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sambolin's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Legendborn took a minute to get into. Much like the main character there was a lot of world building to catch onto. It was extremely rich in lore and the world. But at the beginning it was dense, and a little hard to get into. As Bree figures things out (and we do too) the pace picks up and is a non-stop read. I loved the twists this author incorporated. Even more so, my favorite part was the intricate weaving of generational trauma and microagressions- in a way that felt real and not teachy or preachy to readers. It wasn’t glossed over or forgotten- it was clear throughout.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism and Death of parent
Moderate: Violence, Death, Grief, and Racial slurs
Minor: Sexual violence
abisnail564's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Slavery, Murder, Death of parent, Racism, and War
Moderate: Rape, Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Sexual violence, Death, Sexism, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, and Pregnancy
lqne's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Car accident, War, Forced institutionalization, Racism, Slavery, Death of parent, and Grief
Moderate: Pregnancy, Rape, Hate crime, Medical content, Sexual violence, Violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Death, Kidnapping, Sexual assault, Racial slurs, and Sexism
Minor: Bullying
lesego_mashego's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Absolutely amazing book. I'm disappointed that I didn't pick it up sooner. It really resonated with me; Bree's emotions reflected mine. It's amazing (and painful) how much I related to the events of the book, even though it's mostly fantasy. "It's about Black motherhood and Black daughterhood" and it's a great read. A little hard to wrap your head around at times, but it's worth the struggle.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Slavery and Racial slurs
Moderate: Violence
Minor: Sexual violence
jasperdotpdf's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
So I've let my thoughts on this book steep a bit and I'm still really torn on what to rate this book, but I think 4 stars is a good compromise. I read this and Bloodmarked back to back so a portion of my thoughts on this are influenced by my opinion on the sequel, just FYI.
On one hand, there's a lot of small-ish things in this book that I didn't love. The worldbuilding was really interesting but at certain points it felt contrived and convoluted. The idea of these two "types" of magic existing in the Order and Rootcraft was really cool, but the attempt to make them not only coexist in the same book, but converge in the same character didn't work too well for me.
The worldbuilding was confusing, info-dumpey and yet there were still so many terms that were never really explained that I just had to figure out on my own.
I especially struggled with the way Rootcraft was handled. It was oftentimes depicted as the more "ethical" form of magic when contrasted with the Order that is saturated with elitism, greed and racism/colonial history. And while Legendborn often critiques these things very clearly and distinctly, the way Bree interacts with magic and the world around her feels almost contradictory to this. It seems like she oftentimes chooses the Order over the community of Rootcrafters. The way her relationships with Nick, Sel and William are explored much more deeply than with Mariah and Patricia are one of the primary examples for this.
I also felt like the cast of characters was a little too big. I barely remember half of them and care about even less, as it was really easy to lose track. Especially when just being introduced to the way the Order is structured and the way the worldbuilding works, all the minor characters and the titles were really overwhelming. By the end of the book (and Bloodmarked, for that matter) the focus is on a much smaller group of characters, and I think the book could've benefitted from reducing the cast down a bit from the beginning.
This is a super small point of critique but it was super noticeable when I read the book so I did just want to mention it. Bree passes out so. many. times. There's a copious amount of chapters that end in her losing consciousness and then waking up in the next chapter, and it treads a very fine line between funny and annoyingly overused. I digress.
Despite all of this, I adored reading Legendborn. It does such a great job of taking a lot of the core elements of 2010s YA that was super popular back then, like secret magic orders and love triangles, but giving them a lot more depth.
The way the book deals with grief is so wonderfully heartwrenching and painfully realistic.
Bree is a delightful protagonist and the main cast of characters is wonderfully developed.
Furthermore I do love that the book addresses topics like racism and colonialism, even if the execution in the worldbuilding didn't 100% work for me, because they so desperately need to be talked about. Having these discussions in a YA book is gonna bring a lot of young readers closer to a topic that's so important to talk and think about, and Legendborn did a great job at this.
Deonn's writing style is engaging and easy to follow, and had me so invested in these characters so quickly. This book had me staying up all night cheering for and crying with these characters. It had me running to the bookstore on a Saturday to get book 2 without having to wait until after the weekend to get the delivery in had I ordered it online.
It's not a perfect book, and bloated at times, but I cared so much about the characters and what would happen to them. I was constantly on the edge of my seat wanting to know what happened next, so I can't bear to give it any less than 4 stars, even with all the things I didn't love.
On one hand, there's a lot of small-ish things in this book that I didn't love. The worldbuilding was really interesting but at certain points it felt contrived and convoluted. The idea of these two "types" of magic existing in the Order and Rootcraft was really cool, but the attempt to make them not only coexist in the same book, but converge in the same character didn't work too well for me.
The worldbuilding was confusing, info-dumpey and yet there were still so many terms that were never really explained that I just had to figure out on my own.
I especially struggled with the way Rootcraft was handled. It was oftentimes depicted as the more "ethical" form of magic when contrasted with the Order that is saturated with elitism, greed and racism/colonial history. And while Legendborn often critiques these things very clearly and distinctly, the way Bree interacts with magic and the world around her feels almost contradictory to this. It seems like she oftentimes chooses the Order over the community of Rootcrafters. The way her relationships with Nick, Sel and William are explored much more deeply than with Mariah and Patricia are one of the primary examples for this.
