taylorreadsbooks's review against another edition
3.0
I much prefer the Betty Crew.
Also the ending felt really rushed and didn't have much closure. Is there supposed to be a 5th book?
Also the ending felt really rushed and didn't have much closure. Is there supposed to be a 5th book?
cherrycoeur's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
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
3.5
jas_crawford's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
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
4.0
chloeajohnsen's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
daniellehuffine's review against another edition
5.0
I fell in love with the Darkest Minds series and this book was even better! I can't put into words how much these characters and storyline means to me. Thank you Alexandra Bracken for creating an amazing world with the Darkest Minds trilogy and continuing to travel through it with The Darkest Legacy. I suggest that everyone read this book and all her other works- they are truly masterpieces.
bubbataylor's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
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? No
4.0
maddiem_'s review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
tense
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
theoriginalbookdragon's review against another edition
4.0
I am... very confused.
Honestly, I don’t even know where to begin with "The Darkest Legacy;" that’s part of the reason why I’m writing this so far past my finish date. Not only did this book confuse me, but it also killed a little bit of the joy that had been sparked by the original story. Ugh…it kills me to say that; but sadly, it’s true. Although telling the story from Zu’s perspective was a fun and creative twist to "The Darkest Minds" world that we all know and love, the way Alexandra Bracken executed it was not what I was expecting. Now, I don’t mean to dis Bracken; she is an amazing writer, and always will be revered with great esteem in my book. But between the flashbacks, inconsistent pacing and a long-loved story falling to pieces, I found it hard to really get myself lost in this book.
First up: the flashbacks. The jumping between timelines confused me; the beginning especially. Right off the bat, it was very hard for me to get a clear image in my mind of not just seventeen- or eighteen-year-old Zu, but also of the other characters that have all the sudden been thrown into our story. Then, suddenly, we flash back to before, learn about a key event—one that would have been helpful earlier on, to create a better picture of the scene—then jump back to the present, leaving the reader to try and piece the information back together into one, cohesive plot. It was puzzling, to say the least.
Then there’s what was happening during the flashbacks. To be honest, it was hard to want to read a book where the characters you know and love so much are just…falling apart. First Liam and Ruby mysteriously disappear, leaving Zu, Chubs and Vida without their best friends; then suddenly, they reappear again, only to have Lee and Chubs get into a ruthless fight, and then bam! No one’s talking to each other! Not even Ruby and Zu, who didn’t have a single thing to do with the reason behind the boys’ fight! It was quite frustrating; but, to be fair, it made each and every one of the characters’ reunions and makeups with each other that much more heartwarming. Per usual, they were all unique, which only added to my enjoyment of them; if I had to pick a favorite, though, I think it would have to be Chubs and Liam’s: “Don’t fight the twirl.” Really—it’s enough to put a smile on anyone’s face.
As to the pacing of the novel, I felt as though it was a bit inconsistent. I was rather disappointed to discover this; the bookish side of me got all excited when I found out the novel was close to 600 pages long. But between the long stretches of time spent in the car and the few and far between action scenes, it was hard to get myself going with the story, if that makes sense. My irritation at this grew as I made my way through the story; however, the lack of essential information irked me even more. I understand that part of the restraint was put on to create a hook to keep me reading, but it felt like some of it was held back purely for the reason of keeping the book going, which, by the time I was about three-quarters of the way through the book, kind of started to get on my nerves.
Next up, the ending. The ending, to me, seemed rushed—very rushed. If I’m being completely honest, I think that the book would have concluded much better if there was no epilogue (when Roman and Lana are found), and the rescue of Ruby and the rest of Leda Corp’s test subjects sparked the beginning of a new book. Although this would have meant a whole ton of more work on Alexandra Bracken and her team’s end, when Zu stuck that sticky-note down, it felt like a natural ending. Like that was it—end of story. Now that (mostly) everything was resolved, in the next book Zu, Priyanka and Max would start their quest to find their friends while Chubs, Liam and Vida worked to rebuild Ruby, as well as the life they shattered by going their separate ways. But no—there was an epilogue, which ended with an amazing final sentence, might I add. The epilogue also seemed to leave a whole lot of open ends. For instance, were Zu and the others successful in their efforts to take down Blue Star? Did Roman and Lana recover from their malnourishment? And what about the kids from Haven, and the rest of the Black Betty team’s lives? Did things get better for them, or worse?
And Ruby—oh, Ruby. While I did enjoy the fact that the story didn’t entirely revolve around her, I wish we could have gotten to see how she was doing five years after her initial trauma (outside of Zu’s flashbacks). Also, I have questions. Lots of questions. For example, how in the world did Leda Corp get a hold of her? I mean, she evaded capture for quite a while during the original trilogy, so what impaired her instincts now? And since when is Clancy regaining his memory? Ruby’s capture, along with her path to (accidentally) getting there, seemed to leave a few holes that may or may not have been intentional. On the plus side, though, we got a glimpse of how the other characters’ chemistry worked without her—which is to say, basically the same, save the added worries of Liam about our leading lady.
Although I felt that there were a few undesirable aspects of this novel, I have to admit that it was nice to revisit the world of "The Darkest Minds." Alexandra Bracken has done it again; and, hopefully, will never cease to entrap her ever-willing readers into her web of epic writing skills.
