Bree Matthews is still reeling from the death of her mother in a car accident when she arrives on the campus of UNC for an early program for high school students.
On Bree's first night at UNC she witnesses a strange creature and comes across a secret society with a mage, which they call a 'Merlin', who wipes the memories of what Bree saw.
But Bree's memories return and she finds that she now has a new memory of the night her mother died, one that makes her think that it wasn't an accident that caused her mother's death.
Bree becomes more involved with the secret society and its Legendborn members, learning about their links to King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table.
Bree will have to decide how far she is willing to go to find out the truth of what happened to her mother and whether she will join the society's fight or burn them down.

Going into a book as hyped as this one is always a bit daunting, especially as I tend to have quite unpopular opinions when it comes to hyped books, but I was looking forward to reading this.
Bree was a likeable and relatable protagonist who was having a very hard time coping with her mother's death. She did make some questionable choices, but I put that down to Bree being grief-stricken. I could understand her need to find out what happened to her mother, but I'm not sure if I would have been as willing to risk as much as Bree did if I'd been in her shoes (but again she wasn't in the best state of mind). While I did like Bree, I don't feel that I fully connected to her or any of the other characters in the novel.
The magic system, world-building and take on the legend of King Arthur were all interesting and unique.
I originally started reading an eARC version of this, but I found myself struggling a little to get through the book, so I switched to the audiobook. I'm glad that I did, because I did find it easier to get through and I enjoyed the narration.
The romance wasn't one of my favourites, but I thought the author handled the topics of grief and racism very well. I also liked the diversity, with there being a Black protagonist as well as LGBTQIA+ characters.
The plot took a long time to get going for me. It wasn't until around 75% of the way through when I found myself becoming invested in what happened, as well as being surprised in the direction that the plot went in.
While I didn't like this as much as I hoped I would, I still found it to be an enjoyable, unique read.

Overall, this was an enjoyable, unique read.

Legendborn by Tracy Deonn is an immaculate debut novel with so much potential to become a well-beloved fantasy series in the YA book community. Deonn has taken the Arthurian myth and turned it completely upside down whilst still keeping the essence of the age old tale.

The modern, university setting was a clever choice and creates a space for Deonn to discuss elitism in secret societies but also in universities in general. Since Bree Matthews is an outsider entering into this secret society, it makes intricate world building possible. At first I was confused by all the information about the different families and which knight they represented at the Round Table but by the end of the book I was well-versed in Deonn’s brand of Arthuriana.

The first thing that struck me when starting Legendborn was Deonn’s writing skill. The prologue was so phenomenally written that it was easy to just keep reading and reading. This book doesn’t feel long even though it’s a 500 pager. The pace is fast from the beginning and doesn’t let up. There were a few quiet moments scattered in between to give the reader a chance to catch their breath which I appreciated. I do wish that the catalyst for the action was a bit later in the book. I would have loved to get a chance to see Bree in her new setting first before diving straight into the main action of the book.

Deonn manages to tackle a lot of difficult and serious topics in Legendborn but she does so in such an impactful way. Grief is a theme that is interwoven in the story through the construction of ‘Before Bree’ and ‘After Bree’. I loved the way that Deonn doesn’t shy away from the messiness of grief. The raw emotion of losing someone you love is explored with such care and respect.

I also thought that discussions surrounding race and oppression in this book was masterfully done. There were a few moments where I had to put the book down for a second because the writing was so intense but eye-opening at the same time. When doing a historical retelling such as the Arthur myth in a setting such as the deep south in the US, there’s a lot of horrific history to unpack. Deonn makes sure that parts of history are not forgotten or swept under the rug. It gave the Arthur myth a whole new facet and gives readers something to contemplate on.

Bree’s age bothered me a bit whilst reading. I kept aging her up in my mind since the setting takes place on a university campus. I wish Deonn had made Bree a university student from the start. There were a lot of side characters to keep track of and I sometimes forgot who was who. It was very refreshing to see all the LGBTQ+ representation amongst the Round Table members and it was lovely to see one of the love interests was a bisexual mess.

