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Seafire #1
Seafire
After her family is killed by corrupt warlord Aric Athair and his bloodthirsty army of Bullets, Caledonia Styx is left to chart her own course on the dangerous and deadly seas. She captains her ship, the Mors Navis, with a crew of girls and women just like her, who have lost their families and homes because of Aric and his men. The crew has one mission: stay alive, and take down Aric's armed and armored fleet.
But when Caledonia's best friend and second-in-command barely survives an attack thanks to help from a Bullet looking to defect, Caledonia finds herself questioning whether to let him join their crew. Is this boy the key to taking down Aric Athair once and for all . . . or will he threaten everything the women of the Mors Navis have worked for?
But when Caledonia's best friend and second-in-command barely survives an attack thanks to help from a Bullet looking to defect, Caledonia finds herself questioning whether to let him join their crew. Is this boy the key to taking down Aric Athair once and for all . . . or will he threaten everything the women of the Mors Navis have worked for?
374 pages, Hardcover
First published August 28, 2018
580 people are currently reading
42.7k people want to read
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August 29, 2018
ARC provided by Penguin in exchange for an honest review.
“Never underestimate the girls of this world�
And the award for best prologue of 2018 goes to Seafire! Seriously this prologue was beyond words amazing. It not only made me feel every single emotion under the sun, but it had me on the edge of my seat for the entire twenty pages. Perfection, seriously perfection. And such a wonderful way to start this amazing story!
I hate comparing books, especially two new releases, but Seafire is everything that I wish These Rebel Waves was. Pirates, the open sea, a beautiful f/f side romance, a found family of girls who feel lost, but come together to create something so powerful. You all, I loved this book.
Seafire stars a young pirate crew leader named Caledonia, and her first mate Pisces, as they are picking up the pieces of something catastrophic that happened four years ago. And during those long, four years, they have found a family of fifty-two girls who they sail the waters with. And all of these girls are willing to do anything to protect their captain and their crew.
In this world, a mysterious man named Aric rules the water! He has fleets upon fleets all under his control, and rules most of the ports with his power. He also takes and receives boys from all around the waters and trains them to become Bullets, who are as cutthroat as they come. And Caledonia and her crew know to never believe a word that any of them say, because they are also as untrustworthy as they come, too.
That is, until the day one saves Pisces from death, betrays his crew of Bullets, and is brought on to Caledonia’s ship. His name is Oran and despite his good deed Cal and her crew want to throw him overboard. Yet, he is harboring information that completely changes everything that Caledonia and Pisces have ever believed. And they are forced to risk it all on the word of one Bullet, who they have spent their entire lives promising to never trust.
Seafire has some really amazing themes on top of this amazing story, too. I know I touched on this briefly above, but the found family in this book is so damn beautiful. Probably one of my favorites I’ve ever read, and that’s really saying something. There is also a constant and underlying message of how people shouldn’t be judged by the mistakes or actions of their family, both blood and found.
“Our first family shall not be our last.�
Also, give me an entire book just about Hime and Amina, because I am weak and in love with them being in love. Seriously, I was living for these side characters and their love for one another. And Hime also uses sign language to communicate with the crew and is dealing with a tremendous amount of PTSD from her past. Needless to say, at this point in my life, I would completely die for this fictional pirate baby. Thank you.
Overall, I loved this. I had such an amazing time while reading, and I truly never wanted to put this book down. From the addictive writing, to the captivating setting, to the heartwarming girls, to the heartbreaking twists; I loved it all. I think this book is going to be a complete hit upon release, and I recommend it with my whole heart. Well, what’s left of it after the ending of this book. Seriously, I need the next installment immediately!
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The quotes above were taken from an ARC and are subject to change upon publication.
Content and trigger warnings for murder, death, grief depiction, physical abuse, captivity, loss of a loved one, violence, and many battle scenes.
Buddy read with Amy at & Lilly at ! �
September 3, 2018
This review and other non-spoilery reviews can be found
DNF @33%
Actual Rating: 1.5 stars
“Never underestimate the girls of this world.�
🌟 Currently there are only 6 people who rated this 1 star and I am one of those people! I feel bad about it but I just can’t. I gave this many chances and I decided finally that it is just not for me.
🌟 The day this book was released I was excited for it but then I wasn’t in the mood to read it so I finished Mirage and City of Ghosts and a couple of days later, I am in the mood again to read this so I picked it up immediately.
🌟 I also hadn’t much luck with mermaids and Pirate stories this year (And there were many), I thought that this was going to save the day but it looks like I am not into the whole pirate thing. I really love the cover and a really wanted to love the book too.
🌟 My problem was with the writing style, I did not like it. I went into this and felt sleepy after a few chapters. I thought it may be due to studying and I was tired. I put it down and picked it up at a later break where the same thing happened again and again.
I had insomnia that night, and I was flipping in my bed and I decided to read this! I read 2 pages and I slept immediately (I swear this truly happened and not an exaggeration).
🌟 I just couldn’t get into the story, I tried once and twice and thrice and I found a moment or two where I saw a light at the end of the tunnel, where I thought I will finally get into the story, only to lose interest a couple of pages later.
🌟 So I don’t know if the problem was me, or with the writing or with the whole Pirates genre but I gave this many chances and read exactly one-third of it before giving up on it and deciding to DNF. I don’t feel regret or interest in the story after I let it sink in. I do recommend trying the book, if you like it then it is great but if you can’t get into it then you probably won’t.
DNF @33%
Actual Rating: 1.5 stars
“Never underestimate the girls of this world.�
🌟 Currently there are only 6 people who rated this 1 star and I am one of those people! I feel bad about it but I just can’t. I gave this many chances and I decided finally that it is just not for me.
🌟 The day this book was released I was excited for it but then I wasn’t in the mood to read it so I finished Mirage and City of Ghosts and a couple of days later, I am in the mood again to read this so I picked it up immediately.
🌟 I also hadn’t much luck with mermaids and Pirate stories this year (And there were many), I thought that this was going to save the day but it looks like I am not into the whole pirate thing. I really love the cover and a really wanted to love the book too.
🌟 My problem was with the writing style, I did not like it. I went into this and felt sleepy after a few chapters. I thought it may be due to studying and I was tired. I put it down and picked it up at a later break where the same thing happened again and again.
I had insomnia that night, and I was flipping in my bed and I decided to read this! I read 2 pages and I slept immediately (I swear this truly happened and not an exaggeration).
🌟 I just couldn’t get into the story, I tried once and twice and thrice and I found a moment or two where I saw a light at the end of the tunnel, where I thought I will finally get into the story, only to lose interest a couple of pages later.
🌟 So I don’t know if the problem was me, or with the writing or with the whole Pirates genre but I gave this many chances and read exactly one-third of it before giving up on it and deciding to DNF. I don’t feel regret or interest in the story after I let it sink in. I do recommend trying the book, if you like it then it is great but if you can’t get into it then you probably won’t.
Read
April 25, 2021"Never underestimate the girls of this world."
I mean, it is a girls-only pirate ship. The level of badassery is sky-high. Of course, I wanted to read it.
Seafire was a thrilling and highly suspenseful novel. The sea is ruled by Aric Athair, a ruthless man who takes children from their families, drugs them with Silt in order to make them compliant, and kills everyone who stands in his way. This is how Caledonia Styx lost her family. Four years later, she is the captain of a crew of brave and loyal young women who try to take out Athair's ships one at a time in order to seek revenge and limit his power.
The many tricky situations and risky manoeuvres that this crew experienced had me on the edge of my seat. The fact that (most of them) made it out alive is a miracle. Overall, this books had some serious vibes, which is high praise, let me tell you.
I loved the crew of the Mors Navis. Pisces, Redtooth, Amina, Hime, Nettle, all of these girls are fantastic. But I am no fan of Caledonia's. Her narrow-mindedness and stubbornness grew more and more annoying and the stunt she pulls toward the end of the novel did not help in making her relatable. She is the captain of her crew, she praises trust in your sisters over everything else, but she fails to act like it. Suffice it to say, it threw me off.
What I would have like to see, are f/f relationships. Come on, 53 girls and not a single queer romance? Of course, this book's focus is not on romance at all. Yes, Caledonia does fall for a guy at one point, but it is more of a subplot. I think that when you have the chance to showcase a healthy, lesbian relationship, why wouldn't you? Representation matters, so the three hints that there might or might not be something going on between some of the crew members simply do not suffice.
In a nutshell: a thrilling plot and fantastic concept that somehow failed to get me hooked. I am looking forward to the sequels, though! But I hope that it will feature a different main character or at least alternating POV's.
I mean, it is a girls-only pirate ship. The level of badassery is sky-high. Of course, I wanted to read it.
Seafire was a thrilling and highly suspenseful novel. The sea is ruled by Aric Athair, a ruthless man who takes children from their families, drugs them with Silt in order to make them compliant, and kills everyone who stands in his way. This is how Caledonia Styx lost her family. Four years later, she is the captain of a crew of brave and loyal young women who try to take out Athair's ships one at a time in order to seek revenge and limit his power.
The many tricky situations and risky manoeuvres that this crew experienced had me on the edge of my seat. The fact that (most of them) made it out alive is a miracle. Overall, this books had some serious vibes, which is high praise, let me tell you.
I loved the crew of the Mors Navis. Pisces, Redtooth, Amina, Hime, Nettle, all of these girls are fantastic. But I am no fan of Caledonia's. Her narrow-mindedness and stubbornness grew more and more annoying and the stunt she pulls toward the end of the novel did not help in making her relatable. She is the captain of her crew, she praises trust in your sisters over everything else, but she fails to act like it. Suffice it to say, it threw me off.
What I would have like to see, are f/f relationships. Come on, 53 girls and not a single queer romance? Of course, this book's focus is not on romance at all. Yes, Caledonia does fall for a guy at one point, but it is more of a subplot. I think that when you have the chance to showcase a healthy, lesbian relationship, why wouldn't you? Representation matters, so the three hints that there might or might not be something going on between some of the crew members simply do not suffice.
In a nutshell: a thrilling plot and fantastic concept that somehow failed to get me hooked. I am looking forward to the sequels, though! But I hope that it will feature a different main character or at least alternating POV's.
Want to read
January 29, 2019pirates? It's a yes from me.
September 12, 2018
4 1/2
I really enjoyed this! More so than I thought I would, honestly!!
It has awesome, female pirates who root for each other and not tear each other down!
I thought the plot moved along nicely as well. The only thing I didn't love was the romance, I thought this book could have gone completely without it.
Overall would def. recommend this book!
I really enjoyed this! More so than I thought I would, honestly!!
It has awesome, female pirates who root for each other and not tear each other down!
I thought the plot moved along nicely as well. The only thing I didn't love was the romance, I thought this book could have gone completely without it.
Overall would def. recommend this book!
August 2, 2018
Something that not everyone may know is that I have a huge pirate fetish, always have and always will. When seeing Seafire by Natalie C. Parker the first time I knew this was a must read, a whole trilogy of bad@ss female pirates?? I couldn’t get a copy fast enough and thankfully I did because wow, this was amazing!
