Scan barcode
danalex175's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
kathydavie's review against another edition
5.0
First in the Captain Kit Brightling fantasy alternate history series and revolving around a valued female captain in Her Royal Highness' Navy. It's three years after the war.
My Take
Sarcasm, snark, and magic...oh, yeah, baby! Neill makes use of Napoleon and his dreams of conquering Europe and gives it a magical twist.
This is so very different — even with the magic *grin* — from Neill's other series, Chicagoland Vampires and Devil's Isle. The Bright and Breaking Sea reminds me more of Naomi Novik's Temeraire.
There's a comfortable camaraderie amongst Kit's crew, although Kit does carry one heckuva chip on her shoulder toward the Beau Monde. On the other hand, while she is protective of her command, she can hold back when she needs to. A complex woman. Kit is very protective of her status and greatly resents Grant's presence, and it'll take proving on both sides to heal this. We know all this because Neill uses third person protagonist point-of-view from Kit's perspective, so we hear her thoughts and see what she sees.
I love that women, ahem, and men can serve in the Navy. Even better, I love Neill's presenting Kit as simply a courier, as it provides such lovely conflict amongst the misogynistic. Hah! Hoist with their own petard! Kit's attitude toward marriage is both funny and realistic. She'd never be happy with a simple life, lol.
Magic, its existence and usage, is a contentious subject with some embracing it, some denying it, and others fearing it. It makes for a lot of possibilities, softened by flashes of humor. Kit is the one who raises her fear of what magic can do to technology, which gives Neill the opening, a bit of foreshadowing for the future of the series.
Okay, then there's the letdown. I've been loving The Bright and Breaking Sea (and still do) until Neill fell into the tired account of Kit realizing she's falling for Grant.
The action is there but subdued, even the naval battles, but it's a fast read I could not put down. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this story to upper middle-grade and young adult readers as well as adults.
The Story
Suspicious of each other, Captain Brightling must share command with the unknown, the viscount, Colonel Grant. It'll be a battle of wills.
It will be a hard decision, choosing between world disruption or massive death...
The Characters
Captain Kit Brightling, a foundling, is an Aligned with a gift. In particular a gift to borrow the sea, to sense her humors. She's currently in command of the Diana and a member of the Queen's Own Guards.
Commander Jin Takamura, a former thief, is her second-in-command. The crew includes Sampson; Tamlin McCreary with a gift for the wind; August Smythe is the oldest of them; Simon Pettigrew is the pilot, navigator, and master of maps and intelligence; Banks; Teasdale; Cook (with six daughters); Lieutenants Watson, the young Phillips, and Hobbes, who has a merchant husband at home; Mr Jones is the second mate and bosun; March is the ship's physick; Oglejack is the the ship's carpenter; Cordova; and, Fahri.
Jim has a wife, Nanae, and two daughters, Saori and Emi. Mary is their housekeeper. Louisa, a.k.a. Tiny Cook, is a cunning child of the streets.
Colonel Rian Grant, Viscount Queenscliffe, is a warrior tired of it all. His father had wasted the estate. His brother, Lucien, is a losing gambler. Their mother had loved to dig and had designed an amazing garden.
At Queenscliffe (named for an odd story about Queen Morgaine), Jefferson Bailey helps repair the ship; Sprout is Grant's dog; Mr and Mrs Spivey are in charge of the manor. Cordelia is Grant's terrifying horse. Matthew Howard is inventing a uniquely powered gristmill. The radiant Tasha Howard is his wife and the daughter of Admiral John Lawrence. Will, a former comrade-at-arms, is the majordomo in charge of the London house.
The Brightling Home for Foundlings is...