Honestly, I don’t even know where to begin with "The Darkest Legacy;" that’s part of the reason why I’m writing this so far past my finish date. Not only did this book confuse me, but it also killed a little bit of the joy that had been sparked by the original story. Ugh…it kills me to say that; but sadly, it’s true. Although telling the story from Zu’s perspective was a fun and creative twist to "The Darkest Minds" world that we all know and love, the way Alexandra Bracken executed it was not what I was expecting. Now, I don’t mean to dis Bracken; she is an amazing writer, and always will be revered with great esteem in my book. But between the flashbacks, inconsistent pacing and a long-loved story falling to pieces, I found it hard to really get myself lost in this book.
First up: the flashbacks. The jumping between timelines confused me; the beginning especially. Right off the bat, it was very hard for me to get a clear image in my mind of not just seventeen- or eighteen-year-old Zu, but also of the other characters that have all the sudden been thrown into our story. Then, suddenly, we flash back to before, learn about a key event—one that would have been helpful earlier on, to create a better picture of the scene—then jump back to the present, leaving the reader to try and piece the information back together into one, cohesive plot. It was puzzling, to say the least.
Then there’s what was happening during the flashbacks. To be honest, it was hard to want to read a book where the characters you know and love so much are just…falling apart. First Liam and Ruby mysteriously disappear, leaving Zu, Chubs and Vida without their best friends; then suddenly, they reappear again, only to have Lee and Chubs get into a ruthless fight, and then bam! No one’s talking to each other! Not even Ruby and Zu, who didn’t have a single thing to do with the reason behind the boys’ fight! It was quite frustrating; but, to be fair, it made each and every one of the characters’ reunions and makeups with each other that much more heartwarming. Per usual, they were all unique, which only added to my enjoyment of them; if I had to pick a favorite, though, I think it would have to be Chubs and Liam’s: “Don’t fight the twirl.” Really—it’s enough to put a smile on anyone’s face.
As to the pacing of the novel, I felt as though it was a bit inconsistent. I was rather disappointed to discover this; the bookish side of me got all excited when I found out the novel was close to 600 pages long. But between the long stretches of time spent in the car and the few and far between action scenes, it was hard to get myself going with the story, if that makes sense. My irritation at this grew as I made my way through the story; however, the lack of essential information irked me even more. I understand that part of the restraint was put on to create a hook to keep me reading, but it felt like some of it was held back purely for the reason of keeping the book going, which, by the time I was about three-quarters of the way through the book, kind of started to get on my nerves.
Next up, the ending. The ending, to me, seemed rushed—very rushed. If I’m being completely honest, I think that the book would have concluded much better if there was no epilogue (when Roman and Lana are found), and the rescue of Ruby and the rest of Leda Corp’s test subjects sparked the beginning of a new book. Although this would have meant a whole ton of more work on Alexandra Bracken and her team’s end, when Zu stuck that sticky-note down, it felt like a natural ending. Like that was it—end of story. Now that (mostly) everything was resolved, in the next book Zu, Priyanka and Max would start their quest to find their friends while Chubs, Liam and Vida worked to rebuild Ruby, as well as the life they shattered by going their separate ways. But no—there was an epilogue, which ended with an amazing final sentence, might I add. The epilogue also seemed to leave a whole lot of open ends. For instance, were Zu and the others successful in their efforts to take down Blue Star? Did Roman and Lana recover from their malnourishment? And what about the kids from Haven, and the rest of the Black Betty team’s lives? Did things get better for them, or worse?
And Ruby—oh, Ruby. While I did enjoy the fact that the story didn’t entirely revolve around her, I wish we could have gotten to see how she was doing five years after her initial trauma (outside of Zu’s flashbacks). Also, I have questions. Lots of questions. For example, how in the world did Leda Corp get a hold of her? I mean, she evaded capture for quite a while during the original trilogy, so what impaired her instincts now? And since when is Clancy regaining his memory? Ruby’s capture, along with her path to (accidentally) getting there, seemed to leave a few holes that may or may not have been intentional. On the plus side, though, we got a glimpse of how the other characters’ chemistry worked without her—which is to say, basically the same, save the added worries of Liam about our leading lady.
Although I felt that there were a few undesirable aspects of this novel, I have to admit that it was nice to revisit the world of "The Darkest Minds." Alexandra Bracken has done it again; and, hopefully, will never cease to entrap her ever-willing readers into her web of epic writing skills.
hannas_heas47's review against another edition
3.0
Thanks to Bookishfirsts for an ARC to read and give my humble opinion.
My first read in this series and I had no idea it was a series. Sometimes I just pick up a book because it looks good and this was one of those. I was hopelessly lost. This is the fourth book and there is no way to do this book justice because I had not read the first three in the series. I don't know how I missed that and I feel bad that I took this book from someone who maybe had read the first three. As it was the fourth book was not the place to pick up the series.
Zu is ambushed at a speaking conference and has to go on the run until she can clear her name. This book details her battles to clear her name and find her friends. Has some great world building and strong story lines but I was so bored. So I'm giving it a three star rating and bowing out.
My first read in this series and I had no idea it was a series. Sometimes I just pick up a book because it looks good and this was one of those. I was hopelessly lost. This is the fourth book and there is no way to do this book justice because I had not read the first three in the series. I don't know how I missed that and I feel bad that I took this book from someone who maybe had read the first three. As it was the fourth book was not the place to pick up the series.
Zu is ambushed at a speaking conference and has to go on the run until she can clear her name. This book details her battles to clear her name and find her friends. Has some great world building and strong story lines but I was so bored. So I'm giving it a three star rating and bowing out.