They story begins a few years in the past as Caledonia Styx and her friend are sent by Caledonia’s mother to shore to search for food on what they believe is a deserted island. Caledonia is confronted by a bullet, a soldier in Aric Athair’s army. Being not much more than a kid Caledonia falls for his lies and it costs everyone aboard her family’s ship their lives.
Fast forward to the current day with Caledonia having survived that bullet attack years before and she and her friend having formed their own crew aboard what is now Caledonia’s ship. The entire crew has been made up of girls just like Caledonia who have lost those close to them to Aric Athair’s army and now they fight back every chance they get.
After reading Seafire I can safely say that it was everything I could have hoped for and more. The story is intense as these ladies are everything you could wish for in an amazing pirate crew battling with everything they have. The world building quickly brought me into the adventure on the sea in a world controlled by a tyrant. The characters quickly became friends and family just the way they are to one another. And to top this all off this one just screams female empowerment with the girls doing everything men could and more since they are the only ones fighting back and not caving to the demands of a cruel and unjust world. Nothing more to say other than read this one, you will not regret it at all!
I received an advance copy from the publisher via Penguin’s First to Read.
For more reviews please visit
They story begins a few years in the past as Caledonia Styx and her friend are sent by Caledonia’s mother to shore to search for food on what they believe is a deserted island. Caledonia is confronted by a bullet, a soldier in Aric Athair’s army. Being not much more than a kid Caledonia falls for his lies and it costs everyone aboard her family’s ship their lives.
Fast forward to the current day with Caledonia having survived that bullet attack years before and she and her friend having formed their own crew aboard what is now Caledonia’s ship. The entire crew has been made up of girls just like Caledonia who have lost those close to them to Aric Athair’s army and now they fight back every chance they get.
After reading Seafire I can safely say that it was everything I could have hoped for and more. The story is intense as these ladies are everything you could wish for in an amazing pirate crew battling with everything they have. The world building quickly brought me into the adventure on the sea in a world controlled by a tyrant. The characters quickly became friends and family just the way they are to one another. And to top this all off this one just screams female empowerment with the girls doing everything men could and more since they are the only ones fighting back and not caving to the demands of a cruel and unjust world. Nothing more to say other than read this one, you will not regret it at all!
I received an advance copy from the publisher via Penguin’s First to Read.
For more reviews please visit
September 18, 2024
**2.5-stars heavily rounded up**
As Caledonia and her best friend, Pisces, are on an island searching for provisions, everyone aboard the ship they call home is slaughtered by the corrupt warlord, Aric Athair, and his obedient army of soldiers, known as Bullets.
After the tragedy, Caledonia and Pisces are left to fend for themselves. It's a devastating loss, the one silver lining being that they still have each other.
Years later, Caledonia finds herself Captain of her own ship, the Mors Navis, with Pisces operating as her First Mate.
The two women head a crew of girls, who have also lost loved ones at the brutal hands of Aric Athair and the Bullets.
Together these women are hellbent on stopping Aric's murderous reign once and for all.
But after Pisces gets briefly taken captive and then freed by a Bullet looking to defect, Caledonia has to question all she thought she knew. Bullets are never to be trusted, right?
I've had Seafire on my shelves since it first released in 2018. As part of my effort to check off some of my backlist, I decided to pick it up in December 2021.
The Prologue was incredible and the first few chapters had me extremely interested, after that however, it completely went off the tracks for me.
I almost feel like I wish the beginning hadn't been quite as strong because ultimately, I was let down.
The non-stop dramatic conversations between Caledonia and her crew just started wearing on me. I know you need drama in order to progress a plot and I'm the first to admit I love drama, but this seemed like Caledonia being stubborn and over-the-top for no reason.
Her character ruined this for me. I was becoming annoyed with everything she did. I barely even remember the second half because I just wanted her out of my life.
I can absolutely understand why some Readers may really enjoy this. It definitely had some great sea-faring vibes and I did enjoy the steampunk feel of the ships and technology they were using.
Who knows? Maybe I was just in a bitchy mood and I'm being dramatic and over-the-top about the whole thing.
I'm really glad that I gave it a shot. I would pick up more from Natalie C. Parker, as I believe she did a great job in creating the world for this story.
As far as this series is concerned, I am done for now and will be donating my copy of the first two books to my local public high school.
As Caledonia and her best friend, Pisces, are on an island searching for provisions, everyone aboard the ship they call home is slaughtered by the corrupt warlord, Aric Athair, and his obedient army of soldiers, known as Bullets.
After the tragedy, Caledonia and Pisces are left to fend for themselves. It's a devastating loss, the one silver lining being that they still have each other.
Years later, Caledonia finds herself Captain of her own ship, the Mors Navis, with Pisces operating as her First Mate.
The two women head a crew of girls, who have also lost loved ones at the brutal hands of Aric Athair and the Bullets.
Together these women are hellbent on stopping Aric's murderous reign once and for all.
But after Pisces gets briefly taken captive and then freed by a Bullet looking to defect, Caledonia has to question all she thought she knew. Bullets are never to be trusted, right?
I've had Seafire on my shelves since it first released in 2018. As part of my effort to check off some of my backlist, I decided to pick it up in December 2021.
The Prologue was incredible and the first few chapters had me extremely interested, after that however, it completely went off the tracks for me.
I almost feel like I wish the beginning hadn't been quite as strong because ultimately, I was let down.
The non-stop dramatic conversations between Caledonia and her crew just started wearing on me. I know you need drama in order to progress a plot and I'm the first to admit I love drama, but this seemed like Caledonia being stubborn and over-the-top for no reason.
Her character ruined this for me. I was becoming annoyed with everything she did. I barely even remember the second half because I just wanted her out of my life.
I can absolutely understand why some Readers may really enjoy this. It definitely had some great sea-faring vibes and I did enjoy the steampunk feel of the ships and technology they were using.
Who knows? Maybe I was just in a bitchy mood and I'm being dramatic and over-the-top about the whole thing.
I'm really glad that I gave it a shot. I would pick up more from Natalie C. Parker, as I believe she did a great job in creating the world for this story.
As far as this series is concerned, I am done for now and will be donating my copy of the first two books to my local public high school.
March 31, 2019
Honestly, the only disappointing part of this book was the fact that I expected so much more gayness. (There is a sapphic side couple, though!) And I love it. (I thought this would be a sapphic pirate book though.) Also look at me finally writing a review on ŷ!! Is this a milestone or what
Anyways, this book is set in a world where this guy, Aric, runs entire fleets of men called Bullets and also fleets of women but I forgot what they are called, so anyways he controls them by drugging them with Silt, something that basically runs through their blood and gets them addicted.
This about an all-female ship led by Caledonia Styx, whose entire family was basically killed because she didn’t kill a Bullet, so she now has a neverending hatred of all Bullets. I feel like if you enjoyed you'll enjoy this one because same vibes!!
Kiersten White, Julie Murphy, and Dhonielle Clayton blurbed this what else is there so say
But besides the unfortunate lack of gayness, the beginning was interesting, but a bit slow. However, during the last 50% it gets from 0 to 100 real quick. (I just think that we should pray that in the sequel more sapphic pirates are introduced because yes.)
� characters 🌊
I think these were my favorite part of the story. Caledonia was the main character who is supposed to be the leader but literally everything in her life is falling apart, including her friends and her ship and just I think that’s a metaphorical definition of me? She’s literally the definition of a “mom friend� and she’s so loved by her ship and I just. I FEEL THE WARMTH OF ALL OF THEIR LOVE.
Hime is the tiny girl who whenever she stands up everyone immediately screams at her to sit back down she needs to be protected!!!! And that’s literally my definition of her I love her so much. She also uses sign language to communicate with others and was formerly a “Bullet (the female version)� and she’s lowkey traumatized from it and I just!!!! Have so many fuzzy feelings for her. Did I mention she’s sapphic because that triples my love for her x9,000.
Pisces is the definition of Your Annoying Sister but Caledonia still loves her for it even though they fight 24/7 throughout this novel. She’s Caledonia’s oldest friend and was there when their entire family basically was massacred and she helped rebuild their fleet and their friendship is SO STRONG and so REALISTIC and I just love the altogether girl-on-girl love and feminism in this book!! (Also she’s a poc and brown-skinned!!!)
Oran is the only main male character in this story and he’s the only male I condone. He’s also a former Bullet (just like Hime) and he’s basically captured in a ship for like. A while but he still survives and retains his witty and clever personality I’m half in love with him!! His personality doesn’t really show until like the last 25% percent of the book because. He’s like gagged the first 75% but it’s ok!!! We love him anyways!!!
� setting 🌊
I love stories that are mainly set in the sea. Our characters travel for like 100% of the book and I know that a lot of people hate travelling stories but pls stay and setting is magical and gorgeous and all in all worth it!!!
We basically stay on the ship for most of this, since this is pretty character-driven but there’s Cloudbreak, which is basically this merchant’s place and it’s messy and we love a confusing trading center!!! Then there’s the Slagger’s village, which is a self-sustaining scavengering village that live in a swamp-like area and this book needs a map thanks.
� relationships 🌊
Caledonia and Oran are honestly a power couple because Caledonia is this fierce feminist girl and Oran is highkey afraid of her and metaphorically speaking, if Caledonia and Oran were lights Oran would dim himself for Caledonia because for some reason I like turning the characters into lights. But anyways, their relationship is a slowburn and basically enemies-to-lovers-except-not-really-enemies and it’s just about Caledonia learning to be more trustful of former Bullets and trusting Oran and Oran being magical and amazing and I love them both.
HIME AND AMINA ARE SUCH A CUTE SAPPHIC COUPLE THEY ARE ICONIC AND LITERALLY HIME COULD BE PENT UP WITH ANGER BUT AMINA WOULD LITERALLY JUST STEP WITHIN FIVE FEET OF HER AND HIME WOULD CALM DOWN. THAT’S LITERALLY ONE OF THE SCENES IN THE NOVEL. I would die for Amina and Hime to be together and watching their relationship felt like that warm feeling in your stomach when you drink hot chocolate!!
� conclusion 🌊
I think we’ve all realized that this book is amazing and feminist and fierce and also that I deserve a star for putting so much effort into a goodreads review.
also here are some sapphic pirate books
⇶
⇶
⇶
I wasn't ready for that ending!!! 🌊
Anyways, this book is set in a world where this guy, Aric, runs entire fleets of men called Bullets and also fleets of women but I forgot what they are called, so anyways he controls them by drugging them with Silt, something that basically runs through their blood and gets them addicted.
This about an all-female ship led by Caledonia Styx, whose entire family was basically killed because she didn’t kill a Bullet, so she now has a neverending hatred of all Bullets. I feel like if you enjoyed you'll enjoy this one because same vibes!!
Kiersten White, Julie Murphy, and Dhonielle Clayton blurbed this what else is there so say
But besides the unfortunate lack of gayness, the beginning was interesting, but a bit slow. However, during the last 50% it gets from 0 to 100 real quick. (I just think that we should pray that in the sequel more sapphic pirates are introduced because yes.)
� characters 🌊
I think these were my favorite part of the story. Caledonia was the main character who is supposed to be the leader but literally everything in her life is falling apart, including her friends and her ship and just I think that’s a metaphorical definition of me? She’s literally the definition of a “mom friend� and she’s so loved by her ship and I just. I FEEL THE WARMTH OF ALL OF THEIR LOVE.
