Legacy and the Queen

Author: Annie Mathew & Kobe Bryant

My rating: 4.2 stars

Legacy’s father runs an orphanage far out in the poor provinces. When they come up on hard times, Legacy enters a competition that’ll give her a chance to win a scholarship to an elite tennis academy that’ll give her a chance to compete for prize money. That’s a lot of competitions to win, and as a poor girl from the backwards and poorly regarded provinces, Legacy also has to fight through a society that looks down on and disparages her people. With no support, and up against the best trained opponents in her country, does Legacy even stand a chance?

This was a great coming of age, heartwarming book. First off, having a magic system focused on tennis was very unique. There’s no war, or great quest, or any of the typical fantasy cliches. It was very refreshing.

Second, Legacy managed to find great friends. They’re loyal and exactly the people that Legacy needs to teach her everything she needs to know in the short time she has, and to help her break the rules as necessary.

I wish there was more information on tennis here. I’m not really familiar with the sport, and all I learned from the book was that it involves a lot of hitting balls with a racket. I knew that much. I would’ve liked to see Legacy learning different moves and strikes. She does some endurance training, but it was all very quick and not a main focus. I’d liked to have learned more about the sport. Still, after finishing the book, I do feel like hitting some tennis balls could be fun.

I really liked the magic and the pyrus – a sort of dragon like creature that Legacy got to train with. Some things were a bit fuzzy on the details, but since this could be a middle grade or YA book, it doesn’t need to be overly complex. Overall, it was a fun and heartwarming read.

I received a copy in exchange for an honest review.