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joshloftin's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
The Night Ship follows the stories of two kids connected by an island. While the doomed journey of Mayken and the great merchant ship Batavia is the anchor of the story, the story of Gil (set in 1989) is the more interesting of the two.
The structure alternates the stories between chapters, which is effective in developing the stories and characters early but becomes distracting as the two stories build to their finales.
Jess Kidd weaves wonderful details throughout the book and her writing is engaging. This is the type of book to read on a plane, a beach, or listen to in a car (as I did). It’s gripping enough to keep you reading but not complex enough to demand your full attention.
Overall, this is a better than average book with moments of excellence, built upon a very interesting historical event.
The structure alternates the stories between chapters, which is effective in developing the stories and characters early but becomes distracting as the two stories build to their finales.
Jess Kidd weaves wonderful details throughout the book and her writing is engaging. This is the type of book to read on a plane, a beach, or listen to in a car (as I did). It’s gripping enough to keep you reading but not complex enough to demand your full attention.
Overall, this is a better than average book with moments of excellence, built upon a very interesting historical event.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Death, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, and Alcohol
Minor: Animal cruelty, Blood, Medical trauma, and Toxic friendship
georgie_mb's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.5
Love finishing a book on my birthday, something very satisfying about that!
Once again, Jess Kidd has broken my heart. She has a way of taking you on such a beautiful emotional story even though you know what the inevitable will be. You are still left hoping that things will turn out differently, and that just shows how she is such an empathetic writer.
I also loved how even though the two characters lives are sort of parallel, if there is repetition it doesn’t always link up, which I found really unusual and kept my interest.
These kids seemed older than their 9 years which I did find a bit strange hence the half a star but I did love them.
Once again, Jess Kidd has broken my heart. She has a way of taking you on such a beautiful emotional story even though you know what the inevitable will be. You are still left hoping that things will turn out differently, and that just shows how she is such an empathetic writer.
I also loved how even though the two characters lives are sort of parallel, if there is repetition it doesn’t always link up, which I found really unusual and kept my interest.
These kids seemed older than their 9 years which I did find a bit strange hence the half a star but I did love them.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Child death, Death, Gore, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Physical abuse, and Medical trauma
Minor: Cursing, Violence, Medical content, Grief, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
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