The covers of Julia Ember's books in this series are amazing. I can't really say the same about the insides. I didn't dislike the two books in the series and if there is a third I would probably read it. That said I had some issues. Ragna just isn't likeable and I doubt that she is supposed to be, but you don't get, from the first book in the series, that she's supposed to be in over her head and inexperienced and selfish. Ok maybe the selfish you should see coming. But from Seafarer's Kiss I would have assumed that she was older than she was (older teenager) and that she had had combat experience. Instead she's naive and selfish and constantly acting out of low self-esteem and it just got so old. I wanted to shake her and tell her to grow up already. I probably wouldn't have felt so strongly about it if I hadn't come into Navigator's Touch with preconceived notions about her character from the first book.

I enjoyed this story well enough. It's full of myth and magic, with a healthy dose of bloody politics to go along with it. The romance is bitter sweet, and it just irks me that it is more open ended at the end.

I enjoyed Ragna's learning to be a leader. It helps that we do get to see some of those leadership qualities that magically appear when needed for most protagonists are a struggle for Ragna to master. She's too paranoid, too rash, and in so many cases, too cruel to those she wants to lead. Ragna showed potential through the first half of the book, yet her youth and inexperience often caused her to alienate her from those she cared about the most.

And that brings me to the romance of the book. It isn't really the central relationship in the book as Ragna is often looking towards the Jarl for guidance. I know we're to believe that Ersel can act as Ragna's moral compass - Ersel is mature when Ragna isn't, kind when necessary, and often is the one to ground her. The problem is that Ragna increasingly forgets about Ersel's personhood - and sees her as a tool to be used. Which makes for such a frustrating dynamic and Ragna unlikable at times.

The pacing was excellent, and allowed the tension to build up so very well. There was that one inexplicable flash back that told the story of Ragna' and Ersel meeting from Ragna's point of view. It didn't make much sense to me, other than to introduce some of the key players later in the book. It just felt too sudden.

This is a pretty solid series, and I love a good fantasy, especially ones that revolve around Norse myths. I just couldn't get past Ragna as a lead character for this book. Usually, I love those characters that fall in those gray areas, but Ragna just simply angered me more often than not. I'd still give it a recommend because I know this just isn't in my wheelhouse in terms of the characters.

I also have to add that the cover art for both books of the series is amazing, and just adds that little extra magic to a decent fantasy series.

This book gets a resounding OK from me. Not amazing by any means, but also not the worst thing I've ever read. It had a lot of cool elements--Norse Gods, Vikings, battles, mermaids, and lots of badass female characters so there was a lot to like in a world building sense. I think the execution was the most lacking part of the whole story and this criticism goes for both the first and second book in this series.

First of all the pacing feels off. We spend so much time with these characters working toward a goal--in this case Ragna is trying to take back her village from the ppl who killed everyone and kidnapped her--but the buildup takes AGES and then the payoff lasts about 5 pages to a chapter long. It feels extremely anticlimactic and if it was just the first book that did this I could understand (debut books and all that) but the same thing happens in this one too and it was frustrating. I also felt that telling the whole story from one character's perspective was a mistake. The whole first book was from the mermaid's POV, and this whole book was from Ragna's. I feel like you lose a lot of character development and exposition opportunities by doing this and I found myself constantly wondering what the other characters were thinking rather than being invested in Ragna. Plus it means that exciting things are constantly happening off screen and have to be explained later in long flashback scenes. Honestly both books are so short they could have easily been one book with alternating chapters and I probably would have enjoyed it much more.

I also struggled with the "romance" in this book. I'm all for LGBTQ romance--it's one of the things that drew me to these titles in the first place! But the romance is barely that. They kiss a few times and there are a few "steamy" scenes, both actual and implied, but as far as the emotional depth I expect from a romance story this felt extremely lacking. I just didn't buy it really and it was a huge disappointment. Don't get me wrong--it was healthy and realistic, but maybe too realistic. There was no passion and little drama that I could see--it was all very meh.

I doubt I'll go for the third one. This one was fine, but I didn't love it enough to keep going unfortunately.

