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3.85 AVERAGE
3.85 AVERAGE
Flat characters, I just couldn’t get into it.
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I enjoyed the first half and it was entertaining but then I started getting annoyed. I skimmed the last 50 pages.
The writing is a bit juvenile- a 12 year old would probably think it’s a cool book.
The ending/solution of the mystery was very far fetched and felt like it undermined the whole story.
If anyone is interested in the premise, I’d suggest reading the nonfiction book Batavia’s Graveyard by Mike Dash. I had read B’s G before, so found it very hard to believe some these characters were sailing back and forth from Amsterdam to Batavia like it was NBD.
The writing is a bit juvenile- a 12 year old would probably think it’s a cool book.
The ending/solution of the mystery was very far fetched and felt like it undermined the whole story.
If anyone is interested in the premise, I’d suggest reading the nonfiction book Batavia’s Graveyard by Mike Dash. I had read B’s G before, so found it very hard to believe some these characters were sailing back and forth from Amsterdam to Batavia like it was NBD.
This was so disappointing. Interesting concept about a demon on a boat, but I found the execution to be really slow and boring and really dragged on. I ended up not able to really know what was going on and kept listening just to finish.
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
slow-paced
adventurous
mysterious
tense
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
I wish some of the reveals were a little more surprising and dramatic and I didn’t love the ending of this novel, but overall The Devil and the Dark Water was well written and very enjoyable.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Honestly? This kinda slapped. I feel like I read so many thriller/mystery/suspense (usually shitty ones) so this was a refreshing change of pace and a relatively unpredictable plot.
So, the main twist is that it's revealed that the ship's events, including the murders and the "Old Tom" legend, were orchestrated by Emily de Haviland (Creesjie) and Samuel Pipps (Sammy/Pipps) as a plot to exact revenge on Jan Haan (Arent’s uncle) for his family's downfall. Sara and Arent, initially believing in a supernatural entity, discover the truth and, along with Lia, decide to use the "Old Tom" myth to target other powerful, corrupt individuals, continuing the cycle of revenge.
So, generally, I thought this book opened up pretty well? I was immediately thrown in for sure. Pacing was pretty consistent and I felt like I always got another piece of the story right when I needed it. I kept circling back to the fact that there is a man (Sammy) imprisoned on the ship and how it would be so convenient for him to end up being the twist because he’s been missing like 70% of the book—-but even though I was correct I did enjoy all the interwoven plot lines and backstory from the characters. I think I enjoyed the ending? Very Robin Hood energy where they’re like okay sure why not just keep enacting revenge and stealing from the rich (love to see it).
Overall, def recommend to fans of spooky/mystery.
So, the main twist is that it's revealed that the ship's events, including the murders and the "Old Tom" legend, were orchestrated by Emily de Haviland (Creesjie) and Samuel Pipps (Sammy/Pipps) as a plot to exact revenge on Jan Haan (Arent’s uncle) for his family's downfall. Sara and Arent, initially believing in a supernatural entity, discover the truth and, along with Lia, decide to use the "Old Tom" myth to target other powerful, corrupt individuals, continuing the cycle of revenge.
So, generally, I thought this book opened up pretty well? I was immediately thrown in for sure. Pacing was pretty consistent and I felt like I always got another piece of the story right when I needed it. I kept circling back to the fact that there is a man (Sammy) imprisoned on the ship and how it would be so convenient for him to end up being the twist because he’s been missing like 70% of the book—-but even though I was correct I did enjoy all the interwoven plot lines and backstory from the characters. I think I enjoyed the ending? Very Robin Hood energy where they’re like okay sure why not just keep enacting revenge and stealing from the rich (love to see it).
Overall, def recommend to fans of spooky/mystery.
I'm deciding to DNF Devil and the Dark Water. I'm just not a fan of the colonialism themes and then I also accidentally spoiled it for myself when looking up how to pronounce one of the names and it showed a snippet from the Wikipedia plot page... so I read the rest of the plot page and am calling it done
Content Warnings
Moderate: Colonisation