Hime is the tiny girl who whenever she stands up everyone immediately screams at her to sit back down she needs to be protected!!!! And that’s literally my definition of her I love her so much. She also uses sign language to communicate with others and was formerly a “Bullet (the female version)� and she’s lowkey traumatized from it and I just!!!! Have so many fuzzy feelings for her. Did I mention she’s sapphic because that triples my love for her x9,000.
Pisces is the definition of Your Annoying Sister but Caledonia still loves her for it even though they fight 24/7 throughout this novel. She’s Caledonia’s oldest friend and was there when their entire family basically was massacred and she helped rebuild their fleet and their friendship is SO STRONG and so REALISTIC and I just love the altogether girl-on-girl love and feminism in this book!! (Also she’s a poc and brown-skinned!!!)
Oran is the only main male character in this story and he’s the only male I condone. He’s also a former Bullet (just like Hime) and he’s basically captured in a ship for like. A while but he still survives and retains his witty and clever personality I’m half in love with him!! His personality doesn’t really show until like the last 25% percent of the book because. He’s like gagged the first 75% but it’s ok!!! We love him anyways!!!
� setting 🌊
I love stories that are mainly set in the sea. Our characters travel for like 100% of the book and I know that a lot of people hate travelling stories but pls stay and setting is magical and gorgeous and all in all worth it!!!
We basically stay on the ship for most of this, since this is pretty character-driven but there’s Cloudbreak, which is basically this merchant’s place and it’s messy and we love a confusing trading center!!! Then there’s the Slagger’s village, which is a self-sustaining scavengering village that live in a swamp-like area and this book needs a map thanks.
� relationships 🌊
Caledonia and Oran are honestly a power couple because Caledonia is this fierce feminist girl and Oran is highkey afraid of her and metaphorically speaking, if Caledonia and Oran were lights Oran would dim himself for Caledonia because for some reason I like turning the characters into lights. But anyways, their relationship is a slowburn and basically enemies-to-lovers-except-not-really-enemies and it’s just about Caledonia learning to be more trustful of former Bullets and trusting Oran and Oran being magical and amazing and I love them both.
HIME AND AMINA ARE SUCH A CUTE SAPPHIC COUPLE THEY ARE ICONIC AND LITERALLY HIME COULD BE PENT UP WITH ANGER BUT AMINA WOULD LITERALLY JUST STEP WITHIN FIVE FEET OF HER AND HIME WOULD CALM DOWN. THAT’S LITERALLY ONE OF THE SCENES IN THE NOVEL. I would die for Amina and Hime to be together and watching their relationship felt like that warm feeling in your stomach when you drink hot chocolate!!
� conclusion 🌊
I think we’ve all realized that this book is amazing and feminist and fierce and also that I deserve a star for putting so much effort into a goodreads review.
also here are some sapphic pirate books
⇶
⇶
⇶
I wasn't ready for that ending!!! 🌊
March 6, 2021
“remember when they call you girl, they’re trying to tell you something. they’re trying to tell you that they’re more than you, that the body you’re in makes you less. but you know, and i know, that you’re exactly what you need to be.�
yeah, no. i wanted to love this, i really did. i was totally on board for female pirates who empower fellow females, but that was the only aspect of the story that i have enjoyed. the portrayal of sisterhood was truly great, but every other thing was so incredibly underwhelming??? i didn’t connect to any characters at all and even the protagonist could’ve died and i’d be like meh, moving on.
honestly, other than the female empowerment aspect mentioned above, i’m finding it very hard to point out anything because nothing really stood out. the writing wasn’t really gripping in my opinion and, all in all, the general atmosphere was really lacking.
edit: after further consideration i’ve decided to lower my rating to two stars, because it’s very telling that i hardly remember anything that happened in this book and literally couldn’t care less about what happens next and, therefore, will also not be continuing on with the series anymore.
� 2 stars
yeah, no. i wanted to love this, i really did. i was totally on board for female pirates who empower fellow females, but that was the only aspect of the story that i have enjoyed. the portrayal of sisterhood was truly great, but every other thing was so incredibly underwhelming??? i didn’t connect to any characters at all and even the protagonist could’ve died and i’d be like meh, moving on.
honestly, other than the female empowerment aspect mentioned above, i’m finding it very hard to point out anything because nothing really stood out. the writing wasn’t really gripping in my opinion and, all in all, the general atmosphere was really lacking.
edit: after further consideration i’ve decided to lower my rating to two stars, because it’s very telling that i hardly remember anything that happened in this book and literally couldn’t care less about what happens next and, therefore, will also not be continuing on with the series anymore.
� 2 stars
September 8, 2018
"Remember, when they call you girl, they're trying to tell you something. They're trying to tell you that they're more than you, that the body you're in makes you less. But you know, and I know, that you're exactly what you need to be."
WHAT TO EXPECT FROM SEAFIRE
🌊 AN EPIC SHOW OF GIRL POWER!
Seafire is a feminist read at its core. More than anything, I think this book aims to empower women. It's a riveting story about an all-girl pirate crew, who strengthen each other, and work together towards a common goal, which is, in this case: to take down the cruel and merciless Alaric, and to keep each other alive and well.
🌊 A SOLID MAIN CHARACTER
The Mors Navis is captained by Caledonia Styx, who is a pretty well-rounded MC. She's imperfect, but in a realistic way. There are times where she makes some pretty bad decisions, but you'll understand where she's coming from. She's a fighter, and she's a lover. It was interesting seeing these two sides of her constantly contradicting each other, and swaying the way she led the crew.
🌊 AN AWESOME ALL-GIRL CREW
It's not just the fact that there's an all-girl crew in this book that's amazing. What's even more fabulous is that they all have distinct personalities! They weren't just the characters who stood by and had no significance. Every girl had an role to play in the story, and you're going to love each and every one of them.
Bonus: I'd like to give a shoutout to my favorite crew member, Redtooth. She was incredibly feisty and snarky, and she never backed down from anything, or from anyone.
🌊 NON-STOP ACTION AND ADVENTURE
You know how almost all YA fantasy books promise a whole lot of action but never really push through? Seafire brings you that and more! There's never a dull moment in this book--every scene brings either action or adventure, or even both! When they aren't fighting for their lives, the Mors Navis girls are sailing the wide seas to various destinations, which brings me to my next point...
🌊 SLIGHT AVATAR: THE LAST AIRBENDER VIBES
Whether they're sailing or walking, the adventurous aspect of this book totally gives meAvatar vibes. I felt like I was exploring the Earth Kingdom a lot, and I got major feels! (This isn't important but it feels so relevant to me as an ATLA fan!)
🌊 FAMILY AND FRIENDSHIP VALUE
In Seafire, family and friends are SO FUCKING IMPORTANT. Everything the girls do, they do for each other, or for their families. They put family and friends before themselves (and love interests), which was just so refreshing to read. Every action taken by anyone here is just so heartfelt.
🌊 A ROMANCE THAT MAY OR MAY NOT BE UNNECESSARY
For those who are curious, this book does have a main m/f romance, which I personally think is totally unnecessary. I do see people loving it, though, since it's an enemies-to-lovers relationship that's slow-burn for the most part! There's also a side f/f romance that isn't explored, which I wish would have been--I would have preferred to read about that more than the main romance.
🌊 KIND-OF DETACHED WRITING?
The main reason I didn't rate this book higher's probably because of the writing. There's nothing wrong with it objectively--Parker's writing is easy to read, in fact. I just felt really detached from it, which is more of an it's-not-you-it's-me situation. It was a bit hard to really love the book because of this.
TW / CW:
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August 28, 2018
RELEASED TODAY!!!
**ARC provided by Penguin Teen and Razorbill for my honest review!**
(PS, took the coding from my blog since I posted there first and that's why it looks so much different than usual)
**ARC provided by Penguin Teen and Razorbill for my honest review!**
(PS, took the coding from my blog since I posted there first and that's why it looks so much different than usual)
“Take your ship, take your crew, and prove to that man that he has not quelled all of us. Prove that there is a fire on these seas he cannot contain.�
So vivid in detail, you can practically taste the salt from the sea. So engrossing, it’s as if you can feel the wind in your hair. So mind blowing and addicting, you might as well sign your soul over to the Mors Navis crew-because once you start this story�.you might as well say goodbye, because you’re done for. Dead. Dying. You’re addicted like any old Bullet to the most powerful Silt Aric Athair can offer. Say hello to your newest obsession.
I’ll admit I was scared when I started this story-well, that’s a lie. From the minute I started, I was ADDICTED-that prologue may be one of the saddest, harshest beginnings to a story EVER. And, let me tell you up front-Parker isn’t afraid to kill people off. JUST SAYIN�.
He smiled in return, saying, “I might not be quite the hammer Redtooth is, but I’ll do my best.�
Redtooth leaned in to answer, “Don’t feel too bad about it. The way you take a beating, you make one helluva nail.�
But no, it’s more than that. It started off so great-it truly pulled me in. But then I found it hard to find and buoy to a connection (har). I don’t know why, honestly, other than the fact that perhaps it has to do with me moving and not feeling wholly myself that first week when I was reading this beauty. But I also wonder if I needed more of a mix of men and women for longer throughout the story-but, like with many things, that’s a personal preference.
Redtooth pushed a finger into his face. “Damn dirty Bullets don’t touch my ship. Try it and I’ll put you down.� Then, as an afterthought, she added, “Unless the captain says otherwise.�
But, fear not, because a true beauty this is indeed, for I was a total goner not long after that minor lapse in judgement. How can you resist the piratey pirateness that comes with a sea-filled read, full of action and adventure, friendship and heartbreak, loyalty so strong you almost choke on the palpable tension when things aren’t going just as they should be, and an addictive beginning to a slow burn, but [enemies-to-lovers] oh so tiny and fresh, romance. Tell me-HOW. HOW DO YOU RESIST THIS?!
The thought didn’t give Caledonia as much pleasure as she’d expected. It left an uncomfortable crook in its wake, a sea snake disturbing the flow of water. Ceepa was right to call him poison. There was something truly insidious about him. So insidious, Caledonia had stopped wishing for his immediate demise.
Alas, I did not, could not, and would not resist. And though my not-so-adorably stubborn self did my best to find flaws�there really weren’t any. Truly. Well. I don’t understand boat talk, so there’s that. But I’m going to GUESS that falls under the ‘it’s me, not you� category.
Masterfully written with a style so smooth and oh-so-wonderfully fluid that you get pulled into its seamless story line and feel as if you’re being lulled to sleep with the beauty of it-I can’t explain it right, but it’s almost like-okay-it’s style of writing drew me in because it was so captivating and had so much action and adventure, but while doing so, it captured the subtle depth of feather-light writing that somehow RELAXED me …just because it was THAT good [that’s not even to mention the excellent, amazing, alluring, vivid world building]. There’s just something about peril mixed with beauty that makes my masochistic self feel, well, self-actualized.
Hm. Wonder what that says about me. I don’t care to analyze that tonight [as I write this], though. So I’ll move on.