Ragna is a skilled warrior and is on a quest for revenge and to save her home. She was dragged away in the middle of the night, her family murdered, her village destroyed. Now she is back, ready to reclaim her home and free the children who are held captive. However, she only has a mermaid and a disloyal crew to aid her in her mission. She crosses the Northsea in hope of aid from a Jarl in Skjordal. However, the Jarl only sees an inexperienced leader, not quite yet worthy of aid. In order to gain her help, she must gain the respect of the Jarl and also of her own crew.

I read The Seafarer’s Kiss just the other week, and you can read my review here, and I liked it but didn’t love it. But, The Navigator’s Touch is a little bit of an improvement for me. The Navigator’s Touch has a different character as the protagonist than The Seafarer’s Kiss. It follows Ragna, our Viking shieldmaiden, rather than Ersel, our mermaid/human/Kraken.

While The Seafarer’s Kiss was a retelling of The Little Mermaid, The Navigator’s Touch takes inspiration from Peter Pan. Most obviously, Captain Hook as Ragna loses her hand in battle with the man who was responsible for the destruction of her village and her kidnapping and she then replaces it with a Hook and then captains her own ship.

The romance was between Ragna and Ersel was healthier than it was in The Seafarer’s Kiss, and Ragna became aware of how she was treating Ersel as just a weapon to keep her crew in line and to gain favour with other people rather than treating her as a person. The romance wasn’t really much of a focus in The Navigator’s Touch as the story focused more on Ragna and her quest for revenge. The Navigator’s Touch also featured another non-binary character aside from Loki, they are called Aslaug and is the Jarl’s right-hand warrior.

My favourite part of The Navigator’s Touch was both the world-building, as it was very atmospheric, and I also really loved the Norse mythology and how Julia Ember weaved the mythology into the character’s worldview. Ragna was also a fierce and formidable protagonist. What really let me down a bit was the plot and pacing as it went over a lot of what I already knew from the Seafarer’s Kiss and actually repeated some of the stuff that had happened. Because of this, The Navigator’s Touch actually probably could be read on its own if you haven’t yet read The Seafarer’s Kiss.

But other than that, The Navigator’s Touch was a relatively fun read full of mermaids, mythology, and Vikings!

What I Liked

While I really enjoyed the first book in this companion series, The Seafarer’s Kiss, I found this retelling to be just as imaginative and interesting. This time around Julia Ember pulled from Norse mythology to aid in creating a retelling of Peterpan in a way. I find that Ember does a wonderful job in keeping to the characters she is has drawn inspiration from, but also makes them something new and her own. I know that sounds contradictory, but it is true.

I also really liked about this novel was the fact that it has flawed characters. For me when I see a flawed characters, even with a bit of magic and mythology surrounding them, it makes them more real, more tangible. Throughout the book Ragna is making mistakes, unreliable, and can just be rude. But, this makes her seem more human. I also did enjoy the sense of tension between her and her crew. I though it was an interesting way to go with their relationship since she rely on them and they rely so much on her as a leader. It also makes some of the issues “internal” in a sense and not just us against others.

Another thing I really liked was the fact that this novel the focus was not on romance. While I really enjoyed the previous book, I was glad to see more than just a romance. It allowed the world to become bigger, more vibrant, and the characters to shine on their own a bit more. Also, can I just say the mixture of mythology and elements from Peter Pan made such an interesting world and story. This combination was unique and I have not read anything similar to it.

What I Didn’t Like

One thing I was not overly thrilled with was the fact that were are times of violence that was pushing my limits at times. I do not think the violence in any way was prolonged, but it is there. Now, this is personal and I do want to point out that I am pretty sure Interlude, the publishing house that oversees Duet Books does post warning about their books. I did not look at these before hand. If this is something you think will bother you I highly suggest you look up the warning. But, I will be honest I would have read it anyway because I enjoyed Ember’s previous book and I enjoyed this one as well even though it had moments of violence.

Overall Thoughts

Overall, I thought this was a unique book. The combination of Embers world building, characters, and tension create a very good read. I also think that this is something that can be read on its own or the books can be easily read out of order and the reader wont miss out on anything. If you are looking for an interesting retelling I highly suggest this book.