...in Moreham Park and owned by Hetta Brightling, a wealthy widow with a conscience who takes in abandoned girls. A member of the Order of Saint James, she's also sub rosa as an intelligence analyst for the Crown. Sir Harry Brightling had been Hetta's kind and wealthy husband. Mrs Eaves is the stern, moral-minded housekeeper. The brilliant and inventive Jane is one of the girls, Kit's sister and closest friend. I do love Jane's sparkers, lol. The rest of the current girls include the ambitious Astrid, Bettina and Georgina are the active twins, Pari is a pianist and composer, and Marielle. They are expected to adhere to Hetta's Principles of Self-Sufficiency.
...England, ruled by Queen Charlotte II in New London at Exeter Palace. King Richard had been her father. Kess appears to be the queen's go-to guy. Charles Kingsley works in the Crown Command's Foreign Office for William Chandler, the Isles' spymaster. He's also a very good friend of Kit's. The bigoted and stunted John Stanton also works at the Foreign Office.
The Isles' fleet
The Divine is captained by the ludicrous William Thornberry who prefers illogic. Some of his crew disagree, including Midshipman Cooper with her land Alignment. The Lucida is captained by Preston. The Delphine is captained by Smith, who is torn between a rock and a hard place. One of her crew, Jackson, has a land Alignment.
The rest of the Beau Monde are...
...the Isles' most privileged class, more concerned with their own comfort and ease. Hmmm, sounds like our politicians... Mary Cartwright is a friend of the ambitious Astrid. Lord Langley is interested in Astrid. Lord Dartmouth is giving a ball. Dorian Marten, a friend of Kit's, started Marten's, a coffeehouse modeled on Lloyds.
There's a pub, the Cork and Barrel, in Pencester. The Amelie is a smuggler's ship. The Seven Keys is an exclusive men's club. The Prefects is a secret society composed of men who don't believe a queen can rule. Mrs Eaves consider Portnoy's Confectioner's the premier temple of sin. The Juliana is the ship on which Kingsley embarks. Xavier Forstyhe rules the criminal underground. The Forebearer is stolen by a traitor.
Finistère is...
...a pirate stronghold ruled by the Five, famous pirate kings. Donal is one of them. The Chevalier is a privateer.
Gerard Rousseau is the emperor of Gallia with visions of conquering the world and with it its magic for all the power it will give him. Montgraf is the island to which Gerard was exiled. His daughter, Claysta, is queen of Arkanes.
The Guild...
...is a Frisian a consortium of merchants who prefer Gerard's rule with its greater wealth opportunities. Forstadt is an island off the coast and supposedly a royal hunting preserve. Janssen is an attaché at their London embassy.
The Earlier War
The Ardent had been captained by Perez with Lieutenant Kit Brightling under him. Zadorra was a town near the Gallic border that saw brutal fighting. Contra Costa was a tragedy with its angry magic.
The heroic Lord Sutherland had commanded the army in the earlier war and made good use of the Aligned. Grant had been one of his observing officers. Bourne had been one of them, with a gift to sense movement. Marcus Dunwood, a.k.a. Paolo, was a fellow officer and has continued his intelligence gathering. In the current day, he's aboard the Sally. Admiral Worsley had led the fleet at Barbata.
The Aligned have a gift for magic. The Unified Church of Isles combined all the gods into one. John Cox wrote the bible on the sea, Cox's Seamanship. Indigo is a card game. Kanos is the god of the sea and its shorelines.
The Cover and Title
The cover is quite patriotic, starting with its deep blue sky scratching down into a warm brown middle and descending into a white wash. Silhouetted against this is Kit's white ship, all sails furled. And in front of this is Captain Kit Brightling herself with her short brown hair blowing in the wind, posing with her left hand cocked on her hip and her right holding a red sword pointed toward the ground at an angle behind her cocked right leg. She's wearing her uniform, a deep navy frock coat with a lighter blue vest and an even lighter shirt with a solid navy cravat. Her trousers are gray with slightly blued knee-high boots. Her coat, trousers, and boots are all scratched in with strokes of black. At the very top, the first letter of the title is framed on each side with a pair of red scrolls. The rest of the title is beneath this with all in a gradating silver to pale gold. To the left of Kit's knee is the series info in deep blue. An info blurb is immediately beneath Kit's feet with the author's name below that with both in red.
