Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: YA Fantasy + Romance
Length: 336 pages
Author: Tricia Levenseller
Publisher: Feiwel and Friends
Release Date: November 7th, 2023
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Pirates of the Caribbean meets The Mummy in Vengeance of the Pirate Queen, a beautifully designed standalone YA fantasy romance, set in the world of Tricia Levenseller’s Daughter of the Pirate King.

You can’t be afraid of the dark when you’re the monster lurking in the shadows.

As an assassin working for the pirate queen, eighteen-year-old Sorinda is surprised when Alosa’s next task for her is not to kill a new target, but to captain a handpicked crew on a rescue mission. Unfortunately, her sailing master is twenty-year-old Kearan. He may be the best helmsman the pirate queen has, but Sorinda finds him a real pain in the arse. Sadly, there are few places on a ship to hide from an attentive man.

As the crew of the Vengeance faces dangerous waters and deadly sea creatures, they accidentally awaken the King of the Undersea, a being who can control the dead. Their rescue mission quickly turns into a fight to save the world, but first, Sorinda must save herself from becoming an undead queen.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an ALC.

LOVED.

I feel like it’s been a long time since I’ve read a Tricia Levenseller book and this reminded me of why she’s one of my favorite young adult authors. I absolutely loved this story.

I loved seeing the growth in Sorinda as she had to break out of standing in the background to being the captain of a ship. Her ups and downs were inspiring and I liked seeing the inner battle Sorinda showcased as the plot progressed. Those ending action scenes were incredible and really brought the story full circle.

The sub-plot romance worked perfectly too. Some enemies to lovers vibes with Kearan. While also confessing the darkest parts of their souls as both learned to be open. There’s some good swoon and passion too.

I liked the plot, the high seas adventure, getting to see a little bit of Alosa again, the themes and everything in between.

Overall audience notes:

• YA Fantasy + Romance
• Language: low
• Romance: heated kisses
• Violence: high
• Trigger/Content Warnings: loss of loved ones, near death experiences, physical/magical altercations, blood/gore depiction

Instagram || Goodreads || The StoryGraph