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The Assassin's Curse #2
The Pirate's Wish
After setting out to break the curse that binds them together, the pirate Ananna and the assassin Naji find themselves stranded on an enchanted island in the north with nothing but a sword, their wits, and the secret to breaking the complete three impossible tasks. With the help of their friend Marjani and a rather unusual ally, Ananna and Naji make their way south again, seeking what seems to be beyond their reach.Unfortunately, Naji has enemies from the shadowy world known as the Mists, and Ananna must still face the repercussions of going up against the Pirate Confederation. Together, Naji and Ananna must break the curse, escape their enemies — and come to terms with their growing romantic attraction.
330 pages, Paperback
First published June 18, 2013
About the author
Cassandra Rose Clarke
63 books1,460 followersCassandra Rose Clarke is a speculative fiction writer living amongst the beige stucco and overgrown pecan trees of Houston, Texas. She graduated in 2006 from The University of St. Thomas with a bachelor’s degree in English, and in 2008 she completed her master’s degree in creative writing at The University of Texas at Austin. Both of these degrees have served her surprisingly well.
During the summer of 2010, she attended the Clarion West Writers Workshop in Seattle, where she enjoyed sixty-degree summer days. Having been born and raised in Texas, this was something of a big deal. She was also a recipient of the 2010 Susan C. Petrey Clarion Scholarship Fund.
During the summer of 2010, she attended the Clarion West Writers Workshop in Seattle, where she enjoyed sixty-degree summer days. Having been born and raised in Texas, this was something of a big deal. She was also a recipient of the 2010 Susan C. Petrey Clarion Scholarship Fund.
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January 27, 2023Thank you Cassandra Clarke.
Now. Let me praise you for taking this creepy beastling (thank you Merlin on BBC for this nightmare):
And turning her into this:
The manticore is now my favorite fantasy sidekick of all time, second only to Lord Rikash the Stormwing (from Tamora Pierce’s Wild Magic series).
There was even more action, adventure, and general awesomeness. And I fell for Naji after all. Even though I spent half my time wanting to punch him in the face…
Now let’s get to that ending. NO. NO. NO.
HOW COULD YOU!!! I get what you did there, I do, but you broke my heart in the process. It was so, so, so close to perfect. Okay so it was still beautiful & made me cry so I forgive you a little bit but I feel so empty inside. I do not like this image in my head:
Still. It was an epic book and I can respect Cassandra’s decision. She is an amazing writer & I will definitely be putting this on my Beauty & the Beast bookshelf one day. Because only my favorite books go there. And this is definitely one of them.
March 27, 2022
So disappointing. I was convinced that after the Assassin's Curse, which has had so much potential, the story could only go upwards. I was painfully wrong. The plot was resolved ridiculously easy and the relationship was absurdly forced. And why is no one talking about the mental abuse Naji had suffered from Ananna?
There are boons/wishes granted, few pirate fights, manticore royalty, gay queens, a lot of unnecessary teenage angst and whining. Oh, and also they're trying to break three curses but it doesn't seem important since Ananna only cares about how a particular boy doesn't like her and now the world is about to end.
To be honest, the manticore is the only character I loved in this book. Naji was ok too, I guess. The breaking of the last curse was too convenient. Actually, the whole story was way too simplistic. I don't understand why two books were needed to tell it. The battles were small, unexciting, and non-important to the overall plot. The cures for the curses felt anticlimactic and unimaginative. There were some talking sharks. Kill.me.now.
Ananna is a complete brat. I went from liking her in the Assassin's Curse to absolutely hating her guts in the Pirate's Wish. She showed no appreciation for everything Naji has done for her. Instead, she kept on punishing him and being cruel simply because he didn't reciprocate her feelings. The concern he showed for her, or protection he provided, she whined about everything. Truth be told, she could really use some tough love.
Naji is the most pitiful character in the book since he was being mentally abused for no good reason, never mind he has been a skilful assassin with powerful blood magic. Afflicted with the curse, having an unhealthy bond with Ananna, chased by supernaturals from another dimension, enslaved eternally to an order of assassins, ostracized because of his magic - the guy can't seem to catch a break.
When Ananna finally kisses Naji, everything goes to hell. Ananna was marked by every single YA cliché as her world literally spins around Naji's mood. She started hating herself because Naji didn't love her back and truth be told, it's not like she gave him a good reason to even like her. Because Naji doesn't want to be kissed in his sleep, Ananna suddenly thinks that her kissing technique is horrible and that no boy could ever like her for who she is.
All Ananna cares about is getting Naji to fall in love with her - in a passive-aggressive way. In the Assassin's Curse, Ananna wasn't really bothered with what Naji thought of her, even though she was aware she had feelings for him. She was too busy trying to save both of their lives. In this one, her biggest concern is whether Naji loves her or not. Ananna's happiness depended on whether Naji was with her - when he wasn't she was moping around and when he was, she tried to make him feel as worse as possible. EVEN THOUGH HE DIDN'T DESERVE IT.
I really don't believe Naji can just suddenly fall in love with Ananna, after how insufferable she was. I still don't comprehend the transition within his feelings towards her. Basically, for most of the book, Ananna was kissing Naji and Naji didn't feel the same way, and therefore Ananna feels humiliated and ignores him. That exact situation actually happened TWICE. Ananna's feelings seem genuine, but his are just too abrupt.
I still like the non-traditional happily-ever-after. Everything is left open and in the future they'll actually have to WORK on their relationship and TALK much more than ever before. Unfortunately, their spark faded and I don't think they'll be able to work it out without their sexual tension, which is too bad because in the first book they had a great build up.
Before they finally get together, there has been ridiculous amount of unnecessary drama caused by Ananna's mood swings. She acts like a child by ignoring Naji and taking every opportunity to flirt with other men in an effort to make him jealous. The author relies too much on magic to help her characters get together instead of actual conversation or even character development.
There are boons/wishes granted, few pirate fights, manticore royalty, gay queens, a lot of unnecessary teenage angst and whining. Oh, and also they're trying to break three curses but it doesn't seem important since Ananna only cares about how a particular boy doesn't like her and now the world is about to end.
To be honest, the manticore is the only character I loved in this book. Naji was ok too, I guess. The breaking of the last curse was too convenient. Actually, the whole story was way too simplistic. I don't understand why two books were needed to tell it. The battles were small, unexciting, and non-important to the overall plot. The cures for the curses felt anticlimactic and unimaginative. There were some talking sharks. Kill.me.now.
Ananna is a complete brat. I went from liking her in the Assassin's Curse to absolutely hating her guts in the Pirate's Wish. She showed no appreciation for everything Naji has done for her. Instead, she kept on punishing him and being cruel simply because he didn't reciprocate her feelings. The concern he showed for her, or protection he provided, she whined about everything. Truth be told, she could really use some tough love.
Naji is the most pitiful character in the book since he was being mentally abused for no good reason, never mind he has been a skilful assassin with powerful blood magic. Afflicted with the curse, having an unhealthy bond with Ananna, chased by supernaturals from another dimension, enslaved eternally to an order of assassins, ostracized because of his magic - the guy can't seem to catch a break.
When Ananna finally kisses Naji, everything goes to hell. Ananna was marked by every single YA cliché as her world literally spins around Naji's mood. She started hating herself because Naji didn't love her back and truth be told, it's not like she gave him a good reason to even like her. Because Naji doesn't want to be kissed in his sleep, Ananna suddenly thinks that her kissing technique is horrible and that no boy could ever like her for who she is.
All Ananna cares about is getting Naji to fall in love with her - in a passive-aggressive way. In the Assassin's Curse, Ananna wasn't really bothered with what Naji thought of her, even though she was aware she had feelings for him. She was too busy trying to save both of their lives. In this one, her biggest concern is whether Naji loves her or not. Ananna's happiness depended on whether Naji was with her - when he wasn't she was moping around and when he was, she tried to make him feel as worse as possible. EVEN THOUGH HE DIDN'T DESERVE IT.
I really don't believe Naji can just suddenly fall in love with Ananna, after how insufferable she was. I still don't comprehend the transition within his feelings towards her. Basically, for most of the book, Ananna was kissing Naji and Naji didn't feel the same way, and therefore Ananna feels humiliated and ignores him. That exact situation actually happened TWICE. Ananna's feelings seem genuine, but his are just too abrupt.
I still like the non-traditional happily-ever-after. Everything is left open and in the future they'll actually have to WORK on their relationship and TALK much more than ever before. Unfortunately, their spark faded and I don't think they'll be able to work it out without their sexual tension, which is too bad because in the first book they had a great build up.
Before they finally get together, there has been ridiculous amount of unnecessary drama caused by Ananna's mood swings. She acts like a child by ignoring Naji and taking every opportunity to flirt with other men in an effort to make him jealous. The author relies too much on magic to help her characters get together instead of actual conversation or even character development.
April 26, 2013
I enjoyed this book. I enjoyed this book IMMENSELY.
You know a book is good when you try to think of how to do it justice in a review and all you can come up with is something like this:
Since I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review I’ll try to abstain from that and use actual words to describe its epicness.
The first book, The Assassin's Curse, ends with our main character, Ananna, stranded on the spooky, mist shrouded Isles of the Sky with Naji, the perma-grumpy assassin forced to protect her because of the curse he incurred while trying to kill her. Oh the irony.
They learn that in order to break the curse he has to complete three impossible tasks:
The first; experience true love’s kiss.
The second; hold the princess’s starstones.
The third; create life out of violence.
This book follows them on their journey to complete these tasks and during their travels they go from the Isles of the Sky to the high seas, a dust swept desert, a magic filled jungle and an underwater city that can only be described as Atlantian.
The main character is a foul mouthed pirate who has a propensity for words like 'ain’t' and occasionally speaks in half formed sentences. She’s gruff, likes a spot (or two or three or four) of rum and only feels at ease with shipboards swaying beneath her feet. Her poor English could have been annoying if not properly executed but I thought that in this case, it totally hit the mark. Also, only her speaking parts and internal monologue follow this theme. What’s written in observance and occurrence is beautifully done and makes up for her lack of eloquence in my opinion.
The way Clarke paints the support characters and the cities and shores Ananna and Naji visit through analogies is both understated and elegant. I loved that she could use just a sentence or two to describe someone and yet somehow I had a perfectly formed picture in my mind of WHO that person was from the wrinkles on their sun-darkened face to the tatters in their salt-stained clothing to the slyness of their mind.
And speaking of characters. As soon as I saw this book I found myself wondering what that creepy human-lion-scorpion-batwing creature on the cover was and how it would come into play. It’s a manticore. No big deal. It also eats humans and is trapped on the Isles of the Sky with Ana and Naji in the beginning. Her name is Ongraygeeomryn. Try to say it three times fast. Hell, try to properly pronounce it once. They strike a deal with her that she won’t eat them if they take her back home. I absolutely loved her. She was bloodthirsty, blunt and my favorite support character by far. I hope she shows up again in the later books.
I don’t want to get into too much detail about the plot because I feel like almost everything I want to say would be borderline spoilery. What I will say is that during their journeys you meet some old friends from the first book but also pick up some new ones along the way until the group they travel with forms into a motley crew of pirates, noblemen, assassins and queenly consorts.
