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ebook_em 's review for:

Dark Water Daughter by H.M. Long
4.0
adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Plot
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus: No

If you like Pirates of the Caribbean and City of Brass, you might want to pick up Dark Water Daughter. 

This is a swashbuckling pirate fantasy set in an arctic landscape. The style of world-building reminded me of City of Brass, even though the worlds in the two novels couldn't be more different. Dark Water Daughter is very atmospheric with a cool magic system and forest spirits.

Our two main POV characters are a Stormsinger (basically a weather witch) and a Sooth (basically a mage who has visions), and they come together to hunt down a deathless pirate on icy seas. There's a touch of romance that will probably develop more in the sequel.

As much as I enjoyed the sense of adventure, the writing style, and the world, I didn't feel like I knew the characters well until near the end. There's a lot of ship hopping and minor crises throughout the middle of the book, which made the characters feel disconnected from each other and any sense of place. However, Long is clearly setting up a complex, richly layered world in this book and I expect there to be more character development as the story progresses in future book(s). 

My thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced reading copy.