The title refers to Kit and what she senses below the surface — The Bright and Breaking Sea.
My Take
Sarcasm, snark, and magic...oh, yeah, baby! Neill makes use of Napoleon and his dreams of conquering Europe and gives it a magical twist.
This is so very different — even with the magic *grin* — from Neill's other series, Chicagoland Vampires and Devil's Isle. The Bright and Breaking Sea reminds me more of Naomi Novik's Temeraire.
There's a comfortable camaraderie amongst Kit's crew, although Kit does carry one heckuva chip on her shoulder toward the Beau Monde. On the other hand, while she is protective of her command, she can hold back when she needs to. A complex woman. Kit is very protective of her status and greatly resents Grant's presence, and it'll take proving on both sides to heal this. We know all this because Neill uses third person protagonist point-of-view from Kit's perspective, so we hear her thoughts and see what she sees.
"Years from now, Kit thought, they'd tell tales of the scream heard across the ocean."I do like a man whose mind is open to change. Yep, Grant has his own mini character arc, allowing for his own growth as well as insight into his family situation. Poor lad, all he wants is to stay home and heal his family estate. All the queen does is send him out time after time.
I love that women, ahem, and men can serve in the Navy. Even better, I love Neill's presenting Kit as simply a courier, as it provides such lovely conflict amongst the misogynistic. Hah! Hoist with their own petard! Kit's attitude toward marriage is both funny and realistic. She'd never be happy with a simple life, lol.
Magic, its existence and usage, is a contentious subject with some embracing it, some denying it, and others fearing it. It makes for a lot of possibilities, softened by flashes of humor. Kit is the one who raises her fear of what magic can do to technology, which gives Neill the opening, a bit of foreshadowing for the future of the series.
Okay, then there's the letdown. I've been loving The Bright and Breaking Sea (and still do) until Neill fell into the tired account of Kit realizing she's falling for Grant.
The action is there but subdued, even the naval battles, but it's a fast read I could not put down. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this story to upper middle-grade and young adult readers as well as adults.
The Story
Suspicious of each other, Captain Brightling must share command with the unknown, the viscount, Colonel Grant. It'll be a battle of wills.
It will be a hard decision, choosing between world disruption or massive death...
The Characters
Captain Kit Brightling, a foundling, is an Aligned with a gift. In particular a gift to borrow the sea, to sense her humors. She's currently in command of the Diana and a member of the Queen's Own Guards.
Commander Jin Takamura, a former thief, is her second-in-command. The crew includes Sampson; Tamlin McCreary with a gift for the wind; August Smythe is the oldest of them; Simon Pettigrew is the pilot, navigator, and master of maps and intelligence; Banks; Teasdale; Cook (with six daughters); Lieutenants Watson, the young Phillips, and Hobbes, who has a merchant husband at home; Mr Jones is the second mate and bosun; March is the ship's physick; Oglejack is the the ship's carpenter; Cordova; and, Fahri.
Jim has a wife, Nanae, and two daughters, Saori and Emi. Mary is their housekeeper. Louisa, a.k.a. Tiny Cook, is a cunning child of the streets.
Colonel Rian Grant, Viscount Queenscliffe, is a warrior tired of it all. His father had wasted the estate. His brother, Lucien, is a losing gambler. Their mother had loved to dig and had designed an amazing garden.
At Queenscliffe (named for an odd story about Queen Morgaine), Jefferson Bailey helps repair the ship; Sprout is Grant's dog; Mr and Mrs Spivey are in charge of the manor. Cordelia is Grant's terrifying horse. Matthew Howard is inventing a uniquely powered gristmill. The radiant Tasha Howard is his wife and the daughter of Admiral John Lawrence. Will, a former comrade-at-arms, is the majordomo in charge of the London house.
The Brightling Home for Foundlings is...
