A review by talknerdybookblog
Legacy of Shadows by Tessa Hale

adventurous dark emotional lighthearted mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

Representation: Polyamorous Heroine, Asian-American side character

Safety Rating: Not Safe

• No cheating
• Does have OW drama
- Trace is an incubus and, therefore, feeds off sex. The Heroine catches him fingering one of the Heroine's BULLIES. His dumb rationale is that he only has sex with ppl he hates cuz he hates himself, but there are so many other ppl he could hook up with who aren't actively bullying HIS FATED MATE. 🤮🤮🤮
- Queen Bee/the mean girl of the school, is thought to be the Anchor of the Heroine's mates (basically, the anchor stabilizes their powers and ensures they won't go mad once they reach 21). It's very rare for the fated mate to not also be the Anchor but cuz of *reasons*, the Heroine doesn't have an Anchor mark. The Heroine, therefore, feels guilty cuz if the men choose her, there's a chance they'll lose their minds. But, what I didn't get was that the few times in the past when the Anchor was chosen over the fated mate, they still went mad cuz they didn't have their fated mate. Soooo, why not take a risk and be happy instead of taking a risk and being miserable?
• Does have Trace pushing the Heroine away
• Does have a separation at the end
- Heroine finds out the big secret her men have been keeping from her and decides to end the relationship by running away. But something happens before she can leave.


Possible Triggers: Yes

• Child abuse
- Heroine was physically and emotionally abused by her mom. This includes a flashback to when she was 16, and her mom burned her with boiling water.
• Threat of molestation 
- Heroine was sexually harassed by her mom's boyfriend
• Physical violence
• Death of Heroine's father recounted
• Kidnapping
• Bullying (extreme)
• Panic attacks
• Torture
• Sexual assault


Ending:
Cliffhanger. Heroine is kidnapped by Big Bad #1 right after learning her mates always knew where she was - and who she was to them - and only decided to come back into her life upon learning she was being abused. Their logic was that their world was too dangerous for someone with no powers - but this feeds into the Heroine's insecurity that the only reason they wanted her when she had no powers was cuz she was being abused at home. Essentially over-riding her right to make her own decision about whether she wanted to be with them or not.