I wanted to enjoy this one but felt the overall mystery, plot and characters hard to relate to. I can totally see the potential here though, I might just not be the target audience.

“Kirby would like to say something reassuring to his son. Even more, he’d like to say something true. But the convergence of these qualities is rare when it comes to the future of certain parts of the world.”

THE LIGHT PIRATE imagines a devastating future that isn’t outside of the realm of possibility and infuses it with just enough science and (maybe?) magic to make it hopeful. Brooks-Dalton’s writing is cinematic and beautiful, and while this is not a light read (it’s cli-fi, so…) I still managed to gobble this story up in no time. For those of us who read this book, I think we’re going to find that it'll stick into our brains whether we want it to or not. There are storm descriptions that made me feel the need to check outside my window.

The book is written in four sections- the pace at the beginning is relentless and while it does slow down, it does not relent. Brooks-Dalton includes short sections that personify bodies of water- oceans, groundwater, the water contained in storms- that are almost like a Greek-chorus (if the chorus didn’t actually comment on the action because they are giant bodies of water and don’t care one whit for humanity- this made morse sense in my head but I’m sticking with it) and serve to remind us that humanity is minuscule in comparison.

There are two specific themes (of many) that pop up repeatedly that I particularly liked:

1. Life will go on. Adaptation and evolution have not ceased.

“...she trusts that this place will go on changing long after she is gone. The elderly die, and the old ways die with them. The young are born, and fresh traditions begin. One of the children here sees through the darkest nights as if it were day. Another can hold her breath for a long, long time. Another has learned to hear the fish chattering beneath the waves. They do not call these gifts magic and they do not call them science. They call them what they are: change.”

2. How do we exercise our agency?

Two quotes that I liked:

“...she cannot shake the feeling that she’s been washed ashore on a strange beach. Did she really choose or did she just succumb? Is it a decision to hold on to a life raft, or is it something else?”

“Standing there with his hands full of fur, he feels that they are both helpless creatures: wet and lost.
‘Oh, Kirby,’ Phyllis says when she sees him, and he can’t tell whether this is admonishment or approval or something else.
‘I found it,’ he mumbles, as if to say, An event occurred and I succumbed to it, which is not incorrect.”


There is also a smattering of humor, such as this interaction of father and son:

“‘Wash your hands, Lucas,’ Kirby says, his mouth full of ash.
‘I already did.’
‘So do it again.’
Lucas makes the sound of a child being forced to do hard labor and stumbles toward the sink, suddenly limp under the weight of this task. This time, he uses the soap.”

While the storms (in my opinion) are the star of this book (honorable mention to the manatees), the way Brooks-Dalton formulates the relationships in this book is also something special. Phyllis and Wanda, Lucas and Wanda, Kirby and Lucas… it’s all lovely.

Huge fan of this book. Thanks so much to Grand Central Publishing for the review copy!

Yes! I will read anything Lily Brooks-Dalton writes. I loved this every bit as much – more, I think – than Good Morning, Midnight. Another new favorite author alert!

It is no spoiler to say that the story starts with a heart-thumping hurricane that gets the pages turning (book-jacket copy tells you as much). But equally impressive is how emotionally evocative the story is, placing the reader inside the heads and hearts of ALL the characters.

And, the writing… it is gorgeous! Some samples:

The big coconut palm hanging over the yard sways. Its roots are sunk deep beneath the wilderness lurking at the edge of the property, but its trunk swings out over the lawn as if the wild is reaching for the house with those big fingerlike fronds.

… when he follows Lucas into the kitchen and catches the look on her face, puckered and tearful, he’s instantly ashamed of himself. He only meant to make his son feel safe. But then his guilt swells too big and it changes into something bitter, something charred.

Wes is scraggly, tall and thin like an adolescent pine tree, with a mouth that never stops flapping.

I’ve grown to love cli-fi/eco-fiction set in the not too distant future, and this one is now among my favorites. It combines light touches of science (presented through the lens of awe) via the character of Phyllis, a once-university-professor/biologist with concern for a changing planet. If anyone read The Overstory and fell in love with Patricia Westerford, you will adore Phyllis as well.

Power, water, light and time are given a voice through short chapters in their perspectives – such a brilliant way to include science and bring the natural elements to life in a book about climate change!

I appreciated this novel, also, because of the deep connections to a sense of place – all the characters’ love of Florida and their reticence to ever let go of it; it mirrors my feelings about an increasingly dry and threatened desert (my home). In many ways, this book felt all-too near.

