Long before Sọmadịna and her twin, Jayaike, were born, the creation of the Split ended the Starvation War. A yawning chasm, the Split severs the rest of the world from Sọmadịna’s island, where most people receive one magical ability from the goddess, Ala, when they come of age. When the twins manifest multiple gifts—and one of Sọmadịna’s causes her to murder a violent peer against her will—they are deemed “abominations” by their mother and harshly shunned by the community. And then Jayaike is snatched in the night, abducted by the sinister “hunter,” who has appeared in Sọmadịna’s dreams. Sọmadịna and her best friend, Ụwafụlamiro, join Sọmadịna’s grandfather, Zerenjọ; and her sister, Nkadi; in the Sacred Forest. Zerenjọ and Nkadi are dịbịas, “masters of medicine and spirit” who possess multiple powerful gifts; they help Sọmadịna prepare for the dangerous search for her brother. Together Sọmadịna, Ụwafụlamiro, and Nkadi set out on their journey. Along the way, Sọmadịna struggles to accept and control her gifts, especially an emptiness that can be harnessed to kill anything in her path. Sọmadịna and Jayaike have been claimed by Ala. But the “small gods” will not understand the full extent of their power until they are reunited and facing death at the hands of the hunter. Set in a West African-inspired fantasy setting, this richly imagined coming-of-age novel brings to life a world in which magic is both coveted and feared, and at its heart is a girl longing for acceptance as she discovers her place in her family and the world. (Age 14 and older)