But world-building and soothing writing hardly make for a complete book-you need relationships to root for. To ride and die for. To make it worth coming back for after detaching yourself from the story every night when you have to catch up on a pesky thing called ‘sleep.� What IS sleep, anyway? And why do we need it? Pesky pesky sleep…interfering with my reading every night-sigh. I digress. ANYWAY. There are just so many relationships to root for here-friendships, family bonds…and a hate-to-love between a Bullet and the captain who swore to never trust a Bullet.
“Thank you.�
Her eyes snapped open. She turned to find Oran still watching her. Had he been watching her this whole time? She scowled.
“For saving my life today. I know you didn’t have to, and I’m grateful.�
“I’m not concerned with your thanks. Or your gratitude.� She thought she detected the hint of a smile on his mouth, and she wanted to hit it. Hard.
Let’s start with that last one, shall we? Actually, ARGH, ya know-sometimes it’s just best to leave it to the imagination, so I will. Just know THIS-Oran was adorable. Their relationship was something that blossomed slowly, like a flower-it didn’t happen overnight and, frankly, I was DYING for it to develop-but when it did…that tentative bond they share-it was ELECTRIFYING. So short, sweet…and well worth the wait. That’s all. (He’s so cute, thoughhhh). Shh, Chelsea, just shhh.
One of us needs to lead, Pisces had said. You need to lead us.
Why not you? Caledonia asked.
Because, Pisces began. One of us also needs to follow.
I suppose I should focus on my favorite bond of all, and that was between Cal and Pi. Best friends. Both mourning the loss of their families-sworn to be by each other’s side until the end, even in the toughest moments. I ADORED them and their sisterly friendship-the loyalty, understanding, and the push that each needed when things got tough-but, I have to say, Pi stole the show for me. Wow, was she a great, strong, and empathetic person. She saw reason when Cal only saw fire and revenge…and I really connected with her as a person. One act of kindness can start a whole new cycle, and one act of trust can save a life. It can easily go the other way around, but you can’t know until you try, and Pi was so inspirational in that way, standing against her best friend because she knew what was right. I just…I loved her.
Cal? She was a little stubborn and hard to connect with sometimes, for me, honestly, because I’m a bit fluffier on the inside, like Pi-however, I know that pain Cal feels, we FELT it from the depths of our soul (damn you, Parker *shakes fist at sky*) because of that poignant and jarring prologue-we know the pain Caledonia hides…and we can’t help but understand that sorrow. So no, I can’t (and didn’t) judge her harshly, which is why I ended up loving her, in the end. Plus, she was a flawed MC-and I dig that.
But, most importantly, probably, is the fact that this book is fueled by the strongest bond of all-family. Even when they aren’t around, we can draw strength from them�.and, apparently, drive us to bloody and just revenge.
(Lol, legit pictured this voice/scene in my head, so naturally I needed the GIF to send my point home)
He hopped to the ground at Redtooth’s feet. “You wanted the gear snapped in, right? No chance for movement.�
Alarm showed on Redtooth’s face. “Snapped in? No, I didn’t want it snapped in! I-� Her teeth crashed together. “You’re joking. You’re a damn dirty Bullet and you’re joking.�
In the end, this story was a big punch in the feels that gave me a lot to think about. And it had an epic end I won’t likely forget (UGH COME ONNN) any time soon. I felt every sad moment, even when I wasn’t all in, and that’s saying something about this author’s ability to write. It got me where it hurts, even in the face of doubt, and that’s where the biggest punch in the feels comes from.
“She’s right,� Oran said from beside her. “If anyone could lead a fleet, it’s you.�
In spite of the cold, Caledonia felt a small warmth bloom in her chest.
Redtooth groaned. “Things have gone very wrong when a Bullet agrees with you. Quick, say something terrible. Shouldn’t be hard. Just open your mouth.�
“Red, you’re faithful and strong, and if I die tomorrow, I hope you remember I considered you a friend,� Oran said brightly.
A strong story about friendship, bravery, and a ship of girls all loyal to a fault-but, mostly, it’s a story that centers around love…and that’s what made my heart beat, my soul soar, and my head spin with possibilities. I was lost in the clouds when I read this, and I am SO ready for anything that comes next. Sign me up-I’m a loyal fan. And more Oran, please. Yum.
For more of my reviews, please visit:
***
So so lucky to have this beauty in my hands. If I wasn’t moving, I’d post a pretty pic of my lovely ARC...but you’ll just have to take my word on how pretty it is!! :D
August 24, 2018
actual rating 3.5 stars
I am very picky when it comes to pirate books but I think overall I enjoyed this. It checked off a lot of things I love in books
✔️all-female crew
✔️found families
✔️seeking revenge
✔️strong friendships
It wasn't romance heavy which I liked for a change. It was more focused on the sisterhood between the crew. I do wish this book had been more gay. I went into it being told it is about sapphic pirates and......not really. There are hints that two of the side characters are together but it is only ever hinted at and for me that wasn't enough.
The characters were okay. They weren't anything new and exciting. I've seen variations of these characters in other YA books. The one character who really stood out to me though was Hime. She is the healer on the crew and communicates with sign language. Her character was very interesting and I wish she had a bigger role in the book. As for the main character, you could replace her with any other YA heroine and I wouldn't know the difference.
What I really liked about this was the world. I totally see the Mad Max influence. And the technological advancements added a nice twist to the typical pirate stories. I almost wish we spent less time on the ship and more time exploring the world because the scenes where they were in the different "towns" were by far the most interesting.
The ending was kinda anti-climatic and didn't leave me excited about the next book.
This wasn't a bad book at all. It had a lot of great elements that I am hoping will be explored in the future books.
Book provided by Penguin in exchange for an honest review.
I am very picky when it comes to pirate books but I think overall I enjoyed this. It checked off a lot of things I love in books
✔️all-female crew
✔️found families
✔️seeking revenge
✔️strong friendships
It wasn't romance heavy which I liked for a change. It was more focused on the sisterhood between the crew. I do wish this book had been more gay. I went into it being told it is about sapphic pirates and......not really. There are hints that two of the side characters are together but it is only ever hinted at and for me that wasn't enough.
The characters were okay. They weren't anything new and exciting. I've seen variations of these characters in other YA books. The one character who really stood out to me though was Hime. She is the healer on the crew and communicates with sign language. Her character was very interesting and I wish she had a bigger role in the book. As for the main character, you could replace her with any other YA heroine and I wouldn't know the difference.
What I really liked about this was the world. I totally see the Mad Max influence. And the technological advancements added a nice twist to the typical pirate stories. I almost wish we spent less time on the ship and more time exploring the world because the scenes where they were in the different "towns" were by far the most interesting.
The ending was kinda anti-climatic and didn't leave me excited about the next book.
This wasn't a bad book at all. It had a lot of great elements that I am hoping will be explored in the future books.
Book provided by Penguin in exchange for an honest review.
June 6, 2020
I’ve known for months now that there weren’t going to be that many gay pirates but........still disappointed tbh
but good book!! so fiercely feminist and focused on sisterhood and features the found family trope (my favorite ever) and I really enjoyed it!!! even without the gay pirates!!!
but good book!! so fiercely feminist and focused on sisterhood and features the found family trope (my favorite ever) and I really enjoyed it!!! even without the gay pirates!!!
August 30, 2018
Rating ~4.5
“Never underestimate the girls of this world.�
It’s been a long time since I liked a book enough to finish it in a day. But well, here we are!
The book starts off with a prologue that really sets the tone.
It is a tale of family, friendship, loyalty, betrayal and the importance of trust. Trust in others and trust in yourself.
The Main Cast:
Caledonia: Captain of the ship, Caledonia is a girl with something to prove. She harbors a deep hatred for Bullets, due moment of weakness with one that cost her everything she held dear. Now, with the help of her all female crew, her strikes out at the bullets and their leader however and whenever she can. But beneath her strong, confident exterior lies a girl who has great trouble trusting others. Because she has yet to truly trust and forgive herself.
Pisces: Caledonia's best friend and second-in-command, she is strong, smart and every bit as capable as her best friend. But unlike her friend, she is not jaded by a personal betrayal. So when a Bullet saves her life, she is the first so step in and fight to keep him on their ship.
Oran: Stolen from his family at 7 years old and turned into a deadly Bullet, Oran hates everything that he was made to be. So when he happens to rescue Pisces and sees an opportunity to escape the life he's always hated, he goes for it. However, Caledonia makes it clear early on that she does not welcome him. But no matter what she says and does he refuses to give up, doing all he can to prove to her that he can be trusted.
Red
Hime
Amina
The Relationships:
Caledonia and Pisces
"The rules don't keep us safe Caledonia. We keep one another safe. If you'd trust us to do that, we wouldn't need rules at all."
Caledonia and Oran
"This is going to feel like hell," Caledonia said, soaking one of the smaller bandages in alcohol.
"Don't enjoy it too much," Oran responded, voice taut.
"Don't tell me what to do," she muttered.
*More detailed review to come*
“Never underestimate the girls of this world.�
It’s been a long time since I liked a book enough to finish it in a day. But well, here we are!
The book starts off with a prologue that really sets the tone.
It is a tale of family, friendship, loyalty, betrayal and the importance of trust. Trust in others and trust in yourself.
The Main Cast:
Caledonia: Captain of the ship, Caledonia is a girl with something to prove. She harbors a deep hatred for Bullets, due moment of weakness with one that cost her everything she held dear. Now, with the help of her all female crew, her strikes out at the bullets and their leader however and whenever she can. But beneath her strong, confident exterior lies a girl who has great trouble trusting others. Because she has yet to truly trust and forgive herself.
Pisces: Caledonia's best friend and second-in-command, she is strong, smart and every bit as capable as her best friend. But unlike her friend, she is not jaded by a personal betrayal. So when a Bullet saves her life, she is the first so step in and fight to keep him on their ship.
Oran: Stolen from his family at 7 years old and turned into a deadly Bullet, Oran hates everything that he was made to be. So when he happens to rescue Pisces and sees an opportunity to escape the life he's always hated, he goes for it. However, Caledonia makes it clear early on that she does not welcome him. But no matter what she says and does he refuses to give up, doing all he can to prove to her that he can be trusted.
Red
Hime
Amina
The Relationships:
Caledonia and Pisces
"The rules don't keep us safe Caledonia. We keep one another safe. If you'd trust us to do that, we wouldn't need rules at all."
Caledonia and Oran
"This is going to feel like hell," Caledonia said, soaking one of the smaller bandages in alcohol.
"Don't enjoy it too much," Oran responded, voice taut.
"Don't tell me what to do," she muttered.
*More detailed review to come*
February 12, 2019
This was not the swashbuckling tale that I was looking for.
Oi, I have so many problems with this book. The first of which is how utterly boring it is. I had to skim it, and I don't mean read the first and last sentences of paragraphs like most people do while they skim, I mean I would read a sentence or two in the middle of a page and if it didn't seem interesting I would move onto the next page and only read the stuff that seemed interesting.
Not to worry, most of the book was fluffy description and action sequences that make no physical sense. I didn't miss anything on the main plot despite the fact that I only skimmed the book.
The second and biggest problem I have with this book are the characters. They are so two dimensional and purposeless... there is no point to most of the characters. They just existed, sometimes they died, but when they died I felt absolutely nothing. There was no great sisterhood ties, there was no swashbuckling romance, there were no morally gray conflicts.
