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jnishi's review
5.0
Wow. Just wow. I have no idea why I put off reading the that for so long! It was fantastic! Seriously, don’t let the lower GR rating put you off. Read it, you won’t regret it.
bookph1le's review
3.0
I had the weirdest experience with this book, and I'm going to have to digest it a bit before I can write a half decent review. There wasn't anything wrong with it, and a lot of it was done so well, yet it failed to connect with me for reasons I can't really figure out at the moment. Full review to come.
Complete review:
This type of review is the hardest to write, because I didn't have strong feelings either way about this book. It does many things so, so right, but it just did not click with me, mainly for reasons of personal taste. I have no trouble at all understanding how many readers will find it enthralling, it just wasn't for me. Some spoilers to follow.
One of this book's biggest assets is its diverse cast and unique setting. It was refreshing to read a fantasy novel that wasn't about white characters in a pseudo-European setting. I am very excited about the growing diversity of books, and in YA in particular, so that was an enormous draw to me.
This book felt fresh, with a world I found compelling and interesting. Unlike many other YA fantasy novels, the world building here isn't just window dressing. It's detailed and complicated with a great many players, and it's not immediately apparent who is working with whom.
As for the characters, I cared a great deal about both Archer and Sefia. I found them both very well done, and Sefia in particular is a breath of fresh air for a variety of reasons: she's got motivations of her own that don't center around a boy, her relationship with Archer is very well developed, she's about as far from being a Mary Sue as a character can get, and the author lets her grow and develop over the course of the book rather than making her go from zero to awesome--or, worse yet, telling the readers that she is awesome without letting readers see it. Sefia is allowed to be vulnerable, to make mistakes, and Chee gives her the space to learn from her experiences and to view things in shade of gray rather than black and white.
Archer is also impressive, not least because he's mute for most of the book, and we only occasionally see into his head. Chee does a very impressive job of fostering his growth by allowing readers to witness his actions and to allow them to speak for the kind of person he is. I also thought his trauma was handled well, and that the book makes plain the horrifying exploitation of boys like him without being lurid about it.
To my enormous relief, this book avoided the cliched pitfalls that have ruined my enjoyment of so many other YA fantasy novels. There is no love triangle to be found, the plot feels organic rather than things happening because plot, the magic system is well thought-out, and the budding romance between Archer and Sefia is beautifully and appropriately developed. It feels like part of the story rather than the story being background dressing for the romance. I really understand why these characters felt the way they did about one another, rather than the horrible, cookie-cutter romances so many YA novels contain, in which characters develop mad crushes on one another because the plot demands it. In addition, I think this novel does a great job of handling a relationship between two trouble characters, one of who has been especially traumatized. I never got the sense that Sefia was supposed to "fix" Archer, nor did their relationship reek of the unhealthy codependency that suffuses far too many YA romances. I really enjoyed seeing a healthy, understandable connection develop between two well-done characters.
So why didn't this novel click with me? Well, it has everything to do with the pirates and with the backstory about the library. I was so invested in Sefia and Archer than whenever the book left them to explore other aspects of the story, I could not get as into the passages. I didn't think they were at all unnecessary--in fact, Chee does a great job of weaving all these various threads together, and many of the pirate tales were quite good, imaginative and filled with adventure. What it all boils down to is a matter of personal preference. I don't much like pirate stories, so I wasn't very interested in the pirates. That says nothing about Chee's writing abilities (which I thought were very good) and everything to do with the fact that half this book just isn't my thing. I simply wanted to get back to Sefia and Archer whenever the book diverged from them, and considering that this happens during a good chunk of the book, it tempered my enjoyment.
I also think that the villains of the piece were a bit weak, but I'll allow some leeway here. They may be more developed in future installments, but in a book that was so full of unique, developed characters, the villains felt too stock for me.
Overall, I think this is a strong beginning to a promising new series for readers who like well-done fantasy with pirate elements, and I think Chee is a promising new author. I doubt I'll read other books in this series for the reasons I mentioned, but that doesn't change the fact that she is an author who is now on my radar and whose future projects I'll watch with interest.
Complete review:
This type of review is the hardest to write, because I didn't have strong feelings either way about this book. It does many things so, so right, but it just did not click with me, mainly for reasons of personal taste. I have no trouble at all understanding how many readers will find it enthralling, it just wasn't for me. Some spoilers to follow.
One of this book's biggest assets is its diverse cast and unique setting. It was refreshing to read a fantasy novel that wasn't about white characters in a pseudo-European setting. I am very excited about the growing diversity of books, and in YA in particular, so that was an enormous draw to me.
This book felt fresh, with a world I found compelling and interesting. Unlike many other YA fantasy novels, the world building here isn't just window dressing. It's detailed and complicated with a great many players, and it's not immediately apparent who is working with whom.
