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adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Body horror, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Gore, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Cannibalism, Death of parent
Minor: Body shaming, Toxic relationship, Death of parent
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Violence, Murder
Minor: Child death
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
A Ship of Bones & Teeth is such a dark and twisted retelling of The Little Mermaid, more in line with Hans Christian Andersen’s tale than Disney’s. The book is dark, hot, and kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time. This is the first book of Karina Halle’s that I’ve read but I’ve got a few more in my TBR that I can’t wait to pick up. She created such a dark and atmospheric world that I just wanted to immerse myself into it with Maren and the pirate crew.
The story alternates between two POVs, Maren, the human turned siren, and Ramsey, the vampiric pirate.
We first meet Maren as a sixteen year old siren, longing for a life above the waves with a handsome prince. Tricked by a sea witch into making a trade, legs for her tongue and tail, Maren finds herself at the mercy of her new abusive husband, Prince Aerik. Trapped in a life she loathes, Maren quickly takes matters into her own hands when her and Aerik are kidnapped by pirates. Turning on her husband and finding an ally in the pirate captain, Ramsey, they set out to seek revenge on the sea witch that wronged them both.
Ramsey and Maren are explosive together. I enjoy spicy scenes but sometimes when a book is heavy with spice the scenes can become redundant and the creative language for body parts and dialogue can become eye rolling and cringey. Karina sticks to more standard words and doesn’t get grossly flowery with her descriptions, which I appreciate so much. When scenes are adjective heavy and flourished beyond belief, it takes you out of the scene too much. If you’re giving me spice, give me spice and stop watering it down with overdrawn wording. Thankyouverymuch.
My only complaint would be how the pirates spoke felt different to their inner monologues. Their thoughts were in line with a more modern language while their spoken dialogues were in line with a more pirate, time specific language. It pulled me out of the story from time to time.
A quick and face paced read. I absolutely love the world that Karina created and look forward to reading Ocean of Sin and Starlight about finding Maren’s sister.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Domestic abuse, Sexual content, Violence, Blood
adventurous
dark
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail
adventurous
dark
lighthearted
sad
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:
Complicated
A fun read! Very cool take on the Little Mermaid with it being AFTER she marries the prince, and a fun and well thought out take on the pirates.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Sexual content, Slavery, Violence, Blood, Murder
Minor: Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Excrement, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Alcohol
adventurous
challenging
funny
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
adventurous
dark
tense
I found myself skimming a lot out of boredom, although I did enjoy the story quite a bit at first. It just didn't continue holding my interest.
However, it was still a good summer read.
However, it was still a good summer read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Violence
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Violence
Moderate: Torture
Minor: Rape
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I finished A Ship of Bones & Teeth by Karina Halle. It's a standalone gothic dark fantasy pirate romance re-telling of The Little Mermaid. (They mention a sequel following other characters at the very end, go figure, but this one *can* be read as a standalone. ) I've been on a pirate kick lately. This one was alright, 2.5 stars. It wasn't great but it wasn't bad. However don't go in expecting what the synopsis says - a protagonist who is full of bloodlust and vengeance. It's there but not as strong as it leads you to believe which was a letdown. But I digress. The romance was alright. Major power unbalance which is mentioned in the tw list in the beginning of the book. The romance a bit too fast for me but wasn't horrible. I liked the fantasy elements even though I dearly wish for an adult pirate romance with no other elements. There was some interesting characters. I wasnt a fan of the love interest but he wasn't the worst. The ending made me happy with her getting the best of both words and being reunited with Nill.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Violence
Moderate: Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Kidnapping, Grief
Minor: Child death, Gore, Suicidal thoughts
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Exactly what you'd expect from this author. Formulaic and repetitive but good enough for a quick holiday read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Sexual content, Violence
Moderate: Child death, Kidnapping
Minor: Rape