Book: Fable
Author: Adrienne Young
Rating: 2 Out of 5 Stars

I would like to thank the publisher, Wednesday Books, for providing me with an ARC.

This is another case that there’s nothing wrong with the book, but it’s me. I read another book by this author and I also just could not get into it. You know what? It’s okay. This may not be the author for me, but I do understand why people enjoy her. She does have a beautiful writing style and her stories are good, but it’s just not for me. A lot of it is pretty much because I think I am actually growing out of young adult.

The characters were interesting, but, again, I just really wasn’t all that connected with them. I really didn’t care about them or what they were doing. I just don’t know what it was about them that made it difficult for me to relate to. Again, this is something that I had an issue with in the other book I read by this other. The characters are supposed to be compelling, but we just didn’t click. I don’t know what it would take for me to click with the characters.

The world building is actually what made me give this two stars. I thought the world was solid. The actions were great. Again, I just could not connect with it. I wanted to and I wanted to like it, but it was just missing that spark that would have made me fall in love with it. I don’t know what could have been done differently to make me fall in love with it.

The writing was supposed to hook me and I know in my heart that it was supposed to. However, once again, I just had a really difficult time connecting. When I first starting reading this, I will admit that I was very much interested. However, the more I read, the more I found myself just simply not caring. Again, it’s no one’s fault. I just think that this book and author aren’t for me. I really do get why people do enjoy this book and the author.

So, this book comes out on September 1, 2020.

Trigger warnings for death of a loved one, murder, blood, abusive parental relationship, alcohol consumption.

This book was so much fun! While I wouldn't call it a fast paced book, the intrigue and secrets sprinkled through the plot were an excellent driving force, so we simultaneously feel as if we are spending plenty of time getting to know the characters and the world AND that the plot is driving ever-forward. I'll admit that I had many problems with the author's last work, so I was quite skeptical going into this one, but I loved how pleasantly surprised I was. All of the characters felt multilayered - everyone was flawed and a bit morally ambiguous at times, but what else would you expect from a pirate-y themed book? I especially loved the complex father-daughter relationship, which hit home a little bit for me. I wish the romance had been stretched out a little bit more, but that might just be the slow-burn loving masochist in me. I cannot wait for the sequel!

I received an ARC of this novel from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Can I just say how much I love Adrienne Young? Really, I do! Sky in the Deep was one of the best books I’d read in awhile. Even though The Girl the Sea Gave Back wasn’t my favorite, I still enjoyed it!

And now there’s Fable. I LOVE HER. This brought back tons of Daughter of the Pirate King feels. I had no idea how much I love sea stories but apparently it’s a lot! I can’t wait for book 2! I need that ARC wish granted STAT!

Fable was such a fun, dark story!
We have a young girl, Fable, who was abandoned at a very young age. She’s barely making it by when she decides to seek refuge by way of the Marigold. There she encounters a young crew that is more than meets the eye.
We have a strong female character, a great found family situation and an enemies to lovers thing going on.
This was a hard to put down, page turner. I really, really enjoyed it.

The Quick Cut: A girl whose mother died years ago and whose father abandoned her on an island goes looking for her dad. Emotions get heated when getting out to sea turns out less predictable than she thought.

A Real Review:
Thank you to St. Martin's Press for providing the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Everyone experiences tragedy at some point in their lives, but it's a truly devastating situation to lose both your parents. Even worse so for it to happen at the same time. How would you feel? For Fable, her reaction is go out looking for the parent that left her behind.

Fable lost everything that fateful night. In the horrendous storm that claimed the life of her mother, her father dropped her off and never looked back. The sea is her home and all she wants to do is get back to it, by her father's side. However, when she gets a trader named West to get her passage off, not everything is as it looks. Will she find her father or will she discover something much bigger?

Can I just take a moment to gush about the cover of this book?!?! Between the picture of the girl and the small details woven in that relate to the story, it's hard not to get pulled in just by looks.

For me, the first 50 pages didn't pull my interest much, but once the action got real I was hooked. Fable is likeable even though she has every reason not to be. This girl didn't have a childhood, she had survival of the fittest. I can't imagine coming out of that wanting to see my father if I was in her shoes, no matter his reason for it.

The trader, West, turns out to be a much more fascinating mystery of a man than I expected and the chemistry he has with Fable is off the charts. In a way, they each will a need the other is looking for and they respect one another for their toughness. Having that mutual level to both stand on creates an interesting relationship between these two that I hope to see more of in the sequel.