Overall, I think Bree is an extremely compelling protagonist and I was fully invested in the story. I am dying to read the next book when it comes out. The world is fascinating and the ending was just *chef’s kiss* SO GOOD. I was on the edge of my seat the whole time and I was so moved by Deonn’s writing. There are a couple of things that bothered me about the book. But this book is as close to perfect as one can get. I cannot believe that this is Deonn’s debut novel.

I was obsessed with this book!
I was worried at first that it was slightly basic and would fall into conventional tropes but it didn’t!
I was stunned by the second 2/3rd of the book and cannot wait to read the next one!

Author: Tracy Deonn
Genre: Fantasy
Age Range: Young Adult
Format: Paperback
Published: 15th September 2020
Pages: 490
Rating: 4 Stars


Goodreads Synopsis

After her mother dies in an accident, sixteen-year-old Bree Matthews wants nothing to do with her family memories or childhood home. A residential program for bright high schoolers at UNC–Chapel Hill seems like the perfect escape—until Bree witnesses a magical attack her very first night on campus.

A flying demon feeding on human energies.

A secret society of so called “Legendborn” students that hunt the creatures down.

And a mysterious teenage mage who calls himself a “Merlin” and who attempts—and fails—to wipe Bree’s memory of everything she saw.

The mage’s failure unlocks Bree’s own unique magic and a buried memory with a hidden connection: the night her mother died, another Merlin was at the hospital. Now that Bree knows there’s more to her mother’s death than what’s on the police report, she’ll do whatever it takes to find out the truth, even if that means infiltrating the Legendborn as one of their initiates.

She recruits Nick, a self-exiled Legendborn with his own grudge against the group, and their reluctant partnership pulls them deeper into the society’s secrets—and closer to each other. But when the Legendborn reveal themselves as the descendants of King Arthur’s knights and explain that a magical war is coming, Bree has to decide how far she’ll go for the truth and whether she should use her magic to take the society down—or join the fight.

CAWPILE

Characters – 8
Atmosphere – 8
Writing Style – 7
Plot – 7
Intrigue – 8
Logic – 8
Enjoyment – 7

Overall: 7.6

Review

Trigger Warnings: Loss of a parent, grief, addiction, gore, violence, microaggressions, racism, slavery, blood, and rape.

This review contains spoilers.

I’ve been wanting to read this for so long and I’m so happy that I finally picked it up last month as it was such a great read. So, I don’t know a whole lot about Arthurian legends, and as far as I know this is my first Arthurian retelling, so I was a little confused at the beginning but once everything was explained I got really into the story. As I said the magic system is a little complex but I was really intrigued by it especially the Rootcraft. My favourite thing about this was the characters, I especially loved our main character, Bree. Throughout the novel, Bree is dealing with the death of her mother and she learns about some things that her mother kept from her, honestly, some of the passages of this novel had me in tears. Nick was such a sweet character and the story about his mother having her memory wiped was so heartbreaking to read. Sel is such a complex character and in the beginning, I wasn’t a huge fan of him, however, once he began to open up and we learned more about his past he really grew on me. There are also some really great side characters that Bree meets when she becomes Nick’s Page, so I’m interested to find out more about them in the sequel. There are so many incredible plot twists in this novel that I didn’t see coming, especially the ending, and I’m excited to see how that story develops in the sequel. The last 100 pages or so were literally so intense that I couldn't put this book down and I thought the action scenes were well-written.

Overall this was a fantastic YA Fantasy novel with an incredible main character and an interesting magic system. After that ending, I can’t wait until book 2 is released.

