I wanted to like the creative decision this sequel took in following a different heroine from the previous book. And I do like that Tella - being passionate and greedy for life - is often personified in the prose with descriptions related to sense of taste.
... But those were the book's only redeeming qualities, for me.
The introduction of the pantheon was jarring, I felt like I was reading a completely different fantasy series with the shift in magic system /and/ heroine.
The "twist" is not surprising at all. If anything it makes the first book more convoluted, and it makes this sequel not complex enough. Everything the heroine supposed could be true...turns out to be true.
With the mystery not really being a mystery, the story becomes...a romance? A personal awakening? Donatella learning to love is a beautiful message, but I don't feel it was as strong as Scarlett learning to be brave in the first book.
And that's sort of the whole problem in a nutshell: I like Scarlett, I like the magic system of Legend's enchanted circus, I like Scar trying to unravel the mystery of who are these performers and what is Legend's curse. I liked the first book, and I expected the sequel to /expand/ upon it, not deviate from it. Adding anything beyond the first book's conflict - Fates and Stars and Missing Bandit Mothers and Tella's love life - all feels... tacky. They're unnecessary rhinestones and feathers on an already stunning glittery dress. Legendary adds /a lot/ to the universe, without really adding anything to care about.