With a sea drenched adventure, this story starts slow but builds to a strong finish.

My rating: 4 out of 5

Okay. If I had rated this book at 98%, I probably would have given it 4 stars. I may still give it 4 stars. I don't know. We'll see how I feel after hashing this all out. But that last 2% of the book, man....

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*deep breath*

Here's the thing: I thought this was a really good book. Like, "I'll read just one more chapter and then suddenly it's 2am" good.

Does that mean I think it's a good Pandemic Read? Not for me, no.

There's a line in the book...:
<i>"Fear danced silently in my blood, its invisible tentacles wrapping around me and squeezing."</i>

This was basically me the *entire* time I was reading. Young did an excellent job building tension -- not suspense, there's a difference -- that made my stomach roil with anxiety. From the opening chapters of the book -- with Fable's tangle with Koy and her escape off Jeval -- Young nailed that anxiety-inducing uncertainty.

But during a pandemic (and right before college campuses open back up) was perhaps not the best time to be reading a story that literally made my heart race.

Still, I was invested.

✔︎ -- No Love Triangle! You know that's a bonus for me. There was some misdirection early on, but thankfully, that's all it was. (And I predicted the "correct" direction correctly, so brownie point for me.)

✔︎ -- Diversity! Sort of. Our protagonist is still a white female, but there are two characters -- Auster and Paj -- who are in a gay, interracial relationship. They don't necessarily have their own story independent of the main plot, but I appreciated the way that Young presented their relationship. That is, it's established early on that love is a weakness and has no place on the trading ships -- and when it does, it doesn't end well. So Auster and Paj's relationship is "hidden" not because they're gay, but because all relationships on ships are hidden. If people know what you care about, they use it against you.

✔︎ -- The world-building. Even though they're traders by nature, the characters in this book had a sort of pirate-vibe -- maybe this was Young's way of telling a pirate story without the associated connotations of pillaging, plundering, raping, etc. There's a clear system and hierarchy in place -- there wasn't a map in my ARC, and I really hope there's a map in the published book -- with the guild-masters and the rings and everything. It's not a very rosy life for anyone, it seems, but maybe that's reserved for Bastian? I read some reviews that weren't fond of the gem-sage concept, or didn't think it was well-developed/executed, and I have to disagree. My hunch is that Young gave us what we needed to know to follow the plot of this book, and it's going to come back into play in the sequel(s). More on my hypothesis below.

✔︎ -- The pacing. Especially compared to the last book I read, the pacing was ON POINT here. There was one part about 70% through, where they were getting new sails, where it hit a bit of a snag, but I thought Young's pacing was excellent. Maybe a bit too fast in some cases...like a stone skipping on water, we jumped over chunks of time to keep the action moving. (I'm thinking of near the end, when Fable and West are dredging...they're underwater and then POOF! Everything's loaded on the ship and we're back in Dern. Wait--what? Same with offloading the cargo at the end -- if it's enough cargo to get them free, that happened very quickly.)

Which, yes. It doesn't make sense to spend a chapter detailing them getting treasure off a sunken ship if it's all going to end well. But...Young's knowledge of sailing/ship stuff was almost on a Moby Dick level. (Okay, not quite, because that would be an insult. Melville spends waaaaaaaaaaaaaay too much time with the whaling stuff.) But the analogy stands: there's a lot of description about sailing and ship jobs, so it was a little jarring to skip the "retrieving buried treasure" part, since so much attention had been paid to the other details.

*shrug* Not a big deal.

Okay. Let's get to some of the spoilery stuff.

✘ -- I had a tricky time pinning down Fable's age. I know she's 17/18, but "is older than her years" because she was abandoned, Survivor-style, on a terrible island for four years. (No one in this world seems to live a life of comfort...where are all these gems going? Who funds the money? I get that we're supposed to think it's Bastian and maybe that's where the rich, happy people live, because there is not a lot of joy in this world.) Point is--sometimes she acted like a teenager, impulsively jumping to conclusions, rebelling against orders; and other times she seemed mature and wise, like at the end with Saint, in the tavern. Which is better than the alternative, where characters (and the plot) are driven entirely by negative emotions. (Someone is always angry, yelling at someone, lashing out...I'm finding that to be a pet peeve of mine these days.)

