I absolutely love that we're getting more and more f/f rep in YA, but I guess it can't all be in good books.

I feel like the concept of this book was very strong, and there were moments where this concept really rung clear, but most of the time I... was just kind of bored. For such a short book, it felt really long and repetitive, and it kind of just ambled along until the end. There wasn't a clear goal in mind, not really, because while they had a final destination (sort of?), that destination didn't actually promise any sort of hope, and only one character actually wanted to go there. It made the book feel like a string of events without a real purpose.

For two people on the run, the plot had very little tension and excitement. There were only a few moments where this became an issue, but most of the time it resolved itself fairly quickly. There were no high speed chases or immediate repercussions for any of their actions, they'd just see their latest crime on the news a few days later. At some point, everything just started to blur together because it was just them doing petty crimes because they were almost broke, complaining and suffering from being almost broke, and some 'sweet' moment between Trixie and Lux sprinkled in between.

I feel like this is a book that could have been saved by the characters or the romance, but I spent this book flip flopping between being frustrated and feeling indifferent. I honestly don't even know if Trixia actually even liked Lux because she'd complain about her a lot, and all the compliments and positive opinions she had of Lux felt superficial or skin-deep (which is odd seeing as they grew up together?) I dunno, but neither the characters or romance really worked for me.

All in all, this just wasn't the book for me, but maybe it's what someone else is looking for! I just would've liked something more, whether that be tension, action, excitement, whatever.

Look Naomi, I really love you, but you gotta stop it

Ok I was super hyped for this but it was so much MORE than I could have ever expected

Ahhh I actually really liked this! I wasn't the biggest fan of Sky in the Deep so I went into this hopeful but wary, but I really enjoyed it.

First off, this is a really speedy book, so it was perfect for me right now. I've been having trouble focusing on reading lately, but this book made it so easy to keep on reading! It was full of action (yet was easy to still follow and didn't dominate the whole book), and it was just a perfect balance of characters, plot, and description.

One of my favorite aspects of this book has to be the writing, at least the descriptive aspect of it. The scene that Young was trying to paint was always so clear in my head, and I felt like I was on the ship with Fable, or diving beneath the waves with her. I loved how the ocean was wrapped into every part of this story, and how its beauty (and danger) were described throughout the book. It felt like a perfect summer book for this reason, and was a perfect little getaway to crystal clear skies and endless, blue seas (maybe minus the pirates and scheming, of course).

I also really liked that this book actually went hard on the ocean/ship/trading/pirate stuff too. A lot of times those parts of pirate/sea trading stories are glossed over, and the story might as well take place on land with how much of ship life is actually described. But Young makes a clear distinction between the times they're sailing and when they're docked, and you can feel the difference in how things are described and the things the characters focus on. We get to see crazy boat maneuvers, watch the characters fight their way through deadly storms, and feel the sea breeze in the quiet moments. It was just really well done.

I also was overall quite invested in the story itself, and am curious to see where it goes next. The world was just big enough for it to feel like there's more going on, without feeling like too much for such a short book. There was intrigue, politics (amongst traders and guilds), a lot of plot and secrets, and a bit of romance. And while I didn't necessarily feel like this book needed a romance, it wasn't bad to be honest. It's just not why I cared for this book at all, and I would've felt the same without it being there.

Anyways, this has made me excited to try more books by Young, and I can't wait to see what happens in Namesake!

Ahhh I really liked this. I had some small issues with Written in the Stars (a lot of them came from the fact that it was obvious the story was going to be a series, and it felt like things were purposely left open to have more content left later + lack of an epilogue to fully round off El and Darcy's story), but I didn't have any of the same issues here!

I really liked the characters in this one, especially Brendon. He's just such a soft, wholesome guy, and while I don't always love guy POVs in romances, his was just full of love for Annie that I didn't even mind it. I also really liked how genuine and thoughtful he was, and honestly he just made the whole book for me. I feel less strongly about Annie, I liked her but she didn't stand out for me as much as El and Darcy did in comparison. But it didn't matter because they were super cute together!

I also liked the role the side characters played in the story, and that they provided some time and space outside of the main couple to really think things through and see the relationship in another light (since otherwise it could've easily come off as insta-love or moving waaay too fast, which it already kinda was). I also liked that the book was dominated by El and Darcy's background stuff, it was just a nice constant presence to remind readers that the world isn't just about Annie and Brendon. It also makes me really excited for the next book, to see how Annie and Brendon blend into the background of the next story! I feel like this is the perfect way to have a continuous cast in romance, and I loved it.

I also liked that the main hindrance to the romance was less frustrating than most, with Annie admitting things to herself faster yet being hung up on still semi-realistic and fair things. It didn't feel false like some 'third-act breakups' sometimes do, though I did get frustrated with how long this dragged on or how repetitive the build up was. I also would've liked a bit more happy moments without the doom of the future hanging over everything, but it fit in with Annie's thoughts in a way. The main reason I rated this one less star, however, was due to a small bit about the ending. It was just a thing that irked me a little, and really doesn't matter in the bigger picture, but I hated that

Spoiler

Annie sorta let Brendon believe she picked London for a few days so she could save the big gesture for the 4th of July. Like it was one thing if he was just left unsure a little longer, but it had obviously based the deadline of Annie picking anything besides London and she did play into his assumption that London is what she had picked. It just seemed really cruel, her not confirming but letting him assume. I know his POV showed he didn't mind, but I minded!!!

Anyways, this book did solidify that I like and enjoy Bellefleur's romances, and now I can't wait for the next one!