Namesake

by Adrienne Young

I’ll start this review off by saying that I was given an eARC by NetGalley for a review. Thank you, NetGalley and Wednesday Books, for the ARC!

That said, they didn’t give me a copy for a guarantee of a good review, so my opinion here is entirely my own.

Onto the non-spoiler part of my review! If you enjoyed Fable, you’ll probably enjoy Namesake – you honestly might enjoy it more, depending on why, exactly, you liked Fable!

Personally, I seem to have grown a particular appetite for books that hurt and devastate me. The ones that make me stop, mid-read, and gasp or make a comment before I realize I’ve spoken. The kind that make me tempted to throw the book across the room, and not because it’s that terrible – but rather because it’s that good.

While this book wasn’t that for me, it was still a pleasant and enjoyable read. If you like books to not destroy you or hurt you, and you enjoy pirate-y reads, this book may just be for you!

Recommendation: If you loved Fable, you’ll probably enjoy Namesake. If you’ve been waiting to pick up Fable until Namesake is out, or until you’ve read reviews for the completed duology, my opinion on this book is very similar to my opinion of Fable: if you’re interested in the rougher, more cutthroat side of the sea and sailing, Namesake might just be the book for you. Namesake continues Fable’s story, showing you a new side of the sailing world Fable has dedicated her life to. If you wanted to see another perspective to the world you get submerged into in Fable, Namesake continues that and expands it.

You have a strong, female main character, pirates, a pleasant writing style, a predictable romance, and some mystery. I didn’t love or feel for these characters much, sadly. It’s an enjoyable read, I loved the books, but I don’t think I’ll be rereading them unless somehow prompted to. It doesn’t measure against books like Illuminae [and the rest of that series], The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue [which spoke to my soul in a way that still hurts], Chain of Gold [which, I totally understand is a controversial thing to say, but I can’t help loving Cordelia], and other such books that practically demand I reread them on a nearly-daily basis.

Does that mean I don’t, or won’t, suggest this book [or this series] to other people? Absolutely not! It’s just the kind of book I would only suggest to the few people I think would enjoy it. It’s almost a palette cleanser kind of book, and I was glad of it when I got it. The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue was still haunting me, and it was difficult to read anything else equally heavy or devastating – which is why I won’t say this book isn’t good because it isn’t on that level. Because, honestly, it isn’t easy to read heavy and/or devastating books back-to-back without even one lighter, “palette-cleansing” read.

Fable and Namesake are those types of books, in my opinion.

:: SPOILERS AHEAD! IF YOU DON’T WANT SPOILERS, TURN BACK NOW! IF YOU’RE COOL WITH SPOILERS, GO AHEAD, I GUESS? ::

I knew there was something more going on behind Saint’s, Isolde’s, and Fable’s past. I’m loving the change of pace Fable’s grandmother brought to the story. I kind of figured it was something like that, but the exact playing out of events wasn’t exactly how I thought it would go.

I’m going to just say this and get it out of the way: while there are swoon-worthy moments with Fable and West, West kind of annoyed me. It was only moments, but the moments were there, and it further annoyed me when Fable stubbornly stood by him, even after everything she learned. Granted, that is the kind of love we all want, but she knew him so little to have that kind of dedication. I get that he helped save her life, but that should have been countered with finding out about Saint’s role in it all. I know Fable understands doing things you don’t like or want to do to survive in that cutthroat world, but she still should have been at least cautious until she talked to him about it. She’s a child, sure, but she lives in a dangerous world – it seems out of character for her to be quick to trust and stubborn to keep it.

I loved the introduction to this special gem that tied closely to Isolde’s past and Fable’s name. I also loved that the crazy adventure/promise she underwent with her grandmother didn’t magically fix everything. That it took Fable thinking outside of the box, and using information she discovered that so many people had shrugged off, that led to the discover of the stone’s origin. That whole thing was just fun to read about.

I also love that the crew grew alongside Fable – that they weren’t necessarily all staying on, full dedication like it seemed the crew wanted to be from the beginning. There wasn’t as much depth to the secondary characters as I would have liked, but they weren’t shallow, either.

All that said, the unravelling of this story was fun to read, Adrienne Young’s writing style is enjoyable, and it was perfectly timed to be what I needed to read. Adrienne Young has definitely gotten herself on my list of author’s to watch out for future books. I’ve heard her first, Sky in the Deep, is really good. It’s on my list to read [some day, we all know how that is], so hopefully I’m able to squeeze it in soon!

I’ll see you guys for my next review! I have a few in the works – hopefully another is coming soon! Stay safe, read on, and be kind to one another!