* I received this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I really liked the premise of this story, a girl fighting to save her family and enact her revenge. Magic and lore, it had all the components of a good story. In fact, the story was great, I just didn't enjoy the way the story was told. The speed of the story was inconsistent, sometimes fast, sometimes slow, lots of details and just skimming through. My hope that the next book will provide a more consistent speed and better story telling. The characters were great, hopefully we'll learn more about them in the next book.

One of the things that I like the most about Ember's books is that she writes about queer mermaids and gods and pirates, but doesn't make the story about the queerness. It's refreshing as hell to read.
And Ragna... she's delightfully unyielding and cold. I have a not-so-secret weakness for characters who are tough and cold with the world but have a secret marshmallow heart, and that's exactly who she is. Ragna is the queer Captain Hook we deserve.

First, can we just talk about the cover for a minute? This book and its predecessor have the most beautiful covers art, and I could post like 800 pictures of them on Instagram. Okay, now that's out of the way, onto the review.

The Navigator's Touch is the follow up to Ember's 2017 release, The Seafarer's Kiss, and we pick up at the end of the first book. I only discovered the first book a couple of months ago, so fortunately, I didn't have to wait long for more of Ersel and Ragna's story.

Mermaids, Vikings, and Norse gods. Really what more do you need to know? This is a Viking/Norse re-imagining of The Little Mermaid, and I am 100% here for it. The first book is mostly Ersel's story and her introduction to Ragna, a shipwrecked Viking warrior and the lengths she goes to not only to protect her new friend, but more importantly, to gain her freedom from an oppressive society where she's judged by her ability to procreate. Oh yeah, and not only is Ersel a mermaid, but Ragna has map tattoos bestowed on her ancestors by the gods that always guide her. There's some romance, but it's more about the journey.

If the first book is Ersel's story, The Navigator's Touch is Ragna's. We follow the pair as they head back to Ragna's homeland, which has been burned and pillaged and where children are being held captive, one of which is Ragna's cousin. Ragna has fought her way back from freezing and starvation to defeat the leader of the people who pillaged her village and took her captive for her tattoos. She's out for revenge, but along the way, she'll find unlikely allies and her pride might just lose her Ersel's favor.

I liked this book. I liked it a lot. I don't think I liked it quite as much as the first one, only because Ragna is pretty immature, and though this book is her journey to becoming herself and realizing her shortcomings, she's a bit annoying at times and takes Ersel for granted a lot. Ersel is all around a nicer person, and her journey was all about gaining the courage to break free. Ragna's journey is about learning to trust people and accept help and to not take things and people for granted, so she has more of an uphill battle in the personality department. However, I did love her journey, and just like the first book, I was left wanting more.

Think we could persuade Ember to write another one?

Bonus points for gender nonconforming representation, both in humans and in gods and for flawless use of they/them pronouns. Some solid lady romance in here, as well, but I appreciate that, again, it's secondary to the plot and character development of the women individually.

This one is out now (so go read it!), and though I read the ebook, I really want both books in print to show off on my coffee table (and to probably devour again and again).

I read this out of order with The Seafarer’s Kiss. Every aspect of the characters that may or may not have been used in the first book is new to me.

It seems like all the good stories have already been told, and all modern writers can do is take the originals (that were already good enough) and make them “different” or “better” by appropriating some aspect of modern culture onto them. I know many people like retellings with twists (or publishers wouldn’t publish them), but I believe that this type of storytelling has been vastly overdone. While the writing in itself may be above average in some instances, the plots are, mostly, ultimately unoriginal.

Mainly, the development of the characters and their relationships felt rushed and fell flat in every instance. Ragna, a young woman (actually, a 17-year-old) whose village was wiped out by an evil earl’s (jarl’s) henchman steals a boat and exacts revenge on the man who murdered her family. Ersel (who I assume is supposed to be a rendition of The Little Mermaid’s Ursula), a curious mermaid who wants to find out about life on land, forges a relationship with Ragna and tags along with her on her voyage in order to do so. The village Ragna sails to for help and sanctuary shrouds their jarl in mystery, presumably for the purpose of adding drama to the identity reveal. These are all flat characters with a “modern” twist in order to make them appeal to a certain audience. I felt they could have been richer, more original, and substantially more complex characters.