Not only is this book filled with near constant action and adventure (to include an EPIC SEA BATTLE) but there’s also a pretty believable romantic sideline. You see, Ananna loves Naji. No, not wuvs. Loves. I say this because it’s realistic love and unrequited in a sometimes cringeworthy way. I thought it was really refreshing that she didn’t think everything he did was magic, that she could still recognize when he was being a prick and want to slap him upside the head for it.
Okay, I’ve run out of words. This book is awesome. You should read it.
You know a book is good when you try to think of how to do it justice in a review and all you can come up with is something like this:
Since I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review I’ll try to abstain from that and use actual words to describe its epicness.
The first book, The Assassin's Curse, ends with our main character, Ananna, stranded on the spooky, mist shrouded Isles of the Sky with Naji, the perma-grumpy assassin forced to protect her because of the curse he incurred while trying to kill her. Oh the irony.
They learn that in order to break the curse he has to complete three impossible tasks:
The first; experience true love’s kiss.
The second; hold the princess’s starstones.
The third; create life out of violence.
This book follows them on their journey to complete these tasks and during their travels they go from the Isles of the Sky to the high seas, a dust swept desert, a magic filled jungle and an underwater city that can only be described as Atlantian.
The main character is a foul mouthed pirate who has a propensity for words like 'ain’t' and occasionally speaks in half formed sentences. She’s gruff, likes a spot (or two or three or four) of rum and only feels at ease with shipboards swaying beneath her feet. Her poor English could have been annoying if not properly executed but I thought that in this case, it totally hit the mark. Also, only her speaking parts and internal monologue follow this theme. What’s written in observance and occurrence is beautifully done and makes up for her lack of eloquence in my opinion.
The way Clarke paints the support characters and the cities and shores Ananna and Naji visit through analogies is both understated and elegant. I loved that she could use just a sentence or two to describe someone and yet somehow I had a perfectly formed picture in my mind of WHO that person was from the wrinkles on their sun-darkened face to the tatters in their salt-stained clothing to the slyness of their mind.
And speaking of characters. As soon as I saw this book I found myself wondering what that creepy human-lion-scorpion-batwing creature on the cover was and how it would come into play. It’s a manticore. No big deal. It also eats humans and is trapped on the Isles of the Sky with Ana and Naji in the beginning. Her name is Ongraygeeomryn. Try to say it three times fast. Hell, try to properly pronounce it once. They strike a deal with her that she won’t eat them if they take her back home. I absolutely loved her. She was bloodthirsty, blunt and my favorite support character by far. I hope she shows up again in the later books.
I don’t want to get into too much detail about the plot because I feel like almost everything I want to say would be borderline spoilery. What I will say is that during their journeys you meet some old friends from the first book but also pick up some new ones along the way until the group they travel with forms into a motley crew of pirates, noblemen, assassins and queenly consorts.
Not only is this book filled with near constant action and adventure (to include an EPIC SEA BATTLE) but there’s also a pretty believable romantic sideline. You see, Ananna loves Naji. No, not wuvs. Loves. I say this because it’s realistic love and unrequited in a sometimes cringeworthy way. I thought it was really refreshing that she didn’t think everything he did was magic, that she could still recognize when he was being a prick and want to slap him upside the head for it.
Okay, I’ve run out of words. This book is awesome. You should read it.
May 17, 2016
You people! Yes, I am back.
It is finally time for me to review The Pirate's Wish. I cannot hide that I was a teeny tiny bit disappointed in this book: while it was still highly enjoyable, it lacked that extra something that made me love The Assassin's Curse so much. And yet, this duology is definitely what I would recommend for an entertaining and engaging read, and I look forward to reading more of Ms. Clarke's work.
This series reminded me slightly of the Ruby Red trilogy, probably because of how light-hearted and fun it was (even though The Assassin's Curse is, in my opinion, a much better series) and the second installment introduced us to new characters and new goals. To finally get rid of the curse that bound him to Ananna, Naji had to complete three seemingly impossible tasks.
Now, I've always loved the idea of a hero that must complete some perilous tasks in order to achieve a goal. From Hercules to Feyre from ACOTAR, this kind of thing always makes me feel excited, and I was disappointed to see that in The Pirate's Wish the whole business ended up being quite underwhelming.
There was way less action than in the first book, and while I still decided to give this book three stars, I think a lot of things could have been handled better. Not only Naji's three tasks, but especially the relationship between him and Ananna and, ultimately, Ananna's character development.
I absolutely hate it when authors set up silly misunderstandings that keep two characters from being together, and while Clarke did not go all the way there... she almost did, which annoyed me to no end. Luckily, I never fell out of love with Naji, that for me will always have the mysterious charm of a silent and dangerous assassin, but I did have some problems with Ananna, despite having loved her in the first book. She was still headstrong and independent, but all her pining over Naji often made her sound annoying and whiny. While I do appreciate that hers was kind of an unrequited love at first, which is quite unheard of in YA (especially when it's the heroine that is pining over the hero), I also think that we spent way too much time in Ananna's head. Yes, I get it, you're in love with the guy, and it sucks that he doesn't return your feelings. But please, stop feeling sorry for yourself. So, yeah, I have mixed feelings about Ananna, but I still wanted her and Naji to be together, so at least this whole thing didn't completely ruin it for me.
As I mentioned before, The Pirate's Wish had a slower pacing than The Assassin's Curse, only to turn out pretty rushed at the end. I've already said several times that I really enjoy journey books, so that aspect is always more than fine by me, but I was expecting something a little bit... more. On the other hand, I really appreciated the F/F relationship in this book. Marjani's preference for women was never treated as a big deal, and not only do we need more same-sex relationships in YA, but we need more same-sex relationships that do not follow the angsty-and-painful stereotype.
However, the thing I enjoyed the most about this book was the way it ended. It was a beautiful and original way to end the series, and I'm glad that the author decided to make a brave choice and go against all clichés.
It is finally time for me to review The Pirate's Wish. I cannot hide that I was a teeny tiny bit disappointed in this book: while it was still highly enjoyable, it lacked that extra something that made me love The Assassin's Curse so much. And yet, this duology is definitely what I would recommend for an entertaining and engaging read, and I look forward to reading more of Ms. Clarke's work.
This series reminded me slightly of the Ruby Red trilogy, probably because of how light-hearted and fun it was (even though The Assassin's Curse is, in my opinion, a much better series) and the second installment introduced us to new characters and new goals. To finally get rid of the curse that bound him to Ananna, Naji had to complete three seemingly impossible tasks.
Now, I've always loved the idea of a hero that must complete some perilous tasks in order to achieve a goal. From Hercules to Feyre from ACOTAR, this kind of thing always makes me feel excited, and I was disappointed to see that in The Pirate's Wish the whole business ended up being quite underwhelming.
There was way less action than in the first book, and while I still decided to give this book three stars, I think a lot of things could have been handled better. Not only Naji's three tasks, but especially the relationship between him and Ananna and, ultimately, Ananna's character development.
I absolutely hate it when authors set up silly misunderstandings that keep two characters from being together, and while Clarke did not go all the way there... she almost did, which annoyed me to no end. Luckily, I never fell out of love with Naji, that for me will always have the mysterious charm of a silent and dangerous assassin, but I did have some problems with Ananna, despite having loved her in the first book. She was still headstrong and independent, but all her pining over Naji often made her sound annoying and whiny. While I do appreciate that hers was kind of an unrequited love at first, which is quite unheard of in YA (especially when it's the heroine that is pining over the hero), I also think that we spent way too much time in Ananna's head. Yes, I get it, you're in love with the guy, and it sucks that he doesn't return your feelings. But please, stop feeling sorry for yourself. So, yeah, I have mixed feelings about Ananna, but I still wanted her and Naji to be together, so at least this whole thing didn't completely ruin it for me.
As I mentioned before, The Pirate's Wish had a slower pacing than The Assassin's Curse, only to turn out pretty rushed at the end. I've already said several times that I really enjoy journey books, so that aspect is always more than fine by me, but I was expecting something a little bit... more. On the other hand, I really appreciated the F/F relationship in this book. Marjani's preference for women was never treated as a big deal, and not only do we need more same-sex relationships in YA, but we need more same-sex relationships that do not follow the angsty-and-painful stereotype.
However, the thing I enjoyed the most about this book was the way it ended. It was a beautiful and original way to end the series, and I'm glad that the author decided to make a brave choice and go against all clichés.
"So we really are creatures of magic."
"Magic and the sea," Naji said. "And yourselves, given the time."
March 26, 2015
3.75/5 stars
I really really enjoyed this Duology. It's not without its problems and issues, but overall it was wonderful!
I really really enjoyed this Duology. It's not without its problems and issues, but overall it was wonderful!
June 4, 2013
Cover update! Isn't it gorgeous?
May 9, 2013
The Assassin's Curse was one of my favorite books I read last year. It blew me away with its originality and creativity, and it had me wishing there were pirates and assassins in every YA high fantasy. So when Strange Chemistry emailed me about digital copies of The Pirate's Wish on NetGalley, I freaked out. I NEEDED this book to be good. And it so was!
Cassandra Rose Clarke has written two books that are crazy original. A lot of high fantasy (specifically in YA) is really similar - medieval-esque setting, a big prophesy, a "Chosen One," and lots of sword fighting. But Clarke gave us something else - pirates, an underwater kingdom, a talking minotaur that has immaculate manners, and a hero who's crazy hot, despite being disfigured. The originality is definitely still here, and it's so refreshing!
My favorite character in this series is totally the minotaur. She. Is. Hysterical. All her scenes were the best, and I seriously wanted her to be in the entire book (which, sadly, she is not). I also really love Ananna and Naji, who are both so different than other YA characters I've read.
The adventure is great too! I loved all the battles and the cities they visit and the journey of curing Naji of his curse. I never knew where the group was headed next or how Clarke was going to wrap everything up in the end. And while the ending isn't necessarily final, it's satisfying.
Something I feel like needs to be mentioned is the romance. It's NOT your traditional YA romance; nor does it end the way you think it's going to. I've read some early reviews, and there seems to be some discontent with the romance as a whole. But I liked it, and honestly, how could we expect anything traditional from Clarke, who has broken all conventions so far? I think the romance fits the book really well, even if it isn't necessarily pretty and perfect and wrapped up in the end. Also, I kind of like the whole girl-yearning-for-boy-who-doesn't-like-her-back thing. That's such a universal thing, and I think Clarke balanced that well.
I always have a hard time expressing my thoughts on a book I really liked, so I'll just end by saying that this was a satisfying conclusion to The Assassin's Curse duology. A part of me wanted there to be another book, just so I could stay in this world some more, but I'll just have to content myself with the companion duology that Clarke is writing.
Loved this book. Loved this series. Definitely an author I'll be reading more from!
Cassandra Rose Clarke has written two books that are crazy original. A lot of high fantasy (specifically in YA) is really similar - medieval-esque setting, a big prophesy, a "Chosen One," and lots of sword fighting. But Clarke gave us something else - pirates, an underwater kingdom, a talking minotaur that has immaculate manners, and a hero who's crazy hot, despite being disfigured. The originality is definitely still here, and it's so refreshing!
My favorite character in this series is totally the minotaur. She. Is. Hysterical. All her scenes were the best, and I seriously wanted her to be in the entire book (which, sadly, she is not). I also really love Ananna and Naji, who are both so different than other YA characters I've read.
