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jinxei's review against another edition
5.0
I read these two books back to back after being approved for the ARC of On These Wicked Shores. I told myself after seeing "omg that ending" for book one that I needed to read them close together. That I wouldn't let myself finish it and have to sit here with any sort of cliffhanger when it's a trilogy and there's not even an anticipated release date for book 3.
I cannot believe I did this to myself. The heartbreak.
No, it's not necessarily a cliffhanger, but I did reread the last few chapters and redownload the book thinking "maybe my copy was just cut off." Of course not. But let me backtrack.
On These Wicked Shores picks up three months after where The Girl Who Belonged to the Sea left off. Margrete and Bash must gather a crew as creatures now stalk the human realm and must be defeated. As they find themselves shipwrecked on an island and separated from one another, they must overcome obstacles to reunite. But not only are there deadly creatures, but a god watching their every move.
Bash and Margrete are one of my favorite couples. They have overcome so much and maintained their belief in their love surviving. It is hard to not root for them, and also wish for them to catch a break. The twists and turns and shocking revelations give not just more of a punch to this book, but also to what is to come in book three. While we learned much about her powers and both of their pasts, I am hoping we see more of the secondary characters that wiggled into my heart, like Bay.
The Azantian trilogy is an incredible ride, I didn't get a single bit of that "middle book filler slump" that is hard to not feel with trilogies, and I cannot wait for the conclusion. Even if it will be a little bittersweet to leave these characters I have come to love behind.
Those last few chapters really shocked me, and I'm normally one to guess a twist 5 minutes in. Definitely don't forget the epilogue to get the villain's POV to give you some peace (and something to think about) as we wait for book three.
I cannot believe I did this to myself. The heartbreak.
No, it's not necessarily a cliffhanger, but I did reread the last few chapters and redownload the book thinking "maybe my copy was just cut off." Of course not. But let me backtrack.
On These Wicked Shores picks up three months after where The Girl Who Belonged to the Sea left off. Margrete and Bash must gather a crew as creatures now stalk the human realm and must be defeated. As they find themselves shipwrecked on an island and separated from one another, they must overcome obstacles to reunite. But not only are there deadly creatures, but a god watching their every move.
Bash and Margrete are one of my favorite couples. They have overcome so much and maintained their belief in their love surviving. It is hard to not root for them, and also wish for them to catch a break. The twists and turns and shocking revelations give not just more of a punch to this book, but also to what is to come in book three. While we learned much about her powers and both of their pasts, I am hoping we see more of the secondary characters that wiggled into my heart, like Bay.
The Azantian trilogy is an incredible ride, I didn't get a single bit of that "middle book filler slump" that is hard to not feel with trilogies, and I cannot wait for the conclusion. Even if it will be a little bittersweet to leave these characters I have come to love behind.
Those last few chapters really shocked me, and I'm normally one to guess a twist 5 minutes in. Definitely don't forget the epilogue to get the villain's POV to give you some peace (and something to think about) as we wait for book three.
kariniwonderland's review against another edition
4.0
Normally the second book in a series can be disappointing. Especially if you loved the first book. But that’s not the case with On These Wicked Shores. The book was a bit darker then the first one, but nevertheless just as entertaining. And that ending! I guess my only “complaint” is that it ended on a cliffhanger. I can’t wait for the final book!
I got this arc in exchange for an honest review.
I got this arc in exchange for an honest review.
lifeinthebooklane's review against another edition
4.0
As this is book #2 in a trilogy, I was expecting to read more of Bash and Margrete's love story, see more battles of mind, wit and magic against Darius, and experience more adventures. All of this, and more, was delivered in a well-written, captivating and exciting story that threw more than one curve ball into the mix. The blurb covers most of the book, with the discovery of the third coin occurring quite late in the story.
The first half of the book, at times, felt a little slow, ponderous, and dare I say repetitive and had it stayed that way my rating would have been hovering between 2 and 3 stars. It's possible that my head wasn't quite in the right mindset for this as, initially at least, I found I was having to push myself to keep reading. Thankfully that feeling didn't last and the more I read the more my enjoyment of this story grew.