Additionally, the bonding moment between Ragna and her hesitantly loyal crew felt forced and superficial. Every interaction between the Ragna and her crew was an opportunity to show a slow bonding and building of trust. Instead, Ragna spends her moments with them resenting them for playing a part in razing her village and kidnapping her, all the while threatening to keelhaul or feed them to sharks.

Also, I’m not quite sure why Loki is presented as gender neutral. I didn’t quite like this revisionist characterization of him. When I read the first sentence about Loki, I thought maybe the editor/proofreader would have to catch some pronoun/antecedent agreement problems; but the “they” kept happening. Norse gods are already solidified characters in a rich cultural mythology. I don’t think a change to any aspect of them added a modern edge to the story at all. If anything, it made the plot, which was already rushed and superficial, even more so.

Ultimately, there are too many things going on in this book that were not given enough depth, and the book did not feel much like a story, though it had the potential to be great.

Rating 4/5

This is the companion/sequel to The Seafarer's Kiss but can be read as a stand alone novel which is what I did. I also chose not to read reviews on TSK just so I remain unbiased to the storyline.

This novel is from Ragna's POV and details her journey to exact revenge on those who raided her village and murdered her family. This novel was very graphic and violent at times which is to be expected of pirates and revenge plots, but definitely be wary when recommending this to younger teens/children. I loved Ragna's strong personality and ties of Norse mythology which I am unfamiliar with so it was exciting to essentially *relive* old legends. Each character introduced or re-introduced in this novel are all unique and such strong individuals that I immediately got tied into them and they are what had me finishing the story. The pacing was a bit slow for me, but the action and graphics made up for it. I do wish the mermaids had more of a role in this novel, but because it was from Ragna's POV I can understand why there wasn't much of a presence.

I did appreciate the aspect of a F/F relationship and how the author ended it the way it did (trying to not spoil it) - too many YA books now days are becoming predictable with their relationships and this was a shocker that left me definitely wanting more.

A little too violent for me. But if you're okay with the murder of babies and animals, by all means, read this.

Companion to The Seafarer's Kiss, this book continues the story from Ragna's perspective as she seeks to get revenge on those who harmed her village, as well as hoping to find her lost cousin. Since being a captain on her own ship (well, which she won), she has to decide how to effectively lead her crew into what promises to be a battle. Additionally, she also has to gain allies to defeat the people who invaded her village. Her one currency in this whole thing is her god-given power to have maps to what she seeks, and with Loki seeking to use this power, it is a battle of wills and deals.

The world-building in this book is naturally quite different to that in the previous, and has Ragna growing into a leader from a warrior. She is hard, and bitter, and constantly paranoid of her crew, which doesn't make for a good voyage. Additionally, her superstitious crew is afraid of Ersel's presence, which is at times an asset to Ragna, but also drives a wedge in their relationship as Ersel is tired of being used for herself. Their romance is significantly better developed this time around, which is funny because this is the book that is NOT focusing on their romance. Anyway, between Ersel's fear of Loki, Loki seeking out Ragna, and Ragna seeking a Jarl's alliance, it makes for an interesting multi-layered plot.

There are many new characters introduced in this book, prominently Aslaug and Honor, the latter being the Jarl Ragna seeks favor from, and the former being Honor's right-hand warrior. The book shows further inclusion by having Honor being a black woman Jarl, and Aslaug as a non-binary character, who is in love with Honor. Through Honor, Ragna learns how to be a better captain for her crew, and manages to free her village's kids from captivity. The ending again leaves on an open note, but Ragna's story is still resolved well enough.

Shortly, a good companion novel with an interesting plot.

I really enjoyed the first book in this series, The Seafarer’s Kiss, which was some of the best F/F fantasy I’ve read, so when I saw that there was going to be a sequel, I was very excited! The Navigator’s Touch is an excellent addition to Ragna and Ersel’s story.

Where The Seafarer’s Kiss was from Ersel’s perspective, showing us the intricacies of life under the sea, The Navigator’s Touch is from Ragna’s, and we follow her on her journey to get revenge on Haakon, the man responsible for the sacking of her village. I loved getting to see the backstory behind how Ragna ended up on the ice shelf where we met her. It really fleshed her out as a character for me, where she was a little bit aloof in the first book, and I loved her voice. Mirroring this, Ersel became a lot more mysterious in this book – I thought it was very clever not to have the two viewpoint characters quite understand each other.

