Cover Image: Legacy

Legacy

Pub Date:   |   Archive Date:

Member Reviews

Another thrilling tale by Nora Roberts. Adrian sees her biological father fall to his death and is sent to live with her grandparents for the summer. Fast forward a dozen or so years and she starts her own fitness empire with the help if her friends. Then she starts getting death threats.

Well developed characters and plenty of story to keep you interested. The death threats really play a minor detail until the last part of the book.

Enjoyable til the end. Part romance, part thriller and plenty of friendship

Was this review helpful?

Every book by this author is written so beautifully the reader feels they are right in the story with the characters. A wonderful story, well executed plot, and well developed characters. A page turner!

Was this review helpful?

Thank you to St. Martin's Press for my review copy.
.
Nora, Nora, Nora. I I love you. You are always a sweet reminder of young Amy becoming a reader. There is always something to be said about nostalgia in reading. Legacy was reminiscent of the early Nora Roberts....which is a win for me.
.
This is a stand alone novel and I really enjoyed it. The characters were phenomenal. I loved the tribe that Adrian had built. Just warm, lovely feelings. The mystery was a smidge predictable....it did not however take away from the book as a whole.
.
I will continue recommending Nora Roberts to those that like a little bit of everything. Romance, suspense and family drama.

Was this review helpful?

A good story and told very well.

Roberts is a master of character building, and this book shows it very well. More than typical contemporary romance or romantic suspense, it is the story of Adrian and Raylan. Both their separate stories and their later, slowly developing relationship. Roberts masterfully builds their characters by showing us the various events in their lives that shaped them and finally brought them to where they are now.

Roberts is also a master of creating strong women and men who can appreciate them. And this is also the case with Adrian and Raylan. She is a strong, independent woman who knows what she wants and made her work out of her passion. But Raylan also have a strong and interesting personality. And we can see it well, for example in how he copes with combining work with raising his children. And just as I usually don't like the kids in my books, Roberts can write them in a way that make me actually like them. Roberts can really create her characters well and not just the main characters.

The suspense part is rather small this time and builds up mainly in the third part of the book. I really like this author's romantic suspense books, so I wish there was more of it here, too. But it wasn't a big problem, since Adrian's story is interesting enough.

The book is quite long, but I read it fairly quickly. This is due to the really good writing style of Roberts. This book is mostly dialogue, which not only makes you read it quickly, but also allows you to get to know the main characters through different events and their reactions.

If you're looking for traditional contemporary romance or romantic suspense, this isn't that type of story. This story focuses more on the characters - Adrian and Raylan and their way through life. If you are looking for just that, you won't be disappointed.

Was this review helpful?

When Adrian Rizzo met her father for the first time at age seven, he tried to kill her. He died instead. Her mother is a fitness guru who puts business in front of everything. Luckily, Adrian has her mother's personal assistant Mimi, her mother's business manager Harry, and her loving grandparents to provide emotional support. After being dragged all over the US while her mother Lina builds her business, she rebels at age sixteen and decides to make her own life.

Adrian gathers a cohort of great friends at the last school her mother sent her to who help her make her own fitness video. With Harry's support, she begins to build her own fitness empire with the help of her friends.

When her grandmother dies in a car accident, Adrian moves her life back to the small town where her grandfather lives because that's what you do when you love someone. At the same time her grandmother dies, her best friend's brother Raylan loses his wife who was a teacher in a school shooting leaving him with a broken heart and two small children to raise.

Raylan and Adrian met when her mother left her with her grandparents to get away from the publicity around the death of her biological father. He was ten and she was seven and she was his sister's new best friend. They heard about each other over the years but were both busy building their own lives. He is an artist who works with friends to produce graphic novels about super heroes of their own devising.

More time passes with Adrian getting a threatening poem once a year from someone who wants her dead. The first one arrived shortly after the release of her first fitness video when she was seventeen. It was scary and she let the police know but thought it was just some jealous fan. But the letters kept coming. First once a year but the pace kept escalating so that now when she's near 30 she's getting four a year. And the poet has decided it's time for her to die.

