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You know what? 2024 wasn't such a shit reading year, after all. The second half really picked up for me and I'm so lucky / blessed.

Here's a comparison of my favourite reads from 2023 to 2024.

I didn't expect to like so many Chinese fantasies lmao. Okay, there's only two but you get the point.

To be honest Emily Wilde deserves a slot in 2023 but ahhhh it was really hard for me to decide that 8th spot!!!!

Also there are definitely some underrated gems in there and I hope they get more love. 🙏

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not now sweetie, mommy is watching how the massive girlbossification of female characters has led to the belief that weak and vulnerable female characters are badly written characters because apparently every woman needs to be outspoken and witty and snarky and brave in order to be considered “complex” and have any value in a piece of media!!

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I absolutely adore how Holly Black portrays the fae in her Folk of the Air series. They're impossibly beautiful and vile and so blatantly not human that you, as a reader, are helplessly ensnared by them and their world.

I've read so many books with fae characters and it's so easy to forget that those characters are supposed to be something other than human, because there really isn't anything that sets them apart from us (aside from immortality, pointy ears, and an affinity for something in nature).

Holly Black doesn't let you forget that her characters are anything other than what they are. Her characters are fae, unquestionably, undeniably.

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Not Another Love Song

I finally read a book I really enjoyed in 2024!!!!!

(Even if I hate the cover, lol.)

I don't think I've read anything that made me kick my feet and giggle for a long time, but this book did it. It's so weird because Love Theoretically did that for me while Julie Soto's other book (Forget Me Not, I think?? My review is here) didn't really do that last year. But this year, both authors have pulled a UNO reverse card on me: I was very disappointed with Not In Love by Hazelwood (which I'd anticipated) but this book? Ooooh, it gave me all the sexual tension I wanted from a romance!! 

Can I say I like how Alex/Xander was all in/fell super hard and yet it was done in a way that didn't negate the tension at all? Hazelwood really should take some notes from Soto here. I love how the dual POVs were done in this book — I was given JUST enough of Xander's POV to gather certain insight from him but not too much that the tension was gone. I personally prefer more mystery from the love interest so this was really aligned with what I liked. And also even though this book was very spicy, just like Not In Love was, the sexual tension here was SO GOOD and masterfully done with the music. And also the smut was hella fun (and to my taste) — though I do feel it could have taken place a bit later into the story, just so we can milk the tension more. :)  

I'm so grateful to Julie for restoring my faith in books again. T_T For a while, I was seriously thinking I'd never feel giggly and swoon at anything again. I seriously went into this book without super high expectations and was half-bracing to drop it at some point but it was really, really good. 

- 22 July 2024

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2024 MID-YEAR BOOK FREAKOUT TAG

Best book you’ve read so far in 2024?

Legendborn by Tracy Deonn, probably. It was this or Prisoner's Throne but I can't deny Legendborn is a better and more unique novel overall. I still remember being super gobsmacked when I was done with it. That said, I haven't been enjoying Bloodmarked very much, which is really disappointing. 

Best sequel you’ve read so far in 2024?

The Prisoner's Throne by Holly Black. Was it as good as The Stolen Heir? Not really. But in no shape or form was it bad. I still enjoyed it thoroughly because I love Oak and Wren –- and also we got to see Cardan and Jude again!  

New release you haven’t read yet but want to?

There's a lot but one in particular is The Midnight Feast by Lucy Foley. I loved the fuck out of The Guest List and I did enjoy The Paris Apartment by her last year (or was it 2022??), so I'm really hyped about The Midnight Feast. I have heard it's getting mixed reviews, though, but by specific booktubers with established book tastes that differ from mine so…

Most anticipated release for the second half of the year?

Even though the author has disappointed me with her other book release earlier this year, I am most looking forward to A Song to Drown Rivers by Ann Liang. It's weird because it's supposed to be a tragedy (which I don't like reading) and a love triangle (which I'm meh about), but it's her first fantasy and the premise sounds really delicious so I definitely want to give it a shot. Comes out during my birthday month too! 

Biggest disappointment?