The adventure is great too! I loved all the battles and the cities they visit and the journey of curing Naji of his curse. I never knew where the group was headed next or how Clarke was going to wrap everything up in the end. And while the ending isn't necessarily final, it's satisfying.
Something I feel like needs to be mentioned is the romance. It's NOT your traditional YA romance; nor does it end the way you think it's going to. I've read some early reviews, and there seems to be some discontent with the romance as a whole. But I liked it, and honestly, how could we expect anything traditional from Clarke, who has broken all conventions so far? I think the romance fits the book really well, even if it isn't necessarily pretty and perfect and wrapped up in the end. Also, I kind of like the whole girl-yearning-for-boy-who-doesn't-like-her-back thing. That's such a universal thing, and I think Clarke balanced that well.
I always have a hard time expressing my thoughts on a book I really liked, so I'll just end by saying that this was a satisfying conclusion to The Assassin's Curse duology. A part of me wanted there to be another book, just so I could stay in this world some more, but I'll just have to content myself with the companion duology that Clarke is writing.
Loved this book. Loved this series. Definitely an author I'll be reading more from!
April 5, 2013
Rating: 2.5 Stars
It seems to be a trend this year that every series finale disappoints me, in one way or another. As such, it was probably foolish of me to expect any better from The Pirate's Wish, but I did. I had high expectations for this novel - very high expectations - and while I certainly enjoyed the quick read it provided, it isn't the memorable novel that its predecessor was. And, frankly, I think this conclusion could have been better - a lot better - but I suspect that those thoughts belong solely with me. If The Pirate's Wish hadn't resorted to using some of the classic trends I dislike, perhaps this novel would have worked out better for me. Perhaps.
The Pirate's Wish starts off directly where The Assassin's Curse ends with Ananna and Naji stranded on an island, waiting for their pirate friend, Marjani, to pick them up so they can somehow break the curse Naji is under. Within the first three chapters of this book itself, a few important events occur that more-or-less chart the course for this novel and, consequently, my enjoyment of it. First and foremost, Ananna finds and befriends a manticore, striking a deal to deliver her back to her homeland if she refuses to eat Ananna or Naji. While the friendship between this protagonist and mythical beast cannot rival those in other novels such as Stormdancer, it is a cute addition to the tale that I found myself greatly enjoying. It is then, though, that the manticore convinces Ananna to kiss Naji in his sleep, thereby fulfilling one of the three tasks they must complete. And Ananna does. And, at that point, all hell breaks loose.
What The Pirate's Wish has in plentifold is creativity, action, and drama. Clarke continues to amaze me when it comes to the sheer span of imagination she has. Like its predecessor, this installment continues to impress in terms of world-building, magic, and new faces and realms both. Additionally, with a crew of pirates, action is never far behind and, once again, I greatly enjoyed this feature. Yet, side-by-side with these is a rather heavy dose of drama. Ananna, from the beginning of this novel itself, is cast as a heroine facing unrequited love and, as such, her mood swings and feelings for Naji are constantly changing - enough to give me a headache. Although Ananna is still the headstrong heroine we fell in love with in The Assassin's Curse, she has a new, mopier side to her too that we now get to see. Yay. -.-
Quite honestly, Ananna is the sole reason I was so disappointed with this novel. Although I sympathize with Ananna's situation, I wish that her character could have grown from this event, not remained static. Ananna could have developed to be the type of protagonist who doesn't allow a small set-back to overturn her life, but unfortunately, that isn't the case. Ananna makes a big deal out of Naji not loving her back, constantly putting herself down and jumping to the conclusion that no man can ever love her. Furthermore, she resorts to childish behavior, ignoring Naji and taking every opportunity she has to flirt with other men in an effort to make him jealous. Not only is this a typical trend in literature, it's one I've grown exasperated with. All the more, I wish the purpose of The Pirate's Wish was to convey to readers that girls can be headstrong and find meaning in life from themselves or others around them, not men. While Ananna does have some very interesting conversations with Marjani (fine, one to be exact), none of this courage is exhibited through her actions and she relies on Naji to feel good about herself, all throughout the novel. Folks, I cannot tell you how much it physically pains me to see a bright, strong, and ambitious girl reliant on a man to feel happy. Physical. Pain.
Yet, Clarke continues to use very standard tropes when it comes to the romance in this novel. As a fantasy author, she relies on magic to mysteriously throw her characters together instead of conversation or character development. While there continues to be plenty of tension between Ananna and Naji, when you strip away the magic, all that's left are two vulnerable, shy people who lack the faith in themselves to approach one another. In fact, if this was a contemporary novel, Ananna and Naji wouldn't even have found love together. Without the element of magic in their lives to bind them and tell them what they can't tell each other, their story would fail to move forward. Granted, this is a fantasy series and as an author, Clarke has the full capability to do what she wants with her stories, but what this does for me as a reader is cheapen the actual relationship as it fails to build upon a foundation of friendship or conversation. If you'd ask me how invested I was in this relationship after The Assassin's Curse, my praise would likely know no stopping point but that excitement gradually declined over the course of this story. Without much conversation, this love story fell flat for me.
In fact, the best part about it was within the last chapter, but by then I'm afraid this book was too far gone to salvage my disappointed heart. Nevertheless, The Pirate's Curse is an action-packed follow-up novel that I am confident many readers will love. Unfortunately, I'm simply not one of them.
It seems to be a trend this year that every series finale disappoints me, in one way or another. As such, it was probably foolish of me to expect any better from The Pirate's Wish, but I did. I had high expectations for this novel - very high expectations - and while I certainly enjoyed the quick read it provided, it isn't the memorable novel that its predecessor was. And, frankly, I think this conclusion could have been better - a lot better - but I suspect that those thoughts belong solely with me. If The Pirate's Wish hadn't resorted to using some of the classic trends I dislike, perhaps this novel would have worked out better for me. Perhaps.
The Pirate's Wish starts off directly where The Assassin's Curse ends with Ananna and Naji stranded on an island, waiting for their pirate friend, Marjani, to pick them up so they can somehow break the curse Naji is under. Within the first three chapters of this book itself, a few important events occur that more-or-less chart the course for this novel and, consequently, my enjoyment of it. First and foremost, Ananna finds and befriends a manticore, striking a deal to deliver her back to her homeland if she refuses to eat Ananna or Naji. While the friendship between this protagonist and mythical beast cannot rival those in other novels such as Stormdancer, it is a cute addition to the tale that I found myself greatly enjoying. It is then, though, that the manticore convinces Ananna to kiss Naji in his sleep, thereby fulfilling one of the three tasks they must complete. And Ananna does. And, at that point, all hell breaks loose.
What The Pirate's Wish has in plentifold is creativity, action, and drama. Clarke continues to amaze me when it comes to the sheer span of imagination she has. Like its predecessor, this installment continues to impress in terms of world-building, magic, and new faces and realms both. Additionally, with a crew of pirates, action is never far behind and, once again, I greatly enjoyed this feature. Yet, side-by-side with these is a rather heavy dose of drama. Ananna, from the beginning of this novel itself, is cast as a heroine facing unrequited love and, as such, her mood swings and feelings for Naji are constantly changing - enough to give me a headache. Although Ananna is still the headstrong heroine we fell in love with in The Assassin's Curse, she has a new, mopier side to her too that we now get to see. Yay. -.-
Quite honestly, Ananna is the sole reason I was so disappointed with this novel. Although I sympathize with Ananna's situation, I wish that her character could have grown from this event, not remained static. Ananna could have developed to be the type of protagonist who doesn't allow a small set-back to overturn her life, but unfortunately, that isn't the case. Ananna makes a big deal out of Naji not loving her back, constantly putting herself down and jumping to the conclusion that no man can ever love her. Furthermore, she resorts to childish behavior, ignoring Naji and taking every opportunity she has to flirt with other men in an effort to make him jealous. Not only is this a typical trend in literature, it's one I've grown exasperated with. All the more, I wish the purpose of The Pirate's Wish was to convey to readers that girls can be headstrong and find meaning in life from themselves or others around them, not men. While Ananna does have some very interesting conversations with Marjani (fine, one to be exact), none of this courage is exhibited through her actions and she relies on Naji to feel good about herself, all throughout the novel. Folks, I cannot tell you how much it physically pains me to see a bright, strong, and ambitious girl reliant on a man to feel happy. Physical. Pain.
Yet, Clarke continues to use very standard tropes when it comes to the romance in this novel. As a fantasy author, she relies on magic to mysteriously throw her characters together instead of conversation or character development. While there continues to be plenty of tension between Ananna and Naji, when you strip away the magic, all that's left are two vulnerable, shy people who lack the faith in themselves to approach one another. In fact, if this was a contemporary novel, Ananna and Naji wouldn't even have found love together. Without the element of magic in their lives to bind them and tell them what they can't tell each other, their story would fail to move forward. Granted, this is a fantasy series and as an author, Clarke has the full capability to do what she wants with her stories, but what this does for me as a reader is cheapen the actual relationship as it fails to build upon a foundation of friendship or conversation. If you'd ask me how invested I was in this relationship after The Assassin's Curse, my praise would likely know no stopping point but that excitement gradually declined over the course of this story. Without much conversation, this love story fell flat for me.
In fact, the best part about it was within the last chapter, but by then I'm afraid this book was too far gone to salvage my disappointed heart. Nevertheless, The Pirate's Curse is an action-packed follow-up novel that I am confident many readers will love. Unfortunately, I'm simply not one of them.
January 3, 2016
4,5 stars
Who would've guessed that I'm going to love this book so much? Yes,it had many flaws but I don't know...I just really felt the pain the characters where in and the story was really interesting.I kind of got really attached to Ananna,even though I didn't like her that much in the first part of this duology.Marjani and the Manticore were fantastic supporting characters and I loved Ananna's parents too.I love the way Naji is portrayed - he still wants to be accepted and to have someone who will love him no matter what,even though he's an assassin.The ending was...different? I actually liked it and think that Cassandra Clarke did a great job wrapping up the story nicely.
Who would've guessed that I'm going to love this book so much? Yes,it had many flaws but I don't know...I just really felt the pain the characters where in and the story was really interesting.I kind of got really attached to Ananna,even though I didn't like her that much in the first part of this duology.Marjani and the Manticore were fantastic supporting characters and I loved Ananna's parents too.I love the way Naji is portrayed - he still wants to be accepted and to have someone who will love him no matter what,even though he's an assassin.The ending was...different? I actually liked it and think that Cassandra Clarke did a great job wrapping up the story nicely.
Want to read
January 23, 2013Together, Naji and Ananna must break the curse, escape their enemies — and come to terms with their growing romantic attraction.
EXCUSE ME.
What 'romantic tension' are you talking about?
Ananna and Naji never even had any in the first place. I have more sexual tension with my fish.
I still want to read this, though.
EXCUSE ME.
What 'romantic tension' are you talking about?
Ananna and Naji never even had any in the first place. I have more sexual tension with my fish.
June 1, 2013
While I wasn’t the biggest fan of The Assassin’s Curse, not even close, I was still very much looking forward to The Pirate’s Wish. If there’s one thing I admire about Clarke, it’s that you never know what to expect with one of her books. She takes risks and they usually pay off.
