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    Skin Hunger
    Skin Hunger
    Skin Hunger
    Audiobook9 hours

    Skin Hunger

    Written by Kathleen Duey

    Narrated by Andy Paris

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    Kathleen Duey launches a mesmerizing trilogy with a book that has been honored as a National Book Award Finalist. In Sadima's time, magic has been banned and she is forced to hide her ability to communicate with animals. But then a young nobleman bent on bringing magic back to the world sends his servant to find Sadima, and a new life opens before her. Centuries later, an academy of magic welcomes 10 applicants, but only one will graduate. "Beautifully written, fierce, and unforgettable."-Holly Black, author of Tithe
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRecorded Books, Inc.
    Release dateJun 20, 2008
    ISBN9781436133883
    Skin Hunger
    Author

    Kathleen Duey

    Kathleen Duey’s works include the middle grade American Diaries and Survivors series, as well as the well-reviewed chapter book series The Unicorn’s Secret and its companion series, The Faeries’ Promise. She is also the National Book Award–nominated author of Skin Hunger. She lives in Fallbrook, California.

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    Reviews for Skin Hunger

    4/5

    205 ratings25 reviews

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    • 5/5
      Update: Don't give up. The second book is fantastic. And it needs what this first book sets up. Now I'm looking forward to the 3rd book.

      Good Lord. This book is narrated well and was compelling to listen to, but it is about torture and emotional and physical abuse. Enclosed spaces, filth and fear. Im exhausted. The ending makes me so angry for the characters it's unbelievable and im more angry i need to listen to the other two books to see if anything works out. Not a book for kids. Barely anything about the girl talking to animals.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 5/5
      Fabulous new series. I can't wait for the next one. She carries off a really interesting dual narrative and presents a compelling story. Creepy and good.
    • 3/5
      I liked reading this even though pretty much everything that happened to the characters was bad. It's interesting, I wanted to know what happened next and have already started the sequel.

      A warning though, proceed with caution if you have issues with food or disordered eating. There is forced and voluntary starvation and a lot of talk about how that affects the characters physically and mentally and several kids even die of it.
    • 4/5
      Sadima’s mother died in her birthing. The magician paid to help did no such thing; all she did was take the money and leave, pretending everything was fine. Ever since Micah and his father have, understandably enough, distrusted magic and magicians. They are fakers and con artists. But Sadima isn’t so sure. She can understand the emotions of animals, she can communicate in some way with them, surely that means there is some magic left in the world?

      Micah, Sadima’s older brother, is the reader’s first introduction to the world of Skin Hunger. But it is Sadima whose point of view we experience the city of Limori. She leaves home to try and find her place in the world, and in doing so she begins to learn the history of the place. How the kings outlawed magicians because when there were magicians there were no kings and vice vearsa.

      And in alternating chapters we meet Hahp, the son of a very wealthy merchant who has been sent off to train to become a magician. Or not. Only one boy will make it, the others will become “a part” of the school.

      Hahp is our first persona narrator, and he tells us a lot about the world which has magicians and where magic can be bought just like anything else. He does not have a good relationship with his father, in many ways magic school1 is his father’s way of getting rid of him. To all intents and purposes Hahp has been abandoned.

      The world where Hahp lives and the one where Sadima lives are very different place. But they share some things, I won’t mention them here on account of spoilers, but over the course of the book we learn that the two are actually in the same place, but in different times in Limori’s history.

      I’m not sure what I expected when I first picked this book up. I can’t even remember why I chose it. I think someone somewhere mentioned it a good while ago.

      The title Skin Hunger is faintly off putting to me. It sounds like it should be some sort of sex story, 50 shades of hunger possibly. And it isn’t. Instead it is more a coming of age story for Sadima as she learns who she is and who she has ended up helping. Hahp too is learning a lot about himself. Starvation and isolation do not bring out the best in people but they do test a person. A horrible way of testing people, especially when it is done on purpose, but a test nevertheless.

