I loved this book, and am stoked for the rest of the series to come out!

This is basically an alternate-history tale, with magic stirred in for some extra kick. It's set during the 60s and focused on two organizations: the Association of Magical Arts and Sorcery and the Black Panther Party. The AMAS is all about training sorcerers and making sure that everyone with magical talent knows to keep their abilities hidden. The BPP is all about helping and protecting people, even when that means putting yourself - and your abilities - on the line.

I really enjoyed Thorn's multiple-first-person-narrators approach in her previous novel, "Like Water," and she weaves the voices well here too. The narrators all have different voices and different attitudes, and letting them narrate things from their own points of view helps us see exactly how they got to where they are, and why they're acting the way they are.

The magic is awesome, and the rising tension between the BPP and the police resonates all too well with events today. This is a book that is inspiring without being cheesy, thrilling without losing sight of how people actually think and act. So good! ( )