ARC Review: Seafire by Natalie C. Parker

Title: Seafire Series: Seafire #1 Written by: Nathalie C. Parker Published: August 28, 2018 by Razorbill (Penguin Group) (Amazon / Goodreads) Synopsis: After her family is killed by corrupt warlord Aric Athair and his bloodthirsty army of Bullets, Caledonia Styx is left to chart her own course on the dangerous and deadly seas. She captains her ship, the Mors Navis, with a crew of girls and women just like her, whose lives have been turned upside down by Aric and his men. The crew has one misson: stay alive, and take down Aric's armed and armored fleet.  But when Caledonia's best friend and second-in-command just barely survives an attack thanks to help from a Bullet looking to defect, Caledonia finds herself questioning whether or not to let him join their crew. Is this boy the key to taking down Aric Athair once and for all...or will he threaten everything the women of the Mors Navis have worked for?

Finally! The book I have been wanting to read all summer. I picked this book up at ALA and I am so glad that I did because it was everything I hoped it would be and more. It was an amazing story about kickass female pirates with a thrilling plot.

Seriously, this book had a completely amazing plot. I'm a plot driven reader and in order for me to love a book I need a plot full of action and adventure and this was absolutely what I found here. There were so many daring escapes and epic battle scenes that all good pirate stories have. There was this great undercurrent of survival amid a story of revenge and friendship. And Parker did a really great job in writing a non-stop narrative that didn't feel too over the top. The book really built to an exciting conclusion with a lot of fun along the way. A lot of the books I have been reading lately fall apart in the plot department and that is where Seafire really thrived.

The other best thing about this book was the characters. Caledonia for one was a great character. It's pretty easy to root for the female captain of a pirate ship. I mean seriously, how could you not love a swashbuckling female who is leading a crew of amazing young women. But what I liked most about her is that she's not perfect. She's vulnerable and makes mistakes that have real consequences. I like the fact that she didn't do everything right and she had to learn from her screw ups and live with the consequences. It made her all the more likable and complex.

But the real heart of this book was the relationships. It's very much a book about family and found family. The crew of the Mors Navis really has built something so great. They care about one another and do anything for their fellow sister. It really is a sisterhood built on teamwork and mutual respect. And they are there for each other no matter if the other person screws up. The best example of this is with Caledonia and Pisces. The two are best friends and have been through so much together. They both make some decisions that the other person doesn't agree with throughout the book but they forgive and come together when it is needed. But not all the relationships here were good. And yes, I am talking about the romance. At first I was so happy that there wasn't going to be a romance in this book and then it got shoehorned in there unexpectedly with the weirdest pairing. There were much better places to take a romance in this book and the decisions the author made felt very forced. But I'm hard on romances in general so take that for what it's worth.

I also don't know how I feel about the world of this book. I was expecting it to be a fantasy but it wasn't really. It wasn't sci-fi wither to be honest. I don't know what this was. It kind of read like a low-key dystopia. There were elements of technology and what felt like modern times but it definitely wasn't. And then there is this whole thing with the villain Aric Athair and his Fivesons who were interesting villains but didn't get the attention they deserved. I think on the whole this world was kind of a less is less situation. It was definitely cool and interesting but I feel like there could have been more attention placed on the world building. Maybe it will be explored more in future books. Honestly, I'm hoping that it is because there is a lot there left unsaid.

But all in all this was a really great read and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It had a thrilling plot full of action and adventure, great characters I became very attached to, and a lot of promise for future books in the series. It wasn't perfect but I really loved it.

I give Seafire by Natalie C. Parker 9 out of 10 stars

Buy/Borrow/Bypass: Buy. I would absolutely recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a thrilling an exciting read. If you like books about pirates or are looking for a feminist story about sisterhood and found family definitely check it out.

Have you read Seafire? What did you think? Leave me a comment with your thoughts. Thanks for stopping by and HAPPY READING!