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3.32 AVERAGE
3.32 AVERAGE
adventurous
sad
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:
Complicated
adventurous
emotional
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:
No
3.5 stars
This was a pretty good read, but it fell a bit flat for me, and most of the characters actually disappointed me. Still, I'm glad I was given the opportunity to read it.
This was a pretty good read, but it fell a bit flat for me, and most of the characters actually disappointed me. Still, I'm glad I was given the opportunity to read it.
The gender conversations throughout this book are really what make it a great read. We can read about pirates and we can read about history and we can read about how various peoples through history have challenged systems… but I’ve never read about all of those things where gender is the focal point of the conversation.
This was a difficult read because humans throughout history have just fucking loved to oppress themselves and others and all variety of oppression is brought to the forefront for our main characters to navigate through. My heart rate was so high at some points of this book. I was so full of rage, even though I’ve studied history - the British, specifically, even - and I know all of this was everyday life. I see lots of reviews from folks who apparently wanted a full fantasy rather than a romance set in history. There was a happy ending, of course, but it was hard to get to.
And can I just say… I feel really sad for Nat. Sure, he messed up a lot and did serious wrong to our main character, but he was a victim too. A queer person left behind by the plot.
This was a difficult read because humans throughout history have just fucking loved to oppress themselves and others and all variety of oppression is brought to the forefront for our main characters to navigate through. My heart rate was so high at some points of this book. I was so full of rage, even though I’ve studied history - the British, specifically, even - and I know all of this was everyday life. I see lots of reviews from folks who apparently wanted a full fantasy rather than a romance set in history. There was a happy ending, of course, but it was hard to get to.
And can I just say… I feel really sad for Nat. Sure, he messed up a lot and did serious wrong to our main character, but he was a victim too. A queer person left behind by the plot.
Thank you @kidlitexchange for this book! All opinions are my own. This book was released on 6/19/18.
Based on a true story, Miriam McNamara's novel The Unbinding of Mary Reade tells the story of how Mary reveals her true self, falls in love, and claims the identity she wants to be. This story captivated me with the vivacious character of Anne Bonny, Mary's personal struggle with identification, and you know, it has pirates. This story will keep readers intrigued as Mary battles her way to Nassau, where her childhood friend Nat is and her hopes to reveal her female identity but maybe she will discover another part of herself that she hadn't truly come to.
I really enjoyed reading and being immersed in Mary's self discovery and how she was unwilling to allow herself be used by others. As Mary begins to realize the power she has over her own destiny by making choices and decisions that would be best for her and not for the sake of her mother, her friends, or who she may love. Mary is a strong female character, even if she impersonated her dead brother.
This book does include a LGBT story line, details about sex, violence, and death. This book would be suitable for 14+ and I would recommend this book to be purchased for any library.
Based on a true story, Miriam McNamara's novel The Unbinding of Mary Reade tells the story of how Mary reveals her true self, falls in love, and claims the identity she wants to be. This story captivated me with the vivacious character of Anne Bonny, Mary's personal struggle with identification, and you know, it has pirates. This story will keep readers intrigued as Mary battles her way to Nassau, where her childhood friend Nat is and her hopes to reveal her female identity but maybe she will discover another part of herself that she hadn't truly come to.
I really enjoyed reading and being immersed in Mary's self discovery and how she was unwilling to allow herself be used by others. As Mary begins to realize the power she has over her own destiny by making choices and decisions that would be best for her and not for the sake of her mother, her friends, or who she may love. Mary is a strong female character, even if she impersonated her dead brother.
This book does include a LGBT story line, details about sex, violence, and death. This book would be suitable for 14+ and I would recommend this book to be purchased for any library.
Really enjoyable historical with a predominately Caribbean setting. Pirates! Adventure! Romance! And through it all, a main character bravely struggling to find her place in the world. Bonus points for queer rep in a historical!
Does this count as RPF? Great premise, but in practice much less swashbuckling than you'd expect from a book about a bunch of pirates. I did like the way the ending called back to the beginning, and I didn't mind the tangled-up timelines, but the overall story was full of various types of abuse/assault—not something I was anticipating—and ultimately I would have liked the book to begin where it ended, just when it started to get interesting.
I really had high expectations for this book. I went in thinking it would be about Mary Reade’s backstory before becoming a pirate, and then mainly about her times out at sea AS a pirate. This entire book was solely her origin story. I think I only rated this 3/5 because I was expecting the story to change routes and become more about Mary leading her own life.
Also, I thought the alternating time periods weren’t necessary once it was revealed how she left Nat, so it was almost a nuisance to keep reverting to the past.
Also, I thought the alternating time periods weren’t necessary once it was revealed how she left Nat, so it was almost a nuisance to keep reverting to the past.
adventurous
emotional
lighthearted
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
A refreshing feminist take on an inspiring story with lovable (and hateable) characters and themes of self acceptance and discovery. The sapphic romance is beautifully written and filled with tension. Though there are sex scenes in the book, they read more like poetry than smut (and as a smut-lover myself I still really enjoyed them).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism, Transphobia
Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual harassment