Why I picked up this book:

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. As you can see, this cover is stellar. It was the first thing that grabbed my attention. When I read the description, it sounded like a fun adventure book. Couple that with Angry Robot as a publisher, I was certain it would have some fantastic adult themes.

This review may contain spoilers.

The Sisters Mederos

House Mederos was once the wealthiest merchant family in Port Saint Frey. Now the family is disgraced, impoverished, and humbled by the powerful Merchants Guild. Daughters Yvienne and Tesara Mederos are determined to uncover who was behind their family’s downfall and get revenge. But Tesara has a secret – could it have been her wild magic that caused the storm that destroyed the family’s merchant fleet? The sisters’ schemes quickly get out of hand – gambling is one thing, but robbing people is another… Together the sisters must trust each another to keep their secrets and save their family.

   

What I loved:

Terk the gambler and Mrs. Fayres the mistress were the two most interesting characters in this book. Both had a strong presence and I wish the story spent more time on who they were and how they fit into to the larger tale.

Of the two sisters, Yvienne was the far more interesting one. She had a lot of depth to her personality, and overall complexity—an adventurous spirit under a prim and proper lady, and it made her tons of fun to read.

The prose is solid, and this is a clean, easy read.

Areas needing a touch of refinement:

Coming from Angry Robot, I expected this to be an adult adventure, but it felt very YA. The girls are 18 & 20, but a significant portion of the story is watching them be submissive to their parents and hearing the family bickering around them. It was a bit too childish for my tastes and really took away from the sisters and their story.

The prologue read as MG and was just a lot of names thrown at the reader, most of which I forgot by the time the story started. I’m not certain it adds the right amount of impact.

The story hid a lot of information from the reader. I don’t mean in the ‘try to figure out the mystery’ sense, more of a lack of enough data. I have no idea how the magic system in this world works apart from a few sparks on Tesara’s fingertips and her doing things to fit the story. There’s also a moment when the sisters decide to work together, but it’s not really clear. More ‘okay, let’s do stuff’, but the motivation was a little lost. And the cave felt like a consistent deus ex-machina. Yvienne stocked it with supplies and it was ready… but that’s it. The reader wasn’t clued into what it looked like inside, what supplies she stocked, etc, and through the narrative the cave became a place to sleep or change clothes but glossed over that she still had to swim out… yet she always returned home dry.

Overall:

When I first finished this story, I wasn’t sure how I felt about it. It was a cute read, and the premise is fantastic. Now that I’ve had a few weeks to distance myself, I realize I was disappointed by the end. While it was a clean read, I think I wanted more depth. But while I didn’t connect as fully as I wanted to, I know a few reader out there who will love this. It focuses on sister relationships as opposed to any sort of a romantic entanglement, and while the prose reads YA, the characters themselves are right in the New Adult sweet spot.

Want to read more reviews like this? Be sure to subscribe to my blog and be the first to know when new content is posted.