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Legendborn (The Legendborn Cycle, #1)

Tracy Deonn

Start date: May 1, 2021

Finish date: May 31, 2021

Discussion: Book of the Month

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What Members Thought

Oct 12, 2020 Jenn rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: paranormal-supernatural, young-adult, fantasy, mythology, new-author-to-me, read-in-2020, read-in-2025, 4-star-reads, signed-copies, do-you-believe-in-magic

Dang! Talk about a debut. This book was FANTASTIC!

First we have Arthurian legend mixed with magic. Throw in secret societies, sword fighting, demons, regular collage life and a strong ass black woman and you have this book. I absolutely loved it.

Bree Matthews is angry. Her mother was taken from her in an accident and she can't seem to find her way back to this thing called life. Memories are everywhere and even being around her father is hard. So when she's accepted to Early College at UNC along Dang! Talk about a debut. This book was FANTASTIC!

First we have Arthurian legend mixed with magic. Throw in secret societies, sword fighting, demons, regular collage life and a strong ass black woman and you have this book. I absolutely loved it.

Bree Matthews is angry. Her mother was taken from her in an accident and she can't seem to find her way back to this thing called life. Memories are everywhere and even being around her father is hard. So when she's accepted to Early College at UNC along with her best friend, Bree welcomes the change of scenery even if her heart is no longer in it. But on her first night there she witness something extraordinary that begins a chain of events that changes everything Bree thought she knew about her mother and herself.

I didn't know a lot going into this book and I'm kind of glad. Everything that came at me was a shock and I welcomed it. I love the legend of Arthur and it's reimagined in this book in a brand new exciting way that kept me guessing all the way until the end. There were so many twists that I found myself questioning my own conclusions the entire way.

I adored Bree. She was in so much pain and just wanted to find out what happened to her mother. She's smart and driven and just overwhelmed with emotion that she ends up hurting those around her and herself. It hurt to watch her make these decisions in anger but I understood why she did. The story was about her growth and coming into her own - and boy, did she.

The mythology that surrounded this story was a character of it's own. Most of us know the story of Arthur, and we see parts of that here but then we also get demons which just up the ante always. On top of that, we also get some southern magic called root magic which I found fascinating and enjoyed learning about along with Bree.

But I have to ask, am I the only one who ships Bree with Sel? Cause there's something between the two of them and while I adore Nick, there's something so raw about Sel and I just want to know more about him. And I love the two of them together. They just understand each other on a different level.

This book was so new and fresh that I just loved it. The only reason that I didn't give it 5 stars was because there were moments throughout the book where I had a hard time keeping all of the information straight. There was a lot thrown at us in a very small amount of time. But other than that, I loved it and cannot wait to read the next one! ...more

35 likes · Like · see review

Jan 22, 2021 Melanie rated it it was amazing

Shelves: lesbian-rep, bi-rep, non-binary-rep, owned

This book was so incredible. Also heartbreaking, tear-jerking, funny, educational, mysterious, and a killer ending!

First of all, Bree is one of the best protagonists ever created. Everything about her is so real and raw and I absolutely love how well she is able to learn from her faults and grow throughout the book. Her motivations are so realistic and I can honestly feel her pain when I read.

Sel and Nick are also two amazing characters! So is Alice. I just love how many different well-developed ...more

6 likes · Like · see review

Feb 27, 2022 Toshita rated it it was amazing

Shelves: books-i-own

This book was really really good. It kept me engaged the pacing was wonderful and I have no complaints about it. The representation was phenomenal. The best part about the representation in this book was that it just was. There was no flashy look at the representation, thing were mentioned and that the way it was. Very casual, very natural, no big deal. I loved that. In general the quality of writing of this book was amazing. Especially for YA. It was heavier and deeper than expected.

I have one ...more

4 likes · Like · see review

Feb 27, 2021 Tbirdplanstoread rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: z-2021-read, signed, own-hard-back, owlcrate

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

3 likes · Like · see review

Jan 28, 2022 Shruti morethanmylupus rated it it was amazing

Shelves: botm

Diverse cast AND Arthurian legends? This book DELIVERED. I'm stingy with my stars but this one earned them all and more. I can't wait for the rest of the series. ...more

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Mar 02, 2023 Keri rated it really liked it

Shelves: fantasy, owned, series-in-progress, trilogies, book-box, ya, dark-academia, 2023-12-authors-i-haven-t-read-yet, 2023-12-from-my-shelves, uno-challenge-2023

This lived up to the hype for me. I flew through this for it being 500 pages and I was so interested in the secret society aspect of things. And I love so many of the characters who are part of that too.
Occasionally the characters annoyed me with some stupid choices, but that’s expected. I loved Nick so much he’s so sweet and is so good with Bree but it does seem like the nice guys who start out never end up being the ones chosen, so I suspect a love triangle in the next book unfortunately.
Sel ...more

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Sep 23, 2021 Shelley rated it it was amazing

What a great fantasy with a strong black leading lady! This is everything I wanted and I was so excited because fantasy seems overwhelmed with white characters, it's about time to see that change. The story deals with magic and the differences between the perception on magic. One ties it to the person but one is borrowed and given credit, or thanked. Beautifully written with very deep character development, this is an all around winner! ...more

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