The only character with had even a little bit of development was Caledonia, and she was a horrible person. I don't care if she has a tragic past THIS GIRL IS A MANIAC. She threatens people for thanking her, she is horrible to her crew, and she attacks unarmed people just because she wants to. There is one scene where she literally tells her crew to kill these guys who just surrendered because they aren't who she wants them to be. This is at the end of the book. This is at the end of her nonexistant arc in the book. The person she wanted them to be? Was another member of their crew, who was just as much to blame for being a bullet as them, but because she cared about THIS bullet it didn't matter.
Her hate for the bullets made partial sense because yeah, a bullet killed her family. But also, these boys are forced into this, given a drug that makes them reliant on Big Bad (I can't even remember his name, it was something piratey). They had no choice in the matter. She saved one of the girls who was like this, but the second it's a boy... no, he must die. That's another thing. She's sexist. Only girls apparently deserve the chance of redemption.
The world building was weird at best. The author just kept throwing in details as if trying to make her world unique, but they just confused me. I was just like... wait, when did they get solar sails? I thought these were pirates, not space pirates ... WAIT, THEY HAVE RADIOS??? If they have radios why do vanquished ships have to send out a signal flare for help if they can just radio it?
I have a thousand and one other problems with this book, but I don't even want to spend the brain energy listing them.
Oi, I have so many problems with this book. The first of which is how utterly boring it is. I had to skim it, and I don't mean read the first and last sentences of paragraphs like most people do while they skim, I mean I would read a sentence or two in the middle of a page and if it didn't seem interesting I would move onto the next page and only read the stuff that seemed interesting.
Not to worry, most of the book was fluffy description and action sequences that make no physical sense. I didn't miss anything on the main plot despite the fact that I only skimmed the book.
The second and biggest problem I have with this book are the characters. They are so two dimensional and purposeless... there is no point to most of the characters. They just existed, sometimes they died, but when they died I felt absolutely nothing. There was no great sisterhood ties, there was no swashbuckling romance, there were no morally gray conflicts.
The only character with had even a little bit of development was Caledonia, and she was a horrible person. I don't care if she has a tragic past THIS GIRL IS A MANIAC. She threatens people for thanking her, she is horrible to her crew, and she attacks unarmed people just because she wants to. There is one scene where she literally tells her crew to kill these guys who just surrendered because they aren't who she wants them to be. This is at the end of the book. This is at the end of her nonexistant arc in the book. The person she wanted them to be? Was another member of their crew, who was just as much to blame for being a bullet as them, but because she cared about THIS bullet it didn't matter.
Her hate for the bullets made partial sense because yeah, a bullet killed her family. But also, these boys are forced into this, given a drug that makes them reliant on Big Bad (I can't even remember his name, it was something piratey). They had no choice in the matter. She saved one of the girls who was like this, but the second it's a boy... no, he must die. That's another thing. She's sexist. Only girls apparently deserve the chance of redemption.
The world building was weird at best. The author just kept throwing in details as if trying to make her world unique, but they just confused me. I was just like... wait, when did they get solar sails? I thought these were pirates, not space pirates ... WAIT, THEY HAVE RADIOS??? If they have radios why do vanquished ships have to send out a signal flare for help if they can just radio it?
I have a thousand and one other problems with this book, but I don't even want to spend the brain energy listing them.
September 18, 2018
"Never underestimate the girls of this world."
and never underestimate how much an anticipated book can disappoint you
and never underestimate how much an anticipated book can disappoint you
August 16, 2019
*deep breath*
good book, right? I mean, I gave it four stars. can’t be that bad. frankly I read this a week ago and all I remember is what I was pissed off about so here goes.
beware: spoilers ahead
OKAY SO.
what in the world was the romance.
no, seriously?? SERIOUSLY??????
it’s just� sometimes instalove is horrible, and I get over it.
you know when I can’t get over it?
when there is a character just standing there, literally one of the most important secondary characters and you just�. act like they wouldn’t be perfect for your ONE ROMANTIC INTEREST????
ok time to explain.
caledonia is the MC, the captain of the ship, and the entire book is narrated in her point of view. as a child, she lost her family to the Bullets, some sort of supersoldiers (?) headed by some dude named Aric. he essentially has control of the sea and everyone’s scared of him. so anyways, Caledionia believes it was her fault; she hesitated in the face of a Bullet and as a result, lost her family and the entire crew (or so she believes�).
uhhh fast forward a couple years later and she managed to get the ship back after the attack from the Bullets, she’s leading a crew of all-female pirates (ok she mentions that they aren’t pirates somewhere in the book, but I honestly forget what she said they were instead� so we can call them pirates) along with her one surviving friend from way back when, Pisces.
Pisces is an incredibly important character, and in my eyes, one of the best. she’s the water to Caledonia’s fire, she’s the warm to her cold. when nobody can calm her down, she’s there for her. I genuinely loved the friendship and sisterhood between them and thought there was a lot of emotional value to their disagreements and how they came back together as sisters time after time.
so Caledonia commands the ship, she’s got something close to 50 girls and one mission: to slowly damage Aric’s fleet. and one day, they’re attacking some Bullets and Pisces gets captured!!! but no worries cause some Bullet named Oran (i think) saves her and abandons his crew for her.
yada yada Caledonia doesn’t trust him, refer to previous incident where trusting a Bullet got everyone she knew killed� honestly i understood where she was coming from. it didn’t annoy me even though i secretly loved Oran- i loved Caledonia because she wasn’t about to make the same mistake twice. she’s lost too much, now she isn’t trying to lose her crew.
SO TELL ME WHY SHE’S KISSING ORAN AT THE END
sorry, I really just couldn’t get to this fast enough
you’re telling me:
Pisces, who time after time put her life on the line for Oran to stay alive, took care of him, worried for him, constantly thinking about him!!
is NOT THE RIGHT CHOICE FOR HIM
BUT CALEDONIA, WHO WAS FIVE MINUTES AGO WILLING TO GET HIM KILLED FOR ANYTHING, BUT SUDDENLY AFTER GETTING TIED TO HIM WITH A ROPE AND EATING FROM THE SAME PLATE AS HIM FALLS IN LOVE
IS A MORE DESERVING LOVE INTEREST
i just-
you had a perfectly well developed romance that would have made sense and instead you have these two completely contrasting characters all over each other in the last 20 pages of your book?? why???????? there was no development no nothingggg
so what I would have loved to see:
Pisces getting a POV because sometimes caledonia was getting a little annoying, a little boring and Pisces was around Oran all the time, so we could have gotten to know him a little better
maybe next book Oran and Pisces can be a think? pretty please? i’m hoping that Pisces getting pissed off when she found the two ““““LOVEBIRDS”””� kissing is jealousy and Oran realizes he’s missing out on a girl who actually� wow could u imagine??... doesn’t hand him over to death any opportunity she gets!
overall plot-wise it was a pretty decent pirate story and i’m excited to see where the series goes!
yeah really sorry about this pitiful excuse of a review but i don’t really remember a lot. which should tell you something, i guess.
good book, right? I mean, I gave it four stars. can’t be that bad. frankly I read this a week ago and all I remember is what I was pissed off about so here goes.
beware: spoilers ahead
OKAY SO.
what in the world was the romance.
no, seriously?? SERIOUSLY??????
it’s just� sometimes instalove is horrible, and I get over it.
you know when I can’t get over it?
when there is a character just standing there, literally one of the most important secondary characters and you just�. act like they wouldn’t be perfect for your ONE ROMANTIC INTEREST????
ok time to explain.
caledonia is the MC, the captain of the ship, and the entire book is narrated in her point of view. as a child, she lost her family to the Bullets, some sort of supersoldiers (?) headed by some dude named Aric. he essentially has control of the sea and everyone’s scared of him. so anyways, Caledionia believes it was her fault; she hesitated in the face of a Bullet and as a result, lost her family and the entire crew (or so she believes�).
uhhh fast forward a couple years later and she managed to get the ship back after the attack from the Bullets, she’s leading a crew of all-female pirates (ok she mentions that they aren’t pirates somewhere in the book, but I honestly forget what she said they were instead� so we can call them pirates) along with her one surviving friend from way back when, Pisces.
Pisces is an incredibly important character, and in my eyes, one of the best. she’s the water to Caledonia’s fire, she’s the warm to her cold. when nobody can calm her down, she’s there for her. I genuinely loved the friendship and sisterhood between them and thought there was a lot of emotional value to their disagreements and how they came back together as sisters time after time.
so Caledonia commands the ship, she’s got something close to 50 girls and one mission: to slowly damage Aric’s fleet. and one day, they’re attacking some Bullets and Pisces gets captured!!! but no worries cause some Bullet named Oran (i think) saves her and abandons his crew for her.
yada yada Caledonia doesn’t trust him, refer to previous incident where trusting a Bullet got everyone she knew killed� honestly i understood where she was coming from. it didn’t annoy me even though i secretly loved Oran- i loved Caledonia because she wasn’t about to make the same mistake twice. she’s lost too much, now she isn’t trying to lose her crew.
SO TELL ME WHY SHE’S KISSING ORAN AT THE END
sorry, I really just couldn’t get to this fast enough
you’re telling me:
Pisces, who time after time put her life on the line for Oran to stay alive, took care of him, worried for him, constantly thinking about him!!
is NOT THE RIGHT CHOICE FOR HIM
BUT CALEDONIA, WHO WAS FIVE MINUTES AGO WILLING TO GET HIM KILLED FOR ANYTHING, BUT SUDDENLY AFTER GETTING TIED TO HIM WITH A ROPE AND EATING FROM THE SAME PLATE AS HIM FALLS IN LOVE
IS A MORE DESERVING LOVE INTEREST
i just-
you had a perfectly well developed romance that would have made sense and instead you have these two completely contrasting characters all over each other in the last 20 pages of your book?? why???????? there was no development no nothingggg
so what I would have loved to see:
Pisces getting a POV because sometimes caledonia was getting a little annoying, a little boring and Pisces was around Oran all the time, so we could have gotten to know him a little better
maybe next book Oran and Pisces can be a think? pretty please? i’m hoping that Pisces getting pissed off when she found the two ““““LOVEBIRDS”””� kissing is jealousy and Oran realizes he’s missing out on a girl who actually� wow could u imagine??... doesn’t hand him over to death any opportunity she gets!
overall plot-wise it was a pretty decent pirate story and i’m excited to see where the series goes!
yeah really sorry about this pitiful excuse of a review but i don’t really remember a lot. which should tell you something, i guess.
September 4, 2018
“On the back of the sea, who do we trust? Our Sisters. When our ship falters, who do we trust? Our sisters. In a storms of Bullets, who do we trust? Our sisters! We fight together! Or not at all!
Found families, pirates, and an all female crew. What is not to love about this intense and captivating story about survival and vengeance. Seafire follows Caledonia Styx, the captain of the Mors Navis , an all female crew on constant run from the warlord, Aric Athair, who has made each of their lives a living hell. But when Caledonia’s second in command is saved by one of Aric’s Bullet soldiers, Cala begins questioning everything she thought she held as true.
Things I Liked
I really love the blended genre elements in Seafire! While this is very much a fantasy story with a corrupt, looming leader and an active resistance - there was modern and even futuristic weaponry and energy sources that had a science fiction feel. It gave the story dimension and range.