Compared to The Assassin’s Curse, The Pirate’s Wish showed significant improvement in narrative structure. While the first book started had a promising start, only to flatline after the first few scenes, The Assassin’s Curse had a solid beginning, a thrilling climax and a satisfying ending. Just like before, Ananna’s world is enthralling, but Clarke makes it even better this time. Her deftly crafted world expands further to include more magnificent creatures, more sea battles and magical objects.
However, somehow, somewhere along the line, the feisty, courageous, unique Ananna was lost. In her place, The Pirate’s Wish brings an almost unrecognizable, surly, petulant girl. The Ananna we all remember would never allow a boy to turn her into a whiny mess, but this Ananna, the new version, did exactly that. The insecurities that made her more charming before weren’t nearly as cute and relatable this time around.
It was odd how the two switched places. I didn’t much care for Naji in the first book, but here he was the more reasonable of the two, even when he was too afraid to admit his feelings. In the end, I didn’t understand where his change of heart came from. By the time he admitted it, there was nothing even remotely likeable left in Ananna. Just like I didn’t understand what she saw in him before, now I couldn’t see why he would want to be with her. I suppose it’s safe to say that Clarke’s romances just don’t work for me, and I can’t pinpoint exactly why. The best I can tell you is that it has something to do with the timing, and the amount of damage each of the characters does to the relationship before it even starts.
Those who were bothered by the language in the first book might be a bit more relaxed this time. I, on the other hand, missed Clarke’s experiments. Ananna’s language was still far from polished, but it wasn’t nearly as pronounced as before.
If you enjoy adventures that are anything but formulaic, I highly recommend this duology. Even if it is far from perfect, it’s undeniably a much needed breath of fresh air in young adult literature.
Compared to The Assassin’s Curse, The Pirate’s Wish showed significant improvement in narrative structure. While the first book started had a promising start, only to flatline after the first few scenes, The Assassin’s Curse had a solid beginning, a thrilling climax and a satisfying ending. Just like before, Ananna’s world is enthralling, but Clarke makes it even better this time. Her deftly crafted world expands further to include more magnificent creatures, more sea battles and magical objects.
However, somehow, somewhere along the line, the feisty, courageous, unique Ananna was lost. In her place, The Pirate’s Wish brings an almost unrecognizable, surly, petulant girl. The Ananna we all remember would never allow a boy to turn her into a whiny mess, but this Ananna, the new version, did exactly that. The insecurities that made her more charming before weren’t nearly as cute and relatable this time around.
It was odd how the two switched places. I didn’t much care for Naji in the first book, but here he was the more reasonable of the two, even when he was too afraid to admit his feelings. In the end, I didn’t understand where his change of heart came from. By the time he admitted it, there was nothing even remotely likeable left in Ananna. Just like I didn’t understand what she saw in him before, now I couldn’t see why he would want to be with her. I suppose it’s safe to say that Clarke’s romances just don’t work for me, and I can’t pinpoint exactly why. The best I can tell you is that it has something to do with the timing, and the amount of damage each of the characters does to the relationship before it even starts.
Those who were bothered by the language in the first book might be a bit more relaxed this time. I, on the other hand, missed Clarke’s experiments. Ananna’s language was still far from polished, but it wasn’t nearly as pronounced as before.
If you enjoy adventures that are anything but formulaic, I highly recommend this duology. Even if it is far from perfect, it’s undeniably a much needed breath of fresh air in young adult literature.
March 11, 2019
*2 DISAPPOINTED STARS*
“For the first time, I understood the difference between leaving and not staying. It was the difference between a snarl and a smile.”
Well, this was unfortunately another no for me.
I hoped the second book in this series would be better than the first, since I usually love anything that has to do with pirates, but I just didn’t connect to any of the characters, nor did the story make any sense to me. The character I liked the most was the freaking manticore with a name that’s impossible to pronounce.
I found Ananna and Naji annoying, especially the way they acted towards each other. Frankly, their ‘love’ just wasn’t believable at all.
There was just no depth at all, not to the characters, nor the story and the romance.
“For the first time, I understood the difference between leaving and not staying. It was the difference between a snarl and a smile.”
Well, this was unfortunately another no for me.
I hoped the second book in this series would be better than the first, since I usually love anything that has to do with pirates, but I just didn’t connect to any of the characters, nor did the story make any sense to me. The character I liked the most was the freaking manticore with a name that’s impossible to pronounce.
I found Ananna and Naji annoying, especially the way they acted towards each other. Frankly, their ‘love’ just wasn’t believable at all.
There was just no depth at all, not to the characters, nor the story and the romance.
January 24, 2015
I plan on doing a series review! AHHHHH it was so good!
June 10, 2015
Assassins aren't scared of gifs – a review for pure fun by Cee
Ananna played by Rachel Weisz
- I thought about The Mummy a lot because of the desert in The Assassin's Curse. The Pirate's Wish is more about the ships and sea. Real pirate stuff.
- The difference between Eve and Ananna is that Eve is totally badass.
Naji played by Sebastain Stan
- I kept picturing the Winter Soldier as Naji haha
- THE MASK. THE MASK.
Even though there is more of this . . .
. . . there is also more of this.
My favorite character is the female manticore.
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“I thought he returned your affection. Humans seem to care about happiness. I wished to gift some to you. In exchange for combing my mane.”
I scowled. “You had me do it so you could eat him.”
“Well, yes, that too.”
All in all, I like The Pirate's Wish more than The Assassin's Curse.
Ananna played by Rachel Weisz
- I thought about The Mummy a lot because of the desert in The Assassin's Curse. The Pirate's Wish is more about the ships and sea. Real pirate stuff.
- The difference between Eve and Ananna is that Eve is totally badass.
Naji played by Sebastain Stan
- I kept picturing the Winter Soldier as Naji haha
- THE MASK. THE MASK.
Even though there is more of this . . .
. . . there is also more of this.
My favorite character is the female manticore.
credit
credit
credit
“I thought he returned your affection. Humans seem to care about happiness. I wished to gift some to you. In exchange for combing my mane.”
I scowled. “You had me do it so you could eat him.”
“Well, yes, that too.”
All in all, I like The Pirate's Wish more than The Assassin's Curse.
March 4, 2018
To be honest, I had none because of disastrous part one! This one has even more weaker points which I suppose I have to list down. *sighs*
Weak villainous aspects - Check!
Concoction of science fiction + mythological beasts + magic realism + forced romance - Check!
LANGUAGE! - Check! (**I seriously struggled through it!)
Totally vague surprising elements -Check!
Baseless Storyline - Check!
Poorer World Building - Check!
Concept: 2.0/5.0
Execution: 2.0/5.0
Characters Bespoken: 2.5 /5.0
Cover: 3.0/5.0
Overall: 2.5/5.0
Start of the Story! - So, the pineapple opps I mean Ananna and Assassin Naji travelled throughout to get cure for the curse. They fought, failed at times, won at times, wavered in between(*like a lot), ended up with forced romance and then ultimately cured the curse. – End of the Story!
Each time I saw Pineapple’s I mean Ananna’s name this image kept nagging me:
And:
P.S.: Ummm! Nothing!
January 18, 2016
I forgot to review this so I will do it while this is still fresh in my mind.
I am so in love with this duology. I just adored it dearly. The writing in this one felt easier and better than in the first book but man oh man I love this series!!
I just have nothing more to say honestly it's such a fun action packed series about a pirate and an assassin.
4 stars only though because I don't like how convenient the resolution to this story was. and the underwater scene was really out of place and didn't fit the tone of the novel as well but really otherwise I did genuinely love this conclusion to the story. I'm a bit sad it's over though :( I've heard she wrote another book in this world but I cannot find it.
Around The Year in 52 Books Challenge #23 - The next book in a series you're currently reading
I am so in love with this duology. I just adored it dearly. The writing in this one felt easier and better than in the first book but man oh man I love this series!!
I just have nothing more to say honestly it's such a fun action packed series about a pirate and an assassin.
4 stars only though because I don't like how convenient the resolution to this story was. and the underwater scene was really out of place and didn't fit the tone of the novel as well but really otherwise I did genuinely love this conclusion to the story. I'm a bit sad it's over though :( I've heard she wrote another book in this world but I cannot find it.
Around The Year in 52 Books Challenge #23 - The next book in a series you're currently reading
August 22, 2019
Ugh, I wanted more from this series!
This book had the same problems of the first one but I ended up enjoying the story a little bit more.
The ending wasn't totally satisfying. An epilogue was needed.
This book had the same problems of the first one but I ended up enjoying the story a little bit more.
The ending wasn't totally satisfying. An epilogue was needed.
April 6, 2013
Warning: Many teasers in the review.
I have some very conflicting feelings about this book. The rational side of my mind says,"That is so expended" but the reader in me snarls back in contempt,"That's what makes it so awesomesauce. Using so many cliches and still managing to produce a very, very fine book is the mark of some fairly clever author skills."
And my final verdict is to kick out the annoying rational side. I did have problems with this book but nothing that thirteen hours deep sleep and a rather tamed nightmare can't wash out.
Let's catch up, shall we?
Ananna of The Tanarau was to marry some bastard from the Hariri clan. She runs away but they send an assassin after her. However, she accidentally saves his life(which, ladies, you should never do even if he's cursed like our dear Naji). But the assassin once pissed of a sadistic witch and she dropped a curse on him, which stops him from hurting Ananna or getting her hurt. They try to seek out a cure and in the process get stuck on an island that is as magical as can be, so of course, it's also very dangerous and very, very alive. Plus, there is also the powerful yet useless wizard whom they manage to piss off after he tells them that the cure of the curse is the fulfillment of three impossible tasks.
~touching a starstone to his skin
~creating life out of violence
~kissing his true love
But... the impossible tasks are even more impossible because these two are marooned on the island. And Ananna realizes that one of these three tasks isn't impossible, after all.
Oh, well.
The Pirate's Wish picks up from there.
Ananna is volatile as ever. Her actions in this book leave a lot to be desired. But if she weren't so, she wouldn't be Ananna. She is one of the few teenagers who will brandish a sword if their beloved doesn't reciprocate her feelings. Her behavior is very piss-off-able and could be the cause of much vexation, unless, like me, you love her all the same.
I appreciate that Cassandra Rose Clarke is not one for swooning. There's a lot of swooning and mooning from Ananna but there are other characters to set her straight and tell her in no uncertain terms that mooning is just one letter short of moroning.
So many practical and no-bullshit people make me giddy.
The book is so disney-fairy-tale-ish, minus the excessive sexism and prince-charming-ism and distressed-damsel-ism. It's even whimsical at times, with armored sharks and an alchemical/soothsayer octopus. There are boons granted*, a few pirate fights, manticore royalty, lesbian queens and the like. The story is also very simplistic and straightforward. Even the curse which is supposed to be riddling solves itself out due to the whole action-reaction law of Einstein. It just jumps from one point to the other, and doesn't require a lot of brain-racking.
The world is delectable as ever with a barrage of difficult and weird names. Many new characters and some old ones. Yay for Jokjana(people of Jokja) and yay for snakehearts!
The romantic aspect of the book is meh, IMO. Ananna's feelings seemed genuine but on the other hand, his were just too abrupt. And I'd have loved for him to clear things up a bit more.
And let's put it out there: While I could see the book taking off in another direction and giving us an even less traditional ending, I still love this a tad-bit-less-traditional happily-ever-after. I wish more high-fanatsy books would join the rank.