Ragna was a fascinating character for me, with her magical tattoos and the way she was learning to cope with having one hand. I really liked that she didn’t lose any of her power by losing a hand – I was worried that it might turn out she’d have a bit of map permanently missing, but her disability is not used as a plot point like this. This is definitely ‘a little bit inspired by’ Peter Pan rather than ‘a retelling’ or ‘a prequel to’. I loved the nods to it (realising why Smyian had been included made me laugh), but this isn’t an outright Captain Hook backstory. In fact, there’s really only hints at it in the final few pages.

What you get instead is an interesting revenge story, with a great balance of adventure and introspection. I would have liked the mermaids to feature much more – in the first chapter, it looked like they might, but the majority of this story takes place on land. I did love how much more prominent Loki was in the storyline this time, and I think this went a really long way to addressing the issues that some reviewers raised about The Seafarer’s Kiss (namely that having the only genderqueer character be the antagonist was problematic). In The Navigator’s Touch, not only is Loki much more sympathetic, proactive, and three-dimensional, but there is also another genderqueer character, Aslaug, who is equally complex. I don’t know if this was a direct reaction to the criticism, but the expansion of the roles of genderqueer characters is brilliant to see.

Ooh, also, it’s slightly spoilery, but I really applaud Julia Ember’s decision not to give Ersel and Ragna a strictly happy ending. Too often, especially in YA, characters will throw away all their personal goals for the sake of a relationship, so I loved seeing both women stick to their convictions. Although seeing them ride off into the sunset would have been fulfilling in one way, I found the open-ended-ness extremely satisfying and believable, and it made me love both characters more.

I loved returning to this world, and I think if you enjoyed the first book, you should love this. F/F fantasy is really making strides and this is an excellent example of a character-driven work that is still really magical. I highly recommend picking it up!

I hate reviewing books so poorly before they’ve even released, but The Navigator’s Touch was a disappointment. It was boring most of the time, lacked a greater sense of plot, and the protagonist was annoying and unlikable.

The Navigator’s Touch is a companion to the f/f romance, little mermaid retelling, The Seafarer’s Kiss (which is also inspired by Norse mythology). This book can be read as a standalone, given that it essentially spoils the entire plot of the previous book, so if you’re at all intrigued by either of these books, definitely pick up The Seafarer’s Kiss first. In this book though, we are given the perspective of Ragna, a shield maiden who has now gathered a ship of (untrustworthy) men to reclaim her village and extract revenge on the invaders who destroyed it and murdered her family. With her shapeshifting mermaid lover by her side, Ragna takes her crew to Skjordal to ask the Jarl (leader) for aid. In order to save her village, Ragna must figure out how to handle not only her unruly crew and the trickster god, Loki, but also herself.

Something that I appreciated about this book, and that I commend the author for doing, is listing trigger warnings. And not only does Julia Ember list general content warnings of “violence, depiction of kidnapping” at the back of the book, but she also breaks it down into specific, chapter-by-chapter warnings. I thought this was really admirable for an author do.

And though I wasn’t a big fan of the plot, I really did like the idea of the story, especially the Norse mythology inspired aspect. I feel like these types of mythology retellings aren’t as common, and I appreciate the uniqueness of this characteristic. Additionally, I appreciated how Julia Ember included a glossary of the all the Old Norse terminology at the end of the book.

Besides these two awesome characteristics of the book, the only other thing I liked about the book and what held up my rating for the book, was Ersel’s character. She’s such a badass, and the fact that she’s a shapeshifting mermaid is so cool. Not mention, she’s so pure and innocent, yet still strong in her own way and ahhhhh, Ersel, you deserve better than Ragna. I also really liked Ersel’s decision at the end of the book, but I won’t say more for the fear of spoilers.

Okay, now prepare for some intense critique. The plot in this story, if you can even claim it has a plot, is extremely weak. The plot is awkwardly stretched out, and the “obstacles” only require a brief amount of effort on the part of the characters. Any interesting scenes are quickly rushed through. Important plot points weren’t given the time they deserve. Most of the time, reading this book felt like a chore.