✘ -- This is relatively minor, but I was bothered by the fact that she goes to such great lengths to prove she's NOT A THIEF -- no, really; she literally almost drowns in a very Moana-moment where's pinned in some coral -- aaaand then turns around and steals from the ship. *facepalm* Girl. Not your best look.

✘ -- This is also a spoilery point but goes back to my point about Fable's age. Her reaction to Saint's revelations...confuse me. First, she's painted him as this callous, cruel "pirate king," with Clove being the paternal figure. But, when she goes to see him, he (1) keeps his word (I thought for sure he was going to break his promise and laugh in her face, because pirate king.); (2) basically sets her up for life (if she can get the treasure); and (3) reveals that he's not a total asshat and deadbeat as he hired West to basically look after her.
And Fable gets pissed because she feels she didn't really earn her survival....? I guess? First, she gets over this pretty quickly, so it doesn't seem to be *too* much of an issue for her and is more of a convenient reaction to build tension between them. Second, she's looking for proof that her father cares for her, and SHE GETS IT. I know she is still a teenager, so perspective, but Saint was not a monster IMHO. I'm not saying he's a...."saint" (oh, terrible pun), but he was clearly affected by Isolde's death (and by "affected" I mean "broken") so he did what he could to protect his daughter. Again, not saying it's the right call, but it doesn't seem like there was a pleasant place he could send his daughter to anywhere in this world so....

✘ -- Okay. Last thing that bugged the crap out of me. Like I said -- 98% of the way through, this was 4.5 star book for me. But then the end. I knew "something" was coming, because things go off relatively smoothly for the last 10-15%, but it doesn't feel like the "end."
And once Fable left the boat, by herself, I knew what was going to happen.
Yes, she was going to get the ring back from the pawn shop.
And yes, she was going to meet Zola. (Because didn't Saint tell her, in a clear instance of foreshadowing, that if she ever got in trouble with Zola, to come straight to him, Saint?)
And then they kidnapped her.
And it just felt like the ending of <i>Six of Crows</i> where they figure out that Kaz cares for Inej and they kidnap her. And as much as I LOVED Six of Crows, the ending bothered me because a strong, kick-ass female character got kidnapped like a princess in a fairy-tale and became a damsel in distress.

WHY?!?!!

So, yeah. That's where I'm at.

Final Thoughts:
1--Soap Opera Rules apply here. If you don't see a body, or if someone says someone else is "gone" (and not "dead") -- they're not dead.
2--OBVIOUSLY the character of Holland is important and will probably be a major player in the sequel. You don't just drop breadcrumbs like that and leave them there to mold. I think this is why I'm okay with the amount of info we got about gem sages. If I remember correctly, these are they key bits of info for the sequel:
--Being a Gem Sage is a hereditary thing: Fable got it from Isolde, who clearly got it from her parents.
--(Is it matriarchal? IDK.)
--Holland is a Gem Sage (I think...) and this is how she made her fortune.
--Zola fled Bastian because he pissed off Holland.
--Isolde also fled Bastian because...something.
--Zola knows Isolde because Fable "reminds him of someone."
My hypothesis? Perhaps Isolde and Holland are related -- mother/daughter? -- and Zola is taking Fable to Bastian to appease Holland by giving her her granddaughter. And Holland will use Fable as leverage against Saint? IDK.

But maybe we'll finally see some happy people in Bastian. Because the only places we've seen in this world have been very bleak -- and if there's that much money/gems floating around, someone's got to be enjoying it.

**I received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Fable by Adrienne Young, published by St. Martin's Press, is book one the Fable Series.
Lets get introduced to the characters.
Fable is the 17 year old daughter of a very powerful man. She's had a rough life after her beloved mother died and my heart was hurting for her.
The author created a fantastical world, a story of a young girl finding her place and family while surviving in a mens world.
A really great read. The story continues in Namesake.

**I received an ARC of this book via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review."*

In short, this book was amazing. Young built a beautiful world of adventure on the high seas, and the plot kept me on the edge of my seat all the way through. I was a big fan of Fable as a strong heroin who really made her own destiny, and the sprinkle of romance was just enough that it didn't take away from her storyline as a free spirit. The characters were dynamic and filled with personality, with detailed writing that crafted beautiful imagery all throughout the novel. I would describe this story as Pirates of the Caribbean meets VE Schwab's A Darker Shade of Magic series. I can't wait to read the sequel!

Wow. I cannot begin to express how much I loved this book.