I know readers can get irritated by authors over-explaining things but at times I wasn't quite sure of the reasoning or purpose behind events. Perversely there was occasionally too much foreshadowing, which left me waiting for the other shoe to drop. And not in a good "on the edge of my seat" way but more of a "can we just get on with it" feel. Despite those frustrations, I did enjoy the book and, once the pace picked up, it quickly became the 5-star read I had been hoping for. Whilst I didn't need the book to have had that level of pace and tension throughout, as it can be in those quiet, gentle times that we get to really connect with the characters, it needed to be more evenly spread throughout the book. Either that or more ruthless editing of dead passages was required.
Overall I'm still a fan of this series and will definitely be reading the final book when it is released. This is written in the third person, mainly from Margrete and Bash's viewpoints but we also get to hear from Darius and Bay. I liked how this gave extra depth and insight into the story, even if Darius is an unreliable narrator. It has quite dark moments, including on-page deaths of some side characters, and the romance includes several on-page sex scenes.
The first half of the book, at times, felt a little slow, ponderous, and dare I say repetitive and had it stayed that way my rating would have been hovering between 2 and 3 stars. It's possible that my head wasn't quite in the right mindset for this as, initially at least, I found I was having to push myself to keep reading. Thankfully that feeling didn't last and the more I read the more my enjoyment of this story grew.
I know readers can get irritated by authors over-explaining things but at times I wasn't quite sure of the reasoning or purpose behind events. Perversely there was occasionally too much foreshadowing, which left me waiting for the other shoe to drop. And not in a good "on the edge of my seat" way but more of a "can we just get on with it" feel. Despite those frustrations, I did enjoy the book and, once the pace picked up, it quickly became the 5-star read I had been hoping for. Whilst I didn't need the book to have had that level of pace and tension throughout, as it can be in those quiet, gentle times that we get to really connect with the characters, it needed to be more evenly spread throughout the book. Either that or more ruthless editing of dead passages was required.
Overall I'm still a fan of this series and will definitely be reading the final book when it is released. This is written in the third person, mainly from Margrete and Bash's viewpoints but we also get to hear from Darius and Bay. I liked how this gave extra depth and insight into the story, even if Darius is an unreliable narrator. It has quite dark moments, including on-page deaths of some side characters, and the romance includes several on-page sex scenes.
books_lover's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
aelinbooks's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
sara_machado's review
2.0
Thank you LibraryThing and City Owl Press for the early access to this book for an honest review.
This book picks up just after the The girl Who belonged to the sea. Margret and Bash are back in Azantian, trying to adjust to their changes.
After discovering the sea monsters are attacking humans and leaving a lot of casualties behind, a crew of Azantians leave to fight them and the adventure begins.
What I enjoyed:
- fast paced story with different POV. In addition to Margret and Bash we now see some chapters through Bay’s perspective.
- Bash character evolution. This was really interesting and I think it was well done. He is definitely my favorite part of the book.
- We finally have a good villain.
- The twists were well executed, albeit a bit predictable.
- There was a lot of action which kept me invested in the story
What I think it could have been done better:
- The trilogy title sounds very misleading. So far, the story has nothing to do with Azantia. I have the same doubts I had in the previous book as the author didn’t add new information to the world building. This details are irrelevant as the story keeps evolving solely around the romance.
- The story does not work if you take the romance out I don’t like romances where the characters lie or hide information from the other. It’s just not how relationships are supposed to work.
- The sea monsters and human casualties are an irrelevant detail to this book.
The major problem with this book were my expectations.
I still think Katherine Quinn imagination would create a very interesting fantasy book. Unfortunately, the author didn’t develop what I considered the most interesting parts of the story and focused only on the romance, which let me a bit disappointed.
However, I believe this book will be interesting for romance readers.
This book picks up just after the The girl Who belonged to the sea. Margret and Bash are back in Azantian, trying to adjust to their changes.
After discovering the sea monsters are attacking humans and leaving a lot of casualties behind, a crew of Azantians leave to fight them and the adventure begins.
What I enjoyed:
- fast paced story with different POV. In addition to Margret and Bash we now see some chapters through Bay’s perspective.
