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riverlethe's review
3.0
Really good writing and fairly compelling characters. I’m not a fan of reverse harem stories, which is what this series is leading to, and the psychic abilities felt like fantasy with scifi window dressing. This series will make lots of people happy, just not me.
lolasreviews's review against another edition
5.0
I received a copy in exchange for an honest review
My second 5 star read this year, gah I am so happy! This book was everything I hoped for and more, it was exactly the type of read I was in the mood for and when I started reading I just knew it was going to be a good one. It was brilliant and I loved every second of it. It sucked me in and I didn't want to stop reading. I really like almost all the characters we meet in this book and now I just wish the next book was already out.
Pirate Nemesis is a character focused book and that's what I loved most about it. All the characters come to life and feel so real. It really is amazing how developed all the characters are. Although it sure helped that I read Pirate Bound first as I already knew some fo the characters due to that and it made it less overwhelming when starting this book. And fun to meet the characters I already knew again and see them from Mercy her point of view now. I love the world these authors build here and we learn a lot more background and history about it here. Why the pirates became pirates, hints of what else it out there and we meet the crew and get to know them.
The story seems almost straightforward and I would almost says it's a slow paced book, but that sounds so negative and it isn't. But it's more that the characters take center stage, what they feel, what they go through, how they adapt to this new situation. There is a lot going on, just not in the action packed sense other books have. It was very character driven with the focus on the characters, their connections, their feelings and thoughts, their telepathic powers. And I think that's why it was easy for me to love this book as from the fist chapters I liked Mercy and Reaper and we really get to know them in this book. Yes there is a story and it even gets to a suspenseful level at the end, but it's about so much more and the characters really make this book shine.
There is a prologue which I felt was very valuable. It showed Mercy when she was younger and it explains part of her past and her life without having to get all the details. Mercy is such a great character. She's so real and honest. She never wanted to have power and now that she has she isn't sure what to do with it. She learned not to trust family and it will be hard for her to do and she doesn't change overnight, but slowly. I felt like we really get to know Mercy and what she feels, her love for Atrea and Wolf, her confusion and distrust when their situation changes and her connection with Reaper and how she trusts him while she doesn't trust the rest of the pirates yet. And then we slowly see her change and adapt to this new environment and slowly find her place. But she isn't there yet and I am so glad there will be two more books about her and Reaper as I want to read more about them.
Reaper is such an intriguing character, he is a bit like Dem from the prequel, with how he's a cold killer. But there's so much more to him. He cares about the pirates and his talent helps him protect them. He isn't used to being vulnerable or feeling emotions, but Mercy unlocks those emotions and he isn't quite sure what to do with them. He's always so honest and even a bit blunt with Mercy and she trust him because of that. He could easily kill her if he wanted to, but he doesn't and Mercy appreciates his honesty. And it's just wonderful to see the connection between these two and see their feelings evolve.
Their romance was one of my favorite parts of this book as well. It's so character driven that you really feel the emotion of these two characters and their connection. And it was a slow building romance in that it took some time before they eventually got there. No drama or miscommunication. Just two people who care about each other and try and figure things out. It was wonderful and I loved every second of it, seeing these two interact and grow closer. Their romance made me feel all happy and their conversations and interactions just made me want to see them together. I liked how they were there for each other and their romance felt so genuine and real.
And the side characters are just as real and complicated as the main ones. We have Atrea who is Mercy her best friend and while we don't see as much of her it's obvious the role she plays in Mercy her life. And Wolf who is almost like a father to Mercy. We see Dem and Sanah who we got to know in the prequel and Tama and Rasa who I met in the novella in Romancing the Stars. Tama was such a great character and I can't wait to see more of her in the rest of the series. I also felt that I could understand Treon a lot more due to the prequel, I don't think I would've liked him quite as much if I hadn't read that. And he's an interesting character as well. We see less of Cannon as in the prequel, which surprised me a bit, but still enough. And then there is the grumpy doctor who has horrible bed side manners and reminded me a bit of The Doctor from Star Trek Voyager. Only this doctor speaks Japanese when he's angry, it was a fun touch. And Nayla plays a role here as well, although we don't see as much in depth about her as in the prequel. And Vashti (I think that's how it was spelled) was an interesting character too and I liked what we saw of her. And I just want to see more of all these characters.
