Action, danger, and challenging tasks, all underscored by a star-crossed romance, make this Hunger Games X Pirates of the Caribbean X Tinkerbell YA novel a nice lighter-hearted read. (And you can find it in audio on Spotify and Audible).
When five clans of faeries get together, things heat up into a game of life or death. For one pixie pirate, she will have to determine where her loyalties lie and who she’s fighting for.
This novel was originally released as a Kindle Vella serial, but has since been compiled into a single novel. This is the version I read.
Before we dive in to the review on the book, here is a reminder of how I rate what I read (these will be on a scale of 1-10, 1 being low, 10 being high):
- Plot Structure: How well the story was put together.
- Character Development: Level of growth a character achieves and how well the author makes them feel “real.”
- Language: Level of swearing, innuendos, verbal abuse, and other triggers.
- Violence: Level of fight scenes and gore.
- Sexual Content: Level of physical intimacy.
Disclaimer: The more I write, the more I critique books harder on plot structure and how the various elements work together. Thus my reviews reflect this. However, if you see a book appear on the blog, it’s because I enjoyed reading and thought you, as a fellow bookie, would enjoy it as well. As always, reading is subjective and what resonates with me may not resonate with you. And that’s OK! We’re in this to discover new books that are family appropriate and worth taking the time to read.
Book Description:
Five faerie clans compete for the crown. One pixie pirate could ruin it all.
Pixie pirate Quinn may be an outlaw, wanted by all five faerie clans, but she prefers it that way. All she wants is to finally become a captain in the infamous pirate fleet and bury her true identity beneath the rolling waves. But when the news of her twin brother’s sudden death causes her to risk everything she’s built to avenge him, Quinn is unmasked for who she really is.
Her only hope of escaping certain death in the pixie dust mines is taking her brother’s place in the Ethodine: a dangerous competition for the faerie crown.
In a series of death-defying trials, Quinn faces off with a mute beast tamer, a flirtatious merman, a blind artist, and a pompous princess. But as dark secrets unravel and an ancient prophecy entwines their fates, rivals must become allies before there’s no world left to rule.
Full of action and intrigue, with a unique world and fresh take on fae, this YA fantasy adventure is perfect for fans of Six of Crows and The Cruel Prince.
My Reviews:
This book has been making waves in the Bookstagram community for several months, so I decided to jump on the bandwagon and see if it lived up to its hype. I’m pleased to say that it was a refreshing read in a unique five ecosystem faerie world.
When Quinn first sets out to become a pirate, I had expected to join her on more of those types of adventures throughout this novel. While we still got to see some of her pirate aspects, this novel focuses more on the path that she turned away from at the beginning of the novel. That of princess of her clan.
The challenges of the Ethodine that Quinn and her peers face highlight each of the contestants’ varying strengths and weaknesses. I will say at times, the challenges didn’t seem hard enough for a competition where the right to rule all five clans was at stake, but I enjoyed them nonetheless.
Something I enjoyed about this novel was how gradually the camaraderie formed. We see them forming bonds, but are still left questioning who is going to betray the others, and if it will be Quinn. This aspect is so well done that it was hard to see who was really pulling all the strings until the very end.
For the romance and the action, both were kept at what could be termed as a PG level. This meant nothing too intense for either one (nothing above kissing, and no gory details). In fact, the romance felt more like a sub-plot rather than the main one.
The plot had many things working well for it. The story beats felt connected and logical. We had very few fluff scenes (no boring monologues or exposition) and it made me as a reader to keep going. I also appreciated the banter between characters and the light-hearted writing in general.
How I rated this series:
- Plot Structure: 7/10; I would have liked to see the characters struggle more, make greater mistakes, and have higher stakes. I did appreciate the inclusion of characters with disabilities and ethnicities, but I would have liked to see them play a larger role.
- Character Development: 7/10; I would have liked to see greater depth on most characters. Some were predictable, and others at times did not stay true to who they were.
- Language: 2/10; In world curses.
- Violence: 3/10; There are a few battle scenes where characters get injured, but no gore or lengthy descriptions.
- Sexual Content: 3/10; Most of the intimacy of this novel comes in the form of simple touches such as hand holds and hugs. Others are from a few kissing scenes, but nothing beyond these things.
Conclusion:
This is a wonderful introduction to Brittany Wang‘s fantasy world of the five faerie clans. It is one I would recommend suitable for readers as young as ten and can be listened to with kids in the room. If you like reading faerie adventures, don’t let this one pass by.
