Reviews tagging 'Sexual assault'

Legendborn by Tracy Deonn

140 reviews

samellecooke's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

This book was touch and go for me until about 70-75%. I came very close to a DNF on this one, but decided to power through and, boy, am I glad I did! The difficulties for me laid in the foundation of the magic system and construct of the fantasy world. I didn't understand a lot of things, haha! I didn't get how the power worked, how the order was formed, King Arthur fit in. I was confused by Bree's mom's death and how children were allowed to basically run the roost at UNC (crazy, I know, being a fervent Harry Potter fan where literal children were fighting off murders, but that's neither here nor there!). 

Getting to the real meat of the story and understanding the magic felt like a slog I couldn't overcome what with all the hype this book got. I felt lied to. I'll explain more, but...spoilers. All this said, the writing was good, characters well-developed, and the topics explored resonated with me personally. I especially loved how Tracy Deonn approached different topics of prejudice. I thought this was incredibly well done and I don't think we see enough of this in fantasy. Sure, we see a lot of underdog stories or female empowerment, but this is different.

What initially turned me off with Legendborn was the magic system...or maybe more accurately, systems. You have people with magic with roots in the myths of King Arthur and the Round Table that are referred to as Legendborn, as well as something called Root Craft. It took my awhile, but my perception is that the Legendborn Cycle series explores the social constructs of race and sex. King Arthur is a white man's tale and historically those who are Legendborn are white and male. While females seem to be more prevalent in recent times, it's very rare for other race to become Legendborn. Meanwhile, Root Crafters are not only exclusively female, but to my knowledge are all of Black decent as well with deep roots in slavery. While I love how Tracy has developed these themes, I just found the building of this world and converging of the different systems, lines, magic whatever you want to call it, incredibly distracting and confusing. Once I understood where we were going, it got easier and more enjoyable for me. 

I also was not at all expecting the twist at the end of this book, the true identity of King Arthur's line in Bree and Nick actually being of Lancelot's line.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Death, Sexism, and Death of parent

Moderate: Rape and Sexual assault

jocelyn62013's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical content, Racism, Death, Violence, Death of parent, and Grief

Moderate: War and Torture

Minor: Transphobia, Slavery, and Sexual assault

localogophile's review against another edition

adventurous emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I'd read Legendborn when it first came out, and decided it was time for a reread.

I loved this book. The characters are all well fleshed-out and have reasonable motivations and goals, and I felt like I was a part of the story, experiencing every little thing with the characters. (Just ask literally anyone I was around; they can testify to all my reactions xD.) The plot was facinating, and whenever I wasn't listening, I yearned to experience more of the story. There were some unexpected twists (some that I didn't even see coming my second read-through, which annoyed me a little). The suspense of Bree's quest to learn more about her mother's death, and Bree's exploration into the worlds of magic certainly helped in making me want more and more. All in all, it's a great book! Go read it!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence

Moderate: Racism and Slavery

Minor: Sexual assault

hilivingston7's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I really enjoyed this fantasy. It was a great modern day telling of the legend of Arthur on the legacy of UNC Chapel Hill that examined how chattel slavery impacted and continues to impact characters. The depiction of Bree’s grief for her mother felt so real and coupled that with her feelings of tokenism and isolation as the only minority experiencing daily micro & macro aggressions. I loved how the ending threaded the nuance of her ancestors and her coming to terms with accepting her mothers death. Really excited to read the second! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent and Grief

Moderate: Sexual assault, Car accident, Rape, Abandonment, Violence, Colonisation, and Sexual violence

klsreads's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

God-tier. An absolutely perfect debut. This book made me cry so hard, and I loved every minute of it. I loved the characters and their relationships (don't talk to me about Bree and her mom). There are non-tokenized queer and nonbinary characters and a bisexual male love interest (!!!!!!!). It reckons with grief, racial trauma, colonization, and the premature deaths of Black folks in America. It meditates on history, who is remembered, and what it means to be cut off from ancestral knowledge and power (literally and figuratively). It mythologizes and reckons with real racial struggles and white supremacy.The magic system is so unique and fun. Sprint to get this book. Tracy Deonn is unbelievably talented, and I will read whatever she writes.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Racism, Slavery, Grief, Kidnapping, Violence, Bullying, Colonisation, Death of parent, Mental illness, Murder, War, and Blood

Moderate: Medical content, Car accident, Rape, Alcohol, Torture, Classism, Confinement, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Panic attacks/disorders, Pregnancy, Racial slurs, Hate crime, Infidelity, Religious bigotry, Sexual harassment, and Body horror

Minor: Police brutality, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Stalking, and Vomit

booked4adventure's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual assault, Slavery, and Racism

katebella's review

adventurous emotional funny inspiring reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent and Grief

Moderate: Death, Blood, Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Racism, and Violence

Minor: Torture, War, and Sexual assault

alysonmorales's review

adventurous emotional inspiring mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, Sexual assault, Blood, Murder, Rape, Death, Grief, and Racism

Minor: Car accident

bookedbysyd's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I really loved this story. It was very original there’s definitely nothing like it. I loved the diversity and Bree being a strong black female lead was something that made me pick up the book in the first place. And she did not disappoint. I have made it my reading mission to prioritize and uplift black stories and authors, and if this is your goal too, run and buy this book. HELL! Even that isn’t your goal, read this book. It really THAT good. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism

Moderate: Slavery

Minor: Sexual assault

nikki_flowers's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional hopeful medium-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Slavery, Death of parent, Misogyny, Grief, and Death

Moderate: Medical content, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual assault, Violence, Sexism, Sexual violence, Kidnapping, Racial slurs, and Rape