This was such a well constructed and enjoyable urban fantasy. It tells the story of Bree, a 16 year old black girl dealing with the death of her mother. When she is accepted into an early college program, she finds herself not only in a world of keggers and sororities, but also demons and the Arthurian society created to defeat them. What I loved the most about this book was the way in which Tracy Deonn holds up a mirror to the white privilege inherent in the collegiate system. Dealing with micro aggression and subtle (and not so subtle) racism on a daily basis, Bree has to navigate the world automatically at a disadvantage. Bringing in themes of heritage, inherited and generational trauma, this is a YA fantasy with greater depth than many, while still retaining so many of the tropes familiar to YA readers. A really strong opener to what I feel will be an excellent series.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Legendborn is a King Arthur retelling/sequel in that King Arthur and his knights have used magic to tie themselves to their descendants, meaning they can sort of reincarnate when a great need is of them. There’s also Merlin stand-ins called Merlins and one called a Kingsmage who serves King Arthurs descendant. Merlins being the mages and binding themselves to the line was interesting to read about, with some mysteries hidden within too.

On top of the Order, there’s other types or magics/factions too. There’s Wildcrafters which use rootcraft which manipulates energy and is shown to be a more nature focused magic in that it opposes bloodcraft which is depicted as bad. There’s also an enemy called the Line of Morgaine or the Shadowborn which is touched upon to probably be brought up more in later books. This gave the world a bit more depth and showed that it’s not just the order that has and can use magic.

I found there was a lot of info dumping and telling not showing when it came to the Order and magic as a whole though. Whilst we’re learning alongside Bree, it’s more often told to us by other characters and takes up a good portion of the first half of the book.

Bree as a main character is wonderfully written. She’s smart, but stubborn and her actions are all pushed forward by grief over her mother. You can tell why she does what she does, even when she makes poor decisions.

Uses the welsh language, but I missed what being within Wales could have added to the tale. I had similar issues with a Robin Hood retelling being set with an American protagonist too, however Legendborn does make up for this later as it does end up being part of a plot point which means the setting needs to be America.

Overall, the book is reminiscent of many YA paranormal books I read when growing up with similar tropes and predictability at times. But because of this nostalgia, as well as new additions and twists it helped keep my attention.

Positives of Legendborn
Great main character
Interesting take on King Arthur
Negatives of Legendborn
Tells a lot instead of showing

This book had so much potential but for me it just fell short. I found myself getting really confused with the magic system and all of the vocabulary used. The insta-love was also a huge no for me. Usually I can tolerate it if the characters have chemistry and develop into a good relationship but I didn't feel anything between the two characters and actually found myself hoping Bree would fall for a different character.
This book definitely had positives, I liked the messages it was portraying about race and acceptance even if it did feel a little forced and stereotyped.
I really enjoyed the flash back like elements that Bree experiences when getting to know her family's past. I would have liked to have seen more of that.
In terms of pacing it seemed to drag for me until the last 20% where it was full of action and I was sucked in and couldn't put it down!
Unfortunately I cant see myself reading the sequel, I would reread this and hopefully gain more from it in terms of personal understanding of the magic but otherwise it wasn't a standout book for me.
I feel like the minority here because everyone else I know who has read this loved it but for me it was just an okay book.
3.5/5 Stars

I am so in love with this book!! Brilliantly written and with an unpredictable and compelling plot, it is not only a fast-paced fantasy adventure story that will not let you put down the book, but it also talks about racism and grief in such a powerful way! I would recommend this book not only to YA fantasy fans, but to anyone who like reading smart, multi-layered stories.

A unique & brilliant remaining of Camelot! Tracy Deonn adds some much needed diversity & fresh new twists to Arthur's lore. This hit the mark in so many ways & I was completely enthralled by the storytelling.

When I say this book was everything to me, I genuinely mean it. It had magic that was so enthralling that I wanted to be sucked right into the world, a premise that got me hooked from literally the first page and characters I couldn't help but love.

There have been quite a few books inspired by King Arthur published in recent years. Here Be Dragons by Sarah Mussi, The Guinevere Deception by Kiersten White, Once and Future by Amy Rose Capetta and Cori McCarthy, Seven Endless Forests by April Genevieve Tucholke… The list is endless.

