Reviews

I enjoyed the knives out/glass onion vibes, I'm loving the revival of the whodunit genre in general, honestly. And this plot was very well thought-out, I could not have predicted this conclusion and there were many twists in the story, especially near the end, that were really well done. I really liked the story, especially the last few chapters.

I also thought the worldbuilding was interesting, with the provinces connected to animals and the wall against monsters from outside. The combination of the fantasy and the mystery genres was pretty cool.

However, there were also multiple things that bothered me. Firstly, there was a LOT of information in a very short time in the beginning. I literally had to take notes and look up fanart to keep track of the characters. Secondly, the main character was hard to relate to and for two thirds of the story, I did not like him at all. He was quite rude and impulsive and sometimes even childish, which grew annoying after a while. Especially when he was joking in serious situations, it annoyed me to the point of rolling my eyes. It got better in the end, luckily.

Thirdly, the writing style was not great, a bit too simple at times. Almost all sentences were very short, making it so that the sentences didn't really flow. It took a while for me to get used to it, especially because I was reading this book at the same time as Empire of the Damned, which has beautiful prose, so each time I switched back to this book, it stood out to me in a negative way.

And lastly, I thought it was interesting that the main character is plus size and eats sweets as a coping mechanism, but then I really hated that his size and his eating to cope were treated as something funny/to be made fun of. Even the 'good' characters that are supposed to be his friends/allies make fun of his eating and size and it is never addressed in the book as problematic or bad. That kind of sucks.

Final side note: I thought it was funny that one of the characters had the same last name as me, especially when the main character was scolding him, that sounded funny.

thegreenreadingroom's review against another edition

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5.0

“But now, death feels like a foe I must face. And the bitch is everywhere.”

A queer locked-room murder mystery in a fantasy world?? Um, yes please. Add to it an all too relatable self-deprecating main character and I am completely on board (quite literally - it’s set on a magical ship).

I’m almost at a loss for words with this one. I was so invested and it just kept pulling me in the more I read. I mean, anytime there’s a fantasy world I’m all in, but the world building in this story felt so well-balanced to me. It was well paced and was just so fun in a way some fantasy worlds are not. It felt real and tangible, like something I wanted to slip into and be part of. The author gave me enough to feel satisfied yet left me wanting to know more and more.

The murder mystery component was absolutely insane, but in the best way. It was baffling to me as a reader. I couldn’t for the life of me figure it out. I so desperately wanted to know what was happening, who was doing it, and most importantly, why. I didn’t expect it to turn out the way it did. In fact, I was so surprised I believe there may have been some yelling involved. I was left guessing up until the end. Even when I thought I finally knew, I truly hadn’t the slightest clue what was coming next.

The character development was beautifully paired with the plot. Each character was so utterly themselves, complicated and oh so human. They were each written in a way that made me feel as though they could’ve been peers of mine. They were just so real. Some I loved to love and others I loved to hate. And the personal drama and tension were palpable.

And our dear main character, Dee, so much to be said about him. I think many readers have been in his shoes - struggling to find any value in themselves, using humor as a shield against the world, and fighting to find our place. I was rooting for him the whole time and loved the way his piece of the story concluded.

In the end, what was a very fun and engaging queer murder mystery became a lovely journey of self discovery and acceptance. One fueled by the unconditional love of others, but moreover by realizing one’s own inherent worth was there all along just beneath the surface.

Huge thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for providing me with an advance copy of this book to review. I truly loved every second of this book!

hollabackcat's review against another edition

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lighthearted mysterious

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

3.0

Close to a DNF around the 60% mark due to a general lack of interest in literally anything that was going on, but I stuck around and I didn’t end up hating it.

hollycal75's review against another edition

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funny lighthearted 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

5.0

If I could give this six stars, I would.

I'll be honest, the moment I saw "queer fantasy murder mystery at sea", I knew this book was getting at least 4 stars. What a cool premise! I love genre blending murder mysteries, and I think Voyage of the Damned may be my favorite one to date. I expected a good time, but I'm blown away by just how much FUN this was. I just know Frances White was giggling away at her keyboard while writing this. It's a perfect escapist read. The characters are just as enjoyable as the plot. Best of all, this book doesn't take itself too seriously. Its job is to entertain, and it does that from start to finish.

Interestingly enough, the highlight of this book isn't the fantasy nor the mystery. There's not much that sets this whodunnit apart from other books in that regard. The worldbuilding also isn't too elaborate, which is common in genre blend mysteries. Not enough page space. I agree with the review that compares this to Fruits Basket, one of my favorite mangas/animes ever. Twelve people who are "Blessed" by the Goddess (or eleven plus our pseudo-Blessed Ganymedes), yet their gifts are also their greatest hindrances. That's about as far as the worldbuilding goes. But not every book needs a complex magic system. The way it's presented here is fine as is.

No, the best part of this book is Ganymedes himself. It's been a while since I've read a book in which the protagonist ends up being my favorite character, but he's just so damn lovable! You get to see so many different layers to him depending on which character he's interacting with. To top it off, his narration had me laughing out loud multiple times, often multiple times on the same page. Frances White's sense of humor is right up my alley. I always knew I would've been better off growing up in the UK. Y'all are just funnier out there. It is what it is.

About 90% of the books that I read I get from the library, this one included. But this is so freaking good that I'm actually going to buy a physical copy of because I KNOW I'll be reading it again. Likely for many years to come. (Also the sprayed edges are gorgeous and I just want an excuse to keep looking at them.)

Content Warnings

kaitlinmcdreads's review against another edition

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adventurous dark funny lighthearted mysterious 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

5.0

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