This story is filled with love. Even Raylan's dog Jasper and Adrian's dog Sadie are in a romantic relationship. There is the love of friendship with her girlfriend and romantic love as their friends find their own life partners. Adrian and Raylan are building their own relationship as a friendship grows into a romantic relationship. This is in stark contrast to the glimpses we get of the poet's isolation and obsession with revenge.

The story was both heart-warming and horrifying as the poet gets closer and closer to Adrian. Fans of Nora Roberts will enjoy this one with all her trademarks: smart dialog, strong relationships, cute kids, and even dogs.

Was this review helpful?

I enjoyed this book. I really liked the various relationships that were explored, from friendships to the complexities of the mother/ daughter bond. There was a good blend of drama and action/ suspense to keep the reader engaged.

Was this review helpful?

I love Nora Roberts and have for decades, but I had trouble liking this book. It was well-written and the characters were interesting but it felt too similar to hideaway. There was this strange vilification of the mother that the author has done before, where the grandparents are old school and good and the mother is not and hurts her child. This one feels a little derivative, which is why it's bumped down to three stars, but is still an enjoyable read.

I'm going to try her new mini-series instead and hope she came up with a new idea. Undercurrents was one of my favorites in a long while so i know she still has it in her.

One point that I want to make is that Ms Roberts is being more inclusive and I really like that- i see it and appreciate you for it.

Was this review helpful?

Wowzer! This is a FULL story. It honestly has everything, a great plot, great characters, a little romance, a little mystery, and a huge amount of spine tingling suspense. If you don’t love books on the suspense and a little scary side this may not be the book for you! If you love books that are scary and humorous, that confuse you and then boom everything clicks into place, this is going to be a fantastic book for you to read.

Was this review helpful?

I really enjoyed this new book by Nora Roberts. Nora is always my go-to when I'm in a reading rut... she never disappoints. 'Legacy' has suspense, a bit of romance, and shows the power of connection in the face of an insane threat from the past. It's a little murderous but most of Nora's suspense novels have that element and it has its place. A great standalone while I wait for her next book "Becoming: the Dragon Heart Legacy, Book 2" to be released this fall. Thanks Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Was this review helpful?

Nora Roberts is one of my favorite authors. Her ability to wind together a story that is part romance, part suspense, with a touch of teen coming of age makes for a remarkable story. I particularly enjoyed being able to "watch" the main characters, Adrian and Raylan, develop and grow from childhood through adulthood. Prepare for laughter, a few tears, and edge of your seat reading with this one!

Was this review helpful?

Legacy by Nora Roberts is another one of her fabulous stand-alone novels. We meet Adrian Rizzo, when she is 7 years old, as she sees her father for the first time, when he is drunk and maniacal; he threatens her mother, as well as herself. When Lina (Adrian’s mother) runs to save her daughter, she manages to push him away from harming her anymore and he falls to his death. Adrian is sent to her grandparents’ house in Maryland, to spend the summer, and try to forget the horror of what happened, while her mother continues traveling and promoting her successful career as a famous fitness guru.

Years later, Adrian sits in the school lunch room and makes friends with three nerds that most people ignored. She explains to them that she wants to start her own fitness business for younger generations on DVD’s, and convinces each of them to help her create them with her as the star. Hector is the technical guru to film the spots; Teesha is the savvy business guru and Loren, is the helper. A bond is formed and together they create a fabulous business, and Adrian becomes just as famous as her mother. I loved the friendship bond that the 4 of them have, as they became lifelong friends over the years.

A few years after the death of the man who was her father, Adrian started getting threatening poems each year, with her mother saying she gets them too and to ignore them. As the years go on, especially the last couple of years, the letters began escalating to three or so a year, with the poems even more threatening; the police are informed, and a private investigator is hired, with no results. We do get an occasional POV for the person sending the threats, but no real identity.

