J’ai des sentiments mitigés à propos de Legacy. C’est indéniablement mieux que Flashback, qui est sans conteste le pire tome de la série. Mais il souffre également des mêmes problèmes de rythme et de progression de l’intrigue que la plupart des autres livres de la série, et n’a pas abordé certains des événements de Flashback d’une manière que j’ai trouvée satisfaisante. Ce livre était également plein d’événements qui auraient dû se produire dans des livres précédents et/ou qui ressemblaient à des répétitions de meilleures scènes de livres précédents. Legacy se lit également comme un livre au milieu d’une série plutôt que comme l’avant-dernier volet d’une série. Et vu qu’il s’agit du huitième tome sur neuf, je pense que c’est un problème sérieux.
I’ve said in previous reviews of books in this series that each book is a major step forward and a major step backwards. Because Flashback was more like four steps backwards and half a step forwards, Legacy is a bit…weird. There were times where this book felt like a course-correction and Messenger seemed self-aware of some of the missteps made in previous books — the beginning of Legacy where we finally (finally) find out the Neverseen’s motives being a good example. But there were plenty of other instances where this book felt like more of the same, and as though no lessons from Flashback had been learned — the overwhelming amount of filler in this book being the case in point. Which brings me to my first point:
1. The filler and the pacing:
While there was less filler in this book than in Flashback, there was still too much. We’re on book eight out of nine people! Why are we spending pages and pages on details that don’t add anything, attempts at world-building that are too late at this point, and drawn out dialogue? Why are we rehashing conversations about bodyguard arrangements for the millionth time this late in the game? The Regent stuff in particular was just mind-numbing. Listen, I like Dex, but do I need to know (and more importantly, do I care) that he should verify with the Council whether or not he can tell his parents about his work as a Regent? Do I need to know if the Council wants all Black Swan communication to come from Forkle?
Relatedly, the pacing in this book could have better. Like most Keeper books, the first and last 15%-20% were fine, but the middle was too slow and fillery.
While the first four books in this series definitely struggled with pacing from time to time, none of them had the same egregious pacing problems that books five-eight do. And while the later books are definitely more fillery, I think part of the blame also lies with the fact that Foxfire is no longer a prominent setting — setting your story around an institution that is really structured tends to result in better pacing. Even Neverseen, which is not set at Foxfire, had solid pacing at least in part because of the time spent at Exillium. I don’t see why Messenger just didn’t have the Neverseen blow up all of Foxfire in the beginning of Lodestar if she going to completely abandon it as a setting.
Similarly, I was shocked when Sophie agreed to let Biana, Dex, Stina, Wylie, etc etc go and confront her potential parents OFF SCREEN in her and Keefe’s place, but would it really be a Keeper of the Lost Cities book if things that might actually be compelling happen off screen while we’re treating to pages of details, dragged-out dialogue and scenes of Sophie dithering around that add nothing while events that might actually be compelling happen off screen?
This late in the series, we can’t be devoting so much page time to things that don’t add anything to the story or don’t progress the plot.
2. Team Valiant plot point:
My thoughts can be summed up as: (1) do we need this and (2) is there time for this this late in the series?
If she needed a way to bring Biana, Dex and Stina into the forefront while keeping Fitz and Keefe out, setting the book at Foxfire would have achieved that because Fitz and Keefe are in a different level than Sophie, and she could have come up with a way to bring Wylie back into the story. Why are we wasting so much page time on the visit to the Point of Purity, the discussions about what everyone’s outfits look like, the endless and tiresome conversations about what ridiculous and unfunny nicknames to give people, etc when there were easier ways to bring the side characters back into the story?
This being said, while I like the side characters, there is a difference between featuring a side character more and actually developing them, and I did not feel like Dex, Biana, Stina or Wylie were actually developed in this book. And when it comes to Dex, Biana and Wylie, I think Messenger has missed her shot at actually developing them. Dex’s arc was dropped after Neverseen, Biana should have been developed in Flashback after her encounter with Vespera, and Wylie’s entire arc has always revolved around Sophie. It also just seems insulting to Wylie to make him hang out with a bunch of teenagers AND take orders from one of them.
