Mary Reade has been passed off as boy since she was a child, pretending to be her dead mother Mark and even going by his name due to her mother’s wishes. The disguise works well for her as a sailor and eventual pirate, even it poses some danger, as well. But then she meets the irresistible Anne Bonny. Anne is the captain’s girl and therefore off limits, but neither Mary nor Anne is able to resist the pull between them. And when Mary is forced to reveal herself to save Ann it changes her life for good. Now she has to wear skirts instead of trousers, and her former best friend, Nat,—the one she was heading to Nassau to find—is starting to see her in a new light. But is any of that what Mary really wants?

The story is told in alternating timelines, jumping between the past events that led Mary to become a sailor and the present in which she has just shot her captain and joined up with a pirate ship. There were some things I really loved about this book: lady pirates! And queer lady pirates! But there were also some things that I didn’t love so much. In particular, the overly frequent references to queerness, crossdressing, etc. as a perversion / sin that, in addition to being inexcusable, could lead to jail (“gaol”) or even hanging. I get that sexism and homophobia were even more prevalent then than now, and I get that those things can be an element of historical fiction, but there is still some choice in how it’s framed and how often it’s shown. This story chose to show it a lot. And in the context of the story (especially considering it was written by a queer woman about queer women) it didn’t turn me off entirely, but it came up with such frequency that it did detract from things and I thought was certainly worth noting.

I enjoyed the story overall, but I think I was really hoping for something that was a little more adventure on the high seas and self-assured and independent lady pirates being badass—and that just wasn’t really what we got. Between that and the frequent sexism / homophobia, it just wasn’t quite the book I was hoping it would be.

When I think about pirates, I imagine a story involving adventure and lots of time spent on the sea, pursuing some exciting goal. This didn't fit along those lines. And while I am all for looking at well-known elements in stories from different angles, making them feel fresh, in this case the result wasn't entirely fortunate. The book ended when it felt like what I was expecting and desiring was finally going to happen: two independent women, in love, conquering the seas together.

Despite a lackluster plot, a romance that could have been much better and characters who were hard to root for, the author succeeded in realising an interesting depiction of the society of the early 18th century. It offers insightful commentary on gender roles and on double standards, through the eyes of a young girl, Mary, who needs to pretend she is a boy in order to support her poor family. In times heavily ruled by patriarchy, we are introduced to courageous women who stand their ground, not letting themselves be brought down in the face of inequality and injustice. Without possessing a fully-extended freedom, there is an account of how far they had to go to create a good life for themselves, renouncing their identities and stifling their inner desires or ambitions. Mary observes with frustration how different her situation is from the one of her mate, regardeless of their common leaving point and similar capacities. The only aspect setting them apart is their gender, but it is enough to determine Mary to take shelter inside an abandoned whorehouse, barely getting by, while her male friend has a prosperous existance.

"Good thing you didn't grow up a girl, then. That's nothing but wanting things you can't have."

Many times, marrying someone was the only solution and that turned quite often into disrespectful, abusive relationships as it's the case with the union between Anne and her husband. That quickly deteriorates into domestic violence and the wife is powerless, helpless in defending herself against the ridiculous claim that she is her husband's property. The blame is put exclusively on her. It's her fault that she left a toxic household behind, she is supposed to come back and be a good, submissive wife.

"Jimmy gets the power of law and I get the power of prayer. (...) I knew it. Me only choice is to go back to James and pray to bloody God he doesn't kill me one day, as is his bloody right."

Another topic that's taken into account is the extensive homophobia. As too many people are still taught nowadays, having those "unnatural feelings" is only a reason to be ashamed. Because, apparantely, love is a sin. And we are all gulity of it, but just some have to be pentient when in reality no one should feel bad for truly loving another human being and being loved back. Mary has to learn and to accept who she is and what she really wants, getting over the unhealthy feelings of remorse and self-doubt. She doesn't abide by "what's appropriate". Mary can't force herself to adjust to the definition of a woman because that would mean to get rid of important parts of who she is. In the end, she lives her life unapolegetically as her true self, loving fearlessly and not looking back. And I respect her for that.