However, I don’t think any of them live up to Tracy Deonn’s Legendborn. Combining Black Girl Magic with a fresh twist on the Order of the Round Table, this is a captivating debut which I found ridiculously hard to put down.

When the book begins we meet our protagonist, Bree, on the night that her mother dies in a car accident. It’s made worse by the fact that Bree had a huge fight with her mother the previous night, leaving her to come to terms with the knowledge that the last words she said to her mother were ones said in anger.

Their fight was about Bree’s enrollment in an Early College program. Bree signed up without her mother’s permission, thinking she wouldn’t get in (but if she did, attending the university where her mother studied had to sweeten the deal, right?!). But Bree’s mother wasn’t ever going to let her daughter go there, and Bree is left with no idea why.

Unfortunately, Bree’s mother’s secrets end up causing her to get embroiled in more trouble than either of them could have anticipated. Before lessons begin she goes to a party where she meets a mysterious guy called Sel. She spots something strange that nobody else seems able to see, and Sel ends up doing something to her memories… Something that makes her wonder if her mother’s death wasn’t a simple accident.

Bree is left questioning the truth about the world around her, fighting with her best friend Alice, and being assigned a (startlingly attractive) peer mentor. How will Bree get her head around the new world she’s discovering while still struggling to cope with her grief?

Going into Legendborn, all I knew was that it was a King Arthur retelling. The last King Arthur retelling I read was one which seriously disappointed me, so instead of intriguing me that aspect made me put off reading this book for longer than I should have.

I wondered how a King Arthur retelling set in America was going to work, but Tracy Deonn does a wonderful job of explaining the history of how Arthur’s descendants came to be across the pond. She has obviously put a lot of work into researching not only the original legend, but the history of America itself as well.

At its heart this story is a scathing look at the way that generations of Black people have been treated in America – from back in the days of slavery up until today, when Bree experiences microaggressions and prejudiced comments just because of the colour of her skin. It’s empowering, it’s a call to arms, and it’s high time that we get more YA fantasy retellings written by Black authors about Black characters.

I absolutely love Bree. Although she is a Chosen One (and that’s not my favourite trope!) she is such a well-crafted character that I can almost overlook it. As well as dealing with the discovery of a magical underworld, she’s also dealing with developing feelings for Nick, the strain that the Early College program is putting on her relationship with her best friend, and her mother’s death. That adds up to a ton of character development, which Tracy Deonn ekes out and takes time with. Bree doesn’t change within a few pages, and throughout the novel we get a lot of her inner monologue as she struggles to decide what to do about the situation she has found herself in and the way that it is changing how she sees herself.

The other aspect of the story that I really enjoyed was the possible love triangle between Bree, Sel and Nick. I wouldn’t describe Bree and Nick’s relationship as instalove because it does take her a little while to trust him enough to let him in, but their romance does develop quite rapidly. However, the friendship between Bree and Sel was what I was living for. They have a lot in common, and even though he’s the bad guy at the beginning you quickly learn that there’s a lot more going on under the surface. I’m describing this as a possible love triangle because by the end of the first book Bree and Sel’s relationship is still purely friendship, but I have strong feelings towards these two and I hope that they end up developing strong feelings for each other! It’s been a while since I’ve felt this drawn to a YA romance, and I’m looking forward to seeing where Tracy Deonn takes these characters in the as-yet-untitled second novel in the Legendborn series.

There are only two reasons why I didn’t give this book five stars. The first is a very minor one, but it’s the overly repetitive descriptions of the way that each boy smells. I was reading this book aloud to Sean and I lost count of the amount of times I said the words ‘laundry and cedar’ or ‘whiskey and cinnamon’. Those descriptions are very vivid and vibrant, but when they kept getting repeated every couple of pages it threw me out of the story entirely.

