You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It really feels like the first book was an elaborate setup for this one because a lot of pacing complaints I had about the first book were absent here. Though I enjoyed this book more than its prequel, there were a lot of things that bogged the experience down for me and thus I've given it the same rating as the first book (which is a shame because I'm starting to realise I like stories about pirates/crews at sea)
Things I liked:
Things I liked:
- I LOVED Holland as an antagonist and I wish we had more evil old ladies in books like her. I loved how her methods of manipulating people were subtle and how she's a master of throwing unexpected curveballs at people trying to bargain with her.
Things I didn't like:
- I just did not care for West and Fable's relationship in the slightest because they're so constantly hot and cold that it feels hard to get invested. Also I don't know what Fable actually sees in him and how she's suddenly okay with
how West is Saint's personal assassin out of nowhere despite fretting about it on multiple occasions. And speaking of... I don't think a lot of the antagonists outside of Holland pull their weight in being antagonists. I know it's more realistic that at the end of the day, they're just rival companies fighting against each other but considering everyone is a pirate or deals with pirates, I was expecting a lot more heinous stuff to happen. Holland is the only remotely threatening antagonist and West actually does more bad shit than the actual villains. - This is a personal gripe but I found it annoying that during the hunt for the midnight (gem), the gang abandoned their hunt at the reefs to go to Fable's Skerry on Fable's request, only for her to
become suddenly overwhelmed by the feeling of her mother and then conclude that it's not there... only for it to be later revealed she was right on the money if only she, you know, actually used her skills to do the job she was already doing and hunt its location. It felt very cheap and lazy to me. - The ending felt rushed, both in terms of the political intrigue <spoilers>(while Holland got what she had coming, everything wrapped up way too fast and conveniently)</spoilers> and where the characters ended up. Some characters such as Hamish and
Clove felt like they disappeared from the story altogether. When I read the epilogue I didn't understand how far along time had gone in terms of the timeskip, and it was just way too light to be a satisfying ending.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Kidnapping
Moderate: Blood, Death of parent, Murder
Minor: Child abuse, Homophobia, Sexual content, Abandonment
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence, Kidnapping, Abandonment
Minor: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
fast-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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Kidnapping, Murder
Moderate: Child abuse
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I really enjoyed Fable, and Namesake was the stunning conclusion to this duology. When there’s a situation in a book that leaves me with questions, I always want to have those questions answered. And the beautiful thing about this book is that it provided all the answers. However, it had some ups and downs along the way.
One of the things that I really liked was seeing how Fable’s relationships changed with the people around her. As she has to navigate her new circumstances, she learns a lot more about her mother’s past and how that relates to her own life. This new information affects her perception of the people she’s known the longest, and how she interacts with them.
“In only a night I’d learned more about my mother than I had in my entire life. Saint wasn’t the only one with secrets, and I couldn’t help but feel betrayed.”
While I liked seeing how Fable grew up over the course of the story, I felt like West just kind of faded. He was there, but his entire role just seemed to be to step in and play savior. Every time he did something, it was without the permission of the people he was “saving,” and it usually wasn’t appreciated. Also, the romance? I still wasn’t feeling it. In the last book, it wasn’t really well-developed, and in this book, it wasn’t really built up further. Honestly, it didn’t add much to the story. I felt that it could have worked just as well if they were close friends/found family.
The writing was absolutely beautiful, and I truly enjoyed the story. There was a sense of not really knowing everything that was going on, not knowing each character’s plan, and wondering whether you could trust anyone. Part of Fable’s journey was learning who she could trust and when to trust them, and relying on her instincts as she is taken on a journey through the Narrows and into the Unnamed Sea.
“The Unnamed Sea was a thing painted in my mind by the bright colors of my mother’s stories, but like the Narrows, it was filled with cutthroat traders, devious merchants, and powerful guilds.”
I’ve been a fan of Fable (the character) since page 1 of the first book, and I enjoyed seeing her claim her power and become a strong, kick-butt woman who knows what she wants and isn’t afraid to get it. You know I love a strong female character, but this is a prime example of how not every book needs a romance in it. I really enjoyed the book for the most part, and would still recommend it. Plus, the covers for this duology are absolutely stunning, especially when placed side by side.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Murder
Minor: Child abuse, Death of parent
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse
Moderate: Death, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Death of parent
Minor: Child abuse, Homophobia