Stina did a complete 180 in about five pages, which I know is par for the course with this series, but I could believe how quickly the others warmed up to her and how Sophie had no issues with telling Stina she was unmatchable.
On the whole I found the Team Valiant arc a waste of time that added very little and only served to underscore that the side characters are so neglected that they could not be intergraded back into the story without the assistance of a convoluted plot point.
3. Fitz:
At times this books feels as though Flashback just didn’t happen, and while I have had issues with there not being enough payoff or follow-through in later books for events that happened in earlier books, I do not recall any event in this series as significant as what happened at the end of Flashback being ignored to this extent.
Fitz’s behaviour at the end of Flashback was appalling, and was completely ignored this entire book. You’re telling me that all of the adults in this series watched the events at Everglen being broadcast during the Celestial Festival and none of them took issue with what Fitz did? Come on now.
Fitz’s actions are only brought up twice, once by Alvar and once by Sophie, who tries to make excuses for Fitz:
“She tried even harder not to wonder what it had to feel like to believe you’d willingly killed your traitorous older brother—and then find out later that he managed to get away. It had to be such a strange mix of anger and guilt and frustration and pain. And instead of being there for Fitz, she’d ignored him and avoided him.”
Yes, I feel tremendous sympathy for Fitz and his plight of trying to preventatively murder his older brother whose memories had been wiped in cold blood (twice). Truly, I have never encountered a character more deserving of my sympathy and compassion. How will Fitz ever overcome his self-inflicted trauma?
I just do not see how you can have a character verbally lash out at people they claim to care about and try to murder their brother (twice), in a series with such a black and white view of morality, and never discuss it. From a writing standpoint, you can’t have a character do something like that and then there be no consequences for that action.
The fact that so much of what happened in Flashback was ignored made a lot of this book feel like damage control/backpedaling, which I kind of expected because of how many people didn’t like Flashback and how many people couldn’t believe the way Fitz acted. But again: you can’t have a character do something like that and then just not address it. If you don’t want to address it, don’t write it.
I also noticed the backpedaling on the Vacker legacy. The trolls were a really disappointing reveal, but for once I wish this series would commit and stick with the choices it’s made rather than backtracking for the sake of suspense or because people didn’t care for a particular plot point.
4. Keefe:
As usual, I liked Keefe’s parts, and was glad we got to see more of him than we did in Flashback. I was really nervous that we were heading towards a situation where he’d head back to the Neverseen, and am immensely grateful that plot line was avoided.
5. The biological parents search:
One of my wishes for this series has always been that Sophie would never find out who her biological parents were, because I didn’t think there was enough time left in the series to devote to a search, and there were more important and pressing mysteries that needed focus. I didn’t completely mind the biological parents search in this book, however I wish Sophie had been the one to confront potential parents rather than Biana and Stina (again, off screen). I am also happy with the Oralie reveal, as she has been my top choice for Sophie’s mom since Jolie was debunked. I’m just relieved that Messenger picked the option that made the most sense. I am hoping that we don’t find out who Sophie’s father is, because again I just don’t think there is enough time at this point, and Sophie seems content to not open that can of worms.
I also like Bronte so I enjoyed getting to see a bit more of him when Sophie thought he was her father.
6. Matchmaking and the love triangle:
I did not have a problem with the Match when it was introduced in the first few books because it was presented as something that was bad, and Sophie was clearly against it. But in the later books we’re made to believe that Sophie is uncomfortable with this custom just because she grew up in the human world, which isn’t consistent with how the Match is presented in earlier books. And then in the beginning of this book, Sophie continues to express discomfort with the Match:
“Maybe,” he agreed. “But that won’t matter to anyone who cares about you. It won’t,” he insisted, before she could argue. “And honestly… don’t you think that’s how it should be?”
