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ghostlyprince's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Gore, Grief, Hate crime, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Racism, Sexism, Slavery, Violence, Bullying, Child abuse, Colonisation, Death, Death of parent, and War
Moderate: Rape, Vomit, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Car accident, Kidnapping, and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Alcohol, Stalking, Body shaming, Classism, and Confinement
onefineelephant's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
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? Yes
4.5
9/10. I really enjoyed this book. It gave me chills, made me very emotional, and made me really care about the characters. I was taken on such a journey throughout this story. There were so many parts of the story that surprised me and added to the complexity of the plot. Each turn deepened the connections between the characters and the past. The Arthurian legend and the magic feel unique and compelling to me. I'm not really into love triangles, but this one feels very organic. I found this book from booktok and I knew it had racial tensions/racism as part of the plot, but since I like to go into books mostly blind, I was not expecting the story to address generational trauma and touch on the traumas of enslaved women. This is not a negative to me, but just not what I was expecting going into it. I figured the racial tensions would be more microaggressions and modern racist topics (which were also explored). I think this book will be even more interesting after already reading it for the first time.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Racism, War, Death of parent, Grief, Murder, Misogyny, Mental illness, Sexism, Blood, Body horror, Death, Medical content, Stalking, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Colonisation and Car accident
Minor: Rape, Alcohol, Kidnapping, Transphobia, and Slavery
This book deals with modern racism such as microaggressions and also generational trauma.dododenise's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
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
I liked it but there were a few things that made me stumble.
The plot development seemed a bit chaotic and messy. The way the mystery unfolded felt unsatisfying, which is why I was never fully hooked. Additionally, there were quite a few long and dry info dumps that where exhausting to get through. That could have been done a lot more elegantly.
There are a few very interesting characters, like Sel and William, but also a lot of characters that were severely abandoned. The cast of characters is big and it didn’t give them enough time. Most of them were just there, I didn’t care and forgot who they were.
The relationship dynamics were very interesting though. Very quickly I wanted to go read fanfiction and that’s always a good sign. The love triangle situation better be resolved with polyamory! It would be perfect.
This series certainly has a lot of potential. It has great ideas and world building.
The plot development seemed a bit chaotic and messy. The way the mystery unfolded felt unsatisfying, which is why I was never fully hooked. Additionally, there were quite a few long and dry info dumps that where exhausting to get through. That could have been done a lot more elegantly.
There are a few very interesting characters, like Sel and William, but also a lot of characters that were severely abandoned. The cast of characters is big and it didn’t give them enough time. Most of them were just there, I didn’t care and forgot who they were.
The relationship dynamics were very interesting though. Very quickly I wanted to go read fanfiction and that’s always a good sign. The love triangle situation better be resolved with polyamory! It would be perfect.
This series certainly has a lot of potential. It has great ideas and world building.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Death, Racism, Death of parent, and Grief
Moderate: Transphobia, Car accident, Murder, Slavery, Rape, Misogyny, Kidnapping, and Colonisation
Minor: 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
lillygabriella's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-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
Oh boy, I am glad I waited so long to read this. Since I got to the end to find a cliffhanger waiting for a sequel which I hope is out now.
This was a very interesting spin on Arthurian legends, and a scathing critique of the power wielded by secret society members. It is also and at it's core, a story of grief and coming to terms with that grief.
I don't like to drop spoilers in my reviews, so I will just close by saying that this is a really great book and I highly recommend it. The quarter star off from 5 is for dropping all that Welsh through the book and then not having a pronunciation guide at the end.
This was a very interesting spin on Arthurian legends, and a scathing critique of the power wielded by secret society members. It is also and at it's core, a story of grief and coming to terms with that grief.
I don't like to drop spoilers in my reviews, so I will just close by saying that this is a really great book and I highly recommend it. The quarter star off from 5 is for dropping all that Welsh through the book and then not having a pronunciation guide at the end.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Alcohol, Blood, Bullying, Car accident, Death, Death of parent, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Slavery, Violence, and Vomit
Minor: Rape, Sexual assault, and Kidnapping
patienceholmes's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
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
4.5
My only real criticism is that sometimes the messages were a little heavy handed. I think the author felt the need to make things very clear but in some bits it was a bit overdone and came off a little cringey. I think considering this is her first work though that’s totally understandable.
I personally found it a little too cliche with the romance aspects but I think so many people would love it for that and that’s personal taste.
Aside from that it was really great. I loved the focus on grief, I loved the magic system and learning how it all worked, I loved the way the characters were expanded on and delving deeper into their backstories.
I personally found it a little too cliche with the romance aspects but I think so many people would love it for that and that’s personal taste.