- Bash character evolution. This was really interesting and I think it was well done. He is definitely my favorite part of the book.
- We finally have a good villain.
- The twists were well executed, albeit a bit predictable.
- There was a lot of action which kept me invested in the story
What I think it could have been done better:
- The trilogy title sounds very misleading. So far, the story has nothing to do with Azantia. I have the same doubts I had in the previous book as the author didn’t add new information to the world building. This details are irrelevant as the story keeps evolving solely around the romance.
- The story does not work if you take the romance out I don’t like romances where the characters lie or hide information from the other. It’s just not how relationships are supposed to work.
- The sea monsters and human casualties are an irrelevant detail to this book.
The major problem with this book were my expectations.
I still think Katherine Quinn imagination would create a very interesting fantasy book. Unfortunately, the author didn’t develop what I considered the most interesting parts of the story and focused only on the romance, which let me a bit disappointed.
However, I believe this book will be interesting for romance readers.
leapearlreads's review against another edition
5.0
That cover though! Again, bravo for an absolutely stunning, eye-catching cover! (can't wait to see the third one!)
I adored the first book in The Azantian Trilogy and this book was one of my most anticipated reads this year...and I WAS NOT LET DOWN! Holy crow! No middle book syndrome whatsoever, On These Wicked Shores was a fantastic second book.
This book definitely has a darker tone to it and I love it! There were a lot of shocking turns that I couldn't accurately predict. Bash is battling his own inner demons while Margrete's growth with her new powers is gradual through the whole book instead of her suddenly being an all powerful being. I adore Margrete as a MC and am enjoying watching her evolve. Darius also plays a very large part in this book and I am very excited to see what happens next!
Overall, wonderfully written fantasy! It's got an intriguing plot with loveable characters and plenty of spicy romance.
Big thanks to City Owl Press via LibraryThing for the e-ARC to read, enjoy, and honestly review.
I adored the first book in The Azantian Trilogy and this book was one of my most anticipated reads this year...and I WAS NOT LET DOWN! Holy crow! No middle book syndrome whatsoever, On These Wicked Shores was a fantastic second book.
This book definitely has a darker tone to it and I love it! There were a lot of shocking turns that I couldn't accurately predict. Bash is battling his own inner demons while Margrete's growth with her new powers is gradual through the whole book instead of her suddenly being an all powerful being. I adore Margrete as a MC and am enjoying watching her evolve. Darius also plays a very large part in this book and I am very excited to see what happens next!
Overall, wonderfully written fantasy! It's got an intriguing plot with loveable characters and plenty of spicy romance.
Big thanks to City Owl Press via LibraryThing for the e-ARC to read, enjoy, and honestly review.
brii_brii's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
beelovesreading's review against another edition
5.0
Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for granting me an arc of On These Wicked Shores, and apologies for the late review.
Margrete and Bash are back with a new adventure. After the events of the last book and the release of the demons on the world, Bash and Margrete set sail for the human world, intent on slaying the escaped demons and saving the innocent souls that live there. Fate has other things in mind.
A fierce storm wreaks their boat and the two lovers find themselves separated on an island intent on breaking them down. Margrete searches for Bash with the help of Bay and the remaining survivors, but they find themselves subjected to seemingly impossible and brutal trials. Trials that not everyone will walk away from.
If that isn't all, the two find themselves changing in inexplicable ways and Margrete finds herself earning the unwanted attractions of a god, while Bash comes to terms with a truth that could tear down everything he's ever known.
Margrete and Bash are back with a new adventure. After the events of the last book and the release of the demons on the world, Bash and Margrete set sail for the human world, intent on slaying the escaped demons and saving the innocent souls that live there. Fate has other things in mind.
A fierce storm wreaks their boat and the two lovers find themselves separated on an island intent on breaking them down. Margrete searches for Bash with the help of Bay and the remaining survivors, but they find themselves subjected to seemingly impossible and brutal trials. Trials that not everyone will walk away from.
If that isn't all, the two find themselves changing in inexplicable ways and Margrete finds herself earning the unwanted attractions of a god, while Bash comes to terms with a truth that could tear down everything he's ever known.