Tag: #favourites

My favourite Books of 2021, part six. Legendborn by Tracy Deonn.

LEGENDBORN BY TRACY DEONN

Legendborn is an Arthurian retelling. Not only is it a well written fantasy but it also explores heavy themes such as grief and racism. After Bree’s mother dies in an accident, she wants nothing more than to escape her hometown and a perfect chance arises, Bree leaves her home. After witnessing a magic incident everything changes for Bree. This novel follows Bree as she discover a whole another world of magic and how she might even be involved. Legendborn is unlike the usual retelling, instead of having characters who are reimaged or children of well-known tales they are ancestors of the characters of King Arthur. I loved this novel for several reasons, from the fantasy side, the many complex characters, the slow budding romance, the writing style, the BIPOC representation, the LGBTQIA+ rep and of course the overall storyline. I have to say a lot happened in the last couple chapters and it was left on an incredibly exciting cliff-hanger. The sequel, Bloodmarked, is coming out in July 2022. The author also explored grief of a loved one quite in depth and it feels as if many people were\could\have\can relate. It brought together a heavy theme and put it together with an unexpected fantasy which worked comfortably. Overall, a wonderful novel and am excited to see more of the characters again soon.

Trigger warning: Racism, grief, death, anxiety, car crash, attacks.  

My favourite Books of 2021, part five. Malice by Heather Walter.

MALICE BY HEATHER WALTER

Malice is a retelling of sleeping beauty. It takes a spin on this well know tale and focuses on sleeping beauty and the dark fairy turning it into a sapphic romance if they were both the same age and in their teens. It follows the life of Alyce, imagined as the dark fairy living in a household of “graces” who are “good” magic wielders, and she is the only one who is a dark grace.  One day Princess Aurora comes to Alyce in search for a cure for a curse that will kill her in exactly one year. From there sparks fly and everyone knows how the story is going to end right? I loved this novel, as it is a fantasy retelling, it did take some time to dive into its world, but I would say quicker than the usual fantasy and I read it in one sitting thinking it was a standalone, it was left on such a large cliff-hanger. Thankful the sequel is coming out May 2022! I really enjoyed see a LGBTQIA+ focused romance in fantasy and am very excited to see more of the romance in the sequel to coming out soon.  I would recommend to those looking for a novel with the classic “good” and “evil,” but with the back story and from the point of view of the villain.

 

Trigger warning: Abuse, torture, death, violence, bullying, homophobia.