Bloodlaced | Courtney Maguire

Release Date: September 29th, 2020

Publisher: City Owl Press

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Blurb

Kanjin hardly view their servants as human. Even less so when they are different.

Asagi is different. Both a man and a woman.

In the wake of his failure to protect a boy he saw as a son from their abusive master, Asagi is sold into the house of a young nobleman, Mahiro, who is the opposite of everything Asagi has ever known—gentle, kind, and generous.

Mahiro bonds with Asagi and their friendship blooms into a deep and profound love. But when Asagi is poisoned out of jealousy, Mahiro reveals himself to be youkai, a demon who feeds on blood, and he has no choice but to turn Asagi to save his life.

Asagi awakes reborn, strong, and eternally youthful…

Bloodlaced by Courtney Maguire
Part of the Bloodlaced blog tour

“Are you a man or a woman?” she asked, her nose millimeters from mine. The same question I’d been asked a million times before. I only ever had one answer.

“I am Asagi.”

I really like how very different this book is from others in the vampire genre. If I was to compare it to any of the ones I’ve read, I’d probably say it fits in with Shari Sakurai’s Demon’s Blood series in that both are set in historical Japan and follow the characters’ struggles around vampirism. Bloodlaced is a nuanced character study and a good bit of the book occurs before the fantasy element comes in. The story focuses heavily on the effects of imbalanced relationships, and especially how these relationships impact those without a say in their circumstances.

There are some spoilers herein.

The story begins with…

I was intrigued by the premise when I was approached to do a read and review for this book, and I am so happy I did. The story was a fresh enough take on bloodsuckers to keep my interest, and I became completely invested in Asagi’s journey.

Asagi identifies neither as male nor female but treads a “sliding scale between masculine and feminine” (Chapter 20, “Arrangements”). A household slave and someone with male anatomy, who presents as female, Asagi has been the victim of assault and abuse. When she and a child named Tsukito are sold to a new, monstrous master with an eye for young boys, Asagi throws herself between the man and the child she has come to love like a son, taking the abuse to spare the child. This is noticed by one of her master’s guests, who ‘rescues’ her from the brutal position by purchasing her…