      I’ve rated this book a 7. My ratings are based on my enjoyment rather than any sort of objective scale, so they tend to vary. And they aren’t unalterable and fixed. If I reread something and change my mind then I change my review. But also a 7 can be a good mark and an okay mark. I mean 7 means I enjoyed a book, but and 8 that i really enjoyed it. But sometimes a 7 can mean that I loved parts but was otherwise meh. Here, it means I enjoyed a lot of the book, but there was too much set-up with Hahp’s storyline. I know why; he doesn’t know whats going on, so the reader can’t either, not when Hahp is our only guide to the world. But there a bit too much sitting around in the dark suffering for me to enjoy his part of the book. And his horrible treatment seems to be horrible simply for the sake of it.

      Sadima’s life isn’t all kittens and unicorns, but at least she has some amount of agency. She doesn’t always use it, but she is an innocent farm girl out in the big bad world for the first time. She doesn’t really know what’s going on, to start with, but unlike with Hahp she begins to at least try and puzzle things out. She acts. Hahp is unable to.

      But I didn’t like the romance that started to develop. It felt quite forced in my reading. I never really understood why she liked whatshisname, Franklin, because he too was lacking agency and the ability to act on his own behalf.

      But it is certainly a book that grips the more you read. I really want to read what happens next. Cliff-hanger endings *sigh*. But at the same time I don’t want to rush into book 2 because while book 3 has been written, according to Duey’s blog it is in “processing” at the moment, ie not published yet.
    • 4/5
      Fascinating creation of a fantasy world. Very dark for a teen book, but definitely I will be reading the sequels to find out how they get from Sadima's time to Hahp's at the academy...
    • 4/5
      A fascinating and fresh tale. Skin Hunger is two interconnected stories, told in alternating chapters, of Sadima and Hahp. Sadima lives at a time of no magic, but plenty of fake practitioners, and her ability to communicate with animals leads to her involvement with Franklin and Somiss, two men in a twisted partnership to restore magic. Hahp lives in the future, when Franklin and Somiss's work has come to pass and has resulted in a brutal school of magic where Hahp has the misfortune of being a student. A very dark tale, but great reading.
    • 4/5

      I've got to admit, when I first picked up this book, it was because I got interested in the idea that one part of it was about a girl who could understand and communicate with animals. In a way, it was part of my thoughts about researching shapeshifters for my own benefit, but when I began reading, I realized the book wasn't focused on this otherwise tiny aspect; it was only the smallest detail that led to this great, huge concoction of the horrible and yet intriguing stories that melded almost perfectly together in the strangest of ways.

      I've read a lot of books, and I've got to tell you-- It is a major accomplishment when an author is able to weave two or more stories together in the same book and make it feel effortless and like they're both a part of one another, no matter how different they seemingly are initially. Kathleen Duey was able to accomplish this in a stunning way.

      What's even more astounding to me is that I picked up a book I thought was going to be about magic and have a little bit of the normal threats to it to make the story move forward, and instead I found a book that shocked me with how brutal, cruel, even twisted it was. I mean, it really astounded me. I expected some bad things to happen in a few cases, but when those "bad things" happened-- they exceeded my expectations and became real threats, with actual ability to induce horror in a person. And I mean that literally. Weigh it with your tongue. Mean it. Feel the actual meaning of that word in the pit of your stomach:

      Horror.

      It's not a joking matter. It's not even a light matter to be dismissed. I took this book and thought it was going to be a poor attempt at trying to plant something of a plot with a meaningless villain type and whatnot. Instead it was like picking up stone only to not realize there was a scorpion on the other side and getting stung. This book became something I started taking seriously the moment that first "bad thing" happened, and it was only then that I realized just how seriously I should be taking it.

      It's a book that doesn't play around, and it's fantastic for it. I'm disappointed I don't have the sequel here with me. It cuts you right off in the middle of everything at the end, and now I'm certain I have to hunt down the next book. Leaving things just as they are won't cut it. This series is too good to just leave alone, and if you pick this mama up, you'll see exactly what I mean. Trust me: It's a lot more than you've bargained for, and in the best of ways.

