Scan barcode
naomiiixo's review against another edition
5.0
I will miss these characters so so much! I can say anything without doubt that anything in the future written by Cassandra rose Clarke I will read the crap out of it!
katiemichellereads's review against another edition
4.0
My reviews can also be found on my blog.
I enjoyed this one so much better than the first. Ananna grew on me and there was a much more believable connection between her and Naji.
It was also a lot more enjoyable to read. It was fast-paced, a lot like the first, and maybe I just found it better because I could finally relate to Ananna - but another thing about this one was the side characters.
I loved the characters so much, and was sad to be parted from some of them. The manticore especially was my favorite; her and Ananna had such a strange, great friendship. I liked seeing her views on humans and her confusion. She didn't understand Ananna in a lot of ways, but her heart was in the right place and she did try to help her.
Overall, I think this was a great conclusion. A much better read after getting used to the writing style from the first book.
I enjoyed this one so much better than the first. Ananna grew on me and there was a much more believable connection between her and Naji.
It was also a lot more enjoyable to read. It was fast-paced, a lot like the first, and maybe I just found it better because I could finally relate to Ananna - but another thing about this one was the side characters.
I loved the characters so much, and was sad to be parted from some of them. The manticore especially was my favorite; her and Ananna had such a strange, great friendship. I liked seeing her views on humans and her confusion. She didn't understand Ananna in a lot of ways, but her heart was in the right place and she did try to help her.
Overall, I think this was a great conclusion. A much better read after getting used to the writing style from the first book.
tani's review against another edition
4.0
I'm so glad that I finally finished off this duology. I read the first book back in 2014 because I am a big fan of both pirates and assassins, and thought I couldn't go wrong with a book about both. I enjoyed that book, but I remember being a bit disappointed by it. It was good, but not great, and I remember being frustrated with the impulsiveness of Ananna's character. (As someone who's very much not impulsive, that's a trait that I find really hard to deal with.) So, I put off reading the second book. Then, I recently made a list of all of the series that I've started and would like to finish, realized that I really need to pare that list down significantly, and ended up picking this one up as an easy series to finish.
At the end of the day, I gave both books 4 stars, but my rating mentality has shifted considerably since 2014, so I'm guessing that the first book probably would have only rated 3 stars from me if I read it these days. I thought that this second book was much more enjoyable, although with such a long gap between the two, it's hard for me to say if it's because the second book is actually better, or if it's because I approached it differently as a reader. Probably a bit of both.
I think a particularly strong influence might be just that I'm more accustomed to reading young adult books these days, which is something that I've struggled with for quite a while. Young adult books often feel overly simplified to me (perhaps because young adult wasn't really a thing while I was actually a young adult, so I'd been reading adult fiction for quite some time before dipping my toes into the young adult world), and this series is no exception to that. So, that may explain part of why I was a bit underwhelmed by it at first.
Anyway, there was a lot that I liked in this book. I felt like we get a lot more magic and magical creatures in this book, which was a very pleasant surprise. I really enjoyed Ongraygeeomryn, in particular, and the interactions between her and Ananna. The relationship between them ended up really sweet, and was definitely one of the highlights of the book for me.
I also appreciated that the story took us back to Marjani's home and let us learn about her past. I thought that added some depth to the story that was sorely needed. Without that, I think that the story would have just been too simplistic. Adding in that story line allowed Clarke the opportunity to weave in another answer to one of the overarching themes of this story: What sacrifices should you make for love? I liked that Marjani's answer to that is different from Ananna's, but that neither answer is simple.
I think that I liked both Ananna and Naji better in this book too. I did still find myself frustrated by Ananna's impulsiveness, but she did grow enough to at least make some efforts at restraining herself, which I appreciated. In general, I just felt like I understood her better this time around, and I'm not sure if that was due to a growth in empathy from me, or an increase in writing skill from Clarke. Either way, it made the experience much for enjoyable for me.
My biggest complaint is that the ending felt too easy to me. I liked the imagination behind the ending, but it still felt kind of anticlimactic. I think it probably would have worked better if I'd read the two books closer together, as events from the first book had a huge influence, and I have to admit, I have no memory of those events. I did really appreciate the way that things shook out between Naji and Ananna, though, and give Clarke kudos for her choice to send a message that is more complex than what you tend to see normally in books with romances, especially young adult books. I'd definitely like to read more by Clarke in the future.
At the end of the day, I gave both books 4 stars, but my rating mentality has shifted considerably since 2014, so I'm guessing that the first book probably would have only rated 3 stars from me if I read it these days. I thought that this second book was much more enjoyable, although with such a long gap between the two, it's hard for me to say if it's because the second book is actually better, or if it's because I approached it differently as a reader. Probably a bit of both.
