A review by naomi006
Bloodmarked, by Tracy Deonn
5.0
A must read for anyone who loves YA fantasy and that enjoyed the first book!
When I started writing the review I wanted to say something about every aspect of this book. The light shined on racism and what struggles “first” people of color have to go thro, the overall plot that twists and turns and doesn’t leave you bored for even a second, the romance that made my heart burn and squeal like a little girl. I wanted to share how much I appreciated usage of all the well known romance and fantasy tropes, which would always be broken down for a wave of fresh, nontoxic air. All of this would take me so much written text that I didn’t think it was needed to simply say that this book was outstanding and worth reading.
In this story there is no space for a toxic love interest. Instead we get young people, who make mistakes, but are also able to acknowledge that what they did was wrong, apologize and learn from it. All of that within a few chapters or pages, not books. You can see all of them growing and it feel so rewarding.
William also gets more depth. He doesn't only heal and support, he is also there to ground Bree and make her realize that she was wrong and doesn’t let her off the hook easily. He does that while still being a good friend, without any of the typical unneeded conflict between friends.
Bree makes some very stupid and childish decisions at the beginning, which frustrated me and made me question if it’s the same person I known from the first book. Truth is, no many teenagers would have handled any of what happened so far as well as she did. In the rush of all the action I made her to be at least tweeny in my head, but this book reminded me of the truth. She is in the middle of a war, while demons want to rip her heart out and humans want to lock her up and control her.
Last thoughts,
To be honest with myself, all three of them are the end game for me. Together they feel unstoppable and right. At the same time I’m scared that for Bree to be happy with either one of them, the other has to back out. At this point I’m heavily team Sel, but never say never!
I love the self discovery that Bree went thro, claiming the empower as her own and separating from the expectations of any ghosts from her lines. ALSO, can we talk for a minute about her have a root created wings? Dragon form? Ekhem, dragons never die and she better keep to that saying. Because having her a dragon in this story would make it simply perfect. One, I love dragons, two, it would fit her so well. Our fierce, never stopping, brave Bree.
When I started writing the review I wanted to say something about every aspect of this book. The light shined on racism and what struggles “first” people of color have to go thro, the overall plot that twists and turns and doesn’t leave you bored for even a second, the romance that made my heart burn and squeal like a little girl. I wanted to share how much I appreciated usage of all the well known romance and fantasy tropes, which would always be broken down for a wave of fresh, nontoxic air. All of this would take me so much written text that I didn’t think it was needed to simply say that this book was outstanding and worth reading.
In this story there is no space for a toxic love interest. Instead we get young people, who make mistakes, but are also able to acknowledge that what they did was wrong, apologize and learn from it. All of that within a few chapters or pages, not books. You can see all of them growing and it feel so rewarding.
William also gets more depth. He doesn't only heal and support, he is also there to ground Bree and make her realize that she was wrong and doesn’t let her off the hook easily. He does that while still being a good friend, without any of the typical unneeded conflict between friends.
Bree makes some very stupid and childish decisions at the beginning, which frustrated me and made me question if it’s the same person I known from the first book. Truth is, no many teenagers would have handled any of what happened so far as well as she did. In the rush of all the action I made her to be at least tweeny in my head, but this book reminded me of the truth. She is in the middle of a war, while demons want to rip her heart out and humans want to lock her up and control her.
Spoiler
She cannot feel at rest even for one day, even on her birthday. The trauma that is inflicted on her in this book is easily enough to break a person into pieces that cannot be put back together. Yet she stands back up and pushes every step of the way until the end. Bree knows now the taste of betrayal from many fronts and something tells me that it’s not the end of it.Last thoughts,
Spoiler
I’m hungry to find out how Sel is gonna come back from how lost he is right now. I know for certain that he is the end game for me, so I don’t even consider that he will be lost. [Yes, I'm no longer team Nick]To be honest with myself, all three of them are the end game for me. Together they feel unstoppable and right. At the same time I’m scared that for Bree to be happy with either one of them, the other has to back out. At this point I’m heavily team Sel, but never say never!
I love the self discovery that Bree went thro, claiming the empower as her own and separating from the expectations of any ghosts from her lines. ALSO, can we talk for a minute about her have a root created wings? Dragon form? Ekhem, dragons never die and she better keep to that saying. Because having her a dragon in this story would make it simply perfect. One, I love dragons, two, it would fit her so well. Our fierce, never stopping, brave Bree.