I feel like I am just rambling on and on, but this book was just wonderful and I am so glad I read a 5 star book again, it's the best feeling. The world and the characters really come alive. And I like how we get to see a bit more of the world here as well, although most of the story does take place aboard the ship it feels like I better understood the talented and the pirates and why they live this way. Only thing I wasn't quite happy about is Mercy her talent, it just seems a bit too much. But it did make sense with the explanation, she just felt a bit too special at times. And I had hoped we would get to see more of what her talent involved and could do, but on the other hand that wouldn't have fit the book as she slowly discovers it all herself, so I just have to be patient. The concept of telepathic space pirates is so much fun and it's really thought through.
To summarize: I loved every moment of this book. The prologue made me curious and I enjoyed getting to know Mercy, reaper and the whole pirate crew. It's a very character driven book, with lots of focus on the characters. The characters really come alive and everyone seems to have it's own personality, they all feel so real. And I enjoyed getting to know all of them. The story would almost feel slow, but there is enough going on. It's just all very character focused plot lines, which I loved. Mercy and Reaper are both really likeable characters and I loved seeing them slowly grow closer. The romance was really well done too and I enjoyed the slow paced and meaningful way the romance developed. I would recommend this book for everyone who enjoys a good character driven book! And I know I can't wait to read the next books in this series!
My second 5 star read this year, gah I am so happy! This book was everything I hoped for and more, it was exactly the type of read I was in the mood for and when I started reading I just knew it was going to be a good one. It was brilliant and I loved every second of it. It sucked me in and I didn't want to stop reading. I really like almost all the characters we meet in this book and now I just wish the next book was already out.
Pirate Nemesis is a character focused book and that's what I loved most about it. All the characters come to life and feel so real. It really is amazing how developed all the characters are. Although it sure helped that I read Pirate Bound first as I already knew some fo the characters due to that and it made it less overwhelming when starting this book. And fun to meet the characters I already knew again and see them from Mercy her point of view now. I love the world these authors build here and we learn a lot more background and history about it here. Why the pirates became pirates, hints of what else it out there and we meet the crew and get to know them.
The story seems almost straightforward and I would almost says it's a slow paced book, but that sounds so negative and it isn't. But it's more that the characters take center stage, what they feel, what they go through, how they adapt to this new situation. There is a lot going on, just not in the action packed sense other books have. It was very character driven with the focus on the characters, their connections, their feelings and thoughts, their telepathic powers. And I think that's why it was easy for me to love this book as from the fist chapters I liked Mercy and Reaper and we really get to know them in this book. Yes there is a story and it even gets to a suspenseful level at the end, but it's about so much more and the characters really make this book shine.
There is a prologue which I felt was very valuable. It showed Mercy when she was younger and it explains part of her past and her life without having to get all the details. Mercy is such a great character. She's so real and honest. She never wanted to have power and now that she has she isn't sure what to do with it. She learned not to trust family and it will be hard for her to do and she doesn't change overnight, but slowly. I felt like we really get to know Mercy and what she feels, her love for Atrea and Wolf, her confusion and distrust when their situation changes and her connection with Reaper and how she trusts him while she doesn't trust the rest of the pirates yet. And then we slowly see her change and adapt to this new environment and slowly find her place. But she isn't there yet and I am so glad there will be two more books about her and Reaper as I want to read more about them.
Reaper is such an intriguing character, he is a bit like Dem from the prequel, with how he's a cold killer. But there's so much more to him. He cares about the pirates and his talent helps him protect them. He isn't used to being vulnerable or feeling emotions, but Mercy unlocks those emotions and he isn't quite sure what to do with them. He's always so honest and even a bit blunt with Mercy and she trust him because of that. He could easily kill her if he wanted to, but he doesn't and Mercy appreciates his honesty. And it's just wonderful to see the connection between these two and see their feelings evolve.