      So if you like a darker, twisted story of magic, look this book up. It won't disappoint.
    • 4/5
      I have had this book to read on my shelf forever. It was an intriguing and well done traditional fantasy novel. The pace is deliberate but how things unfold is very intriguing.I listened to this on audiobook and it was decent. The narrator doesn’t do a great job of distinguishing between voices, but he is pleasant to listen to and the voices are different enough that I was able to figure out who was speaking.The story alternates between two different characters. The first we hear from is Sadima. Sadima’s story is told over a broad span of time, starting with her birth and working towards when she is a young farm girl. Sadima can speak with animals, a skill she learns to hide from her brother and father because of their hatred for magicians. Sadima gets the opportunity to explore this skill when a young magician named Franklin visits her farm. The second character we hear from is Hahp. Hahp is the youngest in a rich merchant family of horse traders, he is despised by his father for his lack of success at anything. Hahp is eventually carted off to a Magician's school where he endures great hardship as part of his training.The story progresses deliberately. It is a bit confusing at first because you can’t figure out if Sedima’s story and Hahp’s story are connected or what timeline they occur in. At first I assumed that Hahp and Sadima’s stories were both occurring in the present, but as the story went on I learned that wasn’t the case.The story ends up being very intriguing because you are constantly trying to figure out how these two stories will entwine. Also you are trying to figure out what will become of Sadima’s magic and if Hahp will actually master his magic. As the story goes on you figure out that this is basically a story about how magic is being resurrected in a world where it has been repressed.I personally thought this was a very creative story and very well done. I enjoyed how deliberately the story unfolded. I also thought the author did an excellent job in conveying what these characters went through, their emotions and hardship. It’s an interesting book about what people have to deal with in order to do something extraordinary with their lives and work towards a larger cause.This book is only the first half of the story. Absolutely nothing is resolved here and things stop pretty much in the middle of everything. So, just be aware of that and have the second book on hand if you find you are enjoying this.Overall I enjoyed it and found it to be an intriguing and well written book. I can't wait to see what happens in the second (and final) book of this series. This is not an action packed read or a fast-paced read, however I found it to be incredibly compelling and engaging and enjoyed the characters and world. Recommended to those who enjoy deliberate yet intriguing traditional fantasy.
    • 5/5
      It took me a little while to follow the plot but the story and characters were compelling enough to keep me involved. It soon became a world I did not want to leave and now find time for book two!
    • 4/5
      Original review below- stet. Re-read because I have the sequel in my hands.

