Reviews with content warning for Murder - Namesake

How disappointing! Whilst Fable was a fun and atmospheric read with interesting character dynamics, its sequel failed to expand on these relationships and was instead rather dreary and repetitive.

Fable was by no means a revolutionary work of YA, but the things it did well really stood out. The father-daughter relationship was cleverly crafted as was the high-stakes setting, first of Jeval, and then of the seas the characters sail on.

In Namesake, the world-building is left behind and instead the author focuses on the MC's inner conflict between her father and her found family. This still could have been interesting if executed well, but sadly it dwelled too much upon the love interest and his 'bad boy' behaviour, their lovers' quarrels and their attempts to save one another by going behind each other's backs. It was so boring!

As I mentioned in my review of Fable, the side characters had potential that I was hoping would be explored further in the sequel. Some were, but only in a way that furthered the plot, rather than providing a richness of character for the reader. Despite the author heightening the stakes, they never felt so low for me.

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shannnne_reads_words's review against another edition

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adventurous medium-paced

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

3.25

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mrssmithreadsrom's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional mysterious fast-paced

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

4.0

This was an action packed adventure that had twists and turns from every direction. While not quite a pirate story, I love the details of life on the water and the nuances of the world of trade.

Somewhat

Spoiler-y thoughts:

I took a star off because how quickly the feelings toward characters shifted and changed. Just about the time I got comfortable with a character being a foe, they turned out to be a friend, and vise versa. I also felt the same way about all the main plot points: just about the time you start feeling all the things piling against the heroine and crew, someone walks in and takes care of the whole mess.

I would have liked to have seen more of the heroines efforts in resolving the conflicts be successful instead of someone else coming in to save the day.

However, I love the romance I’m not just the main character, but also the beauty in a very complicated child/parent situation. The ending felt good overall, so I wasn’t disappointed with the whole story. Just not a 5 star for me.

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lottsofplots's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.75

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thereaderfriend's review against another edition

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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? Yes

3.5

Was hoping for more character development for Fable because I feel like she was handed many things and directed to many decisions rather than leading her own path. But then again that's probably because I struggle accepting help. I also didn't like Fable and West's relationship because it was instant love and we didn't really learn much about West. He was super withheld. Hoping that Saint's book will answer some unanswered questions about Isolde.

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walmartblairwaldorf's review against another edition

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adventurous dark 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? Yes

5.0

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aspoonfuloflanguage's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense medium-paced

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

3.5

I wanted to love this book. The first one had so much world building, character building, mystery, and adventure that I had such high hopes that this book would continue with that trajectory, but the storyline just... fell flat? Don't get me wrong it had a lot of promise, but it felt like the majority of the chapters were there to add bulk to the book, not add anything enriching to the story. Plus, while I don't mind conflict between characters, a lot of it was created by a series of grand misunderstandings. Frankly I wanted to grab some of the characters by the shoulders and shake some sense into them because if they just got! their! head! out! of! their! butt!!! And the resolution? Don't know her. Just sweep the conflict under the rug as if it never happened and call it a day. Personally I would have preferred it if some of the filler chapters were condensed and combined to leave room to fully explore the reactions and reasonings of the primary characters that led to the story outcome. I think it would have made it a lot more believable as a whole. All that being said, I am glad I read this book and it did have some really beautiful and moving moments, it just didn't live up to my expectations after the first book.

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