As for the characters, I cared a great deal about both Archer and Sefia. I found them both very well done, and Sefia in particular is a breath of fresh air for a variety of reasons: she's got motivations of her own that don't center around a boy, her relationship with Archer is very well developed, she's about as far from being a Mary Sue as a character can get, and the author lets her grow and develop over the course of the book rather than making her go from zero to awesome--or, worse yet, telling the readers that she is awesome without letting readers see it. Sefia is allowed to be vulnerable, to make mistakes, and Chee gives her the space to learn from her experiences and to view things in shade of gray rather than black and white.
Archer is also impressive, not least because he's mute for most of the book, and we only occasionally see into his head. Chee does a very impressive job of fostering his growth by allowing readers to witness his actions and to allow them to speak for the kind of person he is. I also thought his trauma was handled well, and that the book makes plain the horrifying exploitation of boys like him without being lurid about it.
To my enormous relief, this book avoided the cliched pitfalls that have ruined my enjoyment of so many other YA fantasy novels. There is no love triangle to be found, the plot feels organic rather than things happening because plot, the magic system is well thought-out, and the budding romance between Archer and Sefia is beautifully and appropriately developed. It feels like part of the story rather than the story being background dressing for the romance. I really understand why these characters felt the way they did about one another, rather than the horrible, cookie-cutter romances so many YA novels contain, in which characters develop mad crushes on one another because the plot demands it. In addition, I think this novel does a great job of handling a relationship between two trouble characters, one of who has been especially traumatized. I never got the sense that Sefia was supposed to "fix" Archer, nor did their relationship reek of the unhealthy codependency that suffuses far too many YA romances. I really enjoyed seeing a healthy, understandable connection develop between two well-done characters.
So why didn't this novel click with me? Well, it has everything to do with the pirates and with the backstory about the library. I was so invested in Sefia and Archer than whenever the book left them to explore other aspects of the story, I could not get as into the passages. I didn't think they were at all unnecessary--in fact, Chee does a great job of weaving all these various threads together, and many of the pirate tales were quite good, imaginative and filled with adventure. What it all boils down to is a matter of personal preference. I don't much like pirate stories, so I wasn't very interested in the pirates. That says nothing about Chee's writing abilities (which I thought were very good) and everything to do with the fact that half this book just isn't my thing. I simply wanted to get back to Sefia and Archer whenever the book diverged from them, and considering that this happens during a good chunk of the book, it tempered my enjoyment.
I also think that the villains of the piece were a bit weak, but I'll allow some leeway here. They may be more developed in future installments, but in a book that was so full of unique, developed characters, the villains felt too stock for me.
Overall, I think this is a strong beginning to a promising new series for readers who like well-done fantasy with pirate elements, and I think Chee is a promising new author. I doubt I'll read other books in this series for the reasons I mentioned, but that doesn't change the fact that she is an author who is now on my radar and whose future projects I'll watch with interest.
rhrie38's review
I didn't like the multiple povs. Also I just lost interest in what was happening.
abbyyy03's review
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
indigoblue777's review
5.0
This book blew me away.
It moved very slowly at first, and I wasn't sure if I was going to enjoy it with all of the different point of views and all the different stories that are intertwined. But it won me over about halfway through and I couldn't put it down.
The words hidden in the page numbers were very cool too!
It moved very slowly at first, and I wasn't sure if I was going to enjoy it with all of the different point of views and all the different stories that are intertwined. But it won me over about halfway through and I couldn't put it down.
The words hidden in the page numbers were very cool too!
juliapeculiar's review against another edition
3.0
3,5 stars
Technically a really good YA fantasy. It was made in a clever way and I always got a bit too excited when I found one of those secret messages haha. But there's a reason I don't typically read fantasies anymore, it just feels pointless and is dragging too much. Like I don't care about these kingdoms, I wanna know more about the relationship between Archer and... whatever her name was. I'll take a lucky guess and say Sarah? I honestly don't know anymore haha.
Would definitely recommend for anyone in that genre, but I won't continue the series. It's really just not my cup of tea, and I only read it because I got gifted a copy by my aunt.
Technically a really good YA fantasy. It was made in a clever way and I always got a bit too excited when I found one of those secret messages haha. But there's a reason I don't typically read fantasies anymore, it just feels pointless and is dragging too much. Like I don't care about these kingdoms, I wanna know more about the relationship between Archer and... whatever her name was. I'll take a lucky guess and say Sarah? I honestly don't know anymore haha.
Would definitely recommend for anyone in that genre, but I won't continue the series. It's really just not my cup of tea, and I only read it because I got gifted a copy by my aunt.
branthegremblin's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
kroffe's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This was a pretty good read considering that it’s categorized as juvenile fiction. It has an interesting plot concept. It does seem like the world building was lacking, but again, with it being juvenile fiction, you don’t want to get too deep. With that being said, there seemed to be too many characters introduced causing confusion and detachment from the characters. I do recommend reading the physical book because there is a hidden message within the pages that was super fun to track