...in Moreham Park and owned by Hetta Brightling, a wealthy widow with a conscience who takes in abandoned girls. A member of the Order of Saint James, she's also sub rosa as an intelligence analyst for the Crown. Sir Harry Brightling had been Hetta's kind and wealthy husband. Mrs Eaves is the stern, moral-minded housekeeper. The brilliant and inventive Jane is one of the girls, Kit's sister and closest friend. I do love Jane's sparkers, lol. The rest of the current girls include the ambitious Astrid, Bettina and Georgina are the active twins, Pari is a pianist and composer, and Marielle. They are expected to adhere to Hetta's Principles of Self-Sufficiency.
The Saxon Isles are...
...England, ruled by Queen Charlotte II in New London at Exeter Palace. King Richard had been her father. Kess appears to be the queen's go-to guy. Charles Kingsley works in the Crown Command's Foreign Office for William Chandler, the Isles' spymaster. He's also a very good friend of Kit's. The bigoted and stunted John Stanton also works at the Foreign Office.
The Isles' fleet
The Divine is captained by the ludicrous William Thornberry who prefers illogic. Some of his crew disagree, including Midshipman Cooper with her land Alignment. The Lucida is captained by Preston. The Delphine is captained by Smith, who is torn between a rock and a hard place. One of her crew, Jackson, has a land Alignment.
The rest of the Beau Monde are...
...the Isles' most privileged class, more concerned with their own comfort and ease. Hmmm, sounds like our politicians... Mary Cartwright is a friend of the ambitious Astrid. Lord Langley is interested in Astrid. Lord Dartmouth is giving a ball. Dorian Marten, a friend of Kit's, started Marten's, a coffeehouse modeled on Lloyds.
There's a pub, the Cork and Barrel, in Pencester. The Amelie is a smuggler's ship. The Seven Keys is an exclusive men's club. The Prefects is a secret society composed of men who don't believe a queen can rule. Mrs Eaves consider Portnoy's Confectioner's the premier temple of sin. The Juliana is the ship on which Kingsley embarks. Xavier Forstyhe rules the criminal underground. The Forebearer is stolen by a traitor.
The Enemies
Finistère is...
...a pirate stronghold ruled by the Five, famous pirate kings. Donal is one of them. The Chevalier is a privateer.
Gerard Rousseau is the emperor of Gallia with visions of conquering the world and with it its magic for all the power it will give him. Montgraf is the island to which Gerard was exiled. His daughter, Claysta, is queen of Arkanes.
The Guild...
...is a Frisian a consortium of merchants who prefer Gerard's rule with its greater wealth opportunities. Forstadt is an island off the coast and supposedly a royal hunting preserve. Janssen is an attaché at their London embassy.
The Earlier War
The Ardent had been captained by Perez with Lieutenant Kit Brightling under him. Zadorra was a town near the Gallic border that saw brutal fighting. Contra Costa was a tragedy with its angry magic.
The heroic Lord Sutherland had commanded the army in the earlier war and made good use of the Aligned. Grant had been one of his observing officers. Bourne had been one of them, with a gift to sense movement. Marcus Dunwood, a.k.a. Paolo, was a fellow officer and has continued his intelligence gathering. In the current day, he's aboard the Sally. Admiral Worsley had led the fleet at Barbata.
The Aligned have a gift for magic. The Unified Church of Isles combined all the gods into one. John Cox wrote the bible on the sea, Cox's Seamanship. Indigo is a card game. Kanos is the god of the sea and its shorelines.
The Cover and Title
The cover is quite patriotic, starting with its deep blue sky scratching down into a warm brown middle and descending into a white wash. Silhouetted against this is Kit's white ship, all sails furled. And in front of this is Captain Kit Brightling herself with her short brown hair blowing in the wind, posing with her left hand cocked on her hip and her right holding a red sword pointed toward the ground at an angle behind her cocked right leg. She's wearing her uniform, a deep navy frock coat with a lighter blue vest and an even lighter shirt with a solid navy cravat. Her trousers are gray with slightly blued knee-high boots. Her coat, trousers, and boots are all scratched in with strokes of black. At the very top, the first letter of the title is framed on each side with a pair of red scrolls. The rest of the title is beneath this with all in a gradating silver to pale gold. To the left of Kit's knee is the series info in deep blue. An info blurb is immediately beneath Kit's feet with the author's name below that with both in red.