The other reason that Legendborn ended up being four stars is that the ending is too rushed. For a book which comes in at just over 500 pages, the climax takes place over just a couple of chapters, and I think I would have enjoyed it a lot more if the action at the end of the novel had played out more slowly. I loved the fast-paced nature of a certain reveal, but as a whole the book had such slow pacing and I really savoured the level of world-building that Tracy Deonn was putting into the story, so for the ending to be a complete 180 was a bit of a shame.

That being said, this is one of the best YA fantasies I’ve read in a long time. I loved the fact that it included such a unique twist on the King Arthur legend, I really enjoyed the unique magic system and I think it’s brilliant that this book sits beautifully between YA and Adult – definitely sitting at the older end of the YA fantasy spectrum.

Tracy Deonn is an author to watch, that’s for sure. I’m eagerly anticipating news about the sequel to Legendborn, and I’m already looking forward to rereading this story in preparation for Bree’s tale to continue.

Such a good book! Tracy Deonn's writing is beyond incredible. How she approaches grief is incredible and I need book 2 ASAP!

Legendborn tackles grief, being a Black woman and redefining legends but to sum up this book, I would say this book is full of secrets, a secret society, demons and magic.

Legendborn brings an interesting new spin on King Arthur and the round table legend.

Books that focus on secret societies always grab my attention. But by making one of the secret society with a magical connection to Arthur and his round table was a nice twist. Especially as their job is to protect the world from demons.

One of the fascinating elements is showing the racial discrimination in the different levels of society. And how Bree deals with them. It was also interesting to see the history of the African American at the School and the area.

Legendborn has great action scene with demon fights, trails and battles. By having some personal moment in those action scenes kept it interesting. It even brings more drama to those moments.

Bree is the leading lady in Legendborn, she is a complex smart young lady. I liked her as a person and felt her range of grief.

There were certain elements in the story that didn't surprise me (Romance) but other elements took me by surprised me. As I had an idea in my head what I thought was going to happen. But it didn't happen and Tracey ending was better.



My Rating for Legendborn is 4 out of 5.




Thank you to Netgalley and Simon & Schuster Children's UK for gifting me an ebook copy for review.

With all these retellings that overflow the bookshelves recently, this one is outstanding. You may wonder why? Because you won’t find the Beast in a new light or felt bad about Cinderella’s sister, it is not a mainstream story. It’s actually a myth a lot of us (probably) forgot.

When I was little, my mom told me the story of King Arthur and his knights of the Round table. I was properly impressed by their heroism, but quickly forgot the story (probably because it doesn’t include ballrooms, big and beautiful dresses and handsome princes). This beautiful lady picked up this myth from the shelf, beat the dust out of it and presented it to us in one new and absolutely amazing light.

Bree is heartbroken. She got accepted in her dream college, the one her mom graduated from, but her mom is not happy for her. Actually, she is the exact opposite of happy, she is pissed and forbid her to go there. This is not the reason why Bree’s heart is in pieces. Few hours after their fight, her mom lost her life in a hit and run car accident. Now nobody can stop her from going to study where she wants to.

What if her mom knew something and wanted to protect her? What exactly did she know? Is there something dangerous?

Bree stubbornness and determination to find out what exactly happened to her mom that night, the night somebody took her from Bree, leads her to the exact place her mom wanted to protect her from – The Arthur’s Order.

The people in this order are called Legendborns and all of them are heirs of one of Arthur’s Knights and even of Arthur himself. With the help of a Merlin and the magic, they inherit from their ancestors, they fight the so-called Shadowborns. Shadowborns are creatures born from the dark who can open gates to our world and if they go corporal, they can be seen by Onceborns and even kill them. To go full corp, they need to ‘eat’ aether.

Sounds pretty knotty, isn’t it? Okay, let’s talk a bit about world building.