Ananna is now right up there with Alanna in my list of favorite heroines from the fantasy realm.
Such a fun and easy ride.
However, I still like The Assassin's Curse better even though by my complex and scientific(and accurate) calculations, this book should be better. Have a look at it for yourself.
Assassin= Sa-chan= Not cool.
Pirate= Monkey D. Luffy= Very cool.
The science is so obvious. :/
*Note: You should never accept a boon from a manticore, or rather, don't let them grant you one of their own accord. Make the wish yourself or you'll be very sorry.
Much love to the publishers for providing a copy.
More reviews on my blog.
I have some very conflicting feelings about this book. The rational side of my mind says,"That is so expended" but the reader in me snarls back in contempt,"That's what makes it so awesomesauce. Using so many cliches and still managing to produce a very, very fine book is the mark of some fairly clever author skills."
And my final verdict is to kick out the annoying rational side. I did have problems with this book but nothing that thirteen hours deep sleep and a rather tamed nightmare can't wash out.
Let's catch up, shall we?
Ananna of The Tanarau was to marry some bastard from the Hariri clan. She runs away but they send an assassin after her. However, she accidentally saves his life(which, ladies, you should never do even if he's cursed like our dear Naji). But the assassin once pissed of a sadistic witch and she dropped a curse on him, which stops him from hurting Ananna or getting her hurt. They try to seek out a cure and in the process get stuck on an island that is as magical as can be, so of course, it's also very dangerous and very, very alive. Plus, there is also the powerful yet useless wizard whom they manage to piss off after he tells them that the cure of the curse is the fulfillment of three impossible tasks.
~touching a starstone to his skin
~creating life out of violence
~kissing his true love
But... the impossible tasks are even more impossible because these two are marooned on the island. And Ananna realizes that one of these three tasks isn't impossible, after all.
Oh, well.
The Pirate's Wish picks up from there.
Ananna is volatile as ever. Her actions in this book leave a lot to be desired. But if she weren't so, she wouldn't be Ananna. She is one of the few teenagers who will brandish a sword if their beloved doesn't reciprocate her feelings. Her behavior is very piss-off-able and could be the cause of much vexation, unless, like me, you love her all the same.
I appreciate that Cassandra Rose Clarke is not one for swooning. There's a lot of swooning and mooning from Ananna but there are other characters to set her straight and tell her in no uncertain terms that mooning is just one letter short of moroning.
He was thinking about me,” I said, dazed.
“Shut up, girl.”
____________________
“The big deal?”
“You know.” I didn’t know how to put it into words. “How it’s supposed to feel really good, and you just… fall away…”
“Oh, that.” Marjani laughed again. “You know you don’t need Naji for that. Or anyone.”
____________________
“...I don’t want to see a single misty-eyed glance his way, do you understand?... and I have neither the patience nor the inclination to put up with a heartsick child.”
So many practical and no-bullshit people make me giddy.
The book is so disney-fairy-tale-ish, minus the excessive sexism and prince-charming-ism and distressed-damsel-ism. It's even whimsical at times, with armored sharks and an alchemical/soothsayer octopus. There are boons granted*, a few pirate fights, manticore royalty, lesbian queens and the like. The story is also very simplistic and straightforward. Even the curse which is supposed to be riddling solves itself out due to the whole action-reaction law of Einstein. It just jumps from one point to the other, and doesn't require a lot of brain-racking.
The world is delectable as ever with a barrage of difficult and weird names. Many new characters and some old ones. Yay for Jokjana(people of Jokja) and yay for snakehearts!
The romantic aspect of the book is meh, IMO. Ananna's feelings seemed genuine but on the other hand, his were just too abrupt. And I'd have loved for him to clear things up a bit more.
And let's put it out there: While I could see the book taking off in another direction and giving us an even less traditional ending, I still love this a tad-bit-less-traditional happily-ever-after. I wish more high-fanatsy books would join the rank.
Ananna is now right up there with Alanna in my list of favorite heroines from the fantasy realm.
Such a fun and easy ride.
However, I still like The Assassin's Curse better even though by my complex and scientific(and accurate) calculations, this book should be better. Have a look at it for yourself.
Assassin= Sa-chan= Not cool.
Pirate= Monkey D. Luffy= Very cool.
The science is so obvious. :/
*Note: You should never accept a boon from a manticore, or rather, don't let them grant you one of their own accord. Make the wish yourself or you'll be very sorry.
Much love to the publishers for providing a copy.
More reviews on my blog.
September 26, 2016
I really enjoyed the Main Character, she was snarky, loud with the mouth of a sailor and she can bring it in a fight.
The story had romance, humor, realistic believable characters, magic and unique worlds. The ending was a little too neat but that was really the only flaw for me.
I missed much of the back story behind these characters, having not read book 1. There was a brief review but I want to know the story better. I will reread this after reading it and I'm sure I'll love it more.
The story had romance, humor, realistic believable characters, magic and unique worlds. The ending was a little too neat but that was really the only flaw for me.
I missed much of the back story behind these characters, having not read book 1. There was a brief review but I want to know the story better. I will reread this after reading it and I'm sure I'll love it more.
August 9, 2016
CAUTION: spoilers
Book 2 wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be after reading a negative review. Make no mistake. The book was bad, but it was not insufferably bad. I credit my endurance to my love of manga.
+ the characters
Ananna was a complete brat. I went from liking her in book 1 to hating her in book 2 in one second. She showed no appreciation for the food Naji brought to her, the concern he showed for her, or protection he provided for her. She whined about everything. She threw a tantrum virtually in every chapter.
Hell, immediately in the beginning the reader could see how cold hearted she was when she showed no grief over Eirnin’s death, the wizard who was helping her survive on the deadly island. The wizard may have been amoral and catfighting with her love interest, but he was nice enough to overlook Naji and help Ananna regardless. All that goodwill, and not a fucking shred of grief. She even went on to befriend Eirnin’s killer. I wanted to push the brat off a cliff.
I was shocked how quickly and how well Ananna and Eirnin’s killer got along. Not only did the killer kill Eirnin, she was also a man-eating beast. Or perhaps it said a lot that only someone like Ananna could be friends with a man-eating beast. As they say, birds of a feather flock together.
The only reason I could tolerate Ananna was because she was a classic tsundere. Tsundere is a common trope in manga, especially in the harem type. When one reads as much manga as I do, one inevitably builds tolerance for tsunderes. It’s either that or give up manga altogether (not a chance in hell).
Naji was the most pitiful character in the story, never mind that he was an assassin with rare, powerful blood magic. Afflicted with a curse, abused by Ananna, stuck on a godforsaken island, bedeviled by supernaturals from another dimension, enslaved eternally to an order of assassins, ostracized because of his scary magic. Could his life be more miserable?
I totally understood why Naji was always stoic. How else could he survive? I hated how he never got compensated for his suffering. Talk about no good deed goes unpunished.
some supporting characters: For a man-eating beast, Ongraygeeomryn the manticore was surprisingly high maintenance and funny. She turned out to be pretty nice. She was nicer than Ananna. Go figure.
Pirate captain Marjani and Queen Saida were wonderful. They were women of authority, queer, and in a happily renewed relationship. The book won points for feminism, diversity, and a healthy romance. Though they were only supporting characters, the pair balanced out the emotional heroine (to put it nicely) and her manly stoic love interest in terms of gender dynamics. The ladies also helped keep the angst down.
+ the plot
The plot didn’t go anywhere till the middle of the book when Ananna and her companions finally escaped the island and resumed their adventure. High points were hit and miss. For example, the scene where Marjana reunited with Saida and the one where Ananna reunited with her family both felt flat. I didn’t receive the “I love you, and I’m never letting you go out of my sight ever again.”-like reaction that I wanted.
SPOILERS.
In addition, the entire plot pivoted on dei ex machina. Apparently, one manticore is all that’s needed to conquer battleships and keep the unscrupulous in check, nevermind how outnumbered and outmatched our heroes and their very tentative allies were. The super rare starstones needed for the second impossible task to break the curse? Oh, Ananna’s family had them all along. The third and final impossible task to break the curse? Magic shamelessly pulled out of one’s ass. Even so, I didn’t give a fuck because anything that got the plot moving along and wrapping up loose ends was good apple juice. I was ready for the book to be done since chapter one.
Speaking of the ending, it stinked. Ananna and Naji finally got together only to separate because Ananna wanted to return to her pirate life and Naji had to return to slavery as an Order assassin. They said they’ll see each other again, but who the fuck are they kidding? Long distance relationships don’t work out. After all the crap they went through and what I had to put up with, the pair went back to their old lives. It rendered the series pointless.
Thankfully, the ending wasn’t as cold a slap in the face as it could have been. The relationship was abusive because of how awful Ananna was to Naji. Naji deserved better. I think the reason he came to love Ananna was because he didn’t think anyone else could love him and his life was a big pile of shit. Anyway, I found some consolation in the optimistic romance between Marjani and Saida, so it was not like I was left with completely nothing.
Conclusion
I rate The Pirate’s Wish 2-stars for it was okay. It wasn’t 1-star because I’ve read worse, and the writing was at least succinct. Thank hell the series was only a duology. If you plan to pick the series up, I strongly recommend librarying it.
Review of book 1: The Assassin's Curse
Book 2 wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be after reading a negative review. Make no mistake. The book was bad, but it was not insufferably bad. I credit my endurance to my love of manga.
+ the characters
Ananna was a complete brat. I went from liking her in book 1 to hating her in book 2 in one second. She showed no appreciation for the food Naji brought to her, the concern he showed for her, or protection he provided for her. She whined about everything. She threw a tantrum virtually in every chapter.
Hell, immediately in the beginning the reader could see how cold hearted she was when she showed no grief over Eirnin’s death, the wizard who was helping her survive on the deadly island. The wizard may have been amoral and catfighting with her love interest, but he was nice enough to overlook Naji and help Ananna regardless. All that goodwill, and not a fucking shred of grief. She even went on to befriend Eirnin’s killer. I wanted to push the brat off a cliff.
I was shocked how quickly and how well Ananna and Eirnin’s killer got along. Not only did the killer kill Eirnin, she was also a man-eating beast. Or perhaps it said a lot that only someone like Ananna could be friends with a man-eating beast. As they say, birds of a feather flock together.
The only reason I could tolerate Ananna was because she was a classic tsundere. Tsundere is a common trope in manga, especially in the harem type. When one reads as much manga as I do, one inevitably builds tolerance for tsunderes. It’s either that or give up manga altogether (not a chance in hell).
Naji was the most pitiful character in the story, never mind that he was an assassin with rare, powerful blood magic. Afflicted with a curse, abused by Ananna, stuck on a godforsaken island, bedeviled by supernaturals from another dimension, enslaved eternally to an order of assassins, ostracized because of his scary magic. Could his life be more miserable?
I totally understood why Naji was always stoic. How else could he survive? I hated how he never got compensated for his suffering. Talk about no good deed goes unpunished.
some supporting characters: For a man-eating beast, Ongraygeeomryn the manticore was surprisingly high maintenance and funny. She turned out to be pretty nice. She was nicer than Ananna. Go figure.
Pirate captain Marjani and Queen Saida were wonderful. They were women of authority, queer, and in a happily renewed relationship. The book won points for feminism, diversity, and a healthy romance. Though they were only supporting characters, the pair balanced out the emotional heroine (to put it nicely) and her manly stoic love interest in terms of gender dynamics. The ladies also helped keep the angst down.