Yes.
She really did.
And I can’t help but feel that the matchmaking nonsense might have been worth it if the Oralie reveal had happened and Sophie had come to realize that the Match didn’t matter, and that she was fine being unmatchable. She kind of accepts it, but wouldn’t it have been great if Sophie had rejected the Match outright as something that was wrong and embraced being unmatchable?
And while it seems like the love triangle has been put to rest, I did roll my eyes when Sophie asked Fitz to just be friends « for now ». Come on now. They have irreconcilable differences, and we are definitely heading for a Sophie/Keefe or Sophie/No One ending at this point. If we were going to suffer through this matchmaking plot point, use it to definitively sink Sophie/Fitz.
7. Tam:
I was really opposed to the Neverseen taking Tam at the end of Flashback, but was willing to give this plot line a chance. I didn’t end up completely hating it or feeling like it was a waste of time, but it felt like a diluted version of Keefe’s time with the Neverseen, and really would have worked better if Sophie had been able to be in touch with Tam as much as she was in touch with Keefe during Lodestar.
Glimmer betraying Lady Gisela would have made more sense and felt more compelling if we’d gotten to see some of her through Tam’s perspective in the actual book, not in the Tam-narrated short story at the end of the book that we’re treated to after Glimmer has already left the Neverseen.
8. Miscellaneous thoughts:
– I actually kind of enjoyed Lord Cassius’s parts. I’ve never had particularly strong feelings about Cassius because he’s always felt like Bootleg Lucius Malfoy to me, but I actually think I’d like to see more of him.
– This book was all “see, Sophie and Dex are best friends! See, Fitz and Keefe are best friends! Ignore the past five books where it hasn’t seemed that way!” Fitz did such a complete 180 on Sophie and Keefe being so close, which is something he was shown multiple times in Flashback to not like, because he suddenly realized Keefe needed Sophie during such a difficult time? Hasn’t Keefe been having a difficult time for the past seven books?
– Why did I have to read so many anachronistic and dated human expressions (RAWR, epic fail, awesomesauce) in a book about elves published in 2019?
– According to my ebook, the word drama was used 35 times.
– Dex felt out of character during his interactions with the Councillors, and his dialogue reminded me a lot more of things Keefe would say.
– Why would Fitz ask Keefe to help him make a present for Sophie, someone who he clearly knows Keefe has had a crush on for years? Why would you do that to your alleged best friend? Why would Keefe agree to help? Does no one in this series understand what boundaries are?
– I was told that my theory about Alden having suggested to Keefe that bowing out so Sophie and Fitz could be together would help mend Keefe’s friendship with Fitz was confirmed in a short story included in the paperback edition of Flashback. I expected to see some trace of that plot point in this book, but nope.
– The ending of this book felt so rushed. So much is skipped over and happens off-screen. And of course Lady Gisela got away. Of course.
Overall: As you can see from my reading progress updates, I was really optimistic that this book could help get this series back on track after Flashback, but finished feeling somewhat disappointed. This book is definitely better than Flashback, but it stumbles a lot in the middle and only has a few scenes that I would consider good or memorable. In terms of where this book sits in comparison to the rest of the series, it’s tied with Nightfall for my second to least favourite.
This book also underscored for me how little happened in Flashback and how Flashback added so little to this series. You could go straight from Nightfall to Legacy and probably be a little confused, but you’d be able to understand what was happening. Legacy feels like the next book after Nightfall, rather than the next book after Flashback, while Flashback feels like this weird fever-dream standalone that doesn’t really have a place in this series.
I am also very concerned with how Messenger is going to wrap everything up in the final book (assuming this series doesn’t get extended, which I know is a possibility). The list of unanswered questions from previous books is very, very long, and with the way Messenger writes I don’t think she can address all of them in one book.