The title refers to Kit and what she senses below the surface — The Bright and Breaking Sea.
dembury's review against another edition
3.0
The strongest aspect of "The Bright and Breaking Sea" was the overall seafaring fun of the story- it felt like a book that took place in the world of the Pirates of the Caribbean films, all full of sailing adventures and double-crossing and quirky, if ultimately disposable, side characters. In general I also liked the magic system and the idea of being Aligned to a certain element (although I'm just a sucker for elemental stuff) but the system was fairly underdeveloped and lacked explanation. The actual plot was amusing but also predictable, and I don't think there was a single plot twist I was surprised by. The last third of the book was also a bit of a fumble and felt anticlimactic; Neill attempts to wrap up a handful of plot threads and deliver big, splashy finale scenes, yet everything fell a bit flat. All in all, it was fun enough to read, just underdeveloped! I would probably read a sequel but would definitely be hoping for deeper development and more exciting writing.
floressius's review against another edition
1.0
I really wanted to like this book! I was hoping for a magical, sea-faring adventure with a tough, assertive female captain at the helm; that's what the book tried to do, at least, but I was disappointed at every turn. Also, if you're a queer lady like me, you'll be at least a little disappointed to know that, no, despite the image on the cover, Kit is not LGBTQ+ (in this novel at least).
The story and the characters feel like a lot of missed potential. The Regency/alternate-Napoleonic era is cool, the magic concept is initially interesting, and the idea of swashbuckling fantasy at sea is fun. In full, however, there was much to be desired.
The dialogue feels bland, even though most of the story is told through said dialogue at the expense of the descriptive language. The Bright and Breaking Sea prefers to tell you things rather than show you things, and even then it doesn't tell enough. Important plot points happen entirely in vague dialogue without being mentioned otherwise - sometimes you aren't even told about it, it just happens. Major conflicts are solved in the span of several sentences. The worldbuilding is underdeveloped. Parts of the story that I expected to be filled with tension and emotion feel lacklustre and 2-dimensional. The antagonist and major conflict feel very non-threatening and/or under-developed and there is no real sense of urgency to have me fighting and cheering alongside naval captain protagonist Kit Brightling & co.
On the romance between Kit and war veteran, aristocrat Grant: the story hits so many tropes (enemies to lovers, reluctant partners, a spot of fake dating, a late night talk by the fire in their night clothes) but doesn't quite hit the mark. There is no romantic tension between the two, no building attraction, and no passion, connection or reason to get behind them or be as invested as I am with leads in other books. This lack of connection extends to the other characters also - I can hardly remember their names, let alone feel attached to them properly.
The overall story falls flat also. I wanted Kit, Grant and the other leads to have more inner conflict, more emotion to them, more personal challenges and growth, but everything is solved too easily. Grant has trauma, but Kit just fixes things for him in single 'insightful' sentences. Kit is looked down upon because of her status as Aligned, foundling and female (yay, fantasy misogyny!), but she feels flat, her motivations/beliefs feel empty, and she feels unrelatable. One antagonist is predictable, while the other is entirely absent and non-threatening. And there so many loose, unexplained threads and random characters who just appear for a single scene, add little value, then vanish once more.
I'm sad that the magic did not feel more alive or developed. I'm frustrated the story wasn't more. I'm disappointed because of what I thought this book was going to be vs. what it actually turned out to be. This could have used a look over by another fantasy writer or editor, along with some solid constructive feedback. I only finished it to give an honest review, and I'm glad to able to put it away and pick up something else.
If you're looking for a strong, vibrant female sea-farer, a loveable found family, and a rich world filled with political tension, adventure and magic, you'll find a little of that here, but you'll find better elsewhere.
