Review by krystalize - Oathbound

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krystalize 's review for:

Oathbound by Tracy Deonn

5.0

adventurous dark emotional hopeful 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

Tracy Deonn has done it again. Just when I was nervous that the third book in the cycle wasn’t going to hold a candle to the ones before it, I was proven wrong. This book was far better than the first and the second, saying something about five star reads. It was everything a good story should be and I love seeing who is Bree is becoming. She is truly becoming herself and I am in enthralled in who she will be and where she will go. Having a coming of age story like this where black girls are truly magic, while continuing to explain the world around us in a way that makes sense. I long to find the root within me and no longer cage my furnace, but open it wide for every person to feel.

Bree being trained by the Shadow King brought me a mix of emotion. Like Bree I learned how to trust and lean on an enemy. Initially I was brought comfort by his training and her connections with the twins, but ultimately like Zoelle, I learned he was the enemy. Bree’s missing knowledge wasn’t just a story telling device, but it made it clear without her past Bree was still herself. No one can take that from her. Nick and Will becoming stronger versions of themselves, supporting Bree publicly and calling for the Order to address their own racism is strong and the work of an ally. Mariah and Valec’s work to help Bree no matter made clear the person Bree is and speaks volumes of her allies. Mariah, Bree, and Nick’s reunions at Penumbra reignited what made the first book so special. How Bree is the ability to seamlessly move between spaces and support others. I also loved the plot device of the young Rootcrafter girls and the reason they are taken to explain the countless real missing black girls that the news doesn’t cover moved me in ways I can never explain. The ultimate ending of Bree’s reclamation of her soul while choosing to lose Alice broke a piece of me. Who has Bree become? It’s the first time she’s chosen herself over anyone else, but why not choose the person who has been beside her the whole time. Lastly, Selwyn being the Shadow Prince was not on my Bingo Card, but can you truly predict Tracy Deonn’s next move? All being said, I’m reading for the next book in the Legendborn Cycle.

Content Warnings