As expected by the title, themes of light are sprinkled throughout with grace – power companies “keeping the lights on,” bioluminescence in the seas, the desire to fix and bring light to a struggling/changing Earth. (view spoiler)

As Phyllis says, “Humans have spoiled so much, but nature is resourceful. It dies and is reborn as something new. Her work now is to watch this occur.”

I continue to find hope in novels like this that lean on science to explain that, yes … our current Earth as we know it is going to change, but something else will very likely come in its place. Life, in some form, will go on.

Many thanks to Hachette – Grand Central Publishing -, through NetGalley, for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review. I loved this book!

Very good story about a baby born during a hurricane. The Light Pirate goes through Wanda’s life as climate change takes back Florida.

This is going to hit the spot for all the climate fiction lovers out there. We follow a Florida family, mainly the young daughter Wanda, who was born in the middle of a super hurricane, as they navigate life as the world around them falls apart. Slowly, Florida succumbs back to the wilderness it once was. Wanda fiercely loves her life in Florida, even as her big brother and father make plans to leave. There's also a small bit of magical realism thrown in, which gives this story a bit of a sweet tinge. I loved it, and I couldn't turn the pages fast enough. I felt like I was right there with Wanda. This book is going to be a hit--well written and very atmospheric!

Thank you NetGalley for the chance to read this one :)

A powerful story on climate change set in the near future. The main character Wanda, whose names after hurricane Wanda - the worst in Florida’s history, experiences the harsh effect of global warming and the ever changing weather in Florida. Follows her from adolescence to adulthood, It deals with loss, adventure, violence and more. What’s real about this story is how close It hits to home and what we could really see in the future.

A haunting book that weaves the incredible loss and destruction that nature and climate change can bring with a feeling of resilience in the face of adversity and, in time, the hope for something new to be born from the ashes.

Hurricane after hurricane batters the Florida coast, wildfires rage in the west, and weather and temperature grows more extreme as the effects of climate change begin to finally overwhelm America in this book which follows Wanda, a girl born during and named after a devastating hurricane. As civilization begins to falter in the face of these mounting challenges, and her hometown and loved ones struggle to survive, people must learn to live differently and make choices in a very different world.

I really enjoyed this book, and found Wanda and many of the other characters to be wonderfully written. The depiction of climate change and its effects here are bone-chilling and disturbing, but the focus on people's resilience in the face of such incredible challenges was inspiring.

The story was interesting but the pace was slower. You could feel the humidity of Florida based on the pacing. You need to be in a good space to read this though. It can be heavy at times.

I received a complimentary copy of this book through NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Name of Book: The Light Pirate
Author: Lily Brooks-Dalton
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Genre: Sci Fi
Pub Date: December 6, 2022
My Rating: 2.5 Stars!

When the blurb stated for fans of “Where the Crawdad Sings” ~ it got my attention!

This climate change story takes place in Florida in the near future.
Wanda is the main character. She was born in the middle of a hurricane named ‘Wanda’; which is one of the worst hurricanes in Florida's history.
Wanda’s father Kirby is the central person in her life as is her neighbor-turned-caregiver Phyllis.

Story is told in four parts ~power, water, light, and time.
We become involved in Wanda’s world ~ and follow her through these 4 themes.

Yikes! We are having the hottest summer ~ normal is a few hot weeks in August but this summer got started off hot and hasn’t cooled down yet! There is no doubt that this is the result of climate change.
Additionally while we are in our third year of severe drought conditions' many parts of the country are under water from excessive rain and flooding.
I know climate change is real.
I believe the comment ~“fans of “Where the Crawdad Sings” would like this”! ~> was misleading to me 🤔 I really enjoyed that book. I am guessing it is the correlation of Wanda and Kya’s personalities that the blurb r linking the two.
Unfortunately but this was only okay ~ I am sure ~ it was bad timing on my part.

Want to thank NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for this early eGalley.
Publishing Release Date scheduled for December 6, 2022

The Light Pirate is a book that chronicles decades. From the day that Wanda is born until nearly her death, the Light Pirate shows example after example of perseverance and growing where you're planted and surviving after life throws almost everything it can at you.

This book feels like several books in one, each featuring a different member of the family. Each section takes us deeper and deeper into Wanda's life and shows us how she grows and survives against all odds. As climate change takes Florida, Wanda fights back and shows the adaptability of the human race.

The writing reminds me of Where the Crawdads Sing, with the vivid depictions of nature.

Thank you NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for this ARC!