Over the years, it was wonderful to see Adrian eventually move to her grandparents’ house in Maryland, where she has family and even some of her friends move there too, in a calmer happy atmosphere. The key to this story, besides the unknown threats, was the entire family setting. I loved all of Adrian’s friends, as well as Maya, her childhood friend, and especially her grandfather, who owned Rizzo’s Pizza restaurant. The other big part, focuses on Raylan (Maya’s brother) who tragically lost his wife, and left him having to take care of his two children. What starts out as a friendship, will later on become a slow burn romance, which I hoped would bring them together, as they made such a wonderful pairing. I also loved loved Sadie, Adrian’s big dog, and Jasper, Raylan’s dog, who was so in love with Sadie. Lol cute and perfect.

As we get closer to the last ¼ of the book, the suspense and tension increases as everything is escalating, with a crazed killer on the loose for other victims, and Adrian is on the list. Legacy was a fabulous romance suspense thriller, that not only held my breath as we raced to the climax, but I absolutely loved the entire friendship, family bonds and romance. Adrian was a fantastic heroine. Nora Roberts amazingly gives us so many wonderful characters in this book, which had me caring about them all. Legacy is so well written by Roberts, and has a bit of everything; family, friendship, two wonderful and loyal dogs, children, as well as being an intense suspense thriller. You need to be reading this book.

Was this review helpful?

Legacy by Nora Roberts is another hit for this wonderful author. She can tell a story and bring you right into it and you feel as if you have known all the characters your whole life. This story is about family and relationships, those of blood and those you choose. Of course there is mystery involved, and the story keeps you guessing. I very much enjoyed this story and would recommend it to anyone that enjoys Nora Roberts or is looking for a good mystery with a little romance thrown in.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this story for an honest opinion.

Was this review helpful?

Wow what a journey Nora Roberts leads you on. I loved this book. This book was a mix of romance, suspense and relationships with the family. This is a heartwarming story that starts in Adrian Rizzo early childhood years with a traumatic event. She grows up with a distant relationship with her mother but is close to her grandparents. You are lead thru a wonderful journey thru out Adrian life and her relationships with friends and family. I admired Adrian for being a strong woman and being driven in her career. I laugh, I cried and I was kept in suspense as to who the crazed obsessed killer was until the end. Romance was a slow build but in true Nora Roberts fashion you get your HEA. I truly enjoyed the book as I do all Nora Roberts/JD Robb books.

I received a copy of this book from NetGallery and St. Martins Press - Thank You.

Was this review helpful?

Adrien grows up the daughter of an exercise guru and the granddaughter of Italian restauranteurs. She makes her own way in the world. ARC from NetGalley.

Was this review helpful?

This title was quite enjoyable although a bit predictable. Nora Roberts is an amazing author and has yet again created a captivating story.

Was this review helpful?

I enjoyed "Legacy", as I do with most Nora Roberts books. The storyline moves quickly and over a handful of years, but you don't get lost. The characters are witty and entertaining and you can connect with them. The twist was a bit of something I saw coming, but didn't mind one bit. Thank you to the publishers for the advance copy!

Was this review helpful?

I am a fan of Nora Roberts, but this book was not up to par for me. Had a hard time really getting into the story. Could not finish it.

Was this review helpful?

I have read many books by Nora Roberts over the years and she never fails to entertain me. I like how her stories just slowly suck you in and then keep you captive until you finish the book. Then I continue to think about the story for days after finishing it, what is happening to them now? This story actually made me want to exercise, what is that?? But it couldn't make me drink green smoothies, nothing can do that!
I recommend this story to anyone that likes a good mystery with a little romance on the side.

I would like to thank Netgalley and St Martin's Press for giving me the opportunity to read and review this story.

Was this review helpful?

I must admit I was not a fan of this book. Roberts is a good writer who tells a good story, but this one just didn't do it for me. I disliked Adrian, really disliked her mother, and some of the events just turned me off. I'm sure others will love it though.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read an advance reading copy.

Was this review helpful?

Great idea for a story. I don't know that I loved the dead wife angle, but it adds layers to Raylan. I felt like there wasn't much build up to Adrian and Raylan getting together and the time jumps were sometimes hard to follow. I figured out the killer pretty quickly, which was somewhat of a letdown. I did like that Roberts played with the idea of and almost set up a female killer, and was a bit disappointed when it was a man. Much of the "suspense" seemed forced and obvious, so I wasn't as lost in the story or the characters as I have been in the past.

Was this review helpful?