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nicole_thereader's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Child abuse, Cursing, Death of parent, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, and Trafficking
bybookandbone's review against another edition
I'm not someone who needs a book to not include rape or sexual assault but I cannot stand when it's not given the gravity it needs or just used to make the 'love interests' seem not so bad (saying that, one leaves the MC to be raped and is considered to have 'rescued' her when he stops 40 pirates from continuing... he's the nice love interest)
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, and Death of parent
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship and Confinement
Minor: Sexism, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence
jessicastaylor's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This a deliciously gritty and violent historical fiction standalone. It follows Bennett, the daughter of a notorious pirate, and notorious in her own right, while she flees from Priest, a violent pirate who broke her heart, only to fall in the hands of Lord Ashley Cutler, a Royal Navy pirate hunter. It only goes downhill from there. Bennett knows love... and loss.
Bennett has a type, and that type is handsome and dangerous. She fell in love with Priest, only to have him stomp on her heart. No she's running from him as he desperately wants her back. She gets captured by Ashley, who intrigues her in a way she didn't know was possible.
This story is raw and violent. Bennett is a survivor and has to endure repeated sexual assault at the hands of a fellow violent pirate (not Priest, don't worry). A woman in a pirate's world, Bennett does whatever it takes to survive. No matter what.
The first 5-6 chapters are slow...very slow. I almost gave up on it, honestly. Keep pushing through. It does pick up, and it doesn't ever let you go again. There is a happily ever after and plot twists you wouldn't even dream of. Like the quote says, love isn't a decision. And this book made me fall in love.
There's a lot of pirate books out there. Even more enemies-to-lovers books out there. This book takes those themes and throws them out the window and stomps on them a few times for good measure. This is not a predictable book by any stretch of the imagination.
Sea of Ruin is a standalone novel. While I wish with all my heart I could read more about these characters, the story is wrapped up nicely in the one book.
I highly recommend this book. If you like love triangles, enemies to lovers, pirate adventures, and strong, resilient female characters, this book is definitely worth a read.
Graphic: Confinement, Death of parent, Infidelity, Murder, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, and Rape
tagreads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
- Part of The 52 Book Club Reading Challenge, A Character "On The Run"
- Part of POPSUGAR Reading Challenge, A book set mostly or entirely outdoors
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General Review:
- Bennett Sharp: Daughter of the infamous pirate Edric Sharp, Bennett is following in her father’s footsteps. She is a badass female Captain, fierce enough to command Jade, a ship with one-hundred-and-twenty-man crew
- Priest Farrell: Known as the King of Libertines, Priest is an infamous raider well-known for boarding ships, overthrowing the captain, and taking command. At least this was his life before meeting Bennett who he ended up marrying
- Ashley Cutler: Stone cold pirate hunter with a very high sense of duty. He commands HMS Blitz, the only one-hundred-gun ship of the line on the sea
*** SPOILERS AHEAD ***
- The storytelling: The narrative was beautiful and you could easily imagine the scenes as they unfolded. The story was packed with action and suspense to keep you flipping through the pages.
- Bennet & Edric Sharp: Chapters 2 and 3 were among my favorite ones. Although you could guess that she was going to meet her father, but from the moment Bennert start running, you can’t help but be engrossed in the scenery. Her interaction with her father was beautifully written with a heartbreaking end. I also loved the twist of her mother knowing about these meetings taking place
- The aftermath of being caught by Madwulf: Probably the most suspenseful part of the story. With Priest thrown into the equation, I just couldn’t wait to see what his plan would be and how the 3 would be able to escape.
- The treasure hunt: The compass was my favorite part of King of Libertines and Bennett finally being able to open it was very satisfying. Albeit cut short by the detestable Madwulf!
- I would have loved to see a glimpse of how Bennett came to command Jade prior to having Priest and Ashley on board. She is one of the few - if not the only - female pirate captains so it would have been nice to see her first moments where she proved herself as a fierce captain on a ship full of men
- Insta Love: In the King of Libertines novella, this was also one of the issues I disliked and it happens here again with Bennett and Ashley. They are both too quickly mesmerized by each other
- The “Romance” between Ashley and Bennett: Ashley sexually assaulting Bennett and the lack of consent scene were really disturbing to read. It is quite alarming for Bennett especially to consider that they were in love. Moreover, the aftermath of the lack of consent is more focused on Ashley than on Bennett. We get to see how this affected him and how regretful he is that it happened and her feelings are eventually glossed over
- The Love Imbalance: The story concludes as being this epic love story between our 3 main characters with Bennett being the main focus, however I can’t help but feel that the love/relationship between Priest and Ashley came out as far more superior/deeper than their love for Bennett, which took away from the resolution being all 3 of them ending up together
- Bennett’s continual abuse: Bennett went through a lot of abuse that it got to a point where it became just too much! Characters do not need to be continually raped for them to have a dark backstory. She already suffered enough, her father’s death, her mother’s suicide, the fact that she succeeded in being a pirate doing whatever is necessary to survive, all are factors that portray her fierceness without resorting to sexual assault
- Lack of trauma after rape: After being sexually assaulted for days by the admiral, I thought we would see more of a struggle for Bennett to get back to her normal self. I do not claim to know what rape survivors go through or how they handle their trauma but we failed to see any signs of Bennett trying to heal from what happened. She is forced to be so strong that she is not given the time to deal with the rape’s aftermath.
Graphic: Death of parent, Gore, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, and Torture
lizzspears's review against another edition
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Cursing and Death of parent
Moderate: Torture, Blood, Death, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Infidelity, Misogyny, Murder, and Pedophilia