#incorrect legendborn

[starfallkaz]

Sel x Bree thoughts that make me rabid

1. I’ve said it before but I’ll say it again: Cat boy Sel is sooo important

Bree has come to realise that Sel is very much like a cat and he very much enjoys sunning himself. Usually he’ll climb a tree in a sunny spot and perch up in a branch, Bree loves to watch the way the sun and shadows play across his face

the way he practically purrs when Bree scratches his scalp

he hisses at people he doesn’t like

2. One of Sel’s favourite ways of showing affection is pressing his cheek to Bree’s or pressing their foreheads together.

It’s the intimacy of sharing that space with her. Sel’s love language is physical touch, and it’s the casual intimacy of the gesture that he loves. Being able to see Bree, come up to her and kiss her temple or press his cheek to hers in greeting.

3. Sel loves Bree’s hair. Before she knew how much he cared for her, he’d catch himself admiring her in the sunlight. The way the light would play off the curls and wisps of her hair, alight in bronze hues. His lips would part and he’d stare and have to distract himself from reaching for her

He changed to satin pillowcases for Bree <3

4. I love the idea of Sel blushing, being furious that he’s blushing (how could my body betray me like that), which makes him glare. Bree finds this angry cat look quite adorable and enjoys seeing how she can get Sel riled up. Bree comments on how cute he looks, just to see his face burn and the scowl appear between his brows.

5. Sel finds it awfully inconvenient that Bree can feel his eyes on her - it’s difficult to skilfully pine for and admire a girl in a non-desperate totally cool way when she knows every time that you’re looking at her

Alice: I mean we all know Sel is down astronomically bad for Bree, it’s not a secret to anybody. Sel glares from the corner

I’m also so down for the bickering between Alice and Selwyn. Their ongoing bit of only referring to each other as “Kane” and “Chen” like two foes, but they’re united in their ability to kick anybody’s ass in defence of Bree

6. Not to be nsfw or anything but, it’s also canon that Sel’s canines are incredibly sensitive - one time they’re kissing on the sofa and Bree is on top of him, his hand stroking her thigh. Bree runs her tongue over the tip of his canine and the way he shudders and his eyes burn, and he just melts into her mouth - he’s like putty

7. Alternatively, kissing Sel when he’s aether drunk - after much insistence on his part that he’s completely fine, he just needs a couple kisses to make him feel better.

He sits on the edge of his bed and Bree stands between his legs. And he’s muttering in welsh looking up at her with burnt amber eyes, Bree catches some familiar words like, beautiful, breath-taking, and you’re incredible

she leans down to give him a quick kiss and he takes the opportunity to wrap his arms around her, leaning back on the bed and pulling Bree down with him as she giggles

8. there’s a live band playing at one of the campus bars and Bree wants to go - Alice has gone home for the weekend. Sel detests live music with a passion (it’s all too much for his senses), so William offers to go with Bree instead, reassuring Sel that everything is fine - it’s just a bar!

Sel still watches the perimeter from outside - he tried to stand in the bar with ear plugs in but his eye started twitching and he excused himself

9. When they’re walking around together and Sel will either have an arm slung over her shoulder, or she’ll link an arm around him and the casual contact and affection is everything to him

10. Bree finds the smell of his aether signature so comforting. Especially when he’s happy or at peace, the scent of charred cinnamon and whiskey is mellowed, almost warmer and more inviting. Bree is falling asleep one night and mumbles if he can cast something - he casts a light scattering of aether drops falling in the room. Bree sleepily smiles and snuggles into the crook of his neck. Sel feels his heart thumping so loudly in his chest - surely even Bree can hear it

Not to end it on a bittersweet note or anything, but for so long Sel struggled to visualise what he wanted for himself outside of his role. As Kingsmage there wasn’t really anything else but to care for Nick. But holding Bree there and it’s never been so clear to him what he had, and what he wanted to keep.

[talleryn]

Nick: so, I get that we’re all without fathers-

Bree: not me.