Already mentioned the Legendborns. This is a society with its ranking. On the top are the Scions. They are members of one of the knights’ Lines (or we can call it Family). They are the one who can be ‘called’ by their ancestor and when they are called, they gained their ancestor abilities. There is a ranking withing the Scions. They are thirteen and they are called backwards. This means that the highly ranked Scions are hardly even called because the low ranked ones can manage to keep the Shadowborns put.

Onceborns are ordinary people just like us. They can’t see aether and don’t have any magical powers. They are kept away from knowing about the magical world that surrounds them. There are some exceptions of course. They are called Vassals and serve the Order.




Each Scion can pick up a Vassal and then this Vassal will receive the sight for the aether and Shadowborns that are not corporal. After they have been picked they level up and become Pages.

Pages compete once a year aiming to become a Squire. Squires are bonded by Oaths to the Scion who picked them. The Scion has to be Called from their ancestor to be able to be bonded to their Squire. Once bonded, the Squire gains the same abilities as the Scion and their only purpose is to protect their Scion.

The person who has the greatest magic abilities and they are not connected to their ancestor is called Merlin. They perform the bonding Oaths that connect Scions to their Squires. They, themselves, are bonded to the First Ranked Scion – the heir of Arthur. He can sense when he is in danger because their only purpose is to protect their king.

Yup, we have one great world here. But the main thing that I liked the most (and I am grateful for the history lesson) is how the author manages to entangle the history of the enslavement of Black people in the story. Let’s put aside the fact that recently this is a really painful topic. The most important is that this is something everyone has to know. She broke the stereotype behind this kind of novels. No, her heroine’s hair is not strawberry blond, her skin is not milky white, neither her eyes are green like a forest or blue like the ocean.

Another thing that lives for me is the fact that the whole story is so grounded. We see the typical teen drama, parental worries, etc. Don’t you ever wonder how this happened so the characters from other urban fiction have never run to police or have never ended up in dean’s office or police station? Well, our heroine here ended up ‘visiting’ both.

Overall, this is a great urban fantasy and will gain lots and lots of success and fans and I am sure it will have its own fandom in a matter of time. It’s everything you want from a book – fast-paced, intriguing, characters you will love and these plot twists, especially the last one! Oh my gosh, the last one will leave you speechless.

If you need a reason to read this book, here are three:
► Urban fantasy
► Magic involved
► Retelling of a myth

A huge thanks to Simon and Schuster and the author Tracy Deonn for sending me an ARC of this novel via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts are mine!

The way this book is constructed and executed deserves so much praise. It manages to find the balance between a comfortable, enjoyable read, and one that keeps you on your toes, waiting for the next thing to happen. From the very first page it is highly emotive and descriptive, and the characters you are introduced to allow you to feel a whole range of emotions. Highly recommended.

Characters - 7/10
I had to think about this review for a while. Although I did enjoy Legendborn (a lot) I felt that there were a few hiccups here and there. The first being the characters. I had no gripes with our main three, Bree, Nick, and Sel.

Bree's grief was so real and tangible that I felt everything alongside her. Her search for answers, her ancestors and her place at UNC-Chapel Hill really drive the story and I loved that. She's also a Black woman in America that deals with so many microaggressions (and aggression aggressions) that just keep proving that the USA is a horrible place.

Nick and Sel were two sides of the same coin, with a shared childhood and waaaay too much baggage between them. Sel is my favourite though, and I definitely ship him with Bree.

My only complaint is about the secondary characters. There were way too much of them to keep track of, and their voices were not distinct enough. William was by far my favourite, but the rest was pretty forgettable. The LGBTQ+ rep was on point though and I cannot wait to read more.

Atmosphere - 8/10
This book made me sad, but in a good way. I've just finished six years at my university, and Legendborn is set at a university campus. It made me nostalgic for all the walks across campus, seeing friends, dorm life, parties, all those fun things.

I do however wish we could have leaned more into the university setting. The campus is used in a great way at the end of the book, and we explore a lot of the history of the campus (the known and the unknown). Now I have no idea how American universities work or look, so a bit more worldbuilding in that sense would have been great. The rest was entirely on par.

