A review by semi
Bloodmarked by Tracy Deonn

adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

strengths 
  • more exploration on Rootcrafting and the Order and how systems have let down and oppressed groups of people for generations 
  • more action

cons
  • romance between sel and bree progresses unnaturally fast. it feels a bit forced sometimes because sel especially cannot explicitly state why he’s so head over heels for her and fails to properly atone for his deception and previous murderous intent towards her in book 1….
  • after a certain point it just felt like sel and bree were cheating on nick and really could not care less. they say they care about him but often their actions said otherwise.
  • i found bree’s flaws to be a bit annoying. she continues to constantly loudly speak in conversations about complex topics when she’s the least knowledgeable in the room (like girl know when it’s your place) and makes impulsive decisions that put others at stake. she had not improved from the beginning of legebdborn to the end of bloodmarked. she always needs to be reeled in by her friends. at times she really lacked perspective on the bigger picture and empathy for others who went through the same thing.
    the scene where she felt betrayed by nick for murdering the man who literally killed his father right in front of him. her especially should have understood the internal rage and grief of loosing a parent because that empathy, loss, grief, and misdirected anger was heavily explored through her in legendborn. if that were her in nick’s position, i really do think she would’ve tried to do the same. it was frustrating seeing her take such a raw and vulnerable moment for nick and make it about her self. no he didn’t betray you. that moment had NOTHING to do with you.
    i do try to not be too harsh because she really is going through a lot.
  • pacing can feel overwhelming at times—there are so many events and character lines packed into this book but there lacks a goal and direction for plot and character development. like what even was the end goal here??