+ the plot
The plot didn’t go anywhere till the middle of the book when Ananna and her companions finally escaped the island and resumed their adventure. High points were hit and miss. For example, the scene where Marjana reunited with Saida and the one where Ananna reunited with her family both felt flat. I didn’t receive the “I love you, and I’m never letting you go out of my sight ever again.”-like reaction that I wanted.
SPOILERS.
In addition, the entire plot pivoted on dei ex machina. Apparently, one manticore is all that’s needed to conquer battleships and keep the unscrupulous in check, nevermind how outnumbered and outmatched our heroes and their very tentative allies were. The super rare starstones needed for the second impossible task to break the curse? Oh, Ananna’s family had them all along. The third and final impossible task to break the curse? Magic shamelessly pulled out of one’s ass. Even so, I didn’t give a fuck because anything that got the plot moving along and wrapping up loose ends was good apple juice. I was ready for the book to be done since chapter one.
Speaking of the ending, it stinked. Ananna and Naji finally got together only to separate because Ananna wanted to return to her pirate life and Naji had to return to slavery as an Order assassin. They said they’ll see each other again, but who the fuck are they kidding? Long distance relationships don’t work out. After all the crap they went through and what I had to put up with, the pair went back to their old lives. It rendered the series pointless.
Thankfully, the ending wasn’t as cold a slap in the face as it could have been. The relationship was abusive because of how awful Ananna was to Naji. Naji deserved better. I think the reason he came to love Ananna was because he didn’t think anyone else could love him and his life was a big pile of shit. Anyway, I found some consolation in the optimistic romance between Marjani and Saida, so it was not like I was left with completely nothing.
Conclusion
I rate The Pirate’s Wish 2-stars for it was okay. It wasn’t 1-star because I’ve read worse, and the writing was at least succinct. Thank hell the series was only a duology. If you plan to pick the series up, I strongly recommend librarying it.
Review of book 1: The Assassin's Curse
May 11, 2017
“That don't make sense."
“Of course not,” he said. “It's magic.”
So... As it happens, my favourite character in this whole book ended up being a manticore. Huge terrifying beast with the personality of royally spoiled kitten. I seriously adored her!
“She gave me one of her sharp smiles and turned back to the sea. “It is strange, living with humans. But I am growing used to it.”
“I thought you lived with humans on the Island of the Sun.”
The manticore flicked her tail. “That’s different. They are our servants, girl-human, our slaves. Here, we are equals.” Another flick. “Or as equal as human and manticore can be.”
Otherwise, Ananna was just as great heroine as she was in book one. I liked her sass and the way her whole character just screamed 'I'm a bloody pirate!'. Though sometimes it got a bit repetative with her pining after Naji, and thus tiresome for me. I simply wanted more character development on her part. Instead of her pining after him, the message in this book could have been one about independence.. Which it sadly wasn't.
Unlike in the first book, I did like them together a bit more here and I was very satisfied with the ending, but their romance is still not entirely for me I guess. Naji is still his gloomy, angsty self, but I understood his character a bit better here too. I also liked Marjani, Ananna's captain. Which also brings me to the fact that there's an amazing representation of F/F romance between Marjani and her old love, the queen.
“The manticore lifted up her head and sniffed.
“Animal meat,” she grunted.
“Yeah, well, I keep hoping some of those barbarians'll hack each other to bits, but they just... don't.”
I especially loved all the andventures surrounding the three impossible tasks - which greatly reminded me of old fairy tales - sea battles, magic and new exotic places to discover.
All in all, The Pirate's Wish is satisfying conclusion to a great high fantasy duology. Sure, I had my fair share of problems with it, but in the end I think it's without doubt worth the read.
“For the first time, I understood the difference between leaving and not staying. It was the difference between a snarl and a smile.”
“Of course not,” he said. “It's magic.”
So... As it happens, my favourite character in this whole book ended up being a manticore. Huge terrifying beast with the personality of royally spoiled kitten. I seriously adored her!
“She gave me one of her sharp smiles and turned back to the sea. “It is strange, living with humans. But I am growing used to it.”
“I thought you lived with humans on the Island of the Sun.”
The manticore flicked her tail. “That’s different. They are our servants, girl-human, our slaves. Here, we are equals.” Another flick. “Or as equal as human and manticore can be.”
Otherwise, Ananna was just as great heroine as she was in book one. I liked her sass and the way her whole character just screamed 'I'm a bloody pirate!'. Though sometimes it got a bit repetative with her pining after Naji, and thus tiresome for me. I simply wanted more character development on her part. Instead of her pining after him, the message in this book could have been one about independence.. Which it sadly wasn't.
Unlike in the first book, I did like them together a bit more here and I was very satisfied with the ending, but their romance is still not entirely for me I guess. Naji is still his gloomy, angsty self, but I understood his character a bit better here too. I also liked Marjani, Ananna's captain. Which also brings me to the fact that there's an amazing representation of F/F romance between Marjani and her old love, the queen.
“The manticore lifted up her head and sniffed.
“Animal meat,” she grunted.
“Yeah, well, I keep hoping some of those barbarians'll hack each other to bits, but they just... don't.”
I especially loved all the andventures surrounding the three impossible tasks - which greatly reminded me of old fairy tales - sea battles, magic and new exotic places to discover.
All in all, The Pirate's Wish is satisfying conclusion to a great high fantasy duology. Sure, I had my fair share of problems with it, but in the end I think it's without doubt worth the read.
“For the first time, I understood the difference between leaving and not staying. It was the difference between a snarl and a smile.”
October 29, 2017
Este libro es todo lo que quise y MÁS.
Tuve problemas con algunas partes del desenlace de la historia, que me parecieron muy convenientes y muy extrañas(y por eso no le puse 5 estrellas) pero en general, me gustó muchísimo.
AMÉ el final feliz no tan feliz que tienen los protagonistas porque siento que era lo que tenía que pasar. Naji y Ananna son unos personajes increíbles y me encantan todas las aventuras que tuvieron que pasar para poder lograr liberarse de la maldición. El personaje de la Manticora con el nombre-súper-imposible-de-pronunciar fue uno de mis personajes favoritos. Ella y por supuesto, Marjani, la pirata-no-tan-pirata que los ayuda en sus viajes.
Amé el romance que se desarrolla entre los protagonistas. Sí, es lento, y sí tiene sus momentos estresantessobretodo por la actitud que tiene Ananna al principio pero vale totalmente la pena ver como se van enamorando, es que ASDFGHJ ♡♡♡♡♡♡♡ ES HERMOSO . #TheFeels
Ahora, ¿podemos hablar de la escena final? LA ESCENA FINAL. O. M. G. Fue tan hermosa que creo que no me voy a poder recuperar nunca.
“You’re not a monster,” I said.
He looked at me.
“I know that now.”
I smiled.
And then he did too.
*muere de amor*
En fin, The Assassin's Curse es una duología llena de aventuras, magia, maldiciones y fantasía, con personajes sorprendentes que te llegan al corazón. Y creo que es uno de esos libros que se quedan contigo durante mucho tiempo.
Tuve problemas con algunas partes del desenlace de la historia, que me parecieron muy convenientes y muy extrañas
AMÉ el final feliz no tan feliz que tienen los protagonistas porque siento que era lo que tenía que pasar. Naji y Ananna son unos personajes increíbles y me encantan todas las aventuras que tuvieron que pasar para poder lograr liberarse de la maldición. El personaje de la Manticora con el nombre-súper-imposible-de-pronunciar fue uno de mis personajes favoritos. Ella y por supuesto, Marjani, la pirata-no-tan-pirata que los ayuda en sus viajes.
Amé el romance que se desarrolla entre los protagonistas. Sí, es lento, y sí tiene sus momentos estresantes
Ahora, ¿podemos hablar de la escena final? LA ESCENA FINAL. O. M. G. Fue tan hermosa que creo que no me voy a poder recuperar nunca.
“You’re not a monster,” I said.
He looked at me.
“I know that now.”
I smiled.
And then he did too.
*muere de amor*
En fin, The Assassin's Curse es una duología llena de aventuras, magia, maldiciones y fantasía, con personajes sorprendentes que te llegan al corazón. Y creo que es uno de esos libros que se quedan contigo durante mucho tiempo.
April 11, 2013
I should have expected this book to be bad. It's not like I ever love sequels or the final book in a series as much as I love the first book. They're often not worth the wait in any shape or fashion. But for some crazy and illogical reason, I did expect THE PIRATE'S WISH to be as enjoyable as THE ASSASSIN'S CURSE, if not even better. Instead, it failed me in many aspects.
The story takes place only a few days after the events of THE PIRATE'S CURSE leaving our favorite heroes on the island, trying to find a way off so they can break the curse. If you remember, the curse can only be broken if Naji and Ananna complete three impossible tasks.
These first few pages were very enjoyable, though there were a few hints of what's to come. The book became even more entertaining for me when the manticore, Ongraygeeomryn (don't worry, she's never referred to with this name). Ananna and the manticore's relationship was quite similar to the arashitora and Yukiko's relationship yet the arashitora definitely surpassed the manticore is adorableness because it is simply not possible to not think that a griffin snuggling up to a girl is the most adorable thing ever.
The book deteriorates rapidly when Ananna decides to kiss Naji, everything takes a downward spiral as Ananna adopts a "oh my gosh, I hate myself and my life and my hair and my body and my face and my lips" attitude. Because Naji doesn't want to be kissed in his sleep, Ananna suddenly thinks that her lips and her kissing technique is flawed.
Bitch, I wouldn't want to be kissed in my sleep and neither would you. That's sexual harassment whichever way you look at it. That's why he pulled a sword on you. Not because your lips are bad and your kissing style is poor. It's because he thought he was being attacked.
This is definitely the point where it all went wrong. After this failed attempt at kissing him, Ananna started to sulk. Sulking is ok, we all do it. When your sulking lasts for most of the book, you know there's problem.
Ananna was utterly insufferable because all she seemed to ever care about was getting Naji to like her. In the first book, Ananna didn't give a shit if Naji loved her or not. No, she was kind of busy surviving. In this one, whether or not Naji loves her is her biggest problem and her main concern. I mean, who cares if you're going to die as long as a cute boy loves you?
She was definitely my biggest problem with the book, though not my only. My second biggest point of aggravation - no infuriation - was how the romance made it seem like Ananna's happiness depended on whether Naji was with her. Girl, you do not need a man to be happy. I would think that you of all people would know that.
Naji was pretty much the same but more subdued. By that I mean that all his badass witty comments are completely absent in this book and he spends his time fretting because he thinks these guys
will care about how ugly he is. I don't think that they're thinking, "Ew, he's like totes ugly." Dude, I'm pretty sure the only thing they're thinking is, "Oh look, yummy male-human! NUM NUM."
There were a few really awesome parts. It's impossible for a book that not only has diva manticores but lesbian queens and armored sharks. Oh and pirate battles and manticore royalty. And an octopus. UM YES. That's so fucking awesome that I had to raise the rating by a star.
In the first book, the world and story was full of adventure and this something that I can't describe. It was like a drug. The moment you read the book, everything feels so happy and it's like you're floating on air.