The story and the characters feel like a lot of missed potential. The Regency/alternate-Napoleonic era is cool, the magic concept is initially interesting, and the idea of swashbuckling fantasy at sea is fun. In full, however, there was much to be desired.
The dialogue feels bland, even though most of the story is told through said dialogue at the expense of the descriptive language. The Bright and Breaking Sea prefers to tell you things rather than show you things, and even then it doesn't tell enough. Important plot points happen entirely in vague dialogue without being mentioned otherwise - sometimes you aren't even told about it, it just happens. Major conflicts are solved in the span of several sentences. The worldbuilding is underdeveloped. Parts of the story that I expected to be filled with tension and emotion feel lacklustre and 2-dimensional. The antagonist and major conflict feel very non-threatening and/or under-developed and there is no real sense of urgency to have me fighting and cheering alongside naval captain protagonist Kit Brightling & co.
On the romance between Kit and war veteran, aristocrat Grant: the story hits so many tropes (enemies to lovers, reluctant partners, a spot of fake dating, a late night talk by the fire in their night clothes) but doesn't quite hit the mark. There is no romantic tension between the two, no building attraction, and no passion, connection or reason to get behind them or be as invested as I am with leads in other books. This lack of connection extends to the other characters also - I can hardly remember their names, let alone feel attached to them properly.
The overall story falls flat also.
Spoiler
The pirate base is conquered with ease (thanks to the homemade bombs put together by Kit's sister - what?), conflicts with other characters feel simple, and the final climax of the book is solved because of a design flaw; the weapon they've been chasing just doesn't work, so they just... win?I'm sad that the magic did not feel more alive or developed. I'm frustrated the story wasn't more. I'm disappointed because of what I thought this book was going to be vs. what it actually turned out to be. This could have used a look over by another fantasy writer or editor, along with some solid constructive feedback. I only finished it to give an honest review, and I'm glad to able to put it away and pick up something else.
If you're looking for a strong, vibrant female sea-farer, a loveable found family, and a rich world filled with political tension, adventure and magic, you'll find a little of that here, but you'll find better elsewhere.
theblackmothreads's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
bhookjunkhie's review against another edition
4.0
4.5 STARS Such a fun adventure! I can’t wait for more:)
raenegade's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Refreshingly straightforward main character, proving the will-they-wont-they tug can be there without overused miscommunication tropes. As a fan of British period romances and fantasy adventure, this book has a bit of it all. Kit gives me everything I wanted from a female main character along the lines of Persuasion and POTC, without any simpering or woe is me internal monologuing. That said, there could be a bit more time spent describing characters and their physical appearance as I had to check initial descriptions a few times to keep them in my minds eye. The fact the diversity of characters who are all competent indivoduals is not overly called out in a 'look at me, I'm such a considerate author' manner that I see in so much modern fantasy, makes for a smooth and immersive reading experience.
I really enjoyed the balanced level of detail in world building and visualisation of the action and sailing mechanics. I felt it was a shame that the betrayal aspect didn't hit as hard as it could have, if only the reader was given more of a lens into how the relevant relationship was established in the first place it might have felt more impactful.
I found the steady and subtle romance build nicely contrasts with the fast pace of the plot, although I was hoping for a bit more spice towards the end.
Keen for a sequel given the set up on both the romance and plot aspects. Excited to see another female fantasy author join my shelves.
I really enjoyed the balanced level of detail in world building and visualisation of the action and sailing mechanics. I felt it was a shame that the betrayal aspect didn't hit as hard as it could have, if only the reader was given more of a lens into how the relevant relationship was established in the first place it might have felt more impactful.
I found the steady and subtle romance build nicely contrasts with the fast pace of the plot, although I was hoping for a bit more spice towards the end.
Keen for a sequel given the set up on both the romance and plot aspects. Excited to see another female fantasy author join my shelves.
sockmoxy's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
beancape's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0