rainbowbrarian's Reviews (1.85k)

Thanks to @Netgalley and @htpbooks for giving me the eARC for this US release.

When I saw this on Netgalley marketed as a queer murder mystery set on a fantasy cruise ship, I was hooked.  This is a political fantasy story with a queer romance woven through it.  To mark a thousand years of ‘peace’ the country of Concordia launches a 12 day ocean pilgrimage to a mountain shrine.  Aboard are the 12 Blessed, people with a special magical blessing who lead their provinces.  But when Blessed suddenly start turning up murdered, Dee Piscero, of the much maligned and totally disrespected Fish clan, makes it his mission to figure shit out.
And Dee was awesome.  Dee is hilariously snarky and even though he doesn’t think he’s smart or worthy, he actually IS.  It’s a great journey through the story as we see him start to step into his own power and confidence.  He’s a plus size love interest and his size is only ever shown as a positive.  He knows he’s sexy as hell and his body is part of his appeal.  
I could not have predicted how this mystery would turn out.  Every time I thought I had a clue something would come along and smash my theories.  It was delightful.  Great dialog and banter and I loved the setting of the story aboard a fantasy cruise ship with tiny dragon stewards!

Read This If You - like a good murder mystery, like queer folks upsetting the status quo, have ever wanted to give the finger to corrupt authorities, have ever given your heart to a sad lost boy inside a cave while sharing your secrets.  Or just want to read the story of the boy who did.

 Thanks to @pridebooktours and Katey Hawthorne for having me as part of the #HeartWood Book Tour. Thank you for sending me free ARC copy.

I haven’t quite finished the book yet (looking at you, book club book I had to sprint through to finish on time!), but what I have read I’ve really enjoyed.  You may want to check the content warnings on Katey’s site because there’s some tough stuff in here, but so far this is a solid #QueerNorm fantasy world with a rich cast of characters.  I really liked that both Henrick and Dagan have families and we get to meet them as more than just a brief roster of names and faces that you’re just going to forget in a few minutes.  It enriches the characters to see their friends and families and how they react to them.  

I really want to know if Hendrick will get the chance to see his family again after leaving the city and I cannot wait to learn more about the magic system that Dagan and his people use.  Lifecasting and Earthsinging both sound really interesting and I love a magic system that is entwined with the natural world.  

Plus I need to find out just WHAT was down in those temple catacombs.  And what they’re going to do to save the world.  

Addition - I think the book was a little bit long and could have used an edit to condense some parts.  But it was a good story!