But this book didn't have that. It just wasn't there. There wasn't a single moment that I felt like it even began to touch the feeling that I felt in THE ASSASSIN'S CURSE. It was still imaginative and creative but that feeling that I felt in the first book just wasn't there.
I really wish I could have loved this book like I thought I would've. It failed me in so many ways. I can't properly describe how devastated I am without either turning this review into a rant or making it sound very weepy. I'm so unhappy to say this but I can't recommend this book to anyone and I am unsure if I will want to read the spin off books.
The story takes place only a few days after the events of THE PIRATE'S CURSE leaving our favorite heroes on the island, trying to find a way off so they can break the curse. If you remember, the curse can only be broken if Naji and Ananna complete three impossible tasks.
These first few pages were very enjoyable, though there were a few hints of what's to come. The book became even more entertaining for me when the manticore, Ongraygeeomryn (don't worry, she's never referred to with this name). Ananna and the manticore's relationship was quite similar to the arashitora and Yukiko's relationship yet the arashitora definitely surpassed the manticore is adorableness because it is simply not possible to not think that a griffin snuggling up to a girl is the most adorable thing ever.
The book deteriorates rapidly when Ananna decides to kiss Naji, everything takes a downward spiral as Ananna adopts a "oh my gosh, I hate myself and my life and my hair and my body and my face and my lips" attitude. Because Naji doesn't want to be kissed in his sleep, Ananna suddenly thinks that her lips and her kissing technique is flawed.
Bitch, I wouldn't want to be kissed in my sleep and neither would you. That's sexual harassment whichever way you look at it. That's why he pulled a sword on you. Not because your lips are bad and your kissing style is poor. It's because he thought he was being attacked.
This is definitely the point where it all went wrong. After this failed attempt at kissing him, Ananna started to sulk. Sulking is ok, we all do it. When your sulking lasts for most of the book, you know there's problem.
Ananna was utterly insufferable because all she seemed to ever care about was getting Naji to like her. In the first book, Ananna didn't give a shit if Naji loved her or not. No, she was kind of busy surviving. In this one, whether or not Naji loves her is her biggest problem and her main concern. I mean, who cares if you're going to die as long as a cute boy loves you?
She was definitely my biggest problem with the book, though not my only. My second biggest point of aggravation - no infuriation - was how the romance made it seem like Ananna's happiness depended on whether Naji was with her. Girl, you do not need a man to be happy. I would think that you of all people would know that.
Naji was pretty much the same but more subdued. By that I mean that all his badass witty comments are completely absent in this book and he spends his time fretting because he thinks these guys
will care about how ugly he is. I don't think that they're thinking, "Ew, he's like totes ugly." Dude, I'm pretty sure the only thing they're thinking is, "Oh look, yummy male-human! NUM NUM."
There were a few really awesome parts. It's impossible for a book that not only has diva manticores but lesbian queens and armored sharks. Oh and pirate battles and manticore royalty. And an octopus. UM YES. That's so fucking awesome that I had to raise the rating by a star.
In the first book, the world and story was full of adventure and this something that I can't describe. It was like a drug. The moment you read the book, everything feels so happy and it's like you're floating on air.
But this book didn't have that. It just wasn't there. There wasn't a single moment that I felt like it even began to touch the feeling that I felt in THE ASSASSIN'S CURSE. It was still imaginative and creative but that feeling that I felt in the first book just wasn't there.
I really wish I could have loved this book like I thought I would've. It failed me in so many ways. I can't properly describe how devastated I am without either turning this review into a rant or making it sound very weepy. I'm so unhappy to say this but I can't recommend this book to anyone and I am unsure if I will want to read the spin off books.
November 30, 2014
Quick thoughts:
Ahhhh I didn't want this to end! :(
Having read so many raving reviews about this book I had reasonably high expectations and they were DEFINITELY met!
This second and sadly (but at the same time fortunately!) last installment was fantastic!
The characters were, again, hilarious and their story was downright entertaining.
I couldn't put this book down!
Ahhhh I didn't want this to end! :(
Having read so many raving reviews about this book I had reasonably high expectations and they were DEFINITELY met!
This second and sadly (but at the same time fortunately!) last installment was fantastic!
The characters were, again, hilarious and their story was downright entertaining.
I couldn't put this book down!
August 5, 2015
So fun. Loved the ending. ;)
No tengo mucho que decir salvo que me gusto. No perdió el sentido de aventura del primero y la interacción Ananna-Naji fue mucho mejor!
El final fue muy bonito aunque algo extraño.Y se lee muy rápido y la historia fluye correctamente.
Recomendada la duologia para quienes quieren leer algo ligero pero bueno y con un toque mágico.
No tengo mucho que decir salvo que me gusto. No perdió el sentido de aventura del primero y la interacción Ananna-Naji fue mucho mejor!
El final fue muy bonito aunque algo extraño.Y se lee muy rápido y la historia fluye correctamente.
Recomendada la duologia para quienes quieren leer algo ligero pero bueno y con un toque mágico.
May 29, 2018
you can find this review on my blog!
---
(hi so this is a review of both books, and i would post under the bind up version of this book... but i read the old editions so. yeah.)
---
Beware, there will be spoilers for both books.
I've had The Assassin's Curse on my goodreads TBR for what seemed like eons. It sounded like the perfect fantasy: pirates and assassins and curses. Like, I was sold. It might have taken me approximately 6 years (holy shit?) to get to it, but I did! I got to it.
And... I'm a bit disappointed, to say the least.
I won't lie, the books were kind of entertaining. I read both of them in right after the other without stop. So while I did have issues, I can't say they weren't a bit addictive. The plots of both books makes them highly readable!
Part of what I really liked of the series was the slow burn romance. And it definitely is slow burn, and had lots of unwilling pining—meaning, one party is sure they love the other but totally hating that they do so. It's also sort of? Enemies to lovers... but not entirely? In any case: Naji was sent to kill Ananna and, y'know, if someone were trying to kill me, I'd kind of thank them but also think of them as my enemy. Back to the point: I liked all of it! In The Assassin's Curse, the feelings thing happened naturally and over the course of the entire book, so really, there was hardly any romance. In book two, it was full of those little scenes that kind of build up. I looooved those—each scene actually made me have feelings.
Like I said about the plot: high readable. Not entirely fun, per se, but I didn't put them down once after I got started. I felt like I just had to know where Naji and Ananna were going next, and what go wrong. Because, face it, everything always goes wrong. These characters really don't get a break lmao.
Now... for what I did not like. Part of it was the writing. Since Ananna is a pirate, she also had the dialect of one, and while I give Clarke the credit for writing her accurately like that... it was also so annoying. I really was not a fan of how she spoke and it made me wince at times. I guess I'm just not fond of pirate speak? Which is unfortunate since their stories are so much fun.
I think it also had to do with Ananna herself... I didn't find myself warming to her often. Yes, she was rash and made ridiculous decisions sometimes, but a lot of those could have been avoided. The first book alone just made her seem like a too rebellious character, doing things without thinking them through entirely. In the second, she was just so petty, and look. I am, like, a queen of petty, so I totally get it, but holy shit, she was way out of line with how she treated Naji sometimes. (Not that he was a saint either, but in this regard, it was unfair. I'll get to it.)
There was also a whole bit where she was awful to some girl who was pretty—Ananna doesn't trust pretty people—so it created for some girl hate. It did not help matters that the other girl was technically Naji's ex-girlfriend, either, so. I wasn't here for that entire part of book 1.
In addition, there just... felt like there was no emotional tether? To a lot of the things that happened? Like, you'd expect something to be there after running away from your whole life and family, nearly getting killed, and a lot of other things, but... nothing.
And a lot of the time, I only found Ananna to have the most voice in the entire series. But for a lot of the side characters, especially Naji, I just never... felt? They weren't fully real, or fleshed out to me, and most of their dialogue didn't hold enough voice to make them seem authentic or anything.
At some point, I thought I would really like The Pirate's Curse. For one, we met a new, not human character who was so much fun. The manticore—whose name is so beyond complicated even you wouldn't be able to say it, much less remember it—had the attitude of an entitled kitten and was actually a man-eating beast. Love it! There was also the addition of another old character, who played more of a role here: Marjani! So yeah, I was hoping it would be better.
BUT THEN. There's all of this drama with Ananna being in love with Naji, who doesn't reciprocate. I get that. Someone you like doesn't like you back, it happens. It hurts, yes, but it happens. The way Ananna reacted to it was not only childish but way out of line? Like she blamed him for not feeling the same way, while also accepting that who could possibly love her kind of thing? It was a mess. Plus, there was a whole Thing as the end of the series which I won't get into, but also lessened my liking of the book.
So! That's all of my thoughts on this book. Would I recommend it... Ehhh, not really? The idea of the book is superb but the execution is less so. Overall, my final rating for the series is 3 stars!
---
(hi so this is a review of both books, and i would post under the bind up version of this book... but i read the old editions so. yeah.)
---
Beware, there will be spoilers for both books.
I've had The Assassin's Curse on my goodreads TBR for what seemed like eons. It sounded like the perfect fantasy: pirates and assassins and curses. Like, I was sold. It might have taken me approximately 6 years (holy shit?) to get to it, but I did! I got to it.
And... I'm a bit disappointed, to say the least.
I won't lie, the books were kind of entertaining. I read both of them in right after the other without stop. So while I did have issues, I can't say they weren't a bit addictive. The plots of both books makes them highly readable!
Part of what I really liked of the series was the slow burn romance. And it definitely is slow burn, and had lots of unwilling pining—meaning, one party is sure they love the other but totally hating that they do so. It's also sort of? Enemies to lovers... but not entirely? In any case: Naji was sent to kill Ananna and, y'know, if someone were trying to kill me, I'd kind of thank them but also think of them as my enemy. Back to the point: I liked all of it! In The Assassin's Curse, the feelings thing happened naturally and over the course of the entire book, so really, there was hardly any romance. In book two, it was full of those little scenes that kind of build up. I looooved those—each scene actually made me have feelings.
Like I said about the plot: high readable. Not entirely fun, per se, but I didn't put them down once after I got started. I felt like I just had to know where Naji and Ananna were going next, and what go wrong. Because, face it, everything always goes wrong. These characters really don't get a break lmao.
Now... for what I did not like. Part of it was the writing. Since Ananna is a pirate, she also had the dialect of one, and while I give Clarke the credit for writing her accurately like that... it was also so annoying. I really was not a fan of how she spoke and it made me wince at times. I guess I'm just not fond of pirate speak? Which is unfortunate since their stories are so much fun.
I think it also had to do with Ananna herself... I didn't find myself warming to her often. Yes, she was rash and made ridiculous decisions sometimes, but a lot of those could have been avoided. The first book alone just made her seem like a too rebellious character, doing things without thinking them through entirely. In the second, she was just so petty, and look. I am, like, a queen of petty, so I totally get it, but holy shit, she was way out of line with how she treated Naji sometimes. (Not that he was a saint either, but in this regard, it was unfair. I'll get to it.)
There was also a whole bit where she was awful to some girl who was pretty—Ananna doesn't trust pretty people—so it created for some girl hate. It did not help matters that the other girl was technically Naji's ex-girlfriend, either, so. I wasn't here for that entire part of book 1.
In addition, there just... felt like there was no emotional tether? To a lot of the things that happened? Like, you'd expect something to be there after running away from your whole life and family, nearly getting killed, and a lot of other things, but... nothing.
