Review: Legendborn

Legendborn by Tracy Deonn
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Thank you to Simon & Schuster for approving an ARC copy of this for me!

This comes out on September the 15th, so check it out if you are interested!

~*~*~

I had a *lot* of fun reading this book and I recommend that people give it a shot :D

I will be honest and say that at first this book got off to a rough start for me, mostly because we’re thrown right into the story with a grieving Bree and we’re learning at the same time that she does. An author has to be careful to introduce this the right way, and there were times when I was a bit confused as to what was going on or trying to wrap my head around things.

However in spite of this rocky beginning, the book really builds upon itself and constructs a fascinating world that’s based on famous legends but brings its own unique twist to it. What I really loved about this book is that this take is truly interesting on its own merit, it’s not just relying on the strength of the legend to carry the book and capture our attention and keep it. Retellings abound in fantasy and I love it when we get one that is well constructed and the author truly has their own voice and breathes new life into it. The familiar is there, but so is new stuff to be intrigued by!

Bree as a character is someone who I could instantly sympathize with. She’s lost her mother and she has so much rage and pain inside her, and a desire to do something that will somehow make up for her mother’s death. This sometimes means that her choices aren’t the best, but they’re still understandable and relatable. She's human and she's a teenager who has lost her mother, who happens to be dealing with some pretty crazy and weird stuff going on. She has her faults but she is also strong in a lot of ways and well rounded, which I really enjoyed.

This book also takes racism by the horns and I appreciated that. It’s not the forefront of the story but it is woven through it because it reflects how things actually are here and now for girls like Bree and POC in general. There may be all sorts of supernatural things in this book but she still lives in our world, and deals with our reality. And oh, I loved how strong Bree was and how she didn’t take shit from anyone. She’s not afraid to speak up for herself, and that bravery extends from calling out racist behaviour to fighting off creatures trying to kill her.

Some of the other characters fell a lot short for me (the best friend is kind of shitty, and we have the usual trope of 'all the guys are gorgeous', but nothing too bad. The cast is diverse and I'm looking forward to learning more!

View all my reviews