Previous books by this author have been hit or miss for me, so I was not sure what to expect when I started reading. A friend suggested I pick this one up when it became available on Netgalley and I figured I'd give it a shot. I was blown away.

From the very first page, FABLE jumped into my heart and I knew this was going to be a book to treasure. The sea imagery is gorgeous, I felt like I was reef diving along with the main character (Fable), like I could smell the ocean, feel the cool water on my skin. The characters were also intriguing and I kept wanting to know more about them. And of course, this was a high seas page-turning adventure that never stopped.

This book kept me guessing throughout, and I was very invested in finding out how people were connected to each other and what would happen next. The relationships weaved in the story were fascinating. I started this book as a buddy read, a few chapters each day. But after a couple days I had to reach out to my friend to let her know I could no longer hold myself back from finishing the book in a single sitting. Then I stayed up until 2am. And wow, that ending. I immediately ran to request the next book!

If you like high seas adventure, mystery and perhaps a bit of magic, THE OCEAN, pirates, and perhaps sharks- this is the book for you. Pre-order it immediately. I already want to read it again.

Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for an egalley in exchange for an honest review.

This just might be my favorite Adrienne Young story yet. After all, I had only read the first chapter and then hurriedly requested book 2 on Netgalley. Yes, it's that good. A seafaring adventure in which our title character, Fable searches for the father that left her behind years ago while also searching for her own place in the world. But who can Fable trust?

Fable is a fierce and determined character and I was pushing for her to succeed right from the very beginning. There are some fairly dangerous people that Fable encounters but she's not afraid to rise to the challenge. There's a little bit of romance but it comes in a little late in the book and it was a little bit predictable. I am glad Young didn't really linger on it that much and ensured that the adventure was still the focal point.

I have a feeling this is going to be quite the hit come September.


Goodreads review published 03/07/20
Expected Publication Date 01/08/20

Ok, so I absolutely fell in love with this main character, she was both sassy and fierce but also kind and goal oriented. I liked that she wasn't heartless but she also wasn't afraid to stand up for herself. I also loved the story, side characters and the complexities that each is going through or went through. Everything about this book was perfect, I just loved it so much. The world building was done very well, you could tell it's a big world but the author only explained as much as necessary to the plot.

I don't really have much to say, except if you love swashbuckling and the high seas/coast than you'll love this story.

I received this book free from Netgalley for an honest review.

4.5 Stars

Firstly, I LOVE THIS COVER!!
Secondly, this book is awesome! I love the characters, I love the storyline, I love the secrets we keep finding out. I’m pissed at the way it ended and that I will have to wait forever to get book 2. All around great read that makes you not want to put the book down!

I just absolutely loved this one. Let's start with the cover... so gorgeous. And the plot and the characters and the ending.

So Fable is left on an island by her father after a shipwreck (harsh, right?) and he basically tells her that if she can survive, get off the island,and find him, he will give her something. So she struggles for about 4 years before she has enough money (sort of) to get off the island. There's a lot more going on, but you get the point. And that's just the first couple of chapters.

I could not put this one down. If you like YA, fantasy, pirates, action, adventure, or any combination of the above, this might be just the thing for you. And there's another book coming! I'm totally hooked.

Do you like Pirates of the Caribbean? Or Six of Crows? How about a book that mashes elements of the two together? If so, I think this book will be for you, especially if you love stories that focus on the darker aspects of ships and piracy in fantasy lore.

I have to admit that it took a little bit of energy to get invested in Fable. The first few chapters are just following the main character, Fable, as she goes about her regular routine dredging. Dredging is basically the term that’s used for a ship’s diver. The dredger dives into the sea and searches for valuable items, like pyre or coins. While the process is interesting, it wasn’t a great way to introduce the reader to the world. I have to be honest, I was struggling to get through those first chapters because of how uninterested I became over the course of Fable's dredging explanation. Thankfully, though, the pace picked up and the plot started rolling right after those introductory pages.

So, like I said, Fable is a dredger. Now, the idea of a dredger in the world Young has created doesn’t seem super realistic when it comes to diving. As for as I know, humans can’t dive hundreds of feet without scuba gear, so I’m not entirely sure how “human” Young’s characters actually are. Besides some mention of small magics, there’s nothing that would indicate special lungs are a thing. Other than that quirk, Fable is an intriguing protagonist to follow. She’s had a rough life, and it’s entertaining to follow her on her journey to find her father and get her family back.