And alongside the horrendous plot, the narrative is told in a strange timeline. The first chapter is takes place in the present, followed up by a flashback that lasts three chapters. The flashback both starts and ends abruptly. I understand scattered brief flashbacks, but to do it all in one big go, and after only one chapter? It was bizarre and awkward. The story would have been a lot stronger if the author had opened up with the flashback, or dispersed it in little pieces throughout the novel. In addition to this extensive flashback, there’s a lot of exposition used to catch readers up on the events of The Seafarer’s Kiss. The reader literally learns the entire plot of the previous book through this extensive summarization.

And my final complaint for this book is about the protagonist, Ragna. She’s not likable. She repeatedly disrespects her lover, Ersel. She’s always apologetic afterwards, BUT SHE DOESN’T STOP. In all honestly, she’s rude to most of the people around her. I wish that the author had written the second book with Ersel’s perspective instead (she’s the protagonist of the first book).

Overall, I’m so glad I’ve finished reading this book so I can move onto better ones. The Navigator’s Touch was cheap, boring, and awkwardly plotted. I will have to continue to keep a lookout for good Norse Mythology retellings and mermaid stories, because this book was neither.

The sequel to The Seafarer’s Kiss is a fun, quick read. The story picks up with Ragna on the ship she commandeered after defeating the man who ransacked her village, losing her hand in the process. Now she and the mermaid Ersel, blessed by Loki with a changing form, set off to retake her home. But Ragna’s anger and thirst for vengeance do not endear her to the crew, who she distrusts and resents, nor to Ersel who she begins to take for granted. Running low on supplies, Ragna is forced to postpone her plans for revenge to resupply at a nearby village and ask their leader for help in retaking her home. But if she’s to have any hope, she’s going to have to find some way to gain her crew’s trust (and learn to trust them in return) and possibly make a deal with Loki in the process—the one thing Ersel made her swear to never do.

I enjoyed this book—not quite as much as The Seafarer’s Kiss, but still a fun, quick, and imaginative read. It was fun to see many of the gaps in Ragna’s story filled in and see things from her perspective. Especially since she had a lot of growing to do in this book. I also liked the high seas adventure aspect of this book and the even deeper exploration of Norse Mythology. And as always, these covers are just to die for.

I was a bit disappointed that the story didn’t seem to track more with the Captain Hook / Peter Pan legend until the very end. I really enjoyed the aspect of fairy tale retelling mixed with Norse mythology in the first book because it was just so unusual and interesting. This book still had the Norse mythology—which was great—but only very tenuous connections to fairy tales / retellings until the end, save for Ragna’s hook and her captaincy. I would’ve loved to see that aspect more fully woven throughout the story. Of course, the book left us on a bit of a cliff hanger so it’s entirely possible (and, frankly, likely I think) that there is going to be another book that delves more deeply into the Peter Pan / Captain Hook myth.

Overall a good, light read. Not as much a retelling as The Seafarer’s Kiss, but still a fun, Norse-inspired, LGBTQ adventure story.

This is definitely more Peter Pan inspired than it is a retelling, don't go in expecting to read about immortal boys who fly with the use of fairy dust, you'll end up feeling a little flat. But this is a story about the best character (at least, in my opinion) in The Seafarer's Kiss, Ragna. Any kind of seafaring character is always wondrous in my book and Ragna is no exception. I loved the idea of her tattoos shifting to show maps to various places, it was a nice magical detail added to the world. I also loved Ragna's characterisation, she felt incredibly real to me and, while I can't relate to having to talk round a Viking crew, I found her struggles with her own power and responsibilities very relatable.

This book didn't have as much of the queer romance as the first book did, and it's certainly more of a difficult read at times (I mean just look at those TWs) but it was interesting to get more into the grit of these characters and to look at their flaws. This series may have been fairytale inspired (ok Peter Pan isn't a fairytale but you get my meaning) but it certainly isn't twee.

One of my favourite tropes in fiction is the idea of having to complete trials in order to prove yourself or obtain something, I'm not sure what it is but that always makes the narrative seem much more satisfying to me. I ended up getting a little confused while reading this as to what was actually happening and who was asking what of whom, but that might have been my sleep-deprived brain tying itself in knots. The story does culminate in some great action sequences which made me forget my confusion.

