The Becoming by Nora Roberts: Book Review
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The Becoming, the second book in the Dragon Heart Legacy by Nora Roberts, is finally here!
If you read The Awakening, the first book in the series, you’re probably as eager to get your hands on this one as I was.
I’m pretty sure you won’t be disappointed!
This review post will give you a short synopsis of The Becoming along with my thoughts on the book and what I liked or didn’t like.
My Take: The Becoming confirmed something I really didn’t expect when I started the Dragon Heart Legacy: apparently Nora Roberts can get me to read about dragons, faeries, portals, and alternate worlds after all. I’m not normally a fantasy reader, but by this second book I was completely invested in Breen, Marco, Talamh, and the people they’ve come to know there. If you enjoyed The Awakening, I think this is a very satisfying continuation – but I definitely recommend reading the trilogy in order.
The Becoming by Nora Roberts
The Becoming is the second and latest book in the Dragon Heart Legacy series by Nora Roberts. If Nora sticks to the same type of time schedule between books, then presumably there will be a third book (and last?) in the series sometime next year.
I recently reviewed the first book in the series, The Awakening. Before I read that, I had some very mixed feelings about it and almost overlooked the series completely.
Why? Because it seemed like it might be too “fantasy-ish” (is that a word?) for me. I don’t normally read fantasy and I just wasn’t too sure about this series. You can read my review of the first book to see for yourself what I thought.
But let me just say that I’m so glad I didn’t completely miss this series.
What It’s About
The Becoming picks up Breen Kelly’s story after her return to Talamh – this time with her best friend Marco unexpectedly along for the ride. As Marco discovers the magical world Breen has been keeping secret, Breen continues learning to control her powers and understand the role she is destined to play.
But Talamh is facing a growing threat, and Breen’s connection to the enemy makes her increasingly important to the coming battle. As she becomes stronger, so do the relationships, loyalties, and dangers that will carry the story toward the trilogy’s final book.
The Becoming – What I Liked
Talking about what I liked in this book is a bit difficult for me, only because I was so completely convinced that I would definitely not like this series.
But in reality, I’m completely hooked on it.
The thing I like the most about this book, and the previous one in the series as well, is the characters. I feel like I completely know them like I might see and talk to them in real life!
I’ve read some unfavorable reviews about the characters, saying that they are undeveloped. I couldn’t disagree with this more! I find the characters to be very well-developed.
Another favorite is the setting, which is partially in Ireland and partially in the alternate world of Talamh, which I picture as looking exactly like Ireland. So a complete win-win there!
And finally, there is definitely a buildup of the story from book one to book two, and then from book two to book three. I wouldn’t call it a cliffhanger in any way, but it leaves me with just enough questions about what’s going to happen next that it has me highly anticipating the next book. I like that because it keeps me engaged in the series.
The Becoming – What I Didn’t Like
Honestly, there’s not much I didn’t like about this book. I couldn’t wait for this second book in the Dragon Heart Legacy, and I just reread the first book right before I started this one because I wanted to be sure I remembered everything from the first one.
If there is anything I didn’t like, I guess I would say that this one has even more fantasy-ish qualities than the first. And fantasy is just not my thing. Or so I thought…
But at this point in reading the series, I’m completely used to what’s going on in the book, so that wasn’t really a problem.
The Becoming – Read, ReRead, or Reconsider?
And now for my 3 Rs of book reviews. Should you Read, ReRead, or Reconsider?
What are my honest thoughts about The Becoming?
A definite Read.
If you’ve already read my review of The Awakening, you’ll know that it ended up as a ReRead for me. The Becoming could end up as a ReRead as well, right before the third book in the series is released. Who knows? It’s too early to know that at this point!
I loved The Becoming just as much as I did The Awakening.
If you can’t wait to hear my thoughts on the final book in this series, I’ve already reviewed The Choice so you can have a look at that whenever!
Is The Becoming Worth Reading?
The Becoming did exactly what I wanted a second book in a trilogy to do: it deepened the characters and the world, moved Breen’s story forward, and left me eager to find out how everything would end. Considering I almost skipped the Dragon Heart Legacy because I thought it would be too fantasy-heavy for me, that’s saying something.
If you enjoyed The Awakening, I wouldn’t stop now. Read The Becoming next – and then move straight on to The Choice to finish Breen’s story.
What To Read Next
- The Awakening by Nora Roberts – Start with the first Dragon Heart Legacy book if you haven’t already.
- The Choice by Nora Roberts – Continue with the final book in Breen’s trilogy.