Speaking of Ann Liang, my biggest disappointment is definitely I Hope This Doesn't Find You. I've already reviewed it so I won't say anymore, other than the fact that I was so crushed because it had such good reviews and also because This Time It's Real is one of my favourite books of all time. I hope I won't get crushed again with her next release…

Biggest surprise?

Dead Silence by S. A. Barnes. Even now I'm flabbergasted by how much I loved it. It was the first sci-fi horror I'd ever read and I ended up getting super invested in the main cast which was unexpected. For me, thrillers and horror books are less about characters you want to root for and more about the plot/shock value, which is why I couldn't believe how much I loved the heroine and her space crew. It's a gnarly situation for me as a reader considering their fates… 

Favourite new author (debut or new to you)?

S. A. Barnes or Riley Sager. I went on a Sager binge starting from December last year to February of 2024 and I really loved his books. There's still two of his books I haven't read though, including the one that just came out this year.

Newest fictional crush?

Oak Greenbriar?? But can he be considered new when I already loved him last year? But if not him, then there's no one else, probably. I don't give my heart out easily, and honestly I haven't had the best reading year this year… even though I've read 44 books. It's kinda depressing, lol. 

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Yes yes

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It is June 2024 and I want to add a progress update.

It's been a shitty and disappointing reading year for me. I've read 43 books this year (including some rereads) and I haven't found any standouts like I did last year.

I think I may have peaked last year, honestly, when I got into the fantasy genre. I devoured Six of Crows, The Cruel Prince, The Infernal Devices, and I also loved Guild Codex: Demonized. Even read a few contemporary romance—which I'm very picky with—standouts: Love Theoretically and This Time It's Real. In any case, I've fucking torn through all the fantasy blockbusters and I'm probably not going to enjoy anything anymore.

The few books that kinda stood out to me this year are: The Prisoner's Throne (yeah, no shit, because it's in the Cruel Prince universe), Dead Silence and… I guess Legendborn? 

I know reading shouldn't always blow your socks off though—it's a hobby and if I enjoyed the time I spent on it, even if it wasn't exceptional, that should be good enough. Still. 

Meh.

MEH.

Nothing is going to hit again like those blockbusters last year, eh? There'll never be a character quite like Cardan, or Oak, or Kaz. That's my reality moving forward. How does one move onto Walmart when you've had Chanel?

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I LOVE OAK GREENBRIAR SO FUCKING MUCH IT'S NOT FUNNY

My little goat baby through the ages

By Frostbite Studios

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Did a bunch of rereads this month, and you know, I'm glad I did because the new books that I read? Oof. None really stood out except for a few.

And by a few, I really just mean the ones by S.A Barnes. Dead Silence was amazing to me, though I need to make it clear that besides the mystery, I ended up being super invested in her main cast. Which rarely EVER happens for a horror/thriller. I love the motley crew and their clashing personalities in Dead Silence, and Kane was LOVELY. Wild take but he reminded me a little of Jem Carstairs, just for his kindness and patience with the heroine. I never thought I'd visit a swoony character like that again, and I ended up kicking my feet and giggling at a HORROR novel. It's crazy.

The horror was well-done too, and one thing to note: this was my first time reading sci-fi horror. I thought I would be overwhelmed by the jargon/science-y parts but I actually did all right! Ghost Station was a bit more lacking because I didn't find the resolution satisfying, but overall I think both her books left me a little discontent in the latter half. I will say that S.A Barnes manages to always write a compelling cast. I really hope her new book, Cold Eternity, will feature another interesting cast (the blurb seems to indicate the heroine alone by herself??). 

I also reread the Mediator series — which was one of my favourite childhood books. The first four books were a fucking blast and I tore through them like a madman, but the fifth book, which used to be my favourite in the series, unexpectedly left me cold. I do think the heroine was much cooler as a character before she fell head over heels for the hero, and I was tired of her brain constantly being filled with Jesse and nothing else. It's a bit sad when your favourite series of all time falls short during a reread, but it was clouded by childhood nostalgia, so there's that.

I've already reviewed The Familiar, so in my monthly recap here all I'll say is that it was decent but nothing more than that. Foxhole Court was surprisingly not at all cringy to me despite people saying the premise is nonsensical, but I was let down by the prose and wished there were more descriptions overall. Meanwhile The Woven Kingdom had the most fucking annoying male lead of all time and Cyrus was meh, but the reveal at the end was fun and unexpected for me. 