I still think The Seafarer's Kiss is the stronger story, and I'd be a little more wary lending this one out, just because of the more dark portions, but all in all, this had been a great duology to read.

My rating: 4/5 stars

I received a digital advanced review copy of this book for free from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Female pirate books are my new obsession! This is the sequel to Seafarer's Kiss and it is an excellent read. The action and world building is fantastic.

The Navigator's Touch is about Ragna, a teenage girl and trained warrior who is hungry for revenge after she was kidnapped, her village destroyed, and family murdered. The story is inspired by Norse mythology which is seen through the involvement of Norse gods, one who has a very specific connection to Ragna and the magical maps displayed all over her skin.

'Two years later, Sigrid gave birth to a girl. At first, the child seemed unremarkable. Astrid came into the world screaming, demanding attention and reverence, a small mirror of her mother. But a few days later, curious markings developed on the baby’s pale skin. Lines of latitude stretched across her chest and legs, and, as the days passed, cobalt continents and oceans of cerulean blue appeared.'

As someone who grew up in Sweden, the use and influence of the language felt familiar and the new ways to portray the gods intriguing (although there is a lot about Norse mythology I have forgotten about because I learned about it ages ago). However, if you don't have previous knowledge of the language or Norse mythology, the glossary in the back will delight and help you immensely.

The Navigator's Touch is the sequel and a companion novel to the novel The Seafarer's Kiss by the same author and that means you can read one without having read the other. However, if you read The Navigator's Touch first, it will spoil the events of the first book. Having read both, I have to say that I loved the connection between the two. Ersel, who is the main character in the first book, is still very present in The Navigator's Touch and the relationship between Ragna and Ersel continues on in this book, with both its ups and downs. However, this book is definitely less about romance and more about Ragna's journey and what she must do to reach and achieve her endgame. Throughout the story, we see as Ragna evolves, she becomes stronger, a better captain and there is clear character development from start to finish.

'The golden mare was nowhere to be seen, but this brave little beast had dragged me away from a fenrir’s jaws. He deserved the position of war mount.
“I’ll call you Vaskr.” I scratched his withers with my hook. The pony was fearless and deserved the name.'

Vaskr, the pony, as well as the side characters you get to know throughout the novel really make The Navigator's Touch amazing. In the beginning, there is clear resistance between Ragna and her crew but as they fight together, it becomes clear that there is also respect and love between them. The bonds they form through the hardships and battles they face, make the reward and the aftermath that much sweeter.

'Now, command was starting to fit like a pair of new boots. It still pinched a little, but I was breaking it in, making it mine.'

If you love young adult fantasy novels deeply rooted in mythology — in this case, Norse mythology — with a diverse cast of characters, you've found your next read in The Navigator's Touch. This book is about Ragna finding justice for her family and the community she lost and about how she becomes a leader worthy of her own ship and crew. This is a book to keep on your radar and one you won't regret buying and reading. A detailed list of the trigger and content warnings exist in the back of the book, which specifies in which chapters what content appears which I think will be very helpful for a lot of readers. The warnings can also be found on the publisher's website. A few of these content warnings include violence and kidnapping.

I really enjoyed this story. I probably missed a lot of the backstory by not having reach The Seafarer's Kiss, but it's definitely on my list. I would like a lot more female pirate books! The only alienating part of this story was some of the vocabulary which made it hard at times to understand what Ragna was talking about. Eventually that fades, but in the beginning it was hard to get full into the story. I thought Ragna's relationship to her crew and her home to be so similar it was easy to see why at times she struggled with the right decision. Overall, the pace of this book was perfection. For a story all about vengeance it's important to have enough movement without dragging. I loved the incorporated fairy tales and myths into the viking story.

An interesting, easy and engaging read with a Sapphic romance. This is a worthy companion novel to the sea farer's kiss which, although it didn't rock my world, was still very enjoyable. A few familiar faces turn up from the first book but this is very much its own story. The misfortune for me is that I know far to much about fighting, weaponry and the period of history this is based on to be sanguine with inaccuracies. So that marred the enjoyment for me a little but I'm well aware that that's me.