How to order
Lijah – Book One
& Legacy – Book Two
Early Reviews
Early Reviews for Lijah — By Kirkus Reviews
A teenager with mysteriously absent parents lands in a facility teeming with secrets in Beckett’s series-starting dystopian novel.
The novel begins with 15-year-old Lijah coming home to an empty townhouse. His mother has apparently stepped out, and his truck-driver father, who’s been away for work, should have returned days ago. Peace Force officers suddenly show up and drive Lijah to a massive building called Linderhaven. As he checks in, he finds that both his and his mother’s names are wrong on the paperwork; Mother Ruth, who runs the facility, says that he can only stay if he keeps his real name a secret.
Lijah soon settles in, despite initial reluctance, thanks to such kindhearted people as his new roommate, Simon Ostler, and the resident gardener, Naomi Wilde. He finds that there’s a lot of mysterious goings-on at Linderhaven; there’s a “special school” attended by “pretty girls,” for instance, and the facility’s sketchy governor appears to have no real power. Lijah contemplates escape, but he also wants to know why he was brought there in the first place—and to find out, he’ll have to stick around.
Beckett’s narrative thrives on mystery: Ruth and at least some of the other Sisters who run Linderhaven clearly know important information, and they’re keeping Lijah in the dark. Myriad characters and subplots abound, often involving the governor and another figure who may be even worse than him.
Overall, the story provides minimal details about the greater society in which Lijah lives—a region that’s evidently governed by a “centralized, aristocratic system.” But the supporting, predominantly female cast is consistently intriguing, including skilled pianist Melissa and Sister Patience, who notably lacks patience; most of these characters outshine Lijah, though he remains sympathetic throughout.
The author’s pithy descriptions and sharp dialogue keep the story popping, although readers may decipher the clues faster than the eponymous teen does. Ultimately, this opening installment is a fine introduction to a planned series, as any of these sublime characters could easily take the narrative reins.
A quietly engaging tale with a fine cast that will surely leave readers craving a sequel.
Early Reviews for Lijah — By Reader Views
They say don’t judge a book by its cover, but the juxtaposition of a couple embracing in front of a cemetery drew me in from the moment I saw it. And this book did not disappoint!
Ella Beckett opens Lijah, the first novel in the Linderhaven series, with a mystery that immediately pulled me in beyond the mysterious cover. I had to know what happened to his parents and who Elijah Meadows was. And why was Lijah sent to Linderhaven at all. I really liked how the book drew me in and kept me reading with interesting and unanswered questions that kept unraveling throughout the book.
The premise of the book is around Lijah, who lives in a society covered by the Council, The Seven Families, and a collection of powerful ministries. They oversee nearly every part of what is otherwise an ordinary life. But even the police are called the Peace Force, and at school Lijah has been taught that democracy was a dangerous system from the past. It’s fascinating how people worry about being accused of hoarding ordinary household goods, and communication is restricted. When I say there is never a dull moment in this book, I really mean it! Government authority is something the people have learned not to challenge.
And while there isn’t a giant explanation of how the government works before the story can begin, the rules show up through Lijah’s daily experience and can actually be so unsettling that, as a reader, they make you stop and think.
Lijah himself was the reason I kept reading. The 16-year-old character is so likeable. He’s sarcastic, impulsive, funny, occasionally selfish, and very convincingly a teenager. He doesn’t immediately become a brave rebel determined to overthrow an oppressive government; he actually just wants his parents back and suspects practically everyone around him. Considering what has happened to him, I couldn’t blame him.
The book gets even more interesting when Lijah starts building his life there. I won’t give away too many details, but let’s just say the supporting cast is one of the novel’s biggest strengths. Sadie, Simon, Tessa, Naomi, Mother Ruth, and the other residents and staff give Linderhaven a personality beyond its imposing walls.
Lijah makes friends easily and also eventually takes on work in the barn. Like any teenager, he also gets into trouble and falls in love. There were several moments when something from much earlier in the story suddenly clicked into place for me. The author is so good at giving us just enough information without immediately helping us find those answers.
Lijah is surprisingly a quick read, but the middle section does slow a bit as Lijah settles into life at Linderhaven. The last portion of the book moves much faster than the middle, and several storylines that initially seem unrelated begin to come together.
What impressed me most was how thoroughly my perception of Linderhaven changed without the shift feeling like a trick. Early in the book, I felt the same instincts that Lijah had to look for threats everywhere.
Despite its teenage protagonist, Lijah is adult fiction, and readers should pay attention to the author’s content warning. The story deals with missing persons, child abduction, domestic abuse, sexual violence, and homicide. Some of the later material is considerably darker than the coming-of-age story at the beginning might suggest.
By the end, I wanted to know what happens next. For the first book in a series, that’s exactly where I wanted Lijah to leave me. Like any great novel, I was left wanting more.
Early Reviews for Lijah — Megan Hart, NYT Bestselling Author of Precious and Fragile Things
"Welcome to the world of Linderhaven, where the history you were taught never happened. Beckett won me over with her deftly crafted characters and world-building. Lijah and Melissa are the perfect embodiment of young love, tangled up in an adult world that sets out to do them both harm."
Early Reviews for Lijah — Lee Reinecke, author of Peeling Away the Façade: The Long Shadow of Child Abuse
“In LIJAH, Ella Beckett captures the unsinkable spirit of adolescence and the resourcefulness of the wizened. Her characters made me bellow in anger and laugh out loud. Eloquent and entertaining.”
Early Reviews for Legacy — By Kirkus Reviews
In Beckett’s novel, two people who fell in love as teens reunite at the foster institution where they first met.
After graduating from college, Lijah Driver returns to Linderhaven, the foster facility where he lived for a few years, and takes over Linderhaven’s Seed Company. Lijah is accompanied by his best friend from college, Karys Athers, who takes a teaching position. She and Lijah have periodically considered a romantic relationship, but he’s too hung up on a girl from a decade ago. That same girl, 25-year-old Melody Clio, comes to Linderhaven as well; she’s there for a job, and to fulfill a “deal” with her boyfriend, Thom Gentry. He’s part of the elite Seven Families, and he can’t marry Melody, a “Social Unknown,” unless she has ties to Linderhaven, a legacy institution. Lijah wants to reignite their flame, but Melody has a boyfriend now, and as far she knows, Lijah’s unmistakable closeness to Karys indicates the two are dating. Are Lijah and Melody destined to be apart, or will their love inevitably bring them together again?
Beckett’s sophomore series installment enriches relationships and subplots established in the series opener, Lijah (2026); readers may want to check out that novel first. This tale still engages on its own, offering a refreshing take on class dynamics (Thom, who’s from a wealthy privileged family, isn’t stereotypically arrogant). The bonds between the characters feel well earned, from Lijah and Karys’ loving connection (but are they in love?) to Lijah’s affectionate relationship with Linderhaven’s Presiding Mother. As in the preceding book, the cast harbors secrets—some have more than one name, and there’s a shocking reason behind Melody’s departure from Linderhaven all those years ago.
In addition to the laudable characters and hints of intrigue, this taut narrative delivers welcome humor; when Lijah and another man boast about their cars, Karys goes to fetch a yardstick “so [they] can settle it once and for all.”
This captivating romantic story elevates an already worthy series.