I am always a sucker for found families in stories and I loved the motley crew aboard the Mors Navis. Each character had a place and purpose, but never felt limited to their role on the ship. I felt the love and care between these dynamic female characters. There's also some great sibling focus in the story which is high on my list of bookish loves!
The action scenes had me hooked through the story. It wasn’t non-stop action, the characters were given the space to breathe and react - which I greatly appreciated. But the action scenes were intense, flowed really well within the story, and added impact!
Things I Didn’t Like
I had this weird problem in the story where for the first half, I had a disconnect with the characters names and I didn’t view them as actual people, only as names. I don’t know what the hell my problem was, but it really kept me from getting into the story until about the halfway mark. While there wasn’t really much worldbuilding in this story, I’m super excited to learn more about Aric, the Fivesons, and the world in the rest of the series.
I didn’t need the romance in the story. I don’t really feel like it added anything, but I’m not opposed the seeing them develop. (Yes this is purposefully and annoyingly vague because I don’t want to spoil it for anyone.)
I was so hooked from the beginning of the story and I loved the villain set up with Lir and I hope he has a bigger part in book 2. The comrodiere and family present in the story was such a joy to read and really brought these individual characters to life. Seafire is a thrilling and inviting story of sacrifice, resilience, and determination that you don’t want to miss.
December 8, 2023
thanks for those unnecessary deaths.
August 23, 2018
ARC provided by Penguin/Razorbill in exchange for an honest review
Once I heard about a book with an entire female pirate crew, I was immediately intrigued. And it totally surprised me � in a good way! Seafire was filled with such a good mix of action, sisterhood, and lovable characters. I really can’t wait to see where this series goes!
Seafire truly opens with a bang. I won’t get into the details but it was the perfect way to set the story in motion. Caledonia Styx is left to deal with the aftermath and, four years later, she leads a crew of 53 women who are all trying to survive life on the seas. The ocean is ruled by Aric Athair, a ruthless captain who commands a crew called Bullets. He rules so many fleets and ports that it’s almost impossible for Caledonia and her crew to sail under the radar � especially when there’s a bounty on her head.
Then the unthinkable happens: A Bullet saves Pisces, Caledonia’s second-in-command, and Caledonia has to face the choice of keeping her crew safe or show compassion in keeping the Bullet alive. Oh, and he has valuable information that changes the course of Caledonia’s life.
I could go on about the action scenes (because they were so damn fun!) but what stood out to me the most were the strong bonds of sisterhood and family. I was living for the friendships and how everyone had each other’s backs. I felt everyone’s pain, heartbreak, and love. I also want to take Hime and forever put her in my pocket. She was by far my favorite character, and I was loving how everyone learned sign language so they could communicate with her!
And I can’t forget to acknowledge all the nautical speak! I don’t know squat about sailing but I 100% appreciate the author’s research and how much that impacted the story for me. It really made me feel like I was there in the middle of the ship.
One thing that I will mention is that this book doesn’t have a romance-focused plot, which I was totally fine with. There is a tiny bit of romance between a certain man and woman, but it wasn’t my favorite and I felt it was a bit forced. Maybe it’ll be better fleshed out in the sequel?
I think Seafire is such a great first book in a series and sets up the rest of the series perfectly. I really hope the sequel will be longer because I just know there’s SO much left that needs to be explored, and so many more characters we need to meet. I truly recommend this book and hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did! �
Buddy read with and !
| |
Once I heard about a book with an entire female pirate crew, I was immediately intrigued. And it totally surprised me � in a good way! Seafire was filled with such a good mix of action, sisterhood, and lovable characters. I really can’t wait to see where this series goes!
Seafire truly opens with a bang. I won’t get into the details but it was the perfect way to set the story in motion. Caledonia Styx is left to deal with the aftermath and, four years later, she leads a crew of 53 women who are all trying to survive life on the seas. The ocean is ruled by Aric Athair, a ruthless captain who commands a crew called Bullets. He rules so many fleets and ports that it’s almost impossible for Caledonia and her crew to sail under the radar � especially when there’s a bounty on her head.
Then the unthinkable happens: A Bullet saves Pisces, Caledonia’s second-in-command, and Caledonia has to face the choice of keeping her crew safe or show compassion in keeping the Bullet alive. Oh, and he has valuable information that changes the course of Caledonia’s life.
I could go on about the action scenes (because they were so damn fun!) but what stood out to me the most were the strong bonds of sisterhood and family. I was living for the friendships and how everyone had each other’s backs. I felt everyone’s pain, heartbreak, and love. I also want to take Hime and forever put her in my pocket. She was by far my favorite character, and I was loving how everyone learned sign language so they could communicate with her!
And I can’t forget to acknowledge all the nautical speak! I don’t know squat about sailing but I 100% appreciate the author’s research and how much that impacted the story for me. It really made me feel like I was there in the middle of the ship.
One thing that I will mention is that this book doesn’t have a romance-focused plot, which I was totally fine with. There is a tiny bit of romance between a certain man and woman, but it wasn’t my favorite and I felt it was a bit forced. Maybe it’ll be better fleshed out in the sequel?
I think Seafire is such a great first book in a series and sets up the rest of the series perfectly. I really hope the sequel will be longer because I just know there’s SO much left that needs to be explored, and so many more characters we need to meet. I truly recommend this book and hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did! �
Buddy read with and !
| |
October 11, 2018
My mind is utterly blown
This advance copy has been sitting on my shelves for 3 months now and I was a bit hesitant to pick it up.
But I swear from the very first sentence I was hooked, jumped on board this thrilling , pirates filled adventure and I never wanted to abandon ship.
This is a story you do not expect to enjoy but end up really really loving.
I’d like to Thank Penguin Random House international for my free advance reader copy. Also, thank you for including me in this awesome blog tour celebrating the release of this book.
It’s not everyday that we happen to stumble upon a YA-fantasy pirates novel ! It’s very rare indeed, I’d ask why but that would take us to a whole lot of a new conversation � later!
Seafire completely took me by surprise. I mean, receiving this advance copy I was excited to read the story but then it just stayed on my shelf till the day I picked it up finally and my mind was completely blown away. This book made up for the whole lack of pirates in the YA universe. I mean it’s so well written, paced and done masterfully. It has everything a fantasy lover is looking for in a book; right from the very first sentence, BAM you’ll get totally hooked. I opened this book, read the prologue and � well it was 6 hours later when I realized that i finished it.
The story takes you on-board a thrilling , suspenseful and exciting; filled with adventure and you’d never want to abandon ship.
In case you’ve got a checklist for badass elements, let me tell you that they’re all checked:
� all-female cast
� empowerment
� an avenging quest
� adventures through the seas
� strong, relentless friendships
� Families and legacies
� Thrill
� an A+ plot
� intriguing pace
� sarcasm
� a brief hint at romance
� badass-ness
shall I go on? The list could keep going on for a very long while and I could not do this book justice. I fell in love with every single detail. The characters � main and secondary � the plot and how unique and standout-in-the-middle-of-the-crowd it is and the pace � you cannot, not even if the sky fell on top of earth, leave this book.
Only in the sequels I’ll be much looking forward to a more multiple POVs driven sequence and more romance.
Overall, I’m so glad that this book came into my life, and I’m beyond thrilled that this is not a standalone, 1 book is definitely not enough, we need more. This is a story you do not expect to enjoy but end up really really loving.
This advance copy has been sitting on my shelves for 3 months now and I was a bit hesitant to pick it up.
But I swear from the very first sentence I was hooked, jumped on board this thrilling , pirates filled adventure and I never wanted to abandon ship.
This is a story you do not expect to enjoy but end up really really loving.
I’d like to Thank Penguin Random House international for my free advance reader copy. Also, thank you for including me in this awesome blog tour celebrating the release of this book.
It’s not everyday that we happen to stumble upon a YA-fantasy pirates novel ! It’s very rare indeed, I’d ask why but that would take us to a whole lot of a new conversation � later!
Seafire completely took me by surprise. I mean, receiving this advance copy I was excited to read the story but then it just stayed on my shelf till the day I picked it up finally and my mind was completely blown away. This book made up for the whole lack of pirates in the YA universe. I mean it’s so well written, paced and done masterfully. It has everything a fantasy lover is looking for in a book; right from the very first sentence, BAM you’ll get totally hooked. I opened this book, read the prologue and � well it was 6 hours later when I realized that i finished it.
The story takes you on-board a thrilling , suspenseful and exciting; filled with adventure and you’d never want to abandon ship.
In case you’ve got a checklist for badass elements, let me tell you that they’re all checked:
� all-female cast
� empowerment
� an avenging quest
� adventures through the seas
� strong, relentless friendships
� Families and legacies
� Thrill
� an A+ plot
� intriguing pace
� sarcasm
� a brief hint at romance
� badass-ness
shall I go on? The list could keep going on for a very long while and I could not do this book justice. I fell in love with every single detail. The characters � main and secondary � the plot and how unique and standout-in-the-middle-of-the-crowd it is and the pace � you cannot, not even if the sky fell on top of earth, leave this book.
Only in the sequels I’ll be much looking forward to a more multiple POVs driven sequence and more romance.
Overall, I’m so glad that this book came into my life, and I’m beyond thrilled that this is not a standalone, 1 book is definitely not enough, we need more. This is a story you do not expect to enjoy but end up really really loving.
April 21, 2018
My beautiful, badass, rebel pirate babes <3
September 14, 2018
ARC sent by the publisher in exchange for an honest review
Buddy Read: &
FULL REVIEW MAY ALSO BE VIEWED ON
PLOT
“Loss is inevitable. Some losses will be harder than others. So remember this: Never risk more than you’re willing to lose�
I have a fascination of all things Pirates & reading all of the YA pirate themed books this past year has been quite the fun adventure, none as pulse pounding as SEAFIRE though! We are introduced to a world with a villain by the name of Adric & his crew of boys he calls Bullets. Terrorizing both land and water, Adric takes young boys away from their families and puts them to work for him. Caledonia Styx grew up on a ship alongside her Captain parents and younger brother. The Ghost became a refuge ship for families trying to keep their sons safe and away from Adric’s grips. Catastrophe strikes and Cal’s family is killed while she is off the ship scouting for danger. Both Cal and her best friend Pisces are the only survivors and together they put together a crew of fifty two girls to navigate the Mors Navis. Loyal and fiercely protective of one another, this all female crew take no risks with their safety. This all changes when pisces rescues a Bullet who claims to have gone rogue and is in need of help. Cal is adamant on not helping this Bullet for personal reasons…she believes taking him in can only lead them straight to trouble. When Oran (Rogue Bullet) claims to have some very important knowledge about Adric, Cal has to decide whether she can put her reservations aside for the sake of taking Adric down once & for all. Fast paced and full of action, SEAFIRE had me rooting for the crew of the Mors Navis! I celebrated their victories and felt deeply for their losses.