Their romance was one of my favorite parts of this book as well. It's so character driven that you really feel the emotion of these two characters and their connection. And it was a slow building romance in that it took some time before they eventually got there. No drama or miscommunication. Just two people who care about each other and try and figure things out. It was wonderful and I loved every second of it, seeing these two interact and grow closer. Their romance made me feel all happy and their conversations and interactions just made me want to see them together. I liked how they were there for each other and their romance felt so genuine and real.
And the side characters are just as real and complicated as the main ones. We have Atrea who is Mercy her best friend and while we don't see as much of her it's obvious the role she plays in Mercy her life. And Wolf who is almost like a father to Mercy. We see Dem and Sanah who we got to know in the prequel and Tama and Rasa who I met in the novella in Romancing the Stars. Tama was such a great character and I can't wait to see more of her in the rest of the series. I also felt that I could understand Treon a lot more due to the prequel, I don't think I would've liked him quite as much if I hadn't read that. And he's an interesting character as well. We see less of Cannon as in the prequel, which surprised me a bit, but still enough. And then there is the grumpy doctor who has horrible bed side manners and reminded me a bit of The Doctor from Star Trek Voyager. Only this doctor speaks Japanese when he's angry, it was a fun touch. And Nayla plays a role here as well, although we don't see as much in depth about her as in the prequel. And Vashti (I think that's how it was spelled) was an interesting character too and I liked what we saw of her. And I just want to see more of all these characters.
I feel like I am just rambling on and on, but this book was just wonderful and I am so glad I read a 5 star book again, it's the best feeling. The world and the characters really come alive. And I like how we get to see a bit more of the world here as well, although most of the story does take place aboard the ship it feels like I better understood the talented and the pirates and why they live this way. Only thing I wasn't quite happy about is Mercy her talent, it just seems a bit too much. But it did make sense with the explanation, she just felt a bit too special at times. And I had hoped we would get to see more of what her talent involved and could do, but on the other hand that wouldn't have fit the book as she slowly discovers it all herself, so I just have to be patient. The concept of telepathic space pirates is so much fun and it's really thought through.
To summarize: I loved every moment of this book. The prologue made me curious and I enjoyed getting to know Mercy, reaper and the whole pirate crew. It's a very character driven book, with lots of focus on the characters. The characters really come alive and everyone seems to have it's own personality, they all feel so real. And I enjoyed getting to know all of them. The story would almost feel slow, but there is enough going on. It's just all very character focused plot lines, which I loved. Mercy and Reaper are both really likeable characters and I loved seeing them slowly grow closer. The romance was really well done too and I enjoyed the slow paced and meaningful way the romance developed. I would recommend this book for everyone who enjoys a good character driven book! And I know I can't wait to read the next books in this series!
smitch29's review
3.0
2.7
This was a decent read. The world that the author has crafted is interesting, though I found it a little painstaking to get through some of the exposition. I am still undecided whether I like the characters of the book. The backstories are varied and have potential for good things, but some of there was something off about how they interacted with each other. I think the author just hurried the characters' relationships along too quickly. I didn't really feel the connection between Reaper and Mercy and then all of the sudden they are hooking up and committing to each other. It felt like that came way too quickly, and it wasn't helped by the fact that I never really felt great chemistry from them. Trust and chemistry are two different things.
I think a bigger issue for me was Mercy in most every regard. She's been on the run for most of her life and then kidnapped for weeks. I expect her to be at least a little battered and I presume that since it took so long for someone to capture her, it must mean she's good at keeping her head down. Yet, almost as soon as she in onboard with the pirates, she's quick to insert herself and her opinions on pretty much everyone. She doesn't understand their culture or their powers. She's not sure if she has freedom with these people or if she's just in another captivity. It's a little hard to swallow that a woman who presumably has decent survival instincts is so vocal in a world she is so ignorant of.