And a lot of the time, I only found Ananna to have the most voice in the entire series. But for a lot of the side characters, especially Naji, I just never... felt? They weren't fully real, or fleshed out to me, and most of their dialogue didn't hold enough voice to make them seem authentic or anything.
At some point, I thought I would really like The Pirate's Curse. For one, we met a new, not human character who was so much fun. The manticore—whose name is so beyond complicated even you wouldn't be able to say it, much less remember it—had the attitude of an entitled kitten and was actually a man-eating beast. Love it! There was also the addition of another old character, who played more of a role here: Marjani! So yeah, I was hoping it would be better.
BUT THEN. There's all of this drama with Ananna being in love with Naji, who doesn't reciprocate. I get that. Someone you like doesn't like you back, it happens. It hurts, yes, but it happens. The way Ananna reacted to it was not only childish but way out of line? Like she blamed him for not feeling the same way, while also accepting that who could possibly love her kind of thing? It was a mess. Plus, there was a whole Thing as the end of the series which I won't get into, but also lessened my liking of the book.
So! That's all of my thoughts on this book. Would I recommend it... Ehhh, not really? The idea of the book is superb but the execution is less so. Overall, my final rating for the series is 3 stars!
June 13, 2013
Actual rating: 2.5 stars
Spoilers below.
Ananna:
Unfortunately, she was pretty annoying in this book. What happened to her? All she thinks about is Naji, and I'm freaking tired of it. What's up with the sudden "I love you"s? I thought she only *liked* him in TAC. Ugh. Despite that, she kept on whining about loads of stuff, for example, Naji doesn't love me back, Marjani should be asking about the starstones, Naji doesn't want me, Naji this, Naji that, it's getting old. I really really couldn't stand her pining, whining, and her bitchiness.
Naji:
I'm glad Naji finally manned up a little compared to that pathetic version of him at the end of The Assassin's Curse. But he changed too much throughout the series. At first, he was this cold-blooded assassin then he turned into this pathetic dude who kept on fainting. Then, in this book, he suddenly became this really soft guy. WTF? No one changes this drastically. Plus, at the end of TAC, he was still madly in love with Leila, so what's up with this sudden affection towards Ananna, it happened too freaking quickly and it doesn't make much sense. Double Ugh.
(By the way, I must say that I absolutely HATE it when a guy's eyes crinkles, it just sounds like they have a lot of wrinkles or they're old or something. Just stop using that word. Ugh, such a turn off.)
Ongraygeeomryn:
THE MANTICORE! <333 She's the ONLY character I loved in this book (and the only reason I gave it a 3*), she's sooo freaking adorable, I LOVE HER!<3
"Girl human, *insert command*."
The romance:
As I've mentioned above, I really do NOT believe Naji can just suddenly fall in love with Ananna. I'm actually quite surprised I would say this, but I'm so disappointed with the romance. At the end of TAC, I kept on rooting for them to just be together, but I never thought it'd be like this. Basically, what happened most of the book was Ananna kissing Naji and Naji not feeling the same way, and therefore Ananna felt humiliated and ignored Naji. That happened twice. *sigh* I actually liked that Esjar dude better. The romance did get better though!
The plot:
Predictable. I saw most of the stuff coming a mile away, which is sad, because I was expecting more. The pacing wasn't well-balanced. The first half and the palace scenes are snail-paced and hard to get through.
The ending:
The breaking of the last curse was too convenient, and the "lesson" they learned from it was ridiculous. The Mist guy being randomly tossed into the ocean was ridiculous, too. Shouldn't he be a lot stronger than sea magic? Plus, the fact that Ananna could work sea magic was convenient, too, given that she couldn't until this. The romance wrapped up okay, though.
Overall, despite all these flaws, this book was still pretty entertaining. ONGRAYGEEOMRYN!<3
December 9, 2014
This book was so much better than the first in the series! Things I loved:
-lesbian couple
-discussion of women's ability to please herself with out a man (sexually, but also just in general)
-more romance/chemistry between the two main characters
-more excitement/action
The ending was a little bitter sweet but completely plausible and just generally a nice closing to the story. If you read The Assassin's Curse and thought "meh", I urge you to continue with the one!
-lesbian couple
-discussion of women's ability to please herself with out a man (sexually, but also just in general)
-more romance/chemistry between the two main characters
-more excitement/action
The ending was a little bitter sweet but completely plausible and just generally a nice closing to the story. If you read The Assassin's Curse and thought "meh", I urge you to continue with the one!
February 26, 2016
I really enjoyed the first one. This one was even better than the first. I really wished it wasn't a duology because even if this is a complete story, you can totally see this world/story/characters continuing on into a bigger series. It's so great.
January 8, 2018
It’s like eating a stuffed-crust pizza, every bit of it is soooooo good.
I started reading The Pirate’s Wish with the smallest of expectation. The first book the Assassin’s Curse left me welling up with too much frustration over the male protagonist – Naji. I could very well remember how my eyes rolled so much. He needs to redeem himself on book 2 or else I will definitely lose it. So I approached this second book with trepidation, cautious enough to not let the actions of Naji affect me. Surprisingly, this book redeemed itself, what with all the issues I had on book 1, the book made a promise and f*cking delivered. Finally everything is falling into their rightful place. I am one happy reader once more, less of pulling my hair out and even lesser eye rolling. Haha.
Let me first comment on the character build-up. Oh boy, it was really one of the best character build-ups (?) I have seen for a looong time. You can really notice the changes in the character, how they evolved and made wiser decisions but still staying true and consistent to their own selves. It was never monotonous! The characters will always surprise you one way or another. Especially Naji, he did redeem himself, he acted more as protector of Ananna than the other way around, and I also get to see the extent of his magic and more information or back story of The Order, I wish there was more to it though. And Ananna stayed sassy and kick-ass all throughout. Though she was sometimes like a love sick puppy, which annoyed me a few times, but it isn’t something I could not handle. It was still good, all things considered. And can I just say I love love love loveeeeeeee the manticore! She made the book all the more exciting and engaging! Sometimes I continue reading just because I wanted to read more of her. Cassandra Rose Clarke should write a separate book about the manticore and I will devour it *pun is super intended* hahah I’m so punny. I also loved how all the characters and what happened to them are explained clearly. Like what happened to Ananna’s parents, Queen Saida and Marjani’s backstory, I truly commend how lgbt aspect was inserted to the book, the manticore’s story, Jeremy, the Order, the Confederation, and all the important details are presented in such a clear and convincing manner. It’s like you are getting so much out of a 300-page book. It was short but all the necessary information are condensed into this beautiful story that will leave you satisfied.
I also commend the author for giving more power to women. The feminist in me is very pleased. (I don’t want to dwell much on this because it will come out as spoiler, but I hope you will see this aspect in the book.)
And yes, I will not forget to praise the world-building. I’ve mentioned in my review of the first book that Cassandra Rose Clarke made this beautiful world that was so vivid, as if I am watching a movie, this continued on on this book, and this time even better. My imagination was running wild, I loved every bit of it. Especially the fight scenes, how action-packed everything was. How badass the characters came to be and how the whole story revolved to finding how the tasks are to be accomplished. I loved how clever everything was made, how it was perfectly plotted, how it doesn’t feel forced. Again, how everything fall in their rightful place.
The romance!!! Ahhhhhh. I live for this kind of romance – the mature and unselfish kind. The kind of romance where you meet half way, where you decide on something and make it work. I loved how the romance did not happen on an instant, how gradual yet surely it all unfolded. How it didn’t feel rushed or unripe. It was just right, just what the story needed. It was complicated yes, add the fact that Ananna was always so insecure and having all these doubts about Naji loving her back, but I guess it worked for me. It made their love story a little cuter and swoon-worthy. The romance in the book happened in a slow manner, yet it will hit you with so much force you may not fully recover from it. I am actually hungover, I want more of them. I demand a third book haha!
It was over all amazing! I highly recommend this one! This book made it to my top fantasy books. I enjoyed every bit of it. What I would trade to read it for the first time again!
I started reading The Pirate’s Wish with the smallest of expectation. The first book the Assassin’s Curse left me welling up with too much frustration over the male protagonist – Naji. I could very well remember how my eyes rolled so much. He needs to redeem himself on book 2 or else I will definitely lose it. So I approached this second book with trepidation, cautious enough to not let the actions of Naji affect me. Surprisingly, this book redeemed itself, what with all the issues I had on book 1, the book made a promise and f*cking delivered. Finally everything is falling into their rightful place. I am one happy reader once more, less of pulling my hair out and even lesser eye rolling. Haha.
Let me first comment on the character build-up. Oh boy, it was really one of the best character build-ups (?) I have seen for a looong time. You can really notice the changes in the character, how they evolved and made wiser decisions but still staying true and consistent to their own selves. It was never monotonous! The characters will always surprise you one way or another. Especially Naji, he did redeem himself, he acted more as protector of Ananna than the other way around, and I also get to see the extent of his magic and more information or back story of The Order, I wish there was more to it though. And Ananna stayed sassy and kick-ass all throughout. Though she was sometimes like a love sick puppy, which annoyed me a few times, but it isn’t something I could not handle. It was still good, all things considered. And can I just say I love love love loveeeeeeee the manticore! She made the book all the more exciting and engaging! Sometimes I continue reading just because I wanted to read more of her. Cassandra Rose Clarke should write a separate book about the manticore and I will devour it *pun is super intended* hahah I’m so punny. I also loved how all the characters and what happened to them are explained clearly. Like what happened to Ananna’s parents, Queen Saida and Marjani’s backstory, I truly commend how lgbt aspect was inserted to the book, the manticore’s story, Jeremy, the Order, the Confederation, and all the important details are presented in such a clear and convincing manner. It’s like you are getting so much out of a 300-page book. It was short but all the necessary information are condensed into this beautiful story that will leave you satisfied.
I also commend the author for giving more power to women. The feminist in me is very pleased. (I don’t want to dwell much on this because it will come out as spoiler, but I hope you will see this aspect in the book.)
And yes, I will not forget to praise the world-building. I’ve mentioned in my review of the first book that Cassandra Rose Clarke made this beautiful world that was so vivid, as if I am watching a movie, this continued on on this book, and this time even better. My imagination was running wild, I loved every bit of it. Especially the fight scenes, how action-packed everything was. How badass the characters came to be and how the whole story revolved to finding how the tasks are to be accomplished. I loved how clever everything was made, how it was perfectly plotted, how it doesn’t feel forced. Again, how everything fall in their rightful place.
The romance!!! Ahhhhhh. I live for this kind of romance – the mature and unselfish kind. The kind of romance where you meet half way, where you decide on something and make it work. I loved how the romance did not happen on an instant, how gradual yet surely it all unfolded. How it didn’t feel rushed or unripe. It was just right, just what the story needed. It was complicated yes, add the fact that Ananna was always so insecure and having all these doubts about Naji loving her back, but I guess it worked for me. It made their love story a little cuter and swoon-worthy. The romance in the book happened in a slow manner, yet it will hit you with so much force you may not fully recover from it. I am actually hungover, I want more of them. I demand a third book haha!
It was over all amazing! I highly recommend this one! This book made it to my top fantasy books. I enjoyed every bit of it. What I would trade to read it for the first time again!
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