Writing - 8/10
I don't know if it was simply because I had an ARC, but the writing was a bit clunky. The ARC also didn't have the proper formatting (which is no fault of the author and I did not deduct points for it) which can get really annoying, but I read around it. The writing really seemed to flow better toward the end of the book, and by the last 30% I could not put it down.

Plot - 8/10
I will admit I was confused for most of it, which once again ties into the worldbuilding. It also took me ages to get through the first 60% of the book. A lot happened, but it also felt like a lot didn't happen. I think some key moments and conversations between characters were missing. I wouldn't have minded if the book were a bit longer.

Intrigue - 9/10
I don't want to be one of those YA reviewers, but I wish Bree was older. This book is set at university, but she's only 16. The difference between 16-year-olds and university first years is a big one. Once again I'm not deducting points for this, it's just an observation. This book could have been amazing for the NA age group, it could have defined it even. I understand why she's 16, but still. One can hope and dream.

I would also like the scream about this book because it does not deserve the comparison to City of Bones. IT IS 1000000 BETTER. Seriously, stan this instead of anything written by CC.

Logic - 8/10
My last gripe with Legendborn is the magic system. It could have been more refined, and the history and hierarchy of the order could have been set out better. Things make a whole lot more sense at the end, but I still have some very pressing questions about how it all works.

Enjoyment - 9/10
Overall I really enjoyed this book. This is a promising start to a series I will definitely commit to, and I cannot wait for book 2.

CAWPILE = 8.1/10
Stars = 4

Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read this book.

DNF @ 30%

This is definitely a “me not you” situation, I see why people love this novel but unfortunately, I'm not clicking with it at the moment. I’m not a massive fan of long books, and I didn’t realise “Legendborn” was 500+ pages. I’m also not a fan of love triangles.

I really liked the concept and the Arthurian inspiration and I may come back to this one at a later date, but for now, I’m marking it as DNF.

Overall, I’d recommend this to people that adore slow burn diverse YA fantasy.

Wow, this sent me back. So much of this reminds me of a new-age Shadowhunters, Vampire Academy, or The Guneviere Deception all smushed together. While Shadowhunters has a space in my heart as a childhood favourite, but I wasn't a fan of Vampire Academy despite it being a favourite of many of my friends. Unfortunately, I think that's mostly the case here, this is a great book (especially the ending!) and it tackles America's sordid history and colonialism with its Arthurian inspiration that gives this text more depth.

audiobook narrator

The narration was really well done and made the story easier to follow than the written text, so I would recommend the audiobook over the physical copy (but the only problem with this is that the big cast of characters might get lost a bit).

Character

Bree was interesting to follow, and I wish we saw more of her friend Alice, as I felt I never got a real grip on her. Nick was boring, and we all know Sel is Endgame here. (again, reminded me a lot of Vampire Academy/The Infernal Devices with the romantic set up).

Sel is erratic at first, his actions hard to follow along with his logic, but he becomes the most interesting character by the second half of the novel.

Otherwise, all the other characters blended into one big mush to me.


Plot

At the beginning (when I was still reading this physically), I really struggled to follow the story. This might've been because it played with memory, and from a first-person perspective, it makes sense that it was confusing. However, I don't think that's all. The author takes real leaps with the characters to allow Bree into her universities secret Arthurian society. Nick's sympathy for her wasn't enough for me to believe he'd give up his determination to stay away from his role within the society. At the beginning, the characters acted in unrealistic, convenient ways to allow the plot to happen, or conflict was needed.

However, as the plot went on and the set-up was established, this factor of the novel became less prominent, but the sloppy set up made it hard for me to trust the author.

Thank you to Netgalley, Simon & Schuster and Tracy Deonn for my arc of Legendborn in exchange for an honest review.

Star rating: ⭐️ ⭐️

When Bree's mother dies in a terrible car accident her world is thrown upside down. Pair that with starting early college and Bree is beginning to feel like she might go off the rails. Especially when she witnesses a magic attack on her first day of school.

