“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 It Is
The first in the Seafire trilogy, Seafire falls in line with the several big pirate-themed YA books out this past year or two. The big difference here, though, is Caledonia Styx is the young captain a crew of bold young women who kick some serious pirate booty (Yep, I said it). After the treacherous Bullets kill her family aboard the Ghost, Cal and her second-in-command, Pisces rebuild the ship, christen it the Mors Navis, and take on an exhausting number of enemies and obstacles on their quest to take down the notorious Aric Athair and his Bullet clip, specifically Lir, the Bullet who told the others of her family's ship. Along the way, Cal's girls kidnap a Bullet sailor, and after deciding he doesn't have to die... yet... Cal and her best friend Pisces develop a trust and possibly respect for this sailor as he shows his true colors against his old boss and helps them track down their target. Lots of daring sword fights, really cool ship technology, and some of the best named characters I've seen, this one is the female-led adventure novel we've been waiting for.
What I Loved
As I said in my last review, I love a book that really shows the author dug deep and did her research. This one felt like it even went beyond that. Parker does such a seamless job of blending old concepts of pirate ships and epic sea battles with realistic and very advanced technology in this new realm. I had a hard time placing the true genre of this book, and I really think it could go either way. I actually land in the Sci-Fi camp since it's our world but set in the very distant future. GoodReads reviewers are standing firm in the Fantasy camp, though, so it sounds like we could really argue this one out. I loved the characters' names and the descriptions and really so much about it. With so many characters to choose from, it's easy to find who you relate to and what your job might have been on such a ship When you look at the quality of writing, I think we have a great rival for Sarah J. Maas. The figurative language and syntax create a beautifully written story without going overboard (pun, sorry) or sounding to flowery (another pun, but you have to read the book for that one).
What I Didn't Love
Similar to a few of the ACOTAR books, I thought this one was a bit long. A little side adventure or two could possibly be cut. I also started this book at the end of a loooong week with my "in-laws" (quotes are appropriate), and I had just read all of Lauren James's The Loneliest Girl in the Universe the day before, so it took me a long time to get into Seafire. I read about half of it sitting in the middle seat on a plane, so I had a hard time focusing above all that LACK OF ARMREST. I wasn't sure if I'd want to continue the series when the next book is released later this year, but once I hit the last 150 pages or so, I was totally hooked (pirate pun!). All in all, not my favorite, but an intense adventure and great girl power story to be sure.
3.5/5 stars
Author - Natalie C. Parker
Published - 2018
Series - Seafire #1
Genre - Science Fiction OR Fantasy (debatable)
Format - Print
Pages - 374
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