Bloodmarked (Legendborn #2)
Tracy Deonn
Simon & Schuster
Published November 8, 2022
Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads
About Bloodmarked
The shadows have risen, and the line is law.
All Bree wanted was to uncover the truth behind her mother’s death. So she infiltrated the Legendborn Order, a secret society descended from King Arthur’s knights—only to discover her own ancestral power. Now, Bree has become someone new:
A Medium. A Bloodcrafter. A Scion.
But the ancient war between demons and the Order is rising to a deadly peak. And Nick, the Legendborn boy Bree fell in love with, has been kidnapped.
Bree wants to fight, but the Regents who rule the Order won’t let her. To them, she is an unknown girl with unheard-of power, and as the living anchor for the spell that preserves the Legendborn cycle, she must be protected.
When the Regents reveal they will do whatever it takes to hide the war, Bree and her friends must go on the run to rescue Nick themselves. But enemies are everywhere, Bree’s powers are unpredictable and dangerous, and she can’t escape her growing attraction to Selwyn, the mage sworn to protect Nick until death.
If Bree has any hope of saving herself and the people she loves, she must learn to control her powers from the ancestors who wielded them first—without losing herself in the process.
My Review
While I really enjoyed continuing Bree’s journey, I think this book’s pacing is much slower than the first. We learn a lot of background information and witness rituals and scenes from King Arthur and the original knights.
There’s a lot more political intrigue here, too. Bree learns about the Legendborn’s leadership and how the regents operate. She also learns more about how the cycle began through her visits to the past.
Bree’s relationships with Nick and Sel also advance, but very slowly. She speaks to Nick periodically, and it’s obvious where the relationship is headed long before either of them acknowledges what’s happening. Bree and Sel avoid each other for much of the story, which heightens the tension. I was really ready for them to talk to one another by the time they finally did!
All in all, I think this book added a lot of interesting context to the overall story. I like where the relationships are heading, and I’m very interested to see what happens in book three.
Content Notes
Recommended for Ages 16 up.
Profanity/Crude Language Content
Strong profanity used somewhat infrequently.
Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing.
Spiritual Content
Several different branches of magical ability exist and are conducted in different ways. One group borrows power from ancestors, repaying it with their own energy or sacrifices. Another group steals power from elsewhere, accruing a debt that will someday come due. Some characters can communicate with the dead.
A line of magic wielders descended from King Arthur and his knights continues to use magic to fight demons who slip through gates from other worlds.
Violent Content
Brief racist statements and microaggressions. Situations of peril. Battles against creatures called demons made of dark magic from another world. References to assault (not shown on scene).
Brief battle scenes showing injuries and fatalities.
Drug Content
The team goes to a bar looking for an ally. A server brings alcohol and a drink with magical power.
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