I think a particularly strong influence might be just that I'm more accustomed to reading young adult books these days, which is something that I've struggled with for quite a while. Young adult books often feel overly simplified to me (perhaps because young adult wasn't really a thing while I was actually a young adult, so I'd been reading adult fiction for quite some time before dipping my toes into the young adult world), and this series is no exception to that. So, that may explain part of why I was a bit underwhelmed by it at first.
Anyway, there was a lot that I liked in this book. I felt like we get a lot more magic and magical creatures in this book, which was a very pleasant surprise. I really enjoyed Ongraygeeomryn, in particular, and the interactions between her and Ananna. The relationship between them ended up really sweet, and was definitely one of the highlights of the book for me.
I also appreciated that the story took us back to Marjani's home and let us learn about her past. I thought that added some depth to the story that was sorely needed. Without that, I think that the story would have just been too simplistic. Adding in that story line allowed Clarke the opportunity to weave in another answer to one of the overarching themes of this story: What sacrifices should you make for love? I liked that Marjani's answer to that is different from Ananna's, but that neither answer is simple.
I think that I liked both Ananna and Naji better in this book too. I did still find myself frustrated by Ananna's impulsiveness, but she did grow enough to at least make some efforts at restraining herself, which I appreciated. In general, I just felt like I understood her better this time around, and I'm not sure if that was due to a growth in empathy from me, or an increase in writing skill from Clarke. Either way, it made the experience much for enjoyable for me.
My biggest complaint is that the ending felt too easy to me. I liked the imagination behind the ending, but it still felt kind of anticlimactic. I think it probably would have worked better if I'd read the two books closer together, as events from the first book had a huge influence, and I have to admit, I have no memory of those events. I did really appreciate the way that things shook out between Naji and Ananna, though, and give Clarke kudos for her choice to send a message that is more complex than what you tend to see normally in books with romances, especially young adult books. I'd definitely like to read more by Clarke in the future.
gg1213's review against another edition
3.0
The first thing I noticed that stuck out to me enough for me to take note of it was the phoned in love triangle/amorous drama. When characters aren't in a relationship and haven't discussed their feelings (which is a plot tool I don't buy with this storyline when the two main characters can read each other's thoughts and Ananna is a loud mouth in every other aspect of her life) I can't get behind throwing in a love triangle unless it pushes the story. It didn't add the intended tension, it just felt thrown in.
The pirates are far too judgmental of physical disfigurations. I mean, they're pirates! I'm sure plenty of them have some physical attributes that aren't exactly considered the norm.
Much like in the first book, most of the drama and conflict is resolved too quickly for it to add anything to the plot making it all unnecessary and tedious to consider reading about. I kept wanting the conflict to go on longer so it would bring another dynamic to the story, so it would make me feel something, but it never did.
The ending , while not getting into spoilers, seemed like it was written under a deadline and thus wasn't elaborated enough for it to make sense and not seem rushed and thrown together.
In the end, if you liked the first book, you'll probably like this one, but if you didn't care for it, then this isn't a necessary read by any means.
The pirates are far too judgmental of physical disfigurations. I mean, they're pirates! I'm sure plenty of them have some physical attributes that aren't exactly considered the norm.
Much like in the first book, most of the drama and conflict is resolved too quickly for it to add anything to the plot making it all unnecessary and tedious to consider reading about. I kept wanting the conflict to go on longer so it would bring another dynamic to the story, so it would make me feel something, but it never did.
The ending , while not getting into spoilers, seemed like it was written under a deadline and thus wasn't elaborated enough for it to make sense and not seem rushed and thrown together.
In the end, if you liked the first book, you'll probably like this one, but if you didn't care for it, then this isn't a necessary read by any means.
amethystbookwyrm's review against another edition
2.0
This and my other reviews can be found at http://amethystbookwyrm.blogspot.co.uk/
Thanks to Netgalley and Strange Chemistry for giving me this book to review.
Ananna and Naji are still stuck on the island and have to complete the three impossible tasks to cure Naji which are, touching a starstone to his skin, create a life out of violence and have a true loves kiss. However, Ananna knows that not all the tasks are impossible as she loves him. Now with the help of fellow pirate Marjani and a manticore, they have to find a way to complete the tasks and stop the mist creatures from taking Naji away.
The Pirate’s Wish is the second and last book in the Assassin’s Curse duology and I still did not enjoy it as much as I wished I could.
I did not like Ananna and Naji in this book and especially the love/hate romance and I got bored with in from very near the beginning. However, I did like some of the secondary characters but especially the manticore (I don’t think I can spell her name) as she is funny and no-nonsense and I wanted she to eat Ananna and Naji half the time and the story to be just about her.
I would only recommend The Pirate’s Wish to people who liked The Assassin’s Curse.
Thanks to Netgalley and Strange Chemistry for giving me this book to review.
Ananna and Naji are still stuck on the island and have to complete the three impossible tasks to cure Naji which are, touching a starstone to his skin, create a life out of violence and have a true loves kiss. However, Ananna knows that not all the tasks are impossible as she loves him. Now with the help of fellow pirate Marjani and a manticore, they have to find a way to complete the tasks and stop the mist creatures from taking Naji away.
