Reviews with content warning for Death - Sea Wolf

“ ‘We’re at sea. There is no ground to stand on.’ ”

i loved this so much. just like the first book, it was enjoyable and full of humour and tenderness in every page, but not without conflicts and high stakes. it was rewarding to know more about both rose and miranda, their issues with one another and developments together. my expectations of getting an explanation regarding rose's uncanny abilities in navigation and heritage were met in this book, and i can't wait to dive deeper in this series' unrelenting waters.

speaking of waters, burke's concept of a world where deep ocean is safer than the surface brimming with harmful chemicals, where land and once great cities are drowned beneath seas, and where seafaring, underwater mining, and piracy are the only ways of living because of the earth's condition, were both gripping and horrifying to read about—because it is possible. a hundred years or so, i can see it with how our earth is regressing today. this book honestly gave me a phobia of jellyfishes and squids just 30 pages in—that much pages and i was also screaming and crying and shitting my pants. anyway, i grew to love and care for the crew more, and i wish to see them still alive in the next installment.

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alexfromistemor's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.5

So, wow...this was a hell of a follow-up to Compass Rose...

This book was dark. It felt significantly darker than the first book, much in the way The Empire Strikes Back is the dark middle part of the original Star Wars trilogy, but with the harsh, pull-no-punches manner of BSG. Seriously, our beloved characters all go through so much...Rose, Miranda, Orca, Harper and all our wonderfully harsh misfits have just so much bad happen to them, and it honestly feels a little oppressive at times...you're like 'just give me some positive happy times before the next disaster'.

All that said, I still love this world that Anna's built, and she only makes it more in-depth and intriguing in this installment. We get glimpses at a wider world than just what is displayed in the form of the Archipelago the pirate fleet we see in book 1, as well as hints of more thorough backstory of many of the characters, and an explanation of Rose's seemingly unique abilities.

In this story, the honeymoon period, if ever there really was one, between Rose and Miranda is gone, and they have to take a look at the harsh truths of who they are and what they've done in their lives. We gets hints at times of the tender moments between them, and every time it's described them sleeping together all wrapped up in each others arms I may have squealed a few times, but theirs is not a soft and simple romance. It did become a touch frustrating, going back and forth between being tender to one another and arguing furiously, and I felt a little like an emotional yo-yo it happened so often, so I could have gone without that. However, in spite of all that, I still love them.

I tore through this book as soon as I finished Compass Rose, and now I'm living in a limbo of waiting for book number 3...it is going to be a long wait. Note to self: sign up for her Patreon to read the Stillwater prequel novella. 4.5 stars rounded up.

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