Children of Virtue and Vengeance by Tomi Adeyemi, first published in 2019, is a Nigerian young adult fantasy novel. Often placed in the grimdark or dystopian genre, the novel is set in the empire of Orïsha, where present-day Nigeria is located. It is the second novel in a trilogy, preceded by Children of Blood and Bone (2018) and followed by Children of Anguish and Anarchy (2024). The trilogy follows the journey of Zélie Adebola, a young girl who succeeds in bringing magic back to Orïsha by reestablishing her ancestral connection to the gods. In Children of Virtue and Vengeance, she works with her brother, Tzain, and Orïshan princess Amari to overthrow the ruling class and free the oppressed maji.

Adeyemi is a Nigerian author who lives in the United States. Her interests in the history and struggles of the Nigerian people are reflected in her novels; her trilogy is often viewed as a commentary on the injustices found within Nigeria related to social class. Children of Virtue and Vengeance examines the flaws of restrictive government and the effects it has when it fails its people. It explores the themes of Love Verus Duty, The Cyclical Nature of Violence, and The Blurred Line Between Good and Evil.

This guide refers to the 2019 hardcover first edition published by Henry Holt and Company.

Content Warning: The source text and this guide discuss violence and death.

Plot Summary

The novel opens with the funeral of Zélie and Tzain’s father as Zélie grieves not only the loss of him but also that of many of her friends and family members in her quest to restore magic to Orïsha.

They return to the stolen warship on which they have been living since leaving the temple. Roën informs them that a band of maji known as the Iyika have been assassinating nobles across the country and that the queen of Orïsha is believed to be dead. Amari wants to speak to the people of Orïsha and gain their support.

The next day, in Zaria, Amari speaks to the crowd about her desire to help the maji and reveals that she is a tîtán. She gains the support of the crowd until her mother, Nehanda, returns; she interrupts Amari’s speech and unleashes her tîtán guards (armed with majacite) among the magi, destroying the dome.

The group escapes, and Roën leaves since they can no longer pay. After he is gone, Zélie, Inan, and Amari argue. Zélie is convinced that they need to flee the country. She rides away from them on her lionaire, angrily contemplating whether she should return and apologize. Before she can decide, she crashes, knocking herself out. She wakes up in Inan’s dreamscape.

Zélie is shocked to learn that Inan still lives. When Inan sees her in his dream, he attempts to speak to her, but she responds by warping his world and using the roots of a tree to strangle him. She tells him that he should run, as she is coming for vengeance. When she wakes up, she is convinced that she can no longer leave Orïsha; she needs to kill Inan first.

Zélie, Tzain, and Amari formulate a plan to break into a prison where maji are being held to form an army to take on the monarchy. At the prison’s border, Roën stops them and informs them that the entire place is boobytrapped with majacite. He instructs them to come with him to meet the Iyika.

Meanwhile, Inan wakes up in the castle; this is the first time that he has been conscious since his father stabbed him. He hears the war sirens as his mother and guards rush into his room to take him to the basement. He breaks free in the hallway, shocked to see that much of Lagos has been destroyed by bombs. After he has recovered, he is presented to the nobles in Lagos as king. He tries to give rations to the starving citizens of Lagos, and he tries to make peace with the maji—to the annoyance of the nobles, his mother, and his general, Jokôye.

Zélie, after traveling with Roën, is shocked to learn that Mama Agba is part of the Iyika. She is taken—along with Amari and Tzain—to the hidden maji base, where she is made the Elder Reaper. Amari’s attempts to encourage peace and agreement between the maji and nobles are met with open hostility. When news comes that Inan is allowing Iyika defectors to rejoin Lagos and get rations, Zélie insists that it is a trap and encourages them not to take the food.

Inan goes with his guards and his mother to clear the rubble at the edge of Lagos and open the roads. Maji await on the other side, supposedly there to collect food and help rebuild the city; however, as Inan goes to greet them, they use their magic, causing the guards to react with majacite. When the smoke clears, they see a maji who sets fire to their food stores, causing distrust for Inan and anger toward him within his court.