As for the other characters, we have West, Willa, Paj, Auster, and Hamish. West is the swoon-worthy captain. Willa is the only female crew member of the Marigold. Paj and Auster are harboring a secret romance. And Hamish counts the coins. Unfortunately, besides West and Willa, the other three characters don’t really get a lot of time in the spotlight. They’re all fun, and they have major Six of Crows crew vibes, but I wanted more development from each of them. I mean, we barely know anything about Hamish. I will say that Fable’s relationship with her father was fascinating to watch unfold, however. Every time I anticipated some sort of development between the two, Young would take the characters in a totally different direction. Super unpredictable.

All in all, despite some of my nitpicks, this was a gripping fantasy read. It gave me flashbacks to my teenage days obsessing over Will Turner and Elizabeth Swan, and it also had a major cliffhanger that means I’ll have to get my hands on book two somehow, someway. While Fable isn’t my favorite read of the year, it does provide exactly what it’s meant to: a sea adventure full of swashbuckling heroes, villains, and all types of people in between.

3.5/5 stars

*Note: I received a copy of this book to review from the publisher via NetGalley. This in no way affected my opinion/review.

I had trouble putting this book down, I mean give me a book with a strong female protagonist and I will be slightly biased, but this one is an amazing read. A strong main character in Fable, who has lived the last four years trying to survive on an island surrounding by thiefs where she was left behind by her own father. Her goal: get off the island and find her dad to get what is hers like he promised.
She ends up on a boat with a ragtag crew of people and they get into some adventures, intrigues and then we're at the end and I need the sequel fast!
What I liked about the characters is that they are hardened by life and not one of them is entirely good, they're like you would expect them to be if life is difficult and people do what they need to do in order to survive. Yet there is the shimmering of hope when you see real connections are still possible,,,it might take time, it might take work and there is an internal struggle cause who can you really trust? But friendship, loyalty and love will always have a place in the world. Even in the pirate world.

I'll be waiting here, not so patiently, for the second book in this serie.

*** An ARC was provided by Netgalley in exchange for a honest review. ***

I was absolutely swept away by Fable! I finished it in one afternoon because I couldn't stop reading! I loved this high-seas world that Adrienne Young created. She wrote fantastic characters who were more than what they seemed at first glance. I can't wait to get my hands on the next book! That cliff hanger ending just about did me in.

If you love pirates, adventure, or just a great YA, keep your eyes out for this book! It publishes September 1, 2020.

Thanks so much to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for this digital ARC!

This book was amazing!! I‘m usually not a huge YA fan, but this sea-world fantasy just blew me away...I was hooked immediately, and 350+pages simply flew by.

Fable is a 17 year-old gem mage who, after she lost her mother in a shipwreck at 14, was left on an island of cutthroat dredgers (salvage divers) by her trader father to fend for herself. She survives for 4 years until she bargains for a voyage to her father‘s home on West‘s ship (a trader who has been purchasing her salvaged pyre). West‘s misfit crew takes her in after she proves herself and thus begins their adventures (including meeting up with her seemingly uncaring father, clashing with a truly evil villain and exploring Fable‘s gem mage abilities inherited from her mother).

The world-building was spot-on, and the cast very well thought-out. This is the first of a duo, and I cannot wait for part two. Highly recommend.

Thank you to #NetGalley, #StMartinsPress and #WednesdayBooks for providing me the ARC. The opinions are strictly my own.

The only issues I had were the politics, it felt disconnected, and not enough questions were answered by the end of the book.

I thought Fable was an interesting character. She works hard but she learns to take direction which is a rarity in YA. Usually the main character has a crappy attitude and knows more than everyone else in the room. I also liked the relationship with her father-it was very mysterious and I'm curious to see if develop further in book two.

I liked all the characters and how they contributed to the plot; I also liked the romance.

This was a very good pirate book full of colorful characters, action, and romance.

I received a free ARC of this book from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

I really enjoyed this one! You can almost taste the salt of the sea, and there's just the right amount of adventure and intrigue. Leapt right over to the sequel!

This was a great pirate story, full of sea voyages, bartering, near-death experiences and sailing knowledge. I loved Fable and her wily, slick ways. She had to forage and find her own way and she was scrappy. The crew she stumbles on was good fun as well as we got to know them

This ends on a cliffhanger so I look forward to reading book 2.