This pains me since Good Morning, Midnight is a favorite book. I read almost half this story last night and couldn’t bring myself to do more than skim the rest this morning. The Light Pirate is depressing and boring. I didn’t feel a connection to any character, and although climate change is happening, this takes it to an unreadable telling of events. This happened, that happened, she said.

I read an ARC of this book provided by the publisher, Grand Central, through Net Galley.

WOW! Short-list for best book of 2022. Fantastically well-written dystopian novel that takes place in near-future Florida. This climate apocalypse has action, lyrical language, and all the feels — without ever getting too mired in sentimentality. Think “Where the Crawdads Sing” meets Margaret Atwood’s “Oryx and Crake”/MaddAddam Trilogy.

I am absolutely thrilled that I was able to receive a free digital galley of this outstanding book in exchange for my honest review. Thank you #netgalley, #grandcentralpublishing, and #lilybrooksdalton for letting me review #thelightpirate!

People talk about climate change. But it was not until I read this novel could that I could visualize the terrifying ramifications for future generations. The story of Wanda, named at birth for a frightening and devastating hurricane, is told through four portions of her life -- Power, Water, Light and finally Time. There is always an undercurrent of tension and worry as she grows up and navigates the dangers necessary for survival in a continually changing environment amid the sunken ruins of her hometown. This is a haunting story of the breakdown of humanity when faced with what could very well be the ecological end of our civilization.
Reviewed from an ARC.

I'm not sure this is the best book I've ever read, but it's certainly going to be one of the more memorable ones--a reminder that "when the world ends it will not be with a bang, but a whimper."

It's easy to get wrapped up in the immediacy of the first section of the book "Power," and think that this is a pretty straight forward drama about people living in a time like our own experiencing the direct hit by a hurricane. They vaguely worry about the future, but their concerns seem very normal. Who, (that is paying attention these days) ISN'T unsettled about the direction our climate is taking?

The book then quickly transitions into a post-apocalyptic tale in the "Water" section. But it's one rooted in the everyday bureaucracy of how exactly this might go down. For me, this was utterly more terrifying than any zombie/plague/nuclear bomb story I've read. It all felt so very ordinary and logical. You can't help reading this story and thinking, "duh...this is exactly how it will happen." It was a storytelling approach that haunted me.

Additionally the characters in this story (Phyllis!) are lovely and the easy to root for. At first, I wasn't loving Wanda's light skills. What does it mean? Where did they come from? Is this a supernatural story?

But I felt like I received some reassurances in the ending of the book, when her powers are described this way "They do not call these gifts magic and they do not call them science. They call them what they are: change."

In the end it does not matter that Wanda is unique or why. This is a story about how evolution is a continuum with science on one side of the spectrum and magic on the other. As we explore a rapidly changing planet, our understanding of that experience will likely fall all throughout that continuum. There is ultimately hope to be found in that approach. We will not know all the answers. But we will find our way.

Thanks to the author and NetGalley for granting me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Wonderful story. Well developed characters and beautifully written. As much as it was a story of how our Earth is changing and frightening it is to think that a few storms can create such disasters. I liked how the main character Wanda is connected to nature in particular water.

Prepare yourself for an Odyssey like no other.
In the light pirate you will meet Wanda, names after a hurricane that destroyed much of the home she was born to in Florida. It's a time in the future, where much of Florida and other parts of the world have started to sink and be reclaimed by nature. In a four part 'beautifully written book (power, water, light, and time) you will grow up with Wanda, immersed in her world, the end of the world. You will be forced to make choices that you do not know the correct answers too, and forever wonder if you made a good choice.

One thing is for certain, you will never forget this gorgeously uniquely sad and joyful book. If you like adventure, dystopia, family dysfunction or just want a tale to sweep you away, The Light Pirate is for you !
#GrandCentralPublishing #TheLightPirate #lilyBrooksDalton #NetGalley

In a Florida already wracked by climate change, Frida gives birth to baby Wanda in the midst of a deadly hurricane. As the world continues to disintegrate, Wanda grows and adapts to an ever-changing world. Living in a community abandoned by society, Wanda seeks adventure, community, and love in a place remade by nature.

You would expect nothing less than gorgeous writing from Lilly Brooks-Dalton, author of Good Morning, Midnight. Her lyrical prose gives an added force to climate fiction, painting the end of the world with such beauty you can't look away. The Light Pirate starts with a compelling section about the hurricane surrounding Wanda's birth, and you are immediately drawn into the family's struggles. As Wanda grows, you