Reviews

The Ghost Ship by Kate Mosse

Only show reviews with written explanations

mordshunger's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful slow-paced

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

5.0

You want to read about the Huguenots in the 1610s? You want to read about queer love and the sea? There ya go.

A set of lovable, breathing characters that are REFRESHINGLY direct and spare the reader a lot of tropey scenes.

The most tender and fully accepting coming out scene. It could not have been any better. & "Alice has been the great love of my life" Hello?? Where can we get an army of these people? This is supportive family indulgence. My heart!!!!

Mosse has an incredible talent of avoiding predictable story beats. If you read a lot, you know and expect (and maybe dread) the known patterns.

1. I have a terrible secret and can trust noone!
2. I find someone I like and trust but I could never tell them, they will judge me!
3. Oh no I have to lie in this situation! I feel terrible.
4. Repeat step 3 n-times.
5. It all blows up in an avoidable conflict.

Mosse stops at step 2. Bless her soul. This is a pattern that repeats throughout.

sophieannereid's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous emotional inspiring reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

stiffslinky's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

Very slow, the main selling plot of the book is a few chapters towards the end, NB/trans character identity felt clumsy, overall I was disappointed.

Content Warnings

lego28's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

tcjames's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous emotional sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

tdk's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous emotional informative mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

books_coffee_cornwall's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous informative medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.25

luffe_zolo's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional hopeful inspiring tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

nike0706's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous emotional mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

bookmaddie's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark hopeful mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

The third installment in Mosse’s The Burning Chambers series, THE GHOST SHIP is billed as an adventure on the high seas. But there wasn’t nearly enough seafaring for me 🫣

Each book in the series follows a generation of the Joubert family, Huguenots living in France, where they were often persecuted. I enjoyed dipping back into their story and learning about a new family member, Louise. Louise is headstrong, independent and inquisitive, pushing against the boundaries of the time. I loved her personality and strength of character!

Louise has always loved the sea, and so has Giles, her love interest. Their love of exploration and freedom draws them together, and their love story was so tender and sweet. And queer! Love some queer representation in historical fiction. It was beautiful to see Giles living as he desired, with Louise and her family’s support.

However, I do think this book could’ve been a tad shorter. There is a lot of set-up and background that takes up a majority of the book, so only a quarter of it is really spent on the high seas. It was a delight to see a woman captain her own ship, and I loved all the pirate bits. I just wanted more!

I’m curious if Mosse will continue with the series. There was a bit of a hint towards another book at the end, but we shall see. In the meantime, I’d love to dip into her backlist. Her writing is so lush and comforting to me, and I’d love to explore another time with her as my guide. Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for my advanced digital copy.

Content Warnings

More...