I also felt like the cast of characters was a little too big. I barely remember half of them and care about even less, as it was really easy to lose track. Especially when just being introduced to the way the Order is structured and the way the worldbuilding works, all the minor characters and the titles were really overwhelming. By the end of the book (and Bloodmarked, for that matter) the focus is on a much smaller group of characters, and I think the book could've benefitted from reducing the cast down a bit from the beginning.
This is a super small point of critique but it was super noticeable when I read the book so I did just want to mention it. Bree passes out so. many. times. There's a copious amount of chapters that end in her losing consciousness and then waking up in the next chapter, and it treads a very fine line between funny and annoyingly overused. I digress.
Despite all of this, I adored reading Legendborn. It does such a great job of taking a lot of the core elements of 2010s YA that was super popular back then, like secret magic orders and love triangles, but giving them a lot more depth.
The way the book deals with grief is so wonderfully heartwrenching and painfully realistic.
Bree is a delightful protagonist and the main cast of characters is wonderfully developed.
Furthermore I do love that the book addresses topics like racism and colonialism, even if the execution in the worldbuilding didn't 100% work for me, because they so desperately need to be talked about. Having these discussions in a YA book is gonna bring a lot of young readers closer to a topic that's so important to talk and think about, and Legendborn did a great job at this.
Deonn's writing style is engaging and easy to follow, and had me so invested in these characters so quickly. This book had me staying up all night cheering for and crying with these characters. It had me running to the bookstore on a Saturday to get book 2 without having to wait until after the weekend to get the delivery in had I ordered it online.
It's not a perfect book, and bloated at times, but I cared so much about the characters and what would happen to them. I was constantly on the edge of my seat wanting to know what happened next, so I can't bear to give it any less than 4 stars, even with all the things I didn't love.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent and Racism
Moderate: Violence, Sexual violence, and Slavery
whewtaewoon's review against another edition
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Violence, Grief, Rape, Death of parent, Vomit, Alcohol, Car accident, Gore, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual violence, and Slavery
annie_tonk's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Death, War, Racism, Gore, Slavery, and Violence
Moderate: Sexual violence
chlo_po's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Magical. Mysterious. Powerful. From the wonderful characters to the palpable experiences of grief Deonn captures - I’m hooked on this series!
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Sexual violence, and Slavery
daniellelouise's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Slavery, and Violence
Minor: Sexual violence
britreads's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I'm going to try to organize my thoughts into clear 'likes' and 'dislikes.' Overall, I thought this was equal parts entertaining and frustrating. I will likely continue with the series, just to see where the story will end. But I'm not in a hurry to pick up the sequel.
What I liked:
What I liked:
- As someone who lost a parent at a young age, I really related to Bree's grief. I think her grief was familiar in some ways and different in others. I liked that her grief caused her to seek out answers to explain the senselessness of her mother's death and how when she finally received those answers, it forced her to finally acknowledge the loss. I also liked how Bree was aware that people don't know how to respond in a genuine or helpful way. Since so much of Bree's story is based on the loss of her mother, I would be interested in seeing if that continues to play a role throughout the series.
- Like other people, I liked Rootcraft and I wished there was more of it in the story. Though I hope Bree learns more about it in the sequel and in any other novels. I thought the memory walks were so unique and I liked how the different ancestors had distinct personalities.
What I didn't like:
- The romance and the setup for a future love triangle. I think the biggest obstacle for me when it comes to the romance is how quickly this story moves. From page 1 to the end, it has only been about three to four weeks. I understand that the strong feelings between Nick and Bree are explained near the end, but it didn't work for me. And given how Sel treated Bree for a majority of the book, I don't understand what she finds remotely attractive about him. I wish the romance didn't take up so much time in the spotlight because I felt that it distracted from a genuine exploration of grief and how it shows up for Black people, particularly Black girls and women.
- A lot of the characters associated with the Order blended together for me. There were some I can tell apart like Greer, Whitlock and William. But
when Fitz and Russ died near the end, I genuinely could not tell if there were present in the beginning of the book. I felt like their deaths were meant to be emotional and I just kept thinking 'who are you again?' - I also found the hierarchy within the Order to be very confusing. I know there's a table in the back explaining the different Lines of the Table (which some names hidden to avoid future spoilers). But there should have also been a glossary to explain some of the terms.
- Last, the depiction of racism and microaggressions were well down and I appreciated the conversation about how American institutions were built with slave labor. But it was so frustrating reading scenes were Bree is discriminated against. And she faced nearly every microaggression possible from people touching her hair without permission to someone nearly calling her a 'nappy headed bitch.' I'm wary of microaggressions in fiction because I always wonder who is it for and most times it feels like a way for authors of color to speak to white audiences. It's a complex topic and not intended for a book review. But Bree needs to find a Black community in future books. (That was another weird bit of disconnect for me...Bree faces all of this discrimination, acknowledges the discriminatory history of university and then never seeks out other Black students.)
I'll probably check out the sequel later this year or wait until the series is done to continue. But I am happy that so many people loved this story! I think a King Arthur inspired story centering a Black girl is such a good idea and I'm sad it didn't fully work for me.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racism and Death of parent
Minor: Slavery, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence