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4.0 AVERAGE
4.0 AVERAGE
Very YA writing, but that's who it's written for!
I really enjoyed the Chinese pirates. And learning about Zheng Yi Sao the pirate queen.
I really enjoyed the Chinese pirates. And learning about Zheng Yi Sao the pirate queen.
This was entertaining and an interesting take on Treasure Island. It resembled it enough to feel its influence, but different enough to feel fresh. The idea to include Zheng Yi Sao/Cheng Shih, maybe the most successful pirate in human history, was fantastic.
The book struggled with pacing. The first part/half felt very slow, but it did allow for solid character development of Xiang.
The book struggled with pacing. The first part/half felt very slow, but it did allow for solid character development of Xiang.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
sad
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
Thank you Netgalley for the free e-arc, this did not impact my review in any way, shape or form.
It’s 1826 and Xiang is desperate to prove herself to her mother. Her mother has been sailing for longer than Xiang has been alive. All Xiang wants is for her mother to be proud of her and to let her go out and live in the city. Her father is dead at sea, the only momento of him she has is a gold pendant she wears every day. But things start coming out when she meats Anh, who steals is from and only promises to give it back if Xiang will help decode the hidden map inside. But the sea, especially those who sail on it, are far more dangerous than they could ever imagine.
Okay, so I truly loved the start of this book: village life, getting to know Master Feng, Xiang, herself and the people who raised her. Everything else kind of fell flat for me, personally. I think this is more of a middle grade story, while I was expecting something along the upper YA genre, so that probably accounts for half of my disappointment. I truly wished there was more of a build up between Xiang and Anh before everything else happened. It seemed like a really rushed scenario: these two girls meet, hang out for a day and run away together the next. It seemed really unlikely.
But I did get into the story enough to learn to absolutely despise Xiang’s mother. That is terrible parenting if I’ve ever seen it. Again, I wish that there was more of a storyline between Xiang and her mother. That was a sudden moment for me as well: this girl’s mother randomly shows up and we talk to her for a few hours and then she gets punished and runs away. The storyline was not concise. I had trouble keeping up with what was happening. Although I loved the beginning, the middle lost me and as much as I hoped the ending would help, it did, but again, it was rushed.
All in all, this is a great upper middle grade, lower YA story, but not the upper YA I was looking for and the storyline just did not flow.
It’s 1826 and Xiang is desperate to prove herself to her mother. Her mother has been sailing for longer than Xiang has been alive. All Xiang wants is for her mother to be proud of her and to let her go out and live in the city. Her father is dead at sea, the only momento of him she has is a gold pendant she wears every day. But things start coming out when she meats Anh, who steals is from and only promises to give it back if Xiang will help decode the hidden map inside. But the sea, especially those who sail on it, are far more dangerous than they could ever imagine.
Okay, so I truly loved the start of this book: village life, getting to know Master Feng, Xiang, herself and the people who raised her. Everything else kind of fell flat for me, personally. I think this is more of a middle grade story, while I was expecting something along the upper YA genre, so that probably accounts for half of my disappointment. I truly wished there was more of a build up between Xiang and Anh before everything else happened. It seemed like a really rushed scenario: these two girls meet, hang out for a day and run away together the next. It seemed really unlikely.
But I did get into the story enough to learn to absolutely despise Xiang’s mother. That is terrible parenting if I’ve ever seen it. Again, I wish that there was more of a storyline between Xiang and her mother. That was a sudden moment for me as well: this girl’s mother randomly shows up and we talk to her for a few hours and then she gets punished and runs away. The storyline was not concise. I had trouble keeping up with what was happening. Although I loved the beginning, the middle lost me and as much as I hoped the ending would help, it did, but again, it was rushed.
All in all, this is a great upper middle grade, lower YA story, but not the upper YA I was looking for and the storyline just did not flow.
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
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
I LOVED this book. I’ve always been a big fan of pirates, so combine that with Asian historical fiction and lesbians?! A match made in heaven.
A Clash of Steel was beautifully written; Lee drew me in immediately with her detailed narration and well-written main character. This book was fairly simple, which I actually really enjoyed. It was beautiful to see Xiang find her own (queer!) autonomy, and have that reciprocated by her love interest. Not too much angst here, which was quite refreshing. The historical fiction aspect was also AMAZING - I feel like I learned a lot about a badass female pirate that I didn't know before. Plus, this cover is gorgeous and the map on the inside? Incredible.
So happy I preordered this book and I’m honestly looking forward to rereading it in a few months!! I highly recommend it to anyone who's interested in queer/lesbian stories, historical fiction, and/or pirates.
A Clash of Steel was beautifully written; Lee drew me in immediately with her detailed narration and well-written main character. This book was fairly simple, which I actually really enjoyed. It was beautiful to see Xiang find her own (queer!) autonomy, and have that reciprocated by her love interest. Not too much angst here, which was quite refreshing. The historical fiction aspect was also AMAZING - I feel like I learned a lot about a badass female pirate that I didn't know before. Plus, this cover is gorgeous and the map on the inside? Incredible.
So happy I preordered this book and I’m honestly looking forward to rereading it in a few months!! I highly recommend it to anyone who's interested in queer/lesbian stories, historical fiction, and/or pirates.
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
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:
Complicated
Adorable!!
adventurous
hopeful
informative
lighthearted
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
First of all, this cover?? The map?? Beautiful stunning immaculate
I really enjoyed a lot of this story. A quieter sea-faring adventure centred around a girl discovering what she wants from life. I thought the budding romance was sweet, and I enjoyed the content around her realising that what the adults in her life had dreamt up for her was different to her own ambitions. It was cool to see a coming-of-age story in this way and I think it was done really well.
Near the end though I feel that it fell into the trappings of a twisty, action-packed ending which I don't think meshed very well with the rest of the book. It felt a bit repetitive and I think took away from the quiet but impactful story that was building. Overall it was still enjoyable, but I wish the ending had gone a little differently.
The historical notes were interesting and I appreciate what the author was aiming for by bringing in conversations about history, ethnicity, language and identity. I don't know that I'll pick up more of these remixed classics but I think they're a cool idea, especially for younger teen readers.
I really enjoyed a lot of this story. A quieter sea-faring adventure centred around a girl discovering what she wants from life. I thought the budding romance was sweet, and I enjoyed the content around her realising that what the adults in her life had dreamt up for her was different to her own ambitions. It was cool to see a coming-of-age story in this way and I think it was done really well.
Near the end though I feel that it fell into the trappings of a twisty, action-packed ending which I don't think meshed very well with the rest of the book. It felt a bit repetitive and I think took away from the quiet but impactful story that was building. Overall it was still enjoyable, but I wish the ending had gone a little differently.
The historical notes were interesting and I appreciate what the author was aiming for by bringing in conversations about history, ethnicity, language and identity. I don't know that I'll pick up more of these remixed classics but I think they're a cool idea, especially for younger teen readers.
adventurous
hopeful
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Really enjoyed the world and the characters in the first half but it got lazy.