Over Raging Tides on March 20, 2018 Pages: 239
The pirate crew of the Lady Luck lives by many rules, but chief among them is this: they do not allow men on board.
That’s a rule that quartermaster Grace Porter is willing to break when a shipwrecked young nobleman offers her information of an omniscient map, stolen from his warship by an enemy vessel. Until now, the map was only the stuff of legend… but with its help, Grace may finally be able to hunt down the Mordgris, the sea monsters who stole her mother away from her.
Unfortunately, some members of her crew have other plans...
To find the map and face the Mordgris, Grace will have to confront her past, put the Luck between warring nations, and uncover treachery aboard the ship. And ultimately, her revenge and the destruction of the Mordgris will come at a hefty price: the betrayal of her crew.
Grace promised them they wouldn’t regret this.
She just isn’t sure that she won’t.
I have loved Jennifer Ellision’s books since the day I came across her Threats of Sky and Sea series. When I heard she was writing a book about lady pirates, I was immediately interested in getting my hands on a copy of the book. This was a fairly quick read and once I started I couldn’t put it down.
Right away, we are introduced to Grace Porter, the quartermaster of the Lady Luck, a pirate ship crewed only by women. The group lives by a number of rules but the most important one is no men are allowed on board. When the crew comes across a shipwreck and start to look for treasure, Grace makes the decision to break the rule and bring two male survivors on board and from that point on, things take a definite turn for Grace.
Leo and his brother John are the shipwrecked nobles. They happened to be on a ship that was carrying a map that has great value to anyone who possesses it…this is because the map is said to be able to guide the holder to all the treasure they want. Leo decides to use his knowledge of the map as a bargaining chip to keep him and his brother on the ship and (hopefully) headed to somewhere safe.
As the story moves forward, we find out more about Grace and what she really wants the map for. Yes, treasure is important but what Grace really wants is to be able to hunt down the Mordgris, the sea monsters who took her mother away from her. I was intrigued by this aspect of the story and while we get glimpses into these creatures, I wanted to know more about them. There is clearly a lot more to the story than we know although I have thoughts about it…and I am very interested in learning more.
I liked both Grace and Leo. They both did some growing up in this book and I appreciated how Ellision built their friendship out in the pages. Neither of them really trusts the other at first and there are times toward the end of the book where I wasn’t really sure which way things were going to go for them, but I love how this book was wrapped. There was a clear cutoff point here but there is definitely more story to tell and I can’t wait to see what happens next for these characters.
In addition to Grace and Leo, there are some other character that help move the story. I definitely want to know more about what happened with Grace’s parents and the captain of the Lady Luck, Ilene. Sam is another character who I look forward to seeing more of and it will be interesting to see how things end up with the crew based on what happens at the end of this book.
Overall, I enjoyed the first book of this series. If you’re looking for something quick that has a bit of mystery, some tough/dangerous women, and a story that will have you turning the pages to see what happens next, consider checking this one out. I will be picking up the second book when it is available, no question, and recommend you check out Ellision’s other books if you haven’t had the opportunity to do so yet.
Thank you to the author and Netgalley for the copy in exchange for an honest review.
About Jennifer Ellision
Jennifer Ellision spent a great deal of her childhood staying up past her bedtime with a book and a flashlight. When she couldn't find the stories she wanted to read, she started writing them. She loves words, has a soft spot for fanfiction, and is a master of the fangirl flail. She resides in South Florida with her family, where she lives in fear of temperatures below 60 Fahrenheit.
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