I finished the second book in the Natural series by Jennifer Barnes and I just WISH, again, like with Foxhole Court, that the writing was better. There is so much potential in her storyline, but the prose just isn't good enough and I didn't feel attached to a single person (though I liked them all, to a mild degree). Describe the characters more! Give me more grit, I beg. What I really liked about this series is that it isn't about a group of kids with innate special abilities: they weren't born with these gifts, but several of them had suffered some type of trauma to develop these skill sets. Even Cassie's profiling stemmed from brainwork, not sheer talent. 

Urgh. It's so frustrating to me because there's so much potential in The Naturals there that, for me, wasn't met. I still plan to continue with the series just to see where it goes, though. Also I'm thinking of starting The Inheritance Games???? Not sure yet.

Overall: I read a lot for my standards, though about half were rereads. Holly Black's Stolen Heir series is such a comfort read for me and I loved Oak so, so much. It's a pity because almost all the books that weren't rereads kinda let me down (they're all three-stars save for Dead Silence), but that's just how it is, I guess. At this point I don't hope much for a book that will knock my socks off. I'm just happy I'm exploring new books and worlds at all.

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The Familiar 

I have a lot of mixed feelings about this book.

This is actually the only other Leigh Bardugo book I've read since the masterpiece that is Six of Crows, so I had no idea what to expect. I don't expect an author to maintain the same writing style from a series they wrote so many years ago, but I was expecting something decent at least. And make no mistake; it WAS decent. 

One thing I will say for sure: Leigh can write her ass off. I LOVE her prose. It's even a little like Holly Black's. After slugging through so many subpar pieces of work, it's refreshing to read a book where the author is an excellent writer. Plot aside, the prose is lovely and lush and there are so many lines I wished I annotated or took better note of. 

I think it's even Leigh's gorgeous prose that helps to embellish — or dare I say, mask — the bones of this fantasy story: the rather ubiquitous trials/tournaments trope. I happen to LOVE this trope, but I do think Leigh's writing made a premise that's so commonplace today feel rich, unique and atmospheric. I'm also a huge believer of execution over trope, so this isn't a complaint. It might even be praise. 

So why the mixed feelings, right?

This is going to veer faintly into spoiler territory (though I tried to be subtle), so beware.

The problem is that I don't really love any of the characters. The main cast is… fine, mostly inoffensive, but very forgettable. I know in several months from now I'll have forgotten this story altogether. The thing is, characters are vastly important to me — in fact, I don't even mind a weaker story if the characters stood out more. Luzia seems vague to me — I know she wants more out of her life, but that's about it? I'm sure there are more facets to her personality but overall she hasn't made a salient impression on me. 

Same with Santángel. I was honestly baffled that the writer who wrote distinct personalities like Kaz, Jesper, Wylan and Matthias gave me a male character as tepid as Santángel. His circumstances/curse was extremely fascinating, I don't question that (and it's one of this book's biggest highlights), but his personality was bland. I guess he is a little… grumpy? A little stoic?

That said, I love Valentina's character and I think the ending did her justice. She shone a lot through the book — it does start in her POV, after all — and I'm glad she somehow found her happiness at the end. I also liked the Holy Child, though I was expecting a bit more from her at the end. Hualit — I kept yoyo-ing between disliking her and being neutral and now I just don't care. 😂

The ending… was unexpected. I was scratching my head and trying to make sense of it at first. It wasn't anything like what I had envisioned it to be and I'm having a lot of mixed feelings towards it. The more I think about it, the more I can understand why Leigh wrote it this way, but it felt a tad anticlimactic. Perhaps with time and perspective I'll change my mind (I already have, a bit), but I'd hoped Santángel could break the Curse. Also! The good luck magic doesn't make a lot of sense because obviously it should have worked in a way to keep Santángel by Victor's side, given the calamitous outcome for Victor. But maybe I'm overthinking it. 

