Reviews

This is a terrific and fast-paced novella telling the story of four orphaned siblings sailing the oceans in search of monsters to kill and information about their parents. Each character is well-drawn and strongly individual and true to life, the descriptions of the sea-monster hunts are exciting, and the whole thing is perfectly paced. I loved it. It's a great book for anyone 12 and up, folks who love adventure stories, who wanted a little more excitement in Swallows and Amazons, who like cryptozoology, who like sailing, and who want a fresh and interesting bunch of characters.

readmoreyall's review against another edition

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3.0

Enjoyed this! Felt the ending to be very rushed and could use some development. I found myself wanting a lot more resolution of issues with Oscar and description of Hura storyline.

sashay's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

maeghin's review against another edition

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4.0

when we were little, we had to memorize all the different monsters signs. Sudden thunderstorm might be nothing, sure, but it might be a Toneda. That eerie, high pitched howl that you’ll never mistake for anything else once you’ve heard it? Sarkhayir. And a perfect circle of foamy water in the middle of still sea?
That’s a Devorar.

This story follows a group of siblings sailing around the Mediterranean looking for their missing parents and fighting sea monsters.

The sea monsters are my favorite parts of the story. Each sea monster is distinct from the rest and has its own way of being defeated...which the kids have been training to do their whole lives.

I’m not familiar with the Mediterranean area so I google mapped the names of the various places that were mentioned...Marseille, Mariupol and Medenine. The islands off Portugal...the Acores? It made the story more real.

The story isn’t an action packed adventure but it is engaging. I recommend if you want a quick fun read and if your like me you’ll map out where they sailed also.

tmleblanc's review against another edition

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3.0

What a delightful story! I love the sibling relationship and their determination to survive and discover what happened to their parents.

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for a honest review.

matandrub's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional inspiring sad 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

3.5

sparksofkell's review against another edition

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3.0

I was super excited for this book before it came out and overall was majorly disappointed. The premise was super interesting and the characters had a lot of potential but it felt like halfway through the author was bored of the entire idea and just wanted it to be over.

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