Sometimes I need books like this to remind me how far we came as humans in being more open-minded and understanding, even if we still have a
LONG way to go, so I can matain my faith and keep reaching for a better future. Overall, I'm glad I got to read this book for the look it offered on those times, but I'm going to continue my search for the one that will manage to deliver what this didn't.

I really wanted to like this book. However it’s just not cohesive enough for me to enjoy.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

DNF the copy that was sent to me was formatted very weird and made it hard for me to read

So Mary Reade is a young lady who learns to disguise herself as a boy as she joins a ship crew. During her time at sea her ship is attacked by pirates, and being so impressed by a lady in the pirate crew, she takes out her own crew's captain with a single shot. She is taken as part of the pirate crew still under the guise of a man. She becomes fond of the lady, Anne, she was impressed with while she still yearns for the boy she loved back home.

Throughout the book, every chapter or two, we get a look back at Mary's past and why she even disguised herself in the first place. Her mom was a poor, drunk woman who used Mary by dressing her up as Mark, a son who passed. By doing this, Mary was forced in to deceiving her Grandma in to seeing her as her heir. This was a nice way to keep the reader engaged with the present while letting them in on Mary's background, without the massive information dump that hinders many other books.

Mary is a girl who yearns to be what she believes is right. She wants to be a woman and with her childhood love. She is tired of deceit, and yet when she is outed, everything changes. She realizes those who considered her opinion as one of a man's now cares not about hers as a woman. We also see how Mary is divided within herself over who she loves, and whether it is acceptable or not within herself. You can feel her pain as she can't seem to understand her, just as much as Anne is in the same predicament. What I loved about this was in the end she realizes it is okay to love whom you want, regardless of what anyone else may think.

This book made me think about a lot of social issues when it came to love, the lack of equal standing with men and women, and how people are looked down upon for being outside of the norms. I thought about how much things have changed since the 1700s, and yet how much things haven't in many ways. I can look at current politics in the U.S. and see how many wish we were headed back to the way many think and lead back then.

My only significant gripe about this book was the lack of Pirate adventure and action. It had some, but kind of leaves that desire a bit unfulfilled in the grand scheme of everything that happens. The way some of the early moments of this book play out, you almost expect a bit more, but it never comes. Overall I really enjoyed The Unbinding of Mary Reade and how it touches upon social aspects like feminism and LGBTQ in an older setting. Any book that has me sitting back in and giving serious thought to topics present after I'm finished is doing a good job.

oh boy, i've been waiting for this book for like 5 months!! i was so excited!! i mean, come on, it doesn't get better than gay pirates. it can get worse, tho.

if u've ever read even one sapphic book abt pirates - especially if it was published a few years ago - u know this very particular feel they have. it's kind of hard to describe in a single word but it pretty much boils down to choppy, rushed writing, making sure everything is properly gritty & bloody and putting in sex scenes straight from a harlequin. the unbinding of mary reade gives off that exact vibe from the very first page.

so i was wary of this right from the start. unfortunately. but then we finally meet anne bonny!! if we can call her that... listen, the anne we see here? she runs around the ship in a dress with laces, claps her hands & laughs when she's excited abt something, specifically asks for romantic stories bc she apparently loves hearing them, drapes herself all over jack for the whole crew to see... i know black sails isn't exactly the holy bible of characterization of real ppl but at the same time - this anne is literally the polar opposite of what we saw on the show. it's so hard to take seriously the image of anne this book is trying to conjure, i rly had to give up on it. (maybe it would be easier if the writing was Great but it's barely mediocre)

and one last thing bc it's so absurd i can't not talk abt it. the narrative is in the present & in flashbacks and we get a chapter of each intertwined for the whole book. now the thing is, they rly used a whole different font for the flashbacks... i guess in case we forgot what it is we're reading? thanks for that vote of confidence.