Aside from that it was really great. I loved the focus on grief, I loved the magic system and learning how it all worked, I loved the way the characters were expanded on and delving deeper into their backstories.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism, Grief, Racism, and Death of parent
Moderate: Kidnapping, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Gaslighting, Death, Abandonment, War, Slavery, Panic attacks/disorders, Murder, Misogyny, Car accident, and Bullying
Minor: Infidelity, Rape, Pregnancy, Child abuse, and Racial slurs
clairew97's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-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
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Infertility, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Racism, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Vomit, Body horror, Gore, Grief, Slavery, Violence, Abandonment, Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, Classism, Pregnancy, War, Murder, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Death, Alcohol, Cursing, Misogyny, Rape, Car accident, and Stalking
kimilyn's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
I’ve been hearing about this book for years. People raving about how good it is. Now that I think back no one ever mentioned any specifics.. probably because this book is actually pretty average. The magic system is interesting but it takes a while to understand it and there were a lot of info dumps and not many demonstrations.
Characters
The characters are pretty bland. Everyone has a nickname. Eg. Sar and Tor and Sel and Whitty. But there aren’t a lot of defining characteristics. It felt like everyone was just doing what the plot demanded and weren’t making choices based on their needs or wants. When certain characters were in mortal danger I didn’t really care because I didn’t know them enough to care.
The two main boys were your typical golden haired good boy and dark haired bad boy. Each with their own super-tragic-traumatic-secret-backstory. Given the way the two boys are connected I wouldn’t mind a little polyamory between the three of them… But I doubt the author will be brave enough to do that. Trad pub and all. unfortunate because that would have made them a lot more interesting besides them fulfilling their trope roles and being “omfg! 😳 so shmexy! 🥵 can’t focus 😍”
Bree just felt stupid. There were a couple things the author was going for here according to the author’s note. Related to trauma and secret magic reasons, but for me it just didn’t work. I didn’t ever know why Bree was doing what she was doing. And not in a fun way that made me want to know more. It was more in a frustrating way that made me want to quit reading. Also can someone go back and keep track of how many times she passed out at the end of a scene? because I’m pretty sure it was more than five.
Plot
According to the author’s note the goal was to center Bree’s relationship with her mother and ancestors. But to me the only thing that was centered were the boys she was obsessed with. There was definitely a focus on Bree wanting to find out what really happened to her mom, but that wasn’t about their relationship. That was just a mystery to solve that happened to make her spend time with the hot boys. The ancestors storyline picked up near the end but it didn’t really seem centered. More of an addendum.
Plot Twists/Reveals (No Spoilers)
I usually enjoy plot twists. But not when they come out of nowhere with no hints or setup. During the last fourth of the book it felt like every few pages was another reveal or twist. Some of them worked but some of them were kind of annoying because it felt like the author was just throwing everything at the wall to see what stuck. I’m sure it was well planned out but it was a lot and for me personally not everything hit in the way I think it was intended.
Worldbuilding
The whole Legendborn thing is a very interesting idea. But it was explained in either info dumps or from Bree magically connecting dots. It was very confusing for me for a lot of the book. I think I got most of it by the end but it took a lot to get there. I like exploring a fantasy world but every time there was a new pause in the story for another info dump I was just irritated.
Racism
Just to preface this I am a black woman and fantasy is my favorite genre. Any time I can see myself reflected in the genre is a win. This included. But I prefer when racism, especially anti-black racism, is left out completely. I get why it wasn’t here. Kind of a crucial piece of the story. but to me it could have been handled more intentionally.
The actual day-to-day racism Bree experienced felt like superficial representations. Most felt over the top or heavy-handed. Maybe my experiences with racism have been different from this author’s. But the racism I usually see is a lot more subtle when it’s face to face. More passive aggressive and disguised.
It also was weird that this was a very white, historic secret society, yet there were only one or two instances when someone made Bree feel unwelcome. From my experience it felt unrealistic. Places and people like that will make black people feel othered all day long. did you see Get Out? That was way more accurate. The looks, the comments, the body language. Wish there had been more of that here to emphasize Bree’s sense of not belonging.
And I know this book was long so there probably wasn’t room, but some nuance around the discussion of racism would have been nice. Like if either of her boyfriends had been unintentionally racist a few times so she could correct and educate them. Just a little more acknowledgment that everyone is a at least a bit racist, intentionally or not but that doesn’t make you a bad person if you learn from it and do better.
Diversity
There were five non-white characters in this book. And I think there were four LGBTQ+ characters.
It was weird to me that Bree kept talking about being black and wanting to connect with her heritage, but made no efforts to connect to black kids her age. Bree had zero black friends.
All the LGBTQ+ kids felt like afterthoughts. There was a non-binary kid and the vibe was that they were such a disruption and almost as much of an outsider as Bree. But it was just said, no one ever actually treated them any differently.
Final Thoughts
Like I said, for me this was average. Probably won’t pick up the rest of the series. But if you like a twist on Aurthurian Legend with a black lead, go for it.