Basically all of the beginning and middle developments were too rushed. This is part of my frustration with having the main character be an ignorant, yet powerful individual. The author was too quick to get to the part where Mercy could utilize her power, but didn't take enough time and care to develop the story to make it feel more organic.
That being said, I enjoyed the latter parts of this book. Clearly the author rushed to this part because this is where her writing/ideas shine. There was good suspense, intrigue, and complex parts to the ending that inspired me to read on with the series.
One last thing - I found the telepathy confusing. It seemed random when others could/would overhear thoughts and when shields were otherwise strong, and no thoughts leaked through. There was lots of telepathy in this book, and I think it would make an audiobook of this story really frustrating. If you were listening to this story, you wouldn't know what was a personal thought and what was a telepathic message (especially since I sometimes didn't understand whilst reading), not with other major revisions.
This was a decent read. The world that the author has crafted is interesting, though I found it a little painstaking to get through some of the exposition. I am still undecided whether I like the characters of the book. The backstories are varied and have potential for good things, but some of there was something off about how they interacted with each other. I think the author just hurried the characters' relationships along too quickly. I didn't really feel the connection between Reaper and Mercy and then all of the sudden they are hooking up and committing to each other. It felt like that came way too quickly, and it wasn't helped by the fact that I never really felt great chemistry from them. Trust and chemistry are two different things.
I think a bigger issue for me was Mercy in most every regard. She's been on the run for most of her life and then kidnapped for weeks. I expect her to be at least a little battered and I presume that since it took so long for someone to capture her, it must mean she's good at keeping her head down. Yet, almost as soon as she in onboard with the pirates, she's quick to insert herself and her opinions on pretty much everyone. She doesn't understand their culture or their powers. She's not sure if she has freedom with these people or if she's just in another captivity. It's a little hard to swallow that a woman who presumably has decent survival instincts is so vocal in a world she is so ignorant of.
Basically all of the beginning and middle developments were too rushed. This is part of my frustration with having the main character be an ignorant, yet powerful individual. The author was too quick to get to the part where Mercy could utilize her power, but didn't take enough time and care to develop the story to make it feel more organic.
That being said, I enjoyed the latter parts of this book. Clearly the author rushed to this part because this is where her writing/ideas shine. There was good suspense, intrigue, and complex parts to the ending that inspired me to read on with the series.
One last thing - I found the telepathy confusing. It seemed random when others could/would overhear thoughts and when shields were otherwise strong, and no thoughts leaked through. There was lots of telepathy in this book, and I think it would make an audiobook of this story really frustrating. If you were listening to this story, you wouldn't know what was a personal thought and what was a telepathic message (especially since I sometimes didn't understand whilst reading), not with other major revisions.
mandy44's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
3.75
otheywanttosing's review against another edition
late review: barely remember this but i think i had fun
mdlaclair's review against another edition
4.0
This was a nice book I like how it continues the story arc and that we get to see all of the characters again. Personally I felt like the prequel was a better read but I still liked the book and can not wait for the next one!
ozettegirl's review against another edition
2.0
I wanted to like this book and for awhile I did. The evil guy was quite evil and even though the best friend was absent most of the book, I believed in their connection. The world building was decent. (If you liked it, I recommend Gabriel’s Ghost by Sinclair)
My problem = I have a strong aversion to Reverse Harem. And spoiler, About 3/4 through the book the heroine gets told she has to have multiple consorts. Ruined the book for me.
My problem = I have a strong aversion to Reverse Harem. And spoiler, About 3/4 through the book the heroine gets told she has to have multiple consorts. Ruined the book for me.
settajayauthor's review against another edition
5.0
I really liked this! The characters were great! I'm a huge fan of friends as family stuff and this had it. Oh, and Reaper was hot! :D
amyiw's review against another edition
4.0
This ended up being really good. Starts with a bit of torture and was frustrating but changed up to being quite a good story. She's been running from her family but when a secondary psychic group captures her, she finds that she might have to turn to her family. It seemed like it was heading for a cliffhanger but it ended up wrapped up nicely.