The Pirate’s Wish is the second and last book in the Assassin’s Curse duology and I still did not enjoy it as much as I wished I could.
I did not like Ananna and Naji in this book and especially the love/hate romance and I got bored with in from very near the beginning. However, I did like some of the secondary characters but especially the manticore (I don’t think I can spell her name) as she is funny and no-nonsense and I wanted she to eat Ananna and Naji half the time and the story to be just about her.
I would only recommend The Pirate’s Wish to people who liked The Assassin’s Curse.
katetj's review against another edition
4.0
More reviews can be found at my blog: Nomalicious Reads
I've been eagerly awaiting The Pirate's Wish ever since I put down The Assassins Curse. Even though I pre-ordered the book, I couldn't wait any longer and gave in and bought the kindle book cause I just HAD to know what happened.
I'm so glad I gave into temptation.
The Pirate's Wish was a fantastic conclusion to Cassandra Rose Clarke's amazing world. I'm sad to say that it is ending only after two books, but I'm very happy with the conclusion... even though I would have like a little epilogue or something just a bit more!
I think the best thing about this series is that Naiji and Ananna don't instantaneously fall in love, it takes time for both of them to figure out their feelings. They don't magically figure it out at the same time either, which is another factor into why I love this series so much. The romance isn't the focal point of the book... a lot of other things happen.
Everything happens really fast, but not in a bad way, sure I would have loved another book - but that's only because I just enjoyed every minute of this fantastic world and the colourful character's that Clarke created, it would have been nice to have some of the little things explained more clearly.
The Manticore is one of my favourite characters of all time, I thought she was was quite hilarious in the way she became friends with Ananna, calling her Girl-Human and demanding things from her... naturally Ananna, being the nice Girl-Human-Pirate she is decided hey, if she isn't eating them, why not become buddies with the flesh eating monster, because it wasn't the manticores fault she was born with the taste for human flesh.
Yes, you read that right. Ananna is great, the Manticore is great, the book is great... you should read it.
I must say I was expecting a bit more hardship with the undoing of the curse, Yes it was really hard. Not saying they were slacking or anything, but even though I think it was very well done, at the same time after clearing the third hurdle I was just left thinking 'oh, that's it?' probably just because the way it happened. (Which I wont spoil!)
So even though I think things happened very quickly, Cassandra Rose Clarke did an amazing job with clearing up all the loose ends from the first book as well as everything that happened in The Pirate's Wish. I'll be eagerly awaiting more books from her in the future!
I've been eagerly awaiting The Pirate's Wish ever since I put down The Assassins Curse. Even though I pre-ordered the book, I couldn't wait any longer and gave in and bought the kindle book cause I just HAD to know what happened.
I'm so glad I gave into temptation.
The Pirate's Wish was a fantastic conclusion to Cassandra Rose Clarke's amazing world. I'm sad to say that it is ending only after two books, but I'm very happy with the conclusion... even though I would have like a little epilogue or something just a bit more!
I think the best thing about this series is that Naiji and Ananna don't instantaneously fall in love, it takes time for both of them to figure out their feelings. They don't magically figure it out at the same time either, which is another factor into why I love this series so much. The romance isn't the focal point of the book... a lot of other things happen.
Everything happens really fast, but not in a bad way, sure I would have loved another book - but that's only because I just enjoyed every minute of this fantastic world and the colourful character's that Clarke created, it would have been nice to have some of the little things explained more clearly.
The Manticore is one of my favourite characters of all time, I thought she was was quite hilarious in the way she became friends with Ananna, calling her Girl-Human and demanding things from her... naturally Ananna, being the nice Girl-Human-Pirate she is decided hey, if she isn't eating them, why not become buddies with the flesh eating monster, because it wasn't the manticores fault she was born with the taste for human flesh.
Yes, you read that right. Ananna is great, the Manticore is great, the book is great... you should read it.
I must say I was expecting a bit more hardship with the undoing of the curse, Yes it was really hard. Not saying they were slacking or anything, but even though I think it was very well done, at the same time after clearing the third hurdle I was just left thinking 'oh, that's it?' probably just because the way it happened. (Which I wont spoil!)
So even though I think things happened very quickly, Cassandra Rose Clarke did an amazing job with clearing up all the loose ends from the first book as well as everything that happened in The Pirate's Wish. I'll be eagerly awaiting more books from her in the future!
princessjulia's review against another edition
4.0
It was a really fun read - so much adventure and I love the manticore! Such a fun character.
The story was interesting but the last task was too convenient and I felt like the plot was too rushed at the end.
Also, I really don't like the romantic relationship of Ananana and Naji - it doesn't make sense to me!
The story was interesting but the last task was too convenient and I felt like the plot was too rushed at the end.
Also, I really don't like the romantic relationship of Ananana and Naji - it doesn't make sense to me!