**(Also am I crazy or is it weird that Bree is sixteen and her love interests are at least nineteen? That age gap is weird right?)
Characters
The characters are pretty bland. Everyone has a nickname. Eg. Sar and Tor and Sel and Whitty. But there aren’t a lot of defining characteristics. It felt like everyone was just doing what the plot demanded and weren’t making choices based on their needs or wants. When certain characters were in mortal danger I didn’t really care because I didn’t know them enough to care.
The two main boys were your typical golden haired good boy and dark haired bad boy. Each with their own super-tragic-traumatic-secret-backstory. Given the way the two boys are connected I wouldn’t mind a little polyamory between the three of them… But I doubt the author will be brave enough to do that. Trad pub and all. unfortunate because that would have made them a lot more interesting besides them fulfilling their trope roles and being “omfg! 😳 so shmexy! 🥵 can’t focus 😍”
Bree just felt stupid. There were a couple things the author was going for here according to the author’s note. Related to trauma and secret magic reasons, but for me it just didn’t work. I didn’t ever know why Bree was doing what she was doing. And not in a fun way that made me want to know more. It was more in a frustrating way that made me want to quit reading. Also can someone go back and keep track of how many times she passed out at the end of a scene? because I’m pretty sure it was more than five.
Plot
According to the author’s note the goal was to center Bree’s relationship with her mother and ancestors. But to me the only thing that was centered were the boys she was obsessed with. There was definitely a focus on Bree wanting to find out what really happened to her mom, but that wasn’t about their relationship. That was just a mystery to solve that happened to make her spend time with the hot boys. The ancestors storyline picked up near the end but it didn’t really seem centered. More of an addendum.
Plot Twists/Reveals (No Spoilers)
I usually enjoy plot twists. But not when they come out of nowhere with no hints or setup. During the last fourth of the book it felt like every few pages was another reveal or twist. Some of them worked but some of them were kind of annoying because it felt like the author was just throwing everything at the wall to see what stuck. I’m sure it was well planned out but it was a lot and for me personally not everything hit in the way I think it was intended.
Worldbuilding
The whole Legendborn thing is a very interesting idea. But it was explained in either info dumps or from Bree magically connecting dots. It was very confusing for me for a lot of the book. I think I got most of it by the end but it took a lot to get there. I like exploring a fantasy world but every time there was a new pause in the story for another info dump I was just irritated.
Racism
Just to preface this I am a black woman and fantasy is my favorite genre. Any time I can see myself reflected in the genre is a win. This included. But I prefer when racism, especially anti-black racism, is left out completely. I get why it wasn’t here. Kind of a crucial piece of the story. but to me it could have been handled more intentionally.
The actual day-to-day racism Bree experienced felt like superficial representations. Most felt over the top or heavy-handed. Maybe my experiences with racism have been different from this author’s. But the racism I usually see is a lot more subtle when it’s face to face. More passive aggressive and disguised.
It also was weird that this was a very white, historic secret society, yet there were only one or two instances when someone made Bree feel unwelcome. From my experience it felt unrealistic. Places and people like that will make black people feel othered all day long. did you see Get Out? That was way more accurate. The looks, the comments, the body language. Wish there had been more of that here to emphasize Bree’s sense of not belonging.
And I know this book was long so there probably wasn’t room, but some nuance around the discussion of racism would have been nice. Like if either of her boyfriends had been unintentionally racist a few times so she could correct and educate them. Just a little more acknowledgment that everyone is a at least a bit racist, intentionally or not but that doesn’t make you a bad person if you learn from it and do better.
Diversity
There were five non-white characters in this book. And I think there were four LGBTQ+ characters.
It was weird to me that Bree kept talking about being black and wanting to connect with her heritage, but made no efforts to connect to black kids her age. Bree had zero black friends.
All the LGBTQ+ kids felt like afterthoughts. There was a non-binary kid and the vibe was that they were such a disruption and almost as much of an outsider as Bree. But it was just said, no one ever actually treated them any differently.
Final Thoughts
Like I said, for me this was average. Probably won’t pick up the rest of the series. But if you like a twist on Aurthurian Legend with a black lead, go for it.
**(Also am I crazy or is it weird that Bree is sixteen and her love interests are at least nineteen? That age gap is weird right?)
Content Warnings
Moderate: Slavery, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Gore, Grief, Death, Blood, and Kidnapping
Minor: Alcohol, Death of parent, Racial slurs, Sexual assault, Classism, Colonisation, Pregnancy, Infertility, and Infidelity
idontlemonez's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
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
4.75
It takes a little time to get into it but once you get into it it's just <33
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Racism, and Death of parent
Moderate: Death, Racism, Hate crime, Kidnapping, and Car accident
Minor: Slavery
arangele's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
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? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Grief, Mental illness, and Racism
Moderate: Kidnapping