Blood at the Root

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of death and violence.

One motif that is repeated throughout the text is the phrase “magic always comes with a price” (107). Kumale first introduces this concept when he gives Malik a tour of the campus. As he explains the different things that conjurers can do with magic, he emphasizes to Malik that there is always a cost associated with its practice.

This phrase is used in two different ways. The first addresses the physical cost on the conjurer that comes with performing magic, which Malik experiences when he performs magic on his own before coming to Caiman. At Caiman, after he shows his defense skills in class, Dr. Akeylah explains that his “untapped power is quite astonishing, but [he] use[s] a lot of energy, and that energy […] takes a lot out of [him]” (226). In this way, the physical cost of magic serves to place limits on what the characters can do, setting boundaries for the magical world and not allowing magic to be an instant cure-all for every situation.

In addition to the physical cost, there are also certain spells that require a sacrifice by the conjurer. Central to this idea is bane magic, which always requires some kind of blood sacrifice to tap into the strongest magic that exists. In this way, this motif emphasizes the theme of The Corrupting Nature of Power. Several characters in the novel—including Alexis, Lorraine, and Donja—grapple with the potential that magic offers. To seek greater power, however, they must in some way corrupt themselves through murder and sacrifice. Those who willingly do so sacrifice some part of their humanity and their belonging in the magical community, allowing themselves to be corrupted by power.