Things get kind of complicated from there on out. I ended up DNFing this book at 22% I just couldn't grasp what was going on. I have a bit of a pet hate when it comes to main characters who intentionally ignore/refuse to answer things I find it incredibly rude and frustrating and that's not something which is exclusive to this book. Continued evasiveness is a guaranteed way to get me to DNF. Sadly that's what happens for a lot of this book, people text or call Bree and it literally quotes her thoughts as 'ignore'.

This book has amazing reviews though so I wanted to continue despite not liking this aspect of the main characters personality. But sadly it continued not to work for me. The magic system is very complicated and confusing but also overexplained, the plot is pickled with tropes and I just didn't feel like it was bringing anything new to the table beyond the amazing reps which is the only reason it's getting 2*. It felt a bit like The Mortal Instruments but without any good explanations for what was going on or why the 'chosen one' main character was able to do amazing stuff 2 days after even finding out that demons exist. Also we have both instalove and a love triangle going on.

So a let down for me overall partially due to character traits and partially due to the lack of world building and the confusing plot. Sorry this wasn't for me this time!

Legendborn is a fresh take on Arthurian mythology infusing our world, woven together with excellent characters and an exploration of how race plays a part in both exclusive magic societies and magic itself. While it had a few bumps here and there, it was overall an excellent read for numerous reasons.

Bree is everything you could want in a protagonist, and practically leaps off the page. She holds the story well with a clear and distinct voice, meshing well with the rest of the book. It's very clearly her book, from start to finish, and it's very clear how much Tracy Deonn loves her. Her character journey through the book as she figures out her heritage and her place in the world of the Legendborn world is compelling and immersive, as well as her growth as she adapts. The ending of the book, with her character climax, had me practically cheering for her, and I can't wait to see what she gets up to next.

The side characters are excellently done, with a large cast of supporting characters who, while not as detailed as Bree for obvious reasons, are still very well written. I would definitely have loved seeing more of them, and I hope we see them in the next book, but I'm not disappointed that we didn't see so much of them. Aside from Bree, Nick and Selwyn are the two principal characters, and the dynamic between the three of them is masterfully done. Nick is written in such a way that you cannot help liking him; I would compare him to a Golden Retriever, but he's far too regal for that. Selwyn is particularly interesting as a foil for Bree, and I thought their dynamic was well balanced and served to highlight both their differences and similarities.

Tracy Deonn did an absolutely fantastic job with the magic in the world of Legendborn. The distinction between aether and root, more specifically in how they draw from energy, was a really interesting look at how impactful race can be, especially on worldbuilding. There is a further explanation of her approach to the magic, which I feel was really valuable, because no matter how detailed a single book is, there's always going to be more nuance. Unfortunately, the sheer complexity of the world was the main hinderance for me, as I found the introduction to the Legendborn a little bit confusing at the beginning; I would have benefitted from a short 'dramatis personae' style list at the beginning to explain the ranks. This was, however, a fairly minor complaint, and I look forward to seeing the world expand in the sequel.

Tropes are used really well throughout the story, enhancing the story without making it feel trope-logged. Tracy Deonn clearly put a lot of attention into overturning the setup of classic tropes and reclaiming them in ways they haven't been. Bree coming into her powers and her place in the world, as well as the mythological elements and even hints at a love triangle, are incorporated into the story seamlessly in ways that build the story up. The plot arc is a familiar one in fantasy but again, Deonn puts a special spin on it that makes it feel like a well made millefeuille pastry.

An explosive start to what's shaping up be a strong fantasy series, Legendborn is packed with potential and compelling in every way. It's obvious that this is Tracy Deonn's universe and we're along for the highly enjoyable ride, and I cannot wait to see what's in store for the sequel. If you haven't yet picked this up, you absolutely should.

Thank you to the publisher for providing me with a review copy in exchange for an honest review.