Overall, I don't think it was a major letdown or anything like that. More of a "Well, it was an interesting read!" I can't say I loved it, but at least I finally got to read something by Bardugo that isn't Six of Crows, haha. I'm still not sure if I should read Ninth House but maybe one day?

- 6 May 2024

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I did read a fair bit in April, but for some reason my brain wasn't in the mood to talk about it in my reading journal. Well, now I'm forcing it so it has no choice. I'll just compromise and make my reviews brief. And yes — a lot of thrillers in this month because I didn't want to read anything that had romance in it for a while due to a writing project that was very romance-heavy. I WILL say that reading six thrillers back-to-back has shot my nerves to pieces so 😂

Dead of Winter: I remember reading another book then downloading Dead of Winter and just opening it for a peek. WHAT I DIDN'T EXPECT was that the action had already started in Chapter 1 and next thing I knew, I was reading it like a mad man and I could not stop. I need to say that I guessed the plot twist one-third through the book and some of the logistics behind it but surprisingly, it did not ruin the story for me. It was actually one of the few thrillers I read that made me feel claustrophobic and scared. Long after I was done, I kept thinking about it, feeling a) sad for some of the characters' suffering and b) scared/disturbed. I always thought gore didn't matter to me in written form but this book proved me wrong. Overall a really good book.

Never Coming Home: I enjoyed this one a lot, too. I was also a little disturbed and rattled by this book. More than that, I was sad because some of these people were genuinely all-right people in my books (ha ha, bad pun). But they met a terrible ending, anyway. I kinda had to suspend my disbelief about the killer getting away with this shit but I gotta say: I always enjoy the 'And Then There Were None' premise. 

Everyone is Watching: This thriller actually wasn't scary, and while I'd definitely have complained had I read this first, it ended up serving as a palate cleanser after I read two really disturbing books. This was also my first time reading a book where certain characters DID THE RIGHT THING and weren't completely morally reprehensible, and I was shocked. I don't see likeable/rootable characters in thrillers often. Overall, despite lacking some of the tension and fear I'd normally have liked, it was circumstantially welcome for me and kept me engaged throughout. I would have liked if a certain subplot/thread had been wrapped up though — it had just been left there to dangle.

Ward D: Freida McFadden is often hit or miss for me in regards to story resolution, but this was a HIT!! Again, I guessed the plot twist like one-third the way in (I don't know if I'm being smarter or I've just read too many thrillers), but the journey was so thrilling and I couldn't stop reading. That's her gift, isn't it? Somehow she's perfected the formula to make her books unputdownable. I was cheering for Spider-Dan at the end, haha. I really liked this one!

That's Not My Name: Okay, so this book made me uncomfortable. The idea of a girl waking up and living with a strange man who claims to be her father was so… icky. Can you imagine?? Sharing a secluded cabin with a man you don't even know but you have to take his word that he's your dad? Thank God the man never did anything sexual because I would have vomited right then and there. Also, the ending actually made me tear up because it was really sad. I did skim in parts but other than that a pretty solid book? I don't like this as much as the aforementioned thrillers I read, though.

Everyone Here Is Lying: This was my first time reading a book with this writing style. It feels… well, not bad, just different — almost like I'm reading a report of everyone's POVs in the suburbs. It feels kinda impersonal, the way things are written? I can't put a finger on it. I don't think it's necessarily something I disliked. It was actually very engaging UNTIL the mystery reveal came in and I was like: huh??? This is so anticlimactic. This is the reveal? The culprit was like, barely mentioned up until that point. It's what made me dock a star. Other than that, the journey was pretty entertaining and I love domestic thrillers.

Wrath of the Talons: Okay. So. The first half of this book? I have to say it's kinda garbage. It's extremely repetitive with Lina going around, killing some Blackbloods, then gathering allies with just a few nice words and some baubles/valuables as bribes. I don't think she did it in any way that was significant or impressive, and I don't think she's sly as the other characters keep praising her to be – she's honestly just dumb if you ask me, lmao. I kept comparing her to Jude Duarte and being like: this is a Walmart knockoff. That said, the second half with the Prophecy came in and I was really hooked by that, and how Rui was trying to handle it. I also just really like seeing him in pain because of it. 🙂 In any case, the ENDING is what made a solid three-star book into four stars for me. Or at least a high three stars. That was delicious and I won't spoil it but I loved how it came full circle with the man whose wife Lina killed. I was originally pretty annoyed with how she thought it was okay to deceive that man into an alliance after what she did, but the culmination of that plot point was splendid. I'm really curious about the next book, which is coming out later this year, I think? It's a lot faster than I expected given we waited so long for this book, so I have a feeling this is just a placeholder date, but we'll see!!!

