has made it on my favourite FMCs list)

Review by Toya

The Last Bloodcarver is a lush Vietnamese inspired fantasy that follows Nhika, a bloodcarver aka a person who can alter human biology. After Nhika was caught using her abilities, she’s captured and sold to an aristocratic family to heal the witness to their father’s murder.

I LOVE when magic systems incorporate science, human physiology in this case, and really dives into the limitations and consequences of both. Not sure if medical fantasy is a thing, but that’s exactly what this is.

Nhika is an incredible FMC. She embodies female rage (especially as the last of her kind) and feralness, but her magic means that she’s always called to heal even when she knows it puts her life at risk. Nhika is so incredibly strong and determined, but she never forgets her family’s heritage.

There is a romance plot that does take place. I was a bit apprehensive at first since it’s described as assholes to lovers, but not only is this trope accurate, this romance makes sense for Nhika and fuels her even more.

My only gripe is that this one ends on one heck of a cliffhanger, and I NEED book two.