All the Stars and Teeth

There were a lot of things I didn't like about this book that just made it a chore to listen to.

The plot was basic and straightforward. If the book has strong characters and writing, it can be a simple, predictable story and still be entertaining. This was not. All the characters were borderline (or outright) unlikeable with no development whatsoever. The world itself seemed complex on the surface, but there was little explanation of how things actually worked (i.e., the magic system, which is also the central plot point).

To be fair, I listened to All the Stars and Teeth immediately after finishing Fable by Adrienne Young. I absolutely loved that story, so I may have had unfair expectations. Perhaps if I were in a different reading mood (and didn't listen to the audiobook with poor narration), I would have enjoyed it more.

I received the sequel as an ARC from Netgalley, and I plan to still give it a try! I'll just go in with different expectations.

The first thing that captured my attention about this book was the gorgeous cover and I'm always enamored of stories about princesses who have to protect their kingdoms, so I knew I had to read this one. And I just flew through it in such a short time.

I have seen a bit of mixed reviews for this book but I personally felt that the plot was very fast paced, and I couldn't put it down for the most part. I loved the gorgeous descriptions of the different islands and the cultures, fashions and architectures which are unique to each of them. . And even though I'm not that fond of water, I could totally feel the joy and the freedom that the main character feels when she is on the ship in the middle of the vast ocean. The different kinds of elemental magic are things we know about but the way they are distributed across the kingdom and the lore behind it is fascinating, and I especially liked seeing majestic sea monsters as well as seductive beautiful mermaids. I will not say the book is action packed, but the journey the characters undertake is pretty cool, with things happening all the time and I never got bored.

The main character Princess Amora has grown up knowing she is the perfect leader for her kingdom and despite what happens in the beginning, she never loses sight of her goal. She may come across as naive and arrogant and privileged, which isn't untrue, but I liked the fact that she understood and accepted her faults and tried to be better for her people. Her intent always remains to protect her kingdom, even when revelations about her family rock her whole existence and I liked that confidence in her.

Bastian is a pirate and his depiction is quite tropey but I enjoyed his character. He may come across as just a swashbuckling type, but his character really has a lot of depth and it was fascinating to know his backstory and what lengths he was ready to go to protect his island from being destroyed. Ferrick is a healer and honestly, one of the most selfless character I've read in a while who is doing the best he can in the situation he finds himself in, even when it's not what he wants. He puts the needs of the kingdom before his own and I admired him a lot for his bravery. Vataea is a mermaid who has been imprisoned for her powers and Kong's for freedom, but still decides to help the princess on her quest because she believes in honor and she was another brave character with wicked cool magic. I loved the changing nature of the bonds between each of these characters and how they built a trust through the course of the story and became the kind of crew everyone would love to have. There is also a budding romance which kind of changes into something unexpected towards the end and I'm quite interested to see what happens next.

To conclude, this was a fun, fast paced, entertaining YA fantasy read with a cool magic system, gorgeous descriptions and likeable characters. Even though it can feel predictable or tropey at times, it did have its revelatory and satisfying moments and I found it a comforting read in my favorite genre, which is what I needed.

I went into this book not really knowing what to expect from it. It turned out to be a really enjoyable read in the end. The fantasy/adventure aspect of the story gripped me from the start and I personally couldn't get enough of it! So much so that I ended up reading more than half of it in a day!

I think the fact that the main characters Amora, Ferrick, Vataea and Bastian were such likeable characters made it even better! I loved their little crew and the way they all worked together on their journey!

It was well written and I loved the descriptive writing used to describe the different scenes. I thought it was beautifully done!

Can't wait until February next year when the sequel comes out!

I'm combining All The Stars and Teeth and All The Tides of Fate into one post because they go together.

I listened to these books, mostly in the car to and from work and on the road. Yes, I left Tennessee, went to Illinois for a few days, then travelled to my winter job in Montana! I will detail that in another post!

But anyway, it was an entertaining book. It didn't make me drowsy while I drove. It had a cute love triangle that was predictable.

I liked the magic and the island set up. It was original. I also related to the wanderlust the main character has haha.

Aangezien dit boek al een hele tijd op mijn TBR stond, sinds ik het in een Owlcrate kreeg, en gezien het een YA-verhaal is, waar ik me tegenwoordig steeds minder toe aangetrokken voel, waren mijn verwachtingen nogal laag. Is het daarom dat ik hier echt van heb genoten? Het was in ieder geval heel plezant!
Heerlijke weelderige wereld vol zeemonsters, zeemeerminnen en piraten, die me meteen meesleurden het avontuur in. Enige minpunt is dat ik het einde wat onderontwikkeld en gehaast vond, maar dit neemt niet weg dat ik dit echt met veel plezier heb gelezen!

Amora is the heir to Visidia. In order to secure her place as the next High Animancer, she has to perform her magic for the kingdom to prove she is worthy. When she fails to control her magic, she has to run. While on the run, she travels to other islands in her kingdom and finds that everything she believed about magic and the other islands is all a lie.

I enjoyed this, but it is full of tropes. Some I enjoy, some not so much. It is also very predictable. I did enjoy the different magics, and the pirate vibes. I am still interested to see where the series goes.

I couldn't feel any connection with the main character till the last a few pages. Other than that it was fine for me, i wasn't expecting a lot so i didn't feel any disappointment while reading. The ending wasn't bad but it was too fast but also slow. I didn't know how to feel about it. I felt like the author lost the connection and tried to reconnect again. Something like that. Yea.
I loved the magic and how it works in this book. Everything about the fantasy part of the book was good to me, but i wish we got to see other kinds of magic more, also the other islands. Probably the author kept them for the second book.
If you don't expect a lot i think you will like this book.

I loved the mermaids, the world building, the pirates, the magic system, the pirate ships and travel of adventure.

BUT

I did not care for the protagonist Amora..I dunno if it was the character development feeling forced or rushed I dunno exactly what it was but I just didn't care much for her. Now the side character Bastian hell yes I want more LOL.

I got extremely bored with the second half of the book, i was so confused on why the fleeing maybe I missed something I dunno but I just wish there was more to the plot and a different element to the protagonist.

But the world building alone was what kept me going because I wanted to learn more about the environment than caring about the main character grimace face the dark magic or evil magic was interesting but I want more of that lol. and why on most YA fantasies is there a love/romance thing going on or maybe I interpreted that incorrectly and it really wasn't a love/romancey thing going on...I want the epic journey, the world building, the incredible magic system. I am still going to read the second in this series and I will definitely re-read this one because I had to of missed something while listening on audio book.

The narrator was good which helped me along the book. Overall I'd say 3 maybe 3.5 stars but definitely not a 4.

I was a bit skeptical going into this book as to how it would differentiate from the other fantasy I've been reading and have read. I am glad I took the plunge (buddy reads are awesome).

This is fast-paced, imaginative, and holds it's own in the realm of all things fantastical. Amora is strong, loyal and brave. All things a good ruler is meant to be. However, finding her way to being the ruler her kingdom needs is wrought with treachery, lies and betrayal.

Accompanied by a rag-tag crew of an exile, a mermaid and unwanted fiance she finds the courage to be all that those before her were not. I am excited to see where her journey takes her and if she is still standing when all is said and done.