Deathbringer

A young woman must study the dark magic she never wanted to solve her sister’s murder, in Tagliareni’s tiresome dark academia debut. Viola Corvi has always hated being a Mortemagi, or death mage, so she gladly lets her nonmagical sister, Olivia, take her place at Gorhail Academy. When Olivia is murdered and the Department of the Supernatural rules the death an accident, Viola investigates with help from volatile poison mage Sylas Archyr, whose adoptive brother was recently killed as well. Both murders are part of a chain of relic thefts with connections to the family lines of famous mages, including the terrifying Rafael Grimm and the Department of the Supernatural’s own Alyria Parrish, a Mortemagi officer so formidable that she was dubbed the Deathbringer. The protagonists’ powerful families keep consequences at a safe distance, lowering the stakes and sapping the tension. Meanwhile, little effort is made to comment on Viola and Sylas’s privilege. Their inevitable romance is underdeveloped and, while the plot is frequently bogged down by repetitive exposition, the worldbuilding still feels underbaked and often contradictory. This familiar formula will bore those looking for something new and disappoint avid romantasy fans. Agent: Ginger Clark, Ginger Clark Literary. (May)