Incredibooks: Blood Oath and Shadow Heart

So my best friend recently introduced me to author Morgan B. Lee in the form of her four part series Cursed Legacies and let me tell you, I’m two books in already and this story is phenomenal.

The first two books in the series are “Blood Oath” and “Shadow Heart” and they are centered around our girl Maven Oakley. She begins her tenure at the prestigious Everbound University, a required educational institution for the supernaturally gifted. Everbound is home to all houses of the cursed legacies and destiny has called upon our young Maven to be what is known as the Keeper of a Quintet, the group of legacy mates whom she is bound to and is meant to break their curses. This is where the story really gets juicy.

Maven’s quintet is made up of some very compelling, charismatic and if I must say, controversial characters. We have Silas the blood fae, Crypt the Incubus, Baelfire the dragon shifter and Everett the ice elemental. Off the bat, none of these guys can stand each other, almost as much as Maven can’t stand them and their advances towards her. On the surface that seems to be the only positive commonality that these characters share, their attraction to Maven. Though they’re all initially at each other’s throats, they gradually learn to set aside their personal vendettas for the greater good.

You really cant help but love how captivating all of these characters are. Silas is the tough as nails blood fae with an unexpected soft side which he tries his best to keep hidden. Crypt is a crazy incubus who can inhabit dreams and walk through limbo, by the way, this dude’s nickname is the “Nightmare Prince”, so that should give you an idea of how deranged he is. Baelfire the dragon shifter is without a doubt the most easy going of the crew, he reminds you of a supernatural dragon version of the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, but don’t let his pretty boy ways fool you, he is not to be taken lightly. Then there is Everett Frost, I honestly consider him to be a douche bag version of Ice Man from the X-Men comics. He’s an A-hole, but he really does mean well and you’ll see that more as his character advances.

We also have the character Kenzie, a new friend of Maven who really brings Maven out of her shell. Kenzie is so warm and lovable because she in a sense represents who Maven would be if she were to put herself out there more, but as the reader you’ll learn to give Maven grace when you learn why she keeps herself so closed off. That’s another great trait of all of these characters. Each of them has a personality that speaks to the hidden depths of Maven. Qualities like her quintet’s annoying persistence and the spunkiness of Kenzie each pull back a layer of Maven that show us more of who she is and helps us identify with her more.

Throughout these first two books in the series we learn that Maven keeps herself in a self imposed isolation. She grew up in hell, quite literally, so she’s a tough woman who can hold her own in a bout and proves it numerous times in this first half of the series. Though she seems very stoic on the outside, on the inside she is very caring about both her quintet and her good friend Kenzie. Personally, I find Maven to be a very lovable and relatable character. Yes, she has walls up, but it’s for a good reason. She’s a lover and a protector, even we she claims otherwise. Not to mention she’s as tough as it gets, even more so than her male counterparts.

The journey that Morgan Lee takes you on in this first half of the series is romantic, hardcore and action packed. We watch the amazing Maven Oakley fight not only for her life, but the lives of those around her. We watch our leading protagonist fight through a world of supernatural creatures who test them to their limits at Everbound, while navigating secrets that create personal discord that challenge our hero’s relationship dynamics. So if you’re a fan of dark romances with a supernatural reverse harem backdrop do yourself a favor and go read this book. I guarantee you that it’ll be one of the best series’ you’ll ever read and I swear you’ll fall in love with Maven Oakley and her Quintet.