Wanting the maji to take her more seriously, Amari challenges the Connector Elder for her position. Amari wins, but in the process, she unleashes magic that she cannot control and injures herself, as well as Ramaya. As a result, the community further exiles her, although she now has a seat on the elder council.

Zélie constructs a plan for the Iyika to go back to the temple to get more powerful scrolls to work on their incantations. However, Inan gets reports of them traveling and surmises that that is where they are going. He travels there with his mother and guards, causing a fight between the royal guard and the Iyika. The maji barricade themselves within the scroll room and collect the scrolls they need. Zélie realizes that Amari is a cênter, someone who is able to draw on the magic of others to strengthen herself, just like the queen. Using this power, the maji break out of the scroll room and escape.

Over the next several days, Zélie and the other maji work to grow their strength to take on the queen. Meanwhile, Amari develops a way to construct her own dreamscape to speak with Inan. The two agree to meet in the forest, where Inan plans to bring a treaty to show the Iyika. Zélie spots Amari on the way and follows her to the forest. There, Zélie confronts Inan, but their fight is interrupted by the sound of horns, as the queen has followed Inan. Zélie flees to warn the maji, while Amari is convinced that Inan betrayed her.

In the fight outside the Iyika fortress, the queen and the general cause many deaths. Zélie joins with Mâzeli, another Reaper, to push back their attack. The connection she forged using magic from the moonstone leaves her tied to Mâzeli. Mama Agba is forced to separate the bond, killing Mâzeli. The royal forces retreat. Heartbroken at Mâzeli’s death, Zélie tries to convince the maji to leave Orïsha when she learns that the queen has split her forces between Lagos and Ibadan. Amari convinces them to send most of their army to Lagos first and then go with the elders to Ibidan, where they know Inan is with his mother.

In Ibidan, Inan grapples with his sister’s anger and his failed attempt at peace. He allows his mother to rule the kingdom, largely agreeing with whatever will lead to the fastest resolution to the war.

The elders travel to Ibadan. Zélie, Roën, and Nâo go through underwater tunnels to determine where Inan is hidden. Bombs begin to go off, trapping them in the tunnel. To save Roën, Zélie binds her life to his, as both are on the verge of death.

Meanwhile, Amari has secretly constructed her own plan. Unbeknownst to the other elders (except one), she traps all the villagers and releases a poisonous gas, hoping to kill everyone—including Inan—and end the war.

Aware of the approaching gas, Zélie hides in a well with Roën and many of the villagers. As the gas clears, Amari approaches, and they realize that everything was a trap: Inan had already left Ibadan, and his army has kidnapped the rest of the maji outside Lagos.

Distraught at Roën’s health, and with her own health failing as she is tied to him, Zélie binds her soul to Tzain and two other maji, splitting their pain among them. With their magic now combined, they heal Roën and bring all the dead villagers back to life. They realize that if they combine all the elders’ power, they will be able to defeat the queen and unlock new forms of magic. However, the ritual requires a blood sacrifice. Although Zélie initially considers sacrificing Amari, Mama Agba volunteers, giving her life to bind the 10 elders together as one.

In Lagos, Inan’s mother admits that she was responsible for the death of her husband’s family years ago; she allowed Burners into the capital, allowing them to burn the royal family. Her intent was to ignite her husband’s anger and have him put an end to magic, which he did in the form of the Raid. Distraught at the revelation, Inan decides that he can no longer allow his mother to rule. He realizes that the dynasty is the root of oppression and violence in Orïsha, not the maji, and he poisons his mother.

The maji, now together, mount an attack on Lagos to free their army from the prisons. Just as Inan is telling the nobles that he will disband the monarchy, the elders break into the palace, causing chaos and destruction as they free the prisoners.

Amari comes face-to-face with her dying mother. They fight briefly with magic, with Amari overpowering her. She lets her mother live instead of bringing more death and violence.

Outside the cells, Zélie finds Inan. He gives her instructions to help with the chaos once the monarchy is gone. She places her hand on his heart and begins to control his life force, contemplating killing him. Roën interrupts her, panicked. She turns and sees a cloud of gas just as it overtakes her and knocks her out.

When Zélie wakes up, she finds herself surrounded by unconscious bodies. She looks out the window and realizes that they are on a ship, surrounded by the ocean.