Sel:

Nick:

Bree: I fucking love my dad

[incorrect-legendborn-quotes]

Sel: Do you think I went overboard?

Bree: Like the crew of the Titanic.

[liggy-not-potter]

valec: “they’ll never find the body” is such a boring threat. threaten that they’ll never stop finding the body.

william: what the fuck?

selwyn: they’ll be recovering pieces of you for three months. you will be alive for at least two of them.

alice: that’s terrifying

[massiveladycat]

so i reblogged something and made a meme and i just wanted to post it individually now

[myanxietydemonaretootired]

Bree: I am strong on my own. I am brave and kind and smart. I have the power to rewrite my destiny and be more than what it was expected from me.

Bree: *sees a tiny spider* OH MY GOD, KILL IT!!! ALICE!!! HELP!!!!

[brianakane]

Sel: guess what I'm about to get

Alice: on my nerves

[ofstarsandmoonlightt]

Bree: So, um, I think I’m in love with Sel.

Alice: Sel? The merlin?

Bree: Yes. Thoughts?

Alice: And prayers.

[massiveladycat]

so i made this meme

emojis I think every legendborn character would use (part 1/?):

Bree: 🤨🫥🤔🤢

she's not a fan of emojis but uses some when she's talking to alice

Alice: ✨🥺🥰🏳️‍🌈

she absolutely LOVES emojis because I love emojis and I said so... and she influenced bree to start using emojis

Nick: 😜🤣😍😰

poor nick, in my head he uses emojis like a 40 year old would use

Sel: 😶😒💀😼

says he hates emojis and only uses them ironically, but he secretly likes them and his favorite one is the cat emoji

[lovermyme]

Dude i had a hard time trying to post these pictures, tumblr couldn't let me

The incorrect quote is from @incorrect-legendborn-quotes ♥️

[starfallkaz]

AU Legendborn

Bree wants to go to a concert and Sel is quite frankly appalled at the idea (think almost comical look of horror on his face)

Sel’s ears are so sensitive, he can’t get closer than a block from the venue (and that’s pushing it) or he’ll as Alice puts it, “start tweakin’ ”

Seeing his face, Bree tries to reassure him that they have metal detectors and they check bags in the venue (with a completely deadpan expression he crafts a crossbow of aether with one hand, did you forget aether is a thing???? Briana???? Demons don’t need metal)

Bree suggests he could put in some earplugs and come with her? “Briana please be serious,” he’s even more outraged.

But the thought of Sel wearing earplugs or ear muffs and scowling in a corner is so funny to me

[talleryn]

Bree: what’s for dinner

Alice: I can’t tell you, it’s a soup-prise

Bree:

Bree: is it soup

Alice: I soup-pose it could be

Bree: please stop with the soup puns

Alice: lol no

*one hour later*

Bree: it’s fucking TACOS???

[incorrect-legendborn-quotes]

Bree: That guy tried to kill me once. You don’t forgive and forget something like that!

Sel:

Bree: Except you. You and I are cool.

[thatringboy]

Evan: [lets Fitz die]

Bree: And you did this for what?

Evan: [reveals that he’s a demon in a human body] Why not?

Bree: But why?

Evan: [kills Whitty] Why not?

[myanxietydemonaretootired]

Will: I'm bored, I don't know what to do

Valec: we could kiss

Will:

Valec:

Will:

Valec: or not

[astralbooks]

Bloodmarked by Tracy Deonn

Read: 07/10/2022 - 18/10/2022

Rating:5/5

Rep: Black main character, Taiwanese-American lesbian side character, bisexual love interest, Black side characters, achillean side character, various queer side & minor characters

CW: racism, death of a parent (in backstory), death of a friend (prior to book’s beginning), on page death, grief, violence, life-threatening injury, discussed rape (in backstory, not of main character), non-consensual drug use, non-consensual memory & perception manipulation, imprisonment

Review:

(This review will spoil the ending of Legendborn)

To put it simply, I’m obsessed.

