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A review by lalaelisabeth
Defend the Dawn by Brigid Kemmerer
adventurous
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
5.0
5 ⭐️
I loved this. I'm such a sucker for an epic adventure onboard a ship and it was done so well in this book - I enjoyed myself immensely.
Again (like the first one) the author excels at showing how nothing is black and white in this story. All the characters (except Allisander, who can go f*ck himself, respectfully) contain more than just "bad" or "good". She shows how complicated everything is and how it can be seen from different sides and appear different depending on who we are following. Like meeting the Captain - I loved seeing this from both Tessa and Corrick's POVs and how differently they see him and what they each notice about him throughout the story. Expertly done!
The conflict between Tessa and Corrick is also just so realistic. Again she shows the different sides there is, and when you hear one of their POVs you can't help but feel exactly what that person is feeling - and then you hear from the other one and it puts everything into perspective and you can't help but also see it from their side. It's really impressive how much you get pulled into it and how quickly you relate to the different characters.
The addition of Harristan's POVs was amazing. I absolutely LOVED getting inside his head and seeing his narrow world view get disrupted a bit. He comes from a place of power and privilege and through both the first book and this one he slowly gains so much more perspective. It's such an important character journey. And also: I am already rooting an insane amount for him and Quint. I need that to happen as soon as possible.
A beautiful ride! Can't wait to see how everything unfolds and gets tied up in the final installment. So excited.
✨My thoughts don't know where to settle, because I've found Lochlan pretty frightening myself. But I know what it's like to be backed into a corner. Choices never seem like choices when the world only offers us bad ones.✨
✨"Lord, Tessa. Never apologize to me. You always make me better."✨
✨"Master Quint?" he says. "Exactly what was your plan?" "In retrospect," Quint says, wincing, "it's unclear."✨
I loved this. I'm such a sucker for an epic adventure onboard a ship and it was done so well in this book - I enjoyed myself immensely.
Again (like the first one) the author excels at showing how nothing is black and white in this story. All the characters (except Allisander, who can go f*ck himself, respectfully) contain more than just "bad" or "good". She shows how complicated everything is and how it can be seen from different sides and appear different depending on who we are following. Like meeting the Captain - I loved seeing this from both Tessa and Corrick's POVs and how differently they see him and what they each notice about him throughout the story. Expertly done!
The conflict between Tessa and Corrick is also just so realistic. Again she shows the different sides there is, and when you hear one of their POVs you can't help but feel exactly what that person is feeling - and then you hear from the other one and it puts everything into perspective and you can't help but also see it from their side. It's really impressive how much you get pulled into it and how quickly you relate to the different characters.
A beautiful ride! Can't wait to see how everything unfolds and gets tied up in the final installment. So excited.
✨My thoughts don't know where to settle, because I've found Lochlan pretty frightening myself. But I know what it's like to be backed into a corner. Choices never seem like choices when the world only offers us bad ones.✨
✨"Lord, Tessa. Never apologize to me. You always make me better."✨
✨"Master Quint?" he says. "Exactly what was your plan?" "In retrospect," Quint says, wincing, "it's unclear."✨
Content Warnings
Minor: Child abuse