      Very strong fantasy. I loved Duey's alternate take on wizard school. Her writing puts me in mind of Le Guin- spare, lean and powerful. What she doesn't say is easily as important as what she does. The world is believable, the characters sympathetic. It's clearly only part of a story, the first in a planned trilogy. I'll be reading the rest, no doubt. Recommended.
    • 5/5
      A young girl who can talk to the animals (yes, I know, but bear with me) and a boy from a wealthy but abusive home encounter magicians—as it turns out, the same magicians, but in very different contexts, and as the story goes in it becomes more obvious that things are much more complicated than either of them can see. I’m probably not doing a good job of explaining this, in part to avoid spoilers, but I found the worldbuilding interesting—it involves the disappearance and return of magic from the world, and maybe-immortal magicians. The families were believably screwed up, love and hatred mixed together; I’m looking forward to the next volume of this YA story, though it looks like there’s only one more, published in the last few years, and I’m not sure the story is over.
    • 3/5
      As bleak a book that I have ever read, Skin Hunger is a story that will pull you to turn page after page, hoping that there is a light at the end of this tunnel. Unfortunately, this is only the first book of a trilogy so the light might not be for several more pages.Not to say this is a terrible book, far from it, but it's been said that the night is darkest right before the dawn, and with Skin Hunger being the first book, I'm hoping for a very bright dawn.My only actual nitpicks are over the structure of the book itself, with the way the book is actually two interlaced stories, with each chapter alternating one after the other. Both stories are captivating, but the constant switch between the two, reminds me of someone constantly switching channels to try to watch two shows at the same time.As captivating as the story is, it's not one I would recommend for the faint of heart.
    • 4/5
      Very good, similar in some ways to Suzanne Collins in fighting for survival against harsh, sometimes unknown circumstances. The interweaving of the two stories is very well-done--I would have thought it would be confusing, or I'd get impatient with one while wanting to read the other, but both were paced nicely. A struggle to put down, and I can't wait until I get my hands on the next one!
    • 5/5
      Plot: Sadima is born in a world where magicians are just legends or frauds. Her father and brother hate magicians after one robbed them and left Sadima’s mother to die in childbirth. But Sadima may have true power; she can understand and speak with animals. When she encounters Franklin and Somiss who are trying to revive magic, she thinks that she has finally found people who can accept her for who she is. Centuries later, magic has been restored and Hahp has been sent to a mysterious school with 9 other boys where he is to be trained as a wizard. But this is nothing like the boarding schools he is used to. The wizards make it clear that only one of them will survive and any kind of cooperation will be punished.The dual structure of the novel is a bit strange at first. The chapters alternate between the two narrators (even the style is different, Hahp’s chapters being in the first person and Sadima’s in the third, limited) and it almost feels like reading two different novels simultaneously. But slowly as the plot progresses, there start to be links between the two stories and this builds the tension quite effectively. I picked this book up on a whim (it was the title, I admit) but once I started it, I couldn’t put it down. My one complaint is that the first volume ends quite abruptly. It cannot stand on its own.
    • 5/5
      This first book in A Resurrection of Magic series introduces us to Sadima, a girl brought up to hate magicians because of a family tragedy. So of course she is destined to fall in love with one. Her story alternates between another that takes place sometime in the future about a boy forced by his family into a sequestered and inhumane wizard academy. I loved the writing, the story, and the mystery of this book. I'm going right into the sequel, Sacred Scars. I'd recommend this book for teens at ninth grade and up (and adults as well).
    • 4/5
      A clever book that mixes two worlds (one where magic is accepted and another where it's not) into one. The mix doesn't truly appear until later in the book, actually near the end. Duey's writing is strong, her characters are interesting and sympathetic and I will eventually read the next book in this series, because the first was more than interesting enough to make me want to know what happens next.
    • 4/5
      Written in alternative chapters this story of a girl who lives in a world where magic is frowned on, ridiculed and punished and a boy where magic is rampant but to become a magician you have to survive the school. A place where you starve until you work out how to create your own food, a place where your other classmates disappear and where you're told only one of you will go on to become a magician.Hahp is one of these students, a disappointment to his parents this is his last recourse. He learns but can he learn quickly enough. Sadima is from the earlier time, her mother died giving birth to her and only for her dedicated brother she wouldn't have survived much longer. She can hear animals speak to her. When opportunity brings her to the big city she finds herself with Franklin and Somiss and their obsession to discover the truth about magic. The cost may be too high.The story ends on a cliffhanger and I really do want to know what happens next.
    • 4/5
      This was immediately gripping - I usually dislike parallel narratives like this, and as usual, I was sorry when each segment came to and and and the stories swapped, but when the ties between the stories became clearer, I hurtled through with a feeling of horror and dread. The endings came far too soon, and I have a million questions, and I really need to find out what happens next.
    • 5/5
      The first in the series, the only complaint that I have is that I want more! This story goes back and forth between two characters, one from the past and one from the present. The boy in the present is one out of ten boys to be chosen to become a wizard, but it's not all fun and Harry Potter-like. These boys are often starved until they can complete tasks and they cannot bathe or go outside. They are lucky if they can find their way back to their room. The character from the past is a young woman who has found herself meeting one of the wizards to be and finds herself following him to his city after her father dies. What she doesn't realize is the man she loves is owned by another, more fierce character who is obsessed with finding the origins of magic. Overall, the book was just a fascinating read, pulling you in and making you long for more.
    • 4/5
      This story is told in alternating chapters, focusing on two different characters. The first is Sadima, whose mother died when the magician who was paid to help with her birthing instead robbed them of everything in the room and left Sadima for dead. Both her brother and father have a fiere hatred for fake magicians after that. When Sadima discovers that she can communicate with animals, she doesn't tell her family. Later, when a stranger named Franklin comes to see her, she feels instant companionship through the act of sharing her story honestly with him. Later, when her father dies, she decides to find Franklin. He is living with a half crazed man named Somiss, who is determined to bring magic back to the world. He is secretly pursuing this knowledge and spends most of the days tracking down rhythms and words from the gypsies. Sadima works her way into their gratitude by cleaning and cooking and later copying for them. She loves Franklin, but cannot persuade him to leave Somiss, who actually owns him.The second story is set centuries later when magic has been restored, but is available only to the wealthy. A young boy, Hahp, quite unwillingly, is sent to the wizard academy, where he and nine other boys will compete to be the one boy who manages to survive the tasks Somiss and Franklin set for them. The wizard school has no resemblance to any magic school you've ever heard described. The boys who fail to learn what they're expected to learn - die. The cave they live in is dark, and mysterious, and filled with twisting turning passageways. Their existence is a friendless one, and they are punished severely for helping each other. Hahp manages to survive through a bit of help he gets from Gerrard, a peasant boy who is his roomate, and Levan, an old friend from school. When book one ends, Sadima, Franklin and Somiss have had to flee their residence when locals set the building on fire, and Gerrard and Hahp have agreed to secretly help each other and plan to destroy the academy and find a way to escape with their lives. I hadn't paid attention to the fact that the book was a series, so the ending was extremely unsatisfying. I also think that the story being told in alternating chapters, indicated by a picture of a girl running or a picture of a boy leaning against a cave wall, would be quite confusing for some readers. It would be beneficial to let a weaker reader know that this is the way the book is organized. It also drags in a few places - specifically the times when Sadima is copying text and begging Franklin to leave Somiss. I found myself wishing she would just break free of him and find a happier life. Given the tiny, tiny bit of affection Franklin bestows upon Sadima, I don't understand why she feels such a kinship with him. I sure wouldn't be staying with him!
    • 4/5
      Interesting, confusing and bleak. Read for Mock Printz.
    • 4/5
      This book was extremely compelling at the end, but then had no conclusion of the story, as it is to be continued in the sequel, so I was frustrated at the end of the book. The rest of the book I thought moved very slowly, with not much really happening. There are some mature themes in the book, so I would recommend it for mature teens. I am looking forward to the sequel and my curiosity is definitely aroused. The book has to do with a character who is obsessed with returning magic to the world, seemingly for good reasons, yet the means he goes to in order to do this are questionable. Point of view and time-frame vary from chapter to chapter with two linked stories that we are not exactly sure how they fit together. Interesting, yes...but some patience will needed to endure the slow story and the need to wait for the sequel to get resolution.
    • 5/5
      A wonderful cross-time tale of a country without magic, the people who brought it back, and Hell's horrible counterpart to Hogwarts. It may take a little while to figure out what is going on, but as the story unfolds, you're torn between wanting to stay with one story and aching to move on to the next.
    • 5/5
      I really wish the second book in this series was already out. I hate having to wait!!

