Thank you to the author and NetGalley for the eARC.

I should start by saying this book is not typically the genre I go for as I often prefer romantasy but the premise intrigued me. This wasn’t a bad read at all in terms of writing but the story itself was a little like something I would’ve read on Wattpad when I was 16yrs old.

I was hoping for more mafia elements/dynamics than what was delivered. The characters could’ve done with more growth - Imogen becoming less naive and Lincoln developing more emotionally. I got a little sick of the “sir” as well and the age gap was a little toooo uncomfy for me.

The spice was also a little repetitive - I didn’t enjoy the period play and whilst I’m not a prude by any means, I too, will never look at butter the same way - IYKYK.

The ending was not shocking to me either - I don’t think I will be reading the next book. Overall this story was average to me but I am sure the die hard dark romance mafia girlies will love it.

Quote: “It is not a crime to come to love your armour.”

This is a YA book which I wouldn’t normally go for because I like more adult themes in books. BUT I liked the premise of this a lot. I thought I was going to get an eerie and haunted ship with a load of magical misfits who travel the seas performing like a circus, stuck aboard the ship in order to keep their powers. In fact, the book sets itself up as “a voyage beyond their wildest dreams… and their darkest fears”.

Sadly, for me, it never fully delivered on that promise. Instead of a tense, dangerous, otherworldly journey, it often felt more like a luxury cruise filled with snobby passengers demanding magical entertainment from overworked staff. The sense of wonder and dread hinted at in the blurb just didn’t quite materialise.

There is barely any world building aside from how magic (or as it’s called in this book, Morphic) is dealt with. There’s a divide between people with and without magic - a typical narrative whereby non-magic people fear those with it and alchemists have found a way to extract magic from people which is permanent. This can be wielded by non-magic people but at a cost to their sanity and physical health.

The concept is that the extracted magic is taken aboard the ship and it’s exploited leading to the ship taking on a mind of its own. This was a confusing I never quite understood the magic rules on the ship.

I was also confused by Roe herself. Her relationship with her magic feels inconsistent: at times it’s framed as an essential part of her identity that she’s terrified of losing, and at other moments she seems overwhelmed by it, anxious, and unable to control it. It made it hard for me to fully understand her internal conflict.

Another small but persistent issue for me was the main villains being referred to as “the bosses” completely pulled me out of the story. Considering they’re described as something close to walking corpses, (for exploiting the extracted magic) the name just didn’t carry the weight or menace it needed to - I found it difficult to take them seriously.

On a more positive note, the found family element is strong - sense of connection helped carry the story more than the romance, between Roe and Ivander, which felt underdeveloped and lacking real chemistry. This is not enemies to lovers - it’s people who mildly dislike each other - to lovers.

That said, the author does do a solid job with description. By the time Roe boards the Celestial (around a quarter of the way in), I could clearly picture the ship and its atmosphere, and visually, the setting works well. The eerie potential is there, it just isn’t pushed far enough.

Overall, I can see the potential especially if the world and characters are expanded further. But as it stands, it didn’t quite take me on the dark, dreamlike voyage I was hoping for.