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A review by domesticatedbrat
The Kraken's Sacrifice by Katee Robert
3.0
“I suppose now is a good time to tell you that I don’t know how to swim.”
This is one of those reads that is not as good objectively as it was to me. I wanted to rate it 4-stars, but realized I’m just attached to the characters, one in particular. As a public brat & renowned handful folks tend to choke on, Catalina & I had more in common than I’d like to admit. I’ll have at least a few therapy sessions to unpack some of the revelations from her story.
“I’m too much, Thane….So I embrace that. If I’m too much for them, they can choke on me.”
Katee Robert’s voice in the Kraken’s Sacrifice was charming, as always. No one should be surprised that she writes brats exceptionally well, given her writing is reliably witty. Their banter was steady & amusing. Catalina was an intriguing FMC, with compelling (if not somewhat exaggerated) motivations & mindsets. Thane was significantly less consistent, the mindset of his character came across as blunt & choppy. Similarly, I found the development of his sibling to be lacking as well. I’m not really certain what the point of investing the time she did in zir was. I thoroughly enjoyed Ramanu’s part, as I did in Dragon’s Bride. Robert’s approach to crafting a story & character choices are particular & fresh. You haven’t read a story like this one. You haven’t met characters like these, not exactly (and it’s not because some of them have tentacles). Her intentional novelty takes skill & effort that I greatly admire. The seamless way she writes trans* & queer characters is sorely needed in all storytelling spheres, but especially in the romance world.
My main gripe is the work, as a whole, seems unfinished. The components are solid for the most part but the comprehensive execution lacks follow through. I can’t determine if it needed another draft entirely or a more robust editor. In any case, it lacks the polish & satisfaction I’d attribute to a 5-star read which is unfortunate given the excellence of its various components. I found the HEA especially lacking, but I’d expected it, given how I felt about the conclusion of the Dragon’s Bride. I suspect that’ll be true for each of the novels in this series. Its a byproduct of her approach to an interconnected standalone series, as it is ongoing. I am holding out hope that, when the series reaches its total conclusion, all the characters will have a more fulfilling end. Time will tell, I suppose.
This is one of those reads that is not as good objectively as it was to me. I wanted to rate it 4-stars, but realized I’m just attached to the characters, one in particular. As a public brat & renowned handful folks tend to choke on, Catalina & I had more in common than I’d like to admit. I’ll have at least a few therapy sessions to unpack some of the revelations from her story.
“I’m too much, Thane….So I embrace that. If I’m too much for them, they can choke on me.”
Katee Robert’s voice in the Kraken’s Sacrifice was charming, as always. No one should be surprised that she writes brats exceptionally well, given her writing is reliably witty. Their banter was steady & amusing. Catalina was an intriguing FMC, with compelling (if not somewhat exaggerated) motivations & mindsets. Thane was significantly less consistent, the mindset of his character came across as blunt & choppy. Similarly, I found the development of his sibling to be lacking as well. I’m not really certain what the point of investing the time she did in zir was. I thoroughly enjoyed Ramanu’s part, as I did in Dragon’s Bride. Robert’s approach to crafting a story & character choices are particular & fresh. You haven’t read a story like this one. You haven’t met characters like these, not exactly (and it’s not because some of them have tentacles). Her intentional novelty takes skill & effort that I greatly admire. The seamless way she writes trans* & queer characters is sorely needed in all storytelling spheres, but especially in the romance world.
My main gripe is the work, as a whole, seems unfinished. The components are solid for the most part but the comprehensive execution lacks follow through. I can’t determine if it needed another draft entirely or a more robust editor. In any case, it lacks the polish & satisfaction I’d attribute to a 5-star read which is unfortunate given the excellence of its various components. I found the HEA especially lacking, but I’d expected it, given how I felt about the conclusion of the Dragon’s Bride. I suspect that’ll be true for each of the novels in this series. Its a byproduct of her approach to an interconnected standalone series, as it is ongoing. I am holding out hope that, when the series reaches its total conclusion, all the characters will have a more fulfilling end. Time will tell, I suppose.