laurenjodi's review against another edition
4.0
One Salt Sea
4 Stars
When the Duchess of Satlmist's sons are abducted and she accuses the Queen of the Mists of the crime, October "Toby" Daye has her hands full trying to prevent a war between the land and the sea. As Toby follows the clues, she soon realizes that they lead in a disturbing direction and the culprit is someone not averse to striking closer to home than Toby expects.
This series is gaining in momentum and there are some significant developments in this installment that will obviously take Toby into new and unexplored directions.
McGuire's world building is fantastic. It is not easy to imagine the undersea, which is a world so different from ours, but she manages to convey all of the nuances including a variety of creatures and even the floating hair. It is also becoming clear that the Fae are an exceedingly prejudiced species and their discriminatory policies may just be their downfall.
The love triangle between Toby, Tybalt and Connor thankfully comes to an end. I'm not a fan of this trope and this one has the added irritation of being weak and unbelievable as Connor cannot even come close to truly competing with Tybalt. It is as if his character is simply there to provide another obstacle to Toby and Tybalt realizing their feelings and being together. Totally unnecessary.
The villain of the piece is not wholly unexpected, but there are some compelling twists and turns. It will be interesting to see what happens next.
4 Stars
When the Duchess of Satlmist's sons are abducted and she accuses the Queen of the Mists of the crime, October "Toby" Daye has her hands full trying to prevent a war between the land and the sea. As Toby follows the clues, she soon realizes that they lead in a disturbing direction and the culprit is someone not averse to striking closer to home than Toby expects.
This series is gaining in momentum and there are some significant developments in this installment that will obviously take Toby into new and unexplored directions.
McGuire's world building is fantastic. It is not easy to imagine the undersea, which is a world so different from ours, but she manages to convey all of the nuances including a variety of creatures and even the floating hair. It is also becoming clear that the Fae are an exceedingly prejudiced species and their discriminatory policies may just be their downfall.
The love triangle between Toby, Tybalt and Connor thankfully comes to an end. I'm not a fan of this trope and this one has the added irritation of being weak and unbelievable as Connor cannot even come close to truly competing with Tybalt. It is as if his character is simply there to provide another obstacle to Toby and Tybalt realizing their feelings and being together. Totally unnecessary.
The villain of the piece is not wholly unexpected, but there are some compelling twists and turns. It will be interesting to see what happens next.
astrocat42's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
lynseyisreading's review against another edition
5.0
The fifth book in October Daye series, One Salt Sea, picks up one month after the events of book four, Late Eclipses. Someone has kidnapped the children of the Duchess of the undersea courts of Saltmist. Toby only has three days to find the kids, and in doing so, clear her Queen’s name and stave off a war between the land and sea Fae.
One of the things I love about this series is the incredibly detailed worldbuilding. I've read many series involving the Fae but this one seems particularly vivid and vibrant to me. Perhaps because in this one they are the only focus- we are not distracted by having to learn of other races- vamps, werewolves, etc. And incredibly, the worldbuilding in One Salt Sea is even more expansive than in most of the previous novels, largely due to the introduction of a new realm: the Saltmist, home of the undersea Fae.
I'll be honest, I was slightly dubious about this upon reading the summary. I've seen many books featuring mer-people and other sea-dwelling folk and always thought "hmm, how does that work then?", and never bothered with them. Since this is the continuation of one of my now favourite series, not reading this particular undersea adventure wasn't even a possibility. And how wrong I had been to dismiss books based on my own preconceptions. McGuire made me feel like I, too, was diving into the big deep blue for the first time. It was fascinating. Although I'm glad it wasn't this setting for the majority of the book, as I would have severely missed my landlubbers had I been denied access to them for too long.
Speaking of which, the full gang was out in force in this one, with equal time dedicated to all of my favourite characters. Obviously, if it were up to me I would have Tybalt on every page, but being slightly more realistic for a second, I can concede that he was probably in it just the right amount, considering what's going on in Toby's personal life currently.
This is the first book in this series to reduce me to tears. McGuire is some sort of evil genius, to be sure. Just when I was starting to appreciate certain characters and find a level of grudging acceptance where they were concerned, she goes and rips the rug out from under me. Before this book, this turn of events might have made me happy, but now?...now I'm just a blubbering mess, that's what.
And do you know what else makes me sad? That I now have to wait twelve stinking, agonising months until the next book, Ashes of Honor, comes out in September 2012. *big dramatic sigh* On the plus side though, after such a long time I'd simply have to do a re-read prior to it coming out, wouldn't I? *evil grin*
Well, as you'll no doubt have guessed by this point, I am in love with this series. It's right up there with my other UF favourites: Kate Daniels, Horngate witches, Cassie Palmer, Mercy Thompson, etc., and I recommend it to ALL. Do yourself a favour and read them in order: Rosemary and Rue, A local Habitation, An artificial Night, Late Eclipses.
One of the things I love about this series is the incredibly detailed worldbuilding. I've read many series involving the Fae but this one seems particularly vivid and vibrant to me. Perhaps because in this one they are the only focus- we are not distracted by having to learn of other races- vamps, werewolves, etc. And incredibly, the worldbuilding in One Salt Sea is even more expansive than in most of the previous novels, largely due to the introduction of a new realm: the Saltmist, home of the undersea Fae.
I'll be honest, I was slightly dubious about this upon reading the summary. I've seen many books featuring mer-people and other sea-dwelling folk and always thought "hmm, how does that work then?", and never bothered with them. Since this is the continuation of one of my now favourite series, not reading this particular undersea adventure wasn't even a possibility. And how wrong I had been to dismiss books based on my own preconceptions. McGuire made me feel like I, too, was diving into the big deep blue for the first time. It was fascinating. Although I'm glad it wasn't this setting for the majority of the book, as I would have severely missed my landlubbers had I been denied access to them for too long.
Speaking of which, the full gang was out in force in this one, with equal time dedicated to all of my favourite characters. Obviously, if it were up to me I would have Tybalt on every page, but being slightly more realistic for a second, I can concede that he was probably in it just the right amount, considering what's going on in Toby's personal life currently.
This is the first book in this series to reduce me to tears. McGuire is some sort of evil genius, to be sure. Just when I was starting to appreciate certain characters and find a level of grudging acceptance where they were concerned, she goes and rips the rug out from under me. Before this book, this turn of events might have made me happy, but now?...now I'm just a blubbering mess, that's what.
And do you know what else makes me sad? That I now have to wait twelve stinking, agonising months until the next book, Ashes of Honor, comes out in September 2012. *big dramatic sigh* On the plus side though, after such a long time I'd simply have to do a re-read prior to it coming out, wouldn't I? *evil grin*
Well, as you'll no doubt have guessed by this point, I am in love with this series. It's right up there with my other UF favourites: Kate Daniels, Horngate witches, Cassie Palmer, Mercy Thompson, etc., and I recommend it to ALL. Do yourself a favour and read them in order: Rosemary and Rue, A local Habitation, An artificial Night, Late Eclipses.
vortacist's review against another edition
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
witchivor's review
5.0
This is my favourite of the series so far! I’m loving the series overall, but I think this story elevates it. This book introduces the Undersea and expands Toby’s world. Love Tybalt and the Luidaeg as always, along with Toby’s growing circle of friends and family. There’s some heavier events in this book related to a couple of Toby’s relationships and character development. I loved it.
differentwe's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
a_verthandi's review against another edition
5.0
The Luidaeg and Tybalt continue to engage in mortal combat for the position of "Favorite Character in the Toby Daye Series."
linguana's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
eleanor_nicbhatair's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0