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A review by _artemis
Legendborn by Tracy Deonn
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
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? It's complicated
5.0
As a fantasy lover I have not been able to avoid people's love for this series - but i did manage to avoid any and all spoilers! Whew because I enjoyed every twist and turn. This book deserves every ounce of praise and love it's gotten. I tore through it in a day and while I read a lot, I wouldn't consider myself a very fast reader. This book is big! But I couldn't get enough!
I don't usually read a ton of YA fantasy (all other fantasy, yes), so yes, this definitely felt more youthful than my typical reads. But the story is so well written, the emotional depth is so rich, the banter/dialogue so spot on, that I didn't find myself minding it at all. Obviously always down for more kissing, but I can just keep my fingers crossed for book 2 haha.
I knew this book would be in my top reads of 2023 (it's February 1st) when the prologue made me cry. I have so many breathtaking, beautiful lines highlighted about grief, losing yourself, and finding yourself again from this book. Many fantasy books attempt to explore these big themes and the unmaking and remaking of their protagonist and the grand majority don't usually succeed... Legendborn without question does.
The world building and magic system is super fun, but I agree with other reviews that say you really have to pay attention. I'm a fan of complex magic systems tho so this was a treat to puzzle out. I think things were nicely woven, foreshadowed, revealed. And there still feels like so much we/Bree need to learn, which is actually great. It feels like there is so much momentum/steam for two more books. I have read enough fantasy that draws from the King Arthur legend to have my bearings, but I actually think this book dives further into the legend than most (there's a lot of welsh that I just happily gave up any hope of being able to pronounce in my head lol) so I wasn't puzzling together what all the eventual reveals would end up being.
The twists and turns had me actually jaw dropping — red herrings I spotted were genuinely forgotten until they came up again. It's masterful story weaving and I do not know how the author herself keeps it all straight. But I'm grateful we can trust her to know where she's going and we get to come along for the ride.
I love the characters and I love how this contemporary fantasy looks the genre itself in the eyes when it comes to conversations around race, sex, and gender. I did not know how delightfully queer this book was going to be either. All in all, I feel like we've all waited a long time for a masterpiece like Legendborn to come along and I only wish I had been able to read this when I was a YA. But that being said, I'm so happy I got to read it now.
So grateful I already have Bloodmarked purchased and ready to go so I can keep this world going!
I don't usually read a ton of YA fantasy (all other fantasy, yes), so yes, this definitely felt more youthful than my typical reads. But the story is so well written, the emotional depth is so rich, the banter/dialogue so spot on, that I didn't find myself minding it at all. Obviously always down for more kissing, but I can just keep my fingers crossed for book 2 haha.
I knew this book would be in my top reads of 2023 (it's February 1st) when the prologue made me cry. I have so many breathtaking, beautiful lines highlighted about grief, losing yourself, and finding yourself again from this book. Many fantasy books attempt to explore these big themes and the unmaking and remaking of their protagonist and the grand majority don't usually succeed... Legendborn without question does.
The world building and magic system is super fun, but I agree with other reviews that say you really have to pay attention. I'm a fan of complex magic systems tho so this was a treat to puzzle out. I think things were nicely woven, foreshadowed, revealed. And there still feels like so much we/Bree need to learn, which is actually great. It feels like there is so much momentum/steam for two more books. I have read enough fantasy that draws from the King Arthur legend to have my bearings, but I actually think this book dives further into the legend than most (there's a lot of welsh that I just happily gave up any hope of being able to pronounce in my head lol) so I wasn't puzzling together what all the eventual reveals would end up being.
The twists and turns had me actually jaw dropping — red herrings I spotted were genuinely forgotten until they came up again. It's masterful story weaving and I do not know how the author herself keeps it all straight. But I'm grateful we can trust her to know where she's going and we get to come along for the ride.
I love the characters and I love how this contemporary fantasy looks the genre itself in the eyes when it comes to conversations around race, sex, and gender. I did not know how delightfully queer this book was going to be either. All in all, I feel like we've all waited a long time for a masterpiece like Legendborn to come along and I only wish I had been able to read this when I was a YA. But that being said, I'm so happy I got to read it now.
So grateful I already have Bloodmarked purchased and ready to go so I can keep this world going!