Content Warnings: Violence, murder, death, drug addiction, loss of loved ones, and captivity
CHARACTERS
It can’t be easy writing a large cast of characters and yet Parker gave us some stand-out crew members I’ll find very hard to forget. Our MC Caledonia is just trying to be the very best Captain she can be by following in her mother’s footsteps. She’s learning from her mistakes and for that we can thank her best friend Pisces who isn’t afraid to check her BFF no matter that she is the Captain of the ship. It was interesting seeing some of their power struggles play out especially since Pisces clearly doesn’t want the responsibility, she just wants Cal to be the best she can be. Cal & Pisces have their ups & downs but what pair of sisters doesn’t? 🖤 Then we have crew members that are more of a Sisterhood, each with their own voice/personality. Redtooth, Hime, Amina, Lace got the most page time and I LOVED each one of them for their loyalty to one another. This book may have made its rounds as being a Sapphic Pirate tale & although it isn’t one in the most forthcoming sense, a relationship is implied between two of the shipmates. I won’t say who for spoilers sake but I will say that I love these two characters to pieces & together they made me smile all the more 🖤
WRITING & FINAL THOUGHTS
SEAFIRE had my adrenaline going for the majority of my time spent within it’s pages. When I wasn’t pumped up for this feminist pirate tale, I was wiping away tears for their losses. I love a good found family story & this year we’ve been blessed with so many good ones, SEAFIRE now joins those ranks. The only reason I docked this a star was because I wish the romance was a bit more convincing, I saw it coming but wasn’t really with it. Who knows, maybe they’ll win me over in the next one haha! Nevertheless, I LOVED all of these characters to pieces and seeing them handle some hard hitting issues made them feel all the more real. Grief and drug addiction are two of the darker themes we see the crew struggle with, making Adric in my book, one of the most vile villains in YA Fantasy I’ve come across. The abduction of young boys already being a major threat, we then see how Adric keeps them in his service through forced addiction to a drug he pushes. The scenes in which certain characters experience withdrawals were tough to read but also came across as a healing/fresh start for those who made it off the drug. Cal and her crew don’t have a history of giving up on people which is part of the reason I think Pisces was so hard on Cal for not coming around to Oran aka the Bullet who wants to defect. One thing is for certain, the crew of the Mors Navis is a Sisterhood! 🖤
Buddy Read: &
FULL REVIEW MAY ALSO BE VIEWED ON
PLOT
“Loss is inevitable. Some losses will be harder than others. So remember this: Never risk more than you’re willing to lose�
I have a fascination of all things Pirates & reading all of the YA pirate themed books this past year has been quite the fun adventure, none as pulse pounding as SEAFIRE though! We are introduced to a world with a villain by the name of Adric & his crew of boys he calls Bullets. Terrorizing both land and water, Adric takes young boys away from their families and puts them to work for him. Caledonia Styx grew up on a ship alongside her Captain parents and younger brother. The Ghost became a refuge ship for families trying to keep their sons safe and away from Adric’s grips. Catastrophe strikes and Cal’s family is killed while she is off the ship scouting for danger. Both Cal and her best friend Pisces are the only survivors and together they put together a crew of fifty two girls to navigate the Mors Navis. Loyal and fiercely protective of one another, this all female crew take no risks with their safety. This all changes when pisces rescues a Bullet who claims to have gone rogue and is in need of help. Cal is adamant on not helping this Bullet for personal reasons…she believes taking him in can only lead them straight to trouble. When Oran (Rogue Bullet) claims to have some very important knowledge about Adric, Cal has to decide whether she can put her reservations aside for the sake of taking Adric down once & for all. Fast paced and full of action, SEAFIRE had me rooting for the crew of the Mors Navis! I celebrated their victories and felt deeply for their losses.
Content Warnings: Violence, murder, death, drug addiction, loss of loved ones, and captivity
CHARACTERS
It can’t be easy writing a large cast of characters and yet Parker gave us some stand-out crew members I’ll find very hard to forget. Our MC Caledonia is just trying to be the very best Captain she can be by following in her mother’s footsteps. She’s learning from her mistakes and for that we can thank her best friend Pisces who isn’t afraid to check her BFF no matter that she is the Captain of the ship. It was interesting seeing some of their power struggles play out especially since Pisces clearly doesn’t want the responsibility, she just wants Cal to be the best she can be. Cal & Pisces have their ups & downs but what pair of sisters doesn’t? 🖤 Then we have crew members that are more of a Sisterhood, each with their own voice/personality. Redtooth, Hime, Amina, Lace got the most page time and I LOVED each one of them for their loyalty to one another. This book may have made its rounds as being a Sapphic Pirate tale & although it isn’t one in the most forthcoming sense, a relationship is implied between two of the shipmates. I won’t say who for spoilers sake but I will say that I love these two characters to pieces & together they made me smile all the more 🖤
WRITING & FINAL THOUGHTS
SEAFIRE had my adrenaline going for the majority of my time spent within it’s pages. When I wasn’t pumped up for this feminist pirate tale, I was wiping away tears for their losses. I love a good found family story & this year we’ve been blessed with so many good ones, SEAFIRE now joins those ranks. The only reason I docked this a star was because I wish the romance was a bit more convincing, I saw it coming but wasn’t really with it. Who knows, maybe they’ll win me over in the next one haha! Nevertheless, I LOVED all of these characters to pieces and seeing them handle some hard hitting issues made them feel all the more real. Grief and drug addiction are two of the darker themes we see the crew struggle with, making Adric in my book, one of the most vile villains in YA Fantasy I’ve come across. The abduction of young boys already being a major threat, we then see how Adric keeps them in his service through forced addiction to a drug he pushes. The scenes in which certain characters experience withdrawals were tough to read but also came across as a healing/fresh start for those who made it off the drug. Cal and her crew don’t have a history of giving up on people which is part of the reason I think Pisces was so hard on Cal for not coming around to Oran aka the Bullet who wants to defect. One thing is for certain, the crew of the Mors Navis is a Sisterhood! 🖤
October 3, 2023
🆗� World-building
🆗� Plot (way too convenient)
� Teenage drama
� Characters
� Inconsistent behavior
DNF at 62%
I was expecting more� I was expecting a thrilling adventure about girls fighting a cruel oppressor, I wanted fights and strong inspiring women. Instead of a swashbuckling tale, I got a story that dragged on, and that was filled with teenage dramas and a storyline that is way too convenient (and boring).
When Caledonia’s mother’s crew was attacked 4 years ago, Caledonia and her best friend Pisces were the only survivors (or so they thought). Now they have their own crew of 53 girls, all driven by a desire for revenge against Aric Athair, the crime lord responsible for all their suffering. They spent the last years attacking Aric’s ships and trying to undermine him. Everything was perfectly fine, they somehow never lost a crew member and never got caught, until an attack ended with Pisces being captured, and then being saved by a Bullet that killed his own men to escape with Pisces. Pisces and Caledonia then spent half of the book fighting over what they should do with him.
Nothing really stood out in this story; the writing isn’t extraordinary or gripping, and the characters are so bland and boring. The world-building is a weird mix of old-fashion pirate ships, and modern technology. It was really confusing at first when they talked about solar sails and remote-controlled bombs, and the author kept throwing new information as the story went, like the fact that Aric’s ships had radios?! I did not like this mix of pirate adventure and modern technology.
Caledonia is not the best or the brightest character. She is too stubborn� Not the kind of stubbornness that gives you the determination to hold out against your enemies, but the kind of stubbornness that makes you inflexible and leads to bad decisions. I don’t get why the 52 other girls are all following her. We have almost no backstories on the other members, and I fail to see how Caledonia is a good leader. Most of the secondary characters are purposeless, and I didn’t feel the strong sisterly bond that they all apparently shared.
The girls on the ship are all driven by a desire for revenge, but it seems forced. I did not get a “badass girls� vibe from this book; it was more of a “normal girl exaggerating their desire for blood and violence to seem tough� vibe. I can’t really explain it, but it got on my nerves every time there were dialogues between characters. There also seems to be a lack of consistency with Caledonia's hate for the Bullets. She is eager to kill them all, yet she accepted a Bullet girl in her crew, but it’s okay because she liked that one. The others are all worthless liars though and she needs to kill them (even if they save a member of her crew, they deserve to die), as if only girls could have a real shot at redemption and boys were all rotten to the core.
There are many inconsistencies in this book that just annoyed me. First of all, how did Caledonia managed to get her mother’s ship back after it was destroyed by the Bullets? She just swam out there and glued the pieces together? The Bullets didn’t strip the ship of anything valuable or salvageable when they attacked it? Also, the girls sank 8 or Aric’s ships full of drugs, and apparently leave survivors (because it makes so much sense that they want to kill every Bullet they see, but they let them live after their attack just because they surrendered), but Aric doesn’t know yet that the crew is made entirely of women? Don’t survivors talk to him? Why does Aric still leave his ships full of drugs out in the open water if he knows that someone is trying really hard to sink them all? Other things seem very silly and stupid (like the fact that they ate the goat that suddenly died overnight of a mysterious sickness, I mean, nobody thought that the meat might be foul?) but when you add them all, it becomes a whole lot of things that bothered me and prevented me from enjoying this story.
🙂
🆗� Plot (way too convenient)
� Teenage drama
� Characters
� Inconsistent behavior
DNF at 62%
"Never underestimate the girls of this world."
"Never risk more than you’re willing to lose."
I was expecting more� I was expecting a thrilling adventure about girls fighting a cruel oppressor, I wanted fights and strong inspiring women. Instead of a swashbuckling tale, I got a story that dragged on, and that was filled with teenage dramas and a storyline that is way too convenient (and boring).
When Caledonia’s mother’s crew was attacked 4 years ago, Caledonia and her best friend Pisces were the only survivors (or so they thought). Now they have their own crew of 53 girls, all driven by a desire for revenge against Aric Athair, the crime lord responsible for all their suffering. They spent the last years attacking Aric’s ships and trying to undermine him. Everything was perfectly fine, they somehow never lost a crew member and never got caught, until an attack ended with Pisces being captured, and then being saved by a Bullet that killed his own men to escape with Pisces. Pisces and Caledonia then spent half of the book fighting over what they should do with him.
Nothing really stood out in this story; the writing isn’t extraordinary or gripping, and the characters are so bland and boring. The world-building is a weird mix of old-fashion pirate ships, and modern technology. It was really confusing at first when they talked about solar sails and remote-controlled bombs, and the author kept throwing new information as the story went, like the fact that Aric’s ships had radios?! I did not like this mix of pirate adventure and modern technology.
Caledonia is not the best or the brightest character. She is too stubborn� Not the kind of stubbornness that gives you the determination to hold out against your enemies, but the kind of stubbornness that makes you inflexible and leads to bad decisions. I don’t get why the 52 other girls are all following her. We have almost no backstories on the other members, and I fail to see how Caledonia is a good leader. Most of the secondary characters are purposeless, and I didn’t feel the strong sisterly bond that they all apparently shared.
The girls on the ship are all driven by a desire for revenge, but it seems forced. I did not get a “badass girls� vibe from this book; it was more of a “normal girl exaggerating their desire for blood and violence to seem tough� vibe. I can’t really explain it, but it got on my nerves every time there were dialogues between characters. There also seems to be a lack of consistency with Caledonia's hate for the Bullets. She is eager to kill them all, yet she accepted a Bullet girl in her crew, but it’s okay because she liked that one. The others are all worthless liars though and she needs to kill them (even if they save a member of her crew, they deserve to die), as if only girls could have a real shot at redemption and boys were all rotten to the core.