The book opens a few weeks on from where Legendborn ended. Nick is still missing, and the Order haven’t given any indication that they’re all that concerned about trying to find him. Bree’s supposed to be their leader, their King, but you know how it is in both fantasy and through history with long time regents when the true monarch appears. At first they keep her identity secret for practical reasons that appear to be largely reasonable, but things soon take on a much darker tone.

The commentaries on generational trauma and institutionalised racism that were present in the first book haven’t gone anywhere in this one. Bree may be Arthur’s Scion, and the most powerful Scion there has ever been due to her own unique abilities, but in the eyes of many she is just a Black girl who needs to be controlled and possibly eliminated so that her power can go where they want it to go. Deonn doesn’t shy away from how horrific this is.

Bree learns a lot more about how the magic works in this world in this book and I really enjoyed that! Through the first book Bree met people who told her about magic that only works in a very specific way, and it was fun seeing Bree learn how these people were wrong, intentionally or otherwise. The magical world is a Lot bigger than Bree realised, and this isn’t always a good thing.

I liked Selwyn in book one but didn’t quite relate to the huge amount of hype centered specifically on him. It’s not incorrect to say that a lot of Sel’s hype stems from him being the mysterious hot white guy character who’s a bit of a jerk, and we all know that these are the characters that fandom likes to flock to. However, I get it. After reading this book, I get it. I’m surprised at how much I love him because he can be downright mean at times and I usually don’t like those characters at all, but this jerk does have a heart of gold and his meanness almost always stems from how deeply he cares about his friends, wants to keep them all safe, and doesn’t want them to worry about him. He’s not mean just for the sake of it, and he’s under a lot of pressure because a lot of people are relying on him. His relationship with Bree was So Good. There is an incident partway through the book involving him that has the potential to turn a lot of people off him entirely, but I think that his genuine understanding of what he did wrong and his genuine remorse, plus Bree not forgiving him right away due to how serious this incident is, has made me enjoy him and their relationship dynamic even more. 

Loving Selwyn does not necessarily mean that I’m rooting for him to ‘win’ this love triangle. Nick’s not in this book as much as he was in the first one, but with his limited page space he still manages to shine. Does this make me Team Nick? No it does not. There are a couple of scenes where both boys are talking to Bree at the same time and they were great and I would like to formally make it known that I think Bree deserves two boyfriends. I’m sure the boys would be down. 

A bunch of new characters were introduced in this book! I especially liked the new friendly cambions, Lark and Valec. Valec was particularly fun, and hit on a very specific trope that I enjoy a lot. Valec is attracted to Bree, is completely aware that these feelings are not reciprocated and is content with that, and delights in making fun of the other person present who also has feelings for her. Valec is the transparent sort, and Sel very much isn’t, even if Sel likely doesn’t know the meaning of the word subtlety.

I wrote in my review of the first book that I had a prediction about Alice and I didn’t write that prediction down and for the life of me I have no idea what that prediction was. I will learn nothing from this. Alice was great though.

Of course, with all these cool side characters, the fact remains that Bree is the star of the show here! She spends the whole book trying so hard to do the right thing, even when it seems like everything is against her. She doesn’t put up with anyone’s bullshit, isn’t afraid to put boundaries in place and fight for them when needed, and is willing to do so so much if it’s for the sake of the people she loves. She’s an excellent protagonist and I love reading from her perspective.

Speaking of perspective, the climax near the end was SO COOL! Once again there’s something that looks like a non-sequitur but really really isn’t in my review on this series, but I can’t explain in any more detail without spoiling things. Just know that I was yelling.

For some reason I was under the impression that this was a duology, and this made the final chapters of the book significantly more stressful for me. If that ending had been the ending to the entire series I would’ve been so mad. I’ve never been so happy to learn that I was wrong. I know that at the time of this review being posted this book hasn’t technically been released yet, but please I am begging for it to be less than another two years before the third installment’s release.

I would absolutely recommend this book/series. 

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster for providing me with an e-arc in return for an honest review.