      The book follows two different characters, Sadima and Hahp, who live in different time periods but whose stories are intertwined. Sadima's world is one almost devoid of magic; the kings banished and killed the magicians long ago. In Hahp's world, magic has been restored and is used for everything by those who have the means. Hahp is chosen to go to a special Academy along with 9 other boys. One of them will graduate to become a wizard, but first they have to survive.

      I can't wait to see what happens next, especially given the ending!!
    • 5/5
      When I first read the description for Skin Hunger, it sounded intriguing. Now, having finished the book, I can definitely say intriguing is only the tip of the iceberg. This was a very unusual fantasy set in a world of wizards much crueler and warped than anything Harry Potter could have dreamed of. In actuality this is really two separate stories in one, paradoxically intertwined by common characters in a way not completely revealed, at least not in this first volume.In the first part we are introduced to Sadima, saved and raised by her brother who loves her but cannot believe in her gifts. The second story is of a businessman's youngest son, Hahp, who is sent to a strange and horrifying academy to learn wizardry, or die trying. I would hate to give anything more than this away as I believe the story is best read with blinders on going in.I will say that it is a very dark, well written, young adult fantasy. It is descriptive but not overwhelmingly complex. The author feeds you clues, bits and pieces as the story goes along, that reveal how tightly woven the two stories are. Although this seems like it would be frustrating, the result is actually quite engrossing. There is a little bit of romance in here, although I would not, by any stretch of the imagination, say this is a girly tale, and it actually feels a bit fatalistic. You're left highly questioning the possibility of a happy ending which is unusual, and a little disconcerting, but adds to the overall tone of the book. After reading one of this author's earlier works and not being totally impressed, I have to say that I was surprised by how much I enjoyed the storytelling here. Although this is another series starter which leaves off on a cliffhanger ending, I didn't find it as objectionable as I have with other series in the past.I'd highly recommend this story to teens and adults, both guys and girls, who enjoy dark fantasy stories with a cerebral edge and don't overly mind being left to wonder what will happen next.