There are many inconsistencies in this book that just annoyed me. First of all, how did Caledonia managed to get her mother’s ship back after it was destroyed by the Bullets? She just swam out there and glued the pieces together? The Bullets didn’t strip the ship of anything valuable or salvageable when they attacked it? Also, the girls sank 8 or Aric’s ships full of drugs, and apparently leave survivors (because it makes so much sense that they want to kill every Bullet they see, but they let them live after their attack just because they surrendered), but Aric doesn’t know yet that the crew is made entirely of women? Don’t survivors talk to him? Why does Aric still leave his ships full of drugs out in the open water if he knows that someone is trying really hard to sink them all? Other things seem very silly and stupid (like the fact that they ate the goat that suddenly died overnight of a mysterious sickness, I mean, nobody thought that the meat might be foul?) but when you add them all, it becomes a whole lot of things that bothered me and prevented me from enjoying this story.
🙂
Shelved as 'dnf'
November 27, 2018DNF at 145 pages 😭 This is breaking my heart but if I'm still THINKING about DNFing a book a third into it, that is normally a really good sign that I should just do it.
I put this down for a couple of days because I was bored by it and didn't have any urge whatsoever to pick it up again. On the contrary, the longer I left it, the more I realized how much I truly wasn't interested in it.
I thought it was super slow, I couldn't really get into the world, I didn't like or connect to ANY of the characters. Like whatsoever. I didn't really care about what happened to them or where they went and THAT in a pirate story? Oh hell no. I need all the found family feelings and I had none.
I thought this was one of those books that had a huge chance of me returning to it but writing this "review", I'm thinking I probably won't cause I'm only really realizing how little I got out of it. I'll keep it for now but.. I believe there's better (female) pirate stories out there waiting for me!
� � � �
I put this down for a couple of days because I was bored by it and didn't have any urge whatsoever to pick it up again. On the contrary, the longer I left it, the more I realized how much I truly wasn't interested in it.
I thought it was super slow, I couldn't really get into the world, I didn't like or connect to ANY of the characters. Like whatsoever. I didn't really care about what happened to them or where they went and THAT in a pirate story? Oh hell no. I need all the found family feelings and I had none.
I thought this was one of those books that had a huge chance of me returning to it but writing this "review", I'm thinking I probably won't cause I'm only really realizing how little I got out of it. I'll keep it for now but.. I believe there's better (female) pirate stories out there waiting for me!
� � � �
December 17, 2018
Un viaje a bordo de un barco pirata capitaneado por Caledonia Styx, y una tripulación exclusivamente de mujeres valientes, fuertes y luchadoras que no le temen a nada. Aventuras, luchas, descubrimientos y amistad y todo a lo largo de un mar lleno de peligros.
September 18, 2018
this was everything Zenith wanted to be and more
review won't come until December
review won't come until December
September 29, 2018
This book was a mess and it wasn't my kind of mess.
After her family is killed by an evil warlord, Caledonia Styx is left to captain her own ship among these dangerous seas. With her crew of girls and women who lost their families just like her, Caledonia leads them on a mission to ruin the warlord Aric's ships, one at a time. When Caledonia's best friend almost loses her life and gets saved by one of the warlord's men looking to defect, Caledonia struggles with the decision to let him join the crew. Is this boy the key to taking down Aric once and for all, or just someone who could ruin Caledonia and her crew?
The writing in this book did not work for me. It was third person and it was so disconnected from any emotion and the action. All these characters kept getting introduced and someone even dies and I just... didn't care. Even by the end of the book I felt like I barely knew the MC herself.
Another thing that didn't work for me was the so-called feminist aspect. No one @ me but there are actually dozens of YA fantasy novels this year that use the tag and all it is, is a marketing tool. The feminism in this book is no better than all the other failures I've read this year. This book kept telling me so many times how strong the women are together, how sisterhood is survival. Do we ever see it? Not really. Even Caledonia and her "best friend" didn't seem like they liked each other at all. Yes, friends and sisters fight but there was no friendship there to me and all they did was fight in every scene. No bonding, no togetherness. Just a mantra about how sisterhood is survival and how men are not to ever be trusted.
Of course that leads to the romance which of course was with a man and of course was for our lovely MC. I don't have words to express how much I hated the idea of them together and how useless it was. Come on, you can't tell me that ALL of the women on the ship are straight. Okay no lesbians but not even one bi? Fine.
The world-building didn't work either. We have super weird tech and some weird drug that keeps the male fighters in line. The warlord guy controls all and that's it. We don't get much more than that. Also not to beat this book when I've already put it down but damn these girls were probably the worst pirates ever. It felt like EVERYTHING they did, they failed at.
This book was so disappointing and I was sad I couldn't enjoy it but then the book ended literally mid-scene in an action fight and I'm just done.
After her family is killed by an evil warlord, Caledonia Styx is left to captain her own ship among these dangerous seas. With her crew of girls and women who lost their families just like her, Caledonia leads them on a mission to ruin the warlord Aric's ships, one at a time. When Caledonia's best friend almost loses her life and gets saved by one of the warlord's men looking to defect, Caledonia struggles with the decision to let him join the crew. Is this boy the key to taking down Aric once and for all, or just someone who could ruin Caledonia and her crew?
The writing in this book did not work for me. It was third person and it was so disconnected from any emotion and the action. All these characters kept getting introduced and someone even dies and I just... didn't care. Even by the end of the book I felt like I barely knew the MC herself.
Another thing that didn't work for me was the so-called feminist aspect. No one @ me but there are actually dozens of YA fantasy novels this year that use the tag and all it is, is a marketing tool. The feminism in this book is no better than all the other failures I've read this year. This book kept telling me so many times how strong the women are together, how sisterhood is survival. Do we ever see it? Not really. Even Caledonia and her "best friend" didn't seem like they liked each other at all. Yes, friends and sisters fight but there was no friendship there to me and all they did was fight in every scene. No bonding, no togetherness. Just a mantra about how sisterhood is survival and how men are not to ever be trusted.
Of course that leads to the romance which of course was with a man and of course was for our lovely MC. I don't have words to express how much I hated the idea of them together and how useless it was. Come on, you can't tell me that ALL of the women on the ship are straight. Okay no lesbians but not even one bi? Fine.
The world-building didn't work either. We have super weird tech and some weird drug that keeps the male fighters in line. The warlord guy controls all and that's it. We don't get much more than that. Also not to beat this book when I've already put it down but damn these girls were probably the worst pirates ever. It felt like EVERYTHING they did, they failed at.
This book was so disappointing and I was sad I couldn't enjoy it but then the book ended literally mid-scene in an action fight and I'm just done.
August 27, 2018
Review copy provided by the publisher via Penguin’s First to Read
Seafire was absolutely riveting and is the pirate sisterhood story I’ve been wanting! This is a fascinating first novel in a series with a strong world and nicely fleshed out characters to accompany it.
Caledonia Styx has lived a life on the sea. And with that life comes rules to help protect you and yours from a brutal warlord that never stops taking. Cala knows the rules and has never broken them, until the night comes that she does and loses those most precious to her.
Now, four years later, Caledonia is captain of her own ship. With a capable crew of women and girls by her side, Cala seeks to dismantle the Bullet army and reclaim a freedom she’s never known. That is, until a young Bullet finds himself on her ship, begging for an escape from the enemy force he’s a member of. Will Cala break the rules again? Can she trust the information this Bullet promises to share?
From the start of this book you’re hit with action, an incredible world, beautiful writing and complex characters. I found myself so surprised by the ingenious world building in this, I cannot wait to see more of the Bullet Seas and hopefully beyond the Net in the future!
Cala is the type of main character I love because I still found myself questioning her actions and disagreeing with her rationale at times. She is multi-dimensional, fierce and loyal to her cause. So loyal that she can be blinded by better choices right in front of her. That said, Cala clearly suffers from survivor’s guilt and it is easy to see why she has become so unbending over the years.
In addition to Cala, this story has one of the most engaging groups of supporting characters I’ve come across in awhile. Pisces, Hime, Redtooth, Lace, Nettle, Amina and Oran are all incredibly unique and each bring a new strength to this story, rather than feeling as though they’ve been added in just for the sake of things. This story also doesn’t shy away from tragedy, so be ready to keep your favorites close!
Finally, my favorite character in this story is Lir. We only get brief glimpses of his character but he is a driving force for much of the story and I cannot wait to learn more about him. I so badly need to know what motivates him and if everything he said at the beginning of the story was a lie. Is he just obsessed now or is there anything redeeming about him? Despite his very obvious faults, I want him to be a character I come to love and I feel Natalie C. Parker could make this happen! For much of the story all I wanted Cala to do was hunt Lir down so I could learn more about him.
Overall, I highly recommend this book if you love pirates, rich worlds and sisterhoods built out of camaraderie and respect. The ladies in this book take the cake!
Seafire was absolutely riveting and is the pirate sisterhood story I’ve been wanting! This is a fascinating first novel in a series with a strong world and nicely fleshed out characters to accompany it.
Caledonia Styx has lived a life on the sea. And with that life comes rules to help protect you and yours from a brutal warlord that never stops taking. Cala knows the rules and has never broken them, until the night comes that she does and loses those most precious to her.
Now, four years later, Caledonia is captain of her own ship. With a capable crew of women and girls by her side, Cala seeks to dismantle the Bullet army and reclaim a freedom she’s never known. That is, until a young Bullet finds himself on her ship, begging for an escape from the enemy force he’s a member of. Will Cala break the rules again? Can she trust the information this Bullet promises to share?
From the start of this book you’re hit with action, an incredible world, beautiful writing and complex characters. I found myself so surprised by the ingenious world building in this, I cannot wait to see more of the Bullet Seas and hopefully beyond the Net in the future!
Cala is the type of main character I love because I still found myself questioning her actions and disagreeing with her rationale at times. She is multi-dimensional, fierce and loyal to her cause. So loyal that she can be blinded by better choices right in front of her. That said, Cala clearly suffers from survivor’s guilt and it is easy to see why she has become so unbending over the years.
In addition to Cala, this story has one of the most engaging groups of supporting characters I’ve come across in awhile. Pisces, Hime, Redtooth, Lace, Nettle, Amina and Oran are all incredibly unique and each bring a new strength to this story, rather than feeling as though they’ve been added in just for the sake of things. This story also doesn’t shy away from tragedy, so be ready to keep your favorites close!
Finally, my favorite character in this story is Lir. We only get brief glimpses of his character but he is a driving force for much of the story and I cannot wait to learn more about him. I so badly need to know what motivates him and if everything he said at the beginning of the story was a lie. Is he just obsessed now or is there anything redeeming about him? Despite his very obvious faults, I want him to be a character I come to love and I feel Natalie C. Parker could make this happen! For much of the story all I wanted Cala to do was hunt Lir down so I could learn more about him.
Overall, I highly recommend this book if you love pirates, rich worlds and sisterhoods built out of camaraderie and respect. The ladies in this book take the cake!
November 11, 2018
Such a wild ride from start to finish! Love pirate stories and this one was very entertaining. Can’t wait for the next book!!
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