Okay — I'm done wrapping up. I won't be mentioning the Mediator reread right now. All in all, this was a productive reading month for me (shockingly) despite all the fanfic writing I did this month and I'm pretty content about it. I'll see where the next month takes me… 

- 1 May 2024

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Official art of Oak and Wren from the tour makes me want to cry

(From @nayxreads on Instagram)

(From Holly Black's page)

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@/hotkeybooks posted this on tik tok!!

it’s such a pretty book !! super excited to see what the illustration stamped cover looks like!!! and i’m also wondering if anyone is getting arcs for this!!

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The Prisoner's Throne

This is THE book. The book that's been consuming my every waking thought since I read its prequel in May last year. The book which, if I didn't manage to read any in 2024, would be the only one I read this year at all. The Stolen Heir was among my favourite reads last year, possibly even more than The Cruel Prince because of Oak's characterisation. 

The last few days before the book release was agonising. Sheer, skin-flaying agony. When Ann Liang's 2024 release let me down after I'd spent months hyping it up—as did I with Emily Wilde's Map of the Otherlands—I have to confess I was terrified the same thing would happen with The Prisoner's Throne. Ann Liang is one thing, but this is Holly Black. The Prisoner's Throne is on a much, much higher pedestal for me than any other book in existence thus far. If this hurt me like the others did, I might really go into the worst kind of depression. (Yes, I'm one for histrionics… only I'm being perfectly serious.)

After a night of poor sleep—I am still very grateful that I managed to sleep, albeit fitfully, most of the hours away—I started reading this book at 7AM. (I'd downloaded the book at 2 in the night.) And then I didn't stop until I was done at 10AM. 

First thoughts: THANK THE FUCK IT WASN'T A MASSIVE LETDOWN OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT. Was it as good as its prequel? No. But it didn't end up anywhere as bad as my jaded, paranoid self had secretly feared, and for that I am grateful. Overall, I enjoyed it!! I saw quite a handful of negative reviews on Goodreads but I don't feel the same way. Granted, the book definitely has a few issues, but being too slow or character-driven was not mine.

Let me talk about some things I liked and did not. Beware: Spoilers abound. 

Things I did not love:

I'm going to start with my most major disappointment. Oak, who is the highlight of this duology to me, wasn't as alluring as I found him in the first book. I think that Oak's character is written best when his POV isn't the entire book. I definitely LOVED reading his POV and welcomed it, but I also felt that having the entire thing in his perspective dulled some of his mystique. This is my personal preference, because I don't generally love stories that have too much of the hero's POV. I think Six of Crows is a good example of finding balance with Kaz's perspective and the other characters'. Also, because the story is in Oak's head, we don't see much physical descriptions of him. I miss all those parts about his adorable marigold hair and his golden eyes 🥺

I also miss his cleverness. He was very manipulative in the first book, and it was easier to feel impressed back then because you weren't in his head and you didn't know what was coming. In this instalment, he thinks a lot about playing the fool, over and over. It gets wearisome because I'm constantly being told but not often shown. In the first book, I was actually shown without being told at all—which is why it hit so much harder. Moreover, I don't think he did anything specifically very clever in this book? I guess he did use the wedding ruse to prevent a war, and he did find out what Wren was hiding, but he found that out too late and that was less cleverness than the plot being in motion.  

There's a running theme in this book about being accepted and loved for your truest, darkest self, but… I don't think it was conveyed very well. In the end, he says that Wren is the only one who can love him for who he is, but it isn't convincing to me because it's so clear to me how much—and how unconditionally—his family loves him. A lot of his inner turmoil felt very contrived and self-inflicted, whereas I thought Wren's own self-loathing was a thousand times more convincing and understandable. 

I was also quite confused by how much he loved Wren when their feelings seemed to be only gradually building in the first book. But he's completely head over heels for her at the start of this book and I wonder about the transition. I'd been hoping for some clarity because he mentioned in Book 1 that he'd loved a lot of different girls, so what made Wren The One here? I suppose it's because he didn't play the fool with her and she "saw him as himself"? I wish the writing was more convincing in this regard.

Genuinely a little baffled by the plotline about the Ghost. I'd thought we'd already covered his part in Liriope's murder in the Cruel Prince series. (I may need to reread the OG series to be sure.) But it's being rehashed again like ripping open an old wound. And I never knew Oak cared that deeply about his biological parents. My point is: Leave the Ghost alone! 

I wasn't invested in Tiernan and Hyacinth's story. I skimmed a lot of their screen time together, but their fans will probably receive quite the treat. 

Lady Elaine, fuck off!!! (That said, I do understand her role in the story, especially the climax.)

OAK TRYING TO KILL WREN AT THE END, SIR, SIR, PLEASE. DO NOT. 

We didn't need the sex scene being SO IMPLICIT –- GIVE ME DETAILS, DAMN IT!! Now I feel empty.

Things I liked: 

One thing I predicted when I'd read the exclusive first few chapters of Prisoner's Throne months ago: Wren's power came as a cost to her health. I was right. And I loved it. I'm not the biggest fan of overpowered heroines and her limitations were a great story point to me. Holly always does such an exemplary job in making her heroines, including Jude, badass and yet so human (more a figurative phrase for Wren since Wren is fae) and grounded. Also, in general, I liked Wren a lot in this book. My heart broke for her over and over. I JUST WANT WREN TO BE HAPPY AND I AM GLAD SHE GOT A HAPPY ENDING.

I had COMPLETELY forgotten about her connection to her mortal family and I am so, so happy we managed to resolve that in this book. The fact that Wren would do anything to protect her sister Brex moved me immensely. Holly did well in tying that loose end up, and hurray that Wren finally got to spend time with her family at the end of the book. 🙂

JUDE AND CARDAN!!!! Especially Cardan. He was such a gem and so intriguing in this book. Once I'm done writing this review, I'm going to reread all his scenes. No one can complain that Jurdan wasn't in this book—they were very, very involved in the plot here.

Holly Black's prose is still one of the most beautiful things I've ever read. It's my favourite prose of any author, period. It's succinct and poetic at the same time. It scratches an itch in my brain that I never knew needed scratching. 

The ending where Oak goes to find Wren and he proposes was so lovely. Ahhh. I will always have a special love and fondness for them. Bless their baby hearts.

Oak supporting Wren when she was ill will NEVER not move my stone cold heart. The way he held her weight to keep her from falling while they danced...

Before I sign off, I want to say one more thing: WHAT IS HOLLY PLANNING WITH NICASIA'S STORY? Is she going to write / create a male lead for Nicasia? What's going on?? Holly pretty much confirmed that she's going to write something else in this universe, and I must KNOW what she has in mind. Nicasia was so unlikeable in the original series that I wonder how it would be like to read her as a heroine of her own story. 

Holly, I'm right here, waiting for whatever you might throw at us next. 

[justmybookthots]

February Wrap-up

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Legendborn

Um??????????

I put this book off for so long because a) I heard the next book in the series only comes out in 2025 and I didn't want to be left hanging, and b) I wasn't the biggest fan when I heard there was a (sigh) love triangle in there. And yet here I am, having finished it at long last.

Confession: I was/am in the middle of something like a reading slump. February has not been kind to me with my reads. When the Ann Liang book I was anticipating for months let me down horrifically, ALL the books that followed either fell flat too or were just… middling. I went through book after book feeling empty, and then I told myself: you know what. Legendborn has been on EVERYONE and their mother's radar, and their responses are the same—near unanimous acclaim. It's honestly quite insane.

So I took a gamble. I got the book and started reading it. 

You can TELL. You can just TELL when a book hits right for you, unlike the ones I read before it. I was hooked. Engaged. Totally captivated. I'd read and DNFed another fantasy book just weeks ago, which also utilised King Arthur lore (titled Silver in the Bone), but somehow Legendborn succeeded where that story failed (for me). Maybe I'm just a basic bitch who's a sucker for the typical storyline of a normal girl finding herself entangled with a group of monster slayers and doing tournaments to become one of them. (Is this why… I was instantly enthralled with the Infernal Devices??? Or why I love Demon Slayer—the anime—so much????? I am finding out new things about myself.)

But sure… the beginning isn't anything too different from traditional YA structures. But as you get going, and you continue down the road, you start to see new grounds being tread, and it deviates from anything I've personally read as a teen.

As usual, even though I loved this book, I'm going to do what I almost always do and explore the dichotomy of what I liked and didn't.

Spoilers abound. 

Didn't like:

It was predictable… up to a point (and then I was GOBSMACKED but we'll get to that later). Like, I knew pretty quickly which characters were going to make it to Squires and which weren't. You could just tell from how the author treated certain Pages (the folks trying to be Squires) in a more favourable light. The nice ones win, the not-nice ones don't. I'd have liked more nuance in their characterisation, TBH.

Speaking of which, however, Bree's characterisation at the start was rough. Like, she'd do stupid shit and get in trouble and continue being irresponsible. I wasn't surprised Alice was mad at her, and I don't think that the trouble she faced stemmed solely from her race but rather her irresponsible behaviour (going off-campus when she already knows that's grounds for expulsion and she STILL gets mad when the dean, who decides to let her off, is churlish with her. Seriously?). That said, I am NOT Black, and I can't speak for the quotidian prejudices they face, so take my perception of it with a grain of salt. In any case, Bree changed and this was no longer an issue for me later on.

Nick. And his whole romance with Bree. Like, I really did NOT care. And Nick was pretty much a white boy-damsel in distress the entire story. Every time screen time was devoted to their romance, my eyes would glaze over and I'd start skimming all the kissing and stuff. 

There were a lot of characters. Like, a lot. Too many. My brain was scrambling trying to remember and place everyone in their different roles. And aside from a few (bless William), they didn't have very distinct voices. Greer had, like, ZERO distinctive voice other than being non-binary, which should not be the only thing to define a character. Whitty was��� nice, is all? Everyone kinda just melded in my brain, which is probably why none of the character deaths really hit me. 

I'm not a huge fan of Chosen One tropes. But this does play on the trope in a VERY interesting way. 

WHAT I LIKED (!!!!!!!!!!!):

The whole concept of Root and Bloodcraft. I LOVED how the author used magic to convey the colonisation of white men. The idea that Legendborns forcefully TAKE their power, while non-Bloodcraft users only borrow their power, speaks volumes to me. It was such a good way to portray real life.

Also??? The ending twist about Bree????? All along, I was convinced she was secretly the Scion of Lancelot, but I wasn't sure HOW, because all the knights are obviously white. And then the author pulls a fast one on me and she's actually fucking Arthur. The reasoning is so good. I loved how the White Man's own cruelty and their disgusting ownership of Black people led them to this predicament. I think THIS was the part that truly sold me on how terrific and unique this book was.

Characters-wise… William. Like, I adore the fuck out of him. In another world, in an even less conventional book, William would have been the hero for me. He's exactly my type with how calm and confident he was without needing to be overbearing about it. In fact, he was so gentle. (Makes me think of Jem Carstairs, but obviously Jem is THE published blueprint for types like this.)

Sel. Yes, I know I just talked about how I didn't like overbearing characters, and I initially went into this book expecting to hate him, but… :) I thought he was quite justified in his hatred / distrust towards Bree at first, knowing what he knew about how the mesmer and Oaths didn't take. I'll see if my opinion of him changes in the sequel. 

I  really, really liked how for once, King Arthur wasn't depicted as just some hero. He actually seemed almost villainous in this book, especially in the moments when Bree was possessed by him. What happened to her supposedly getting wisdom when she Awakened, though? This man does not sound wise at all. I am intrigued.

I am so glad I read this book. SO GLAD. I was down in the dumps for a bit and finally reading a good fantasy made me feel a thousand times better. I'm a bit nervous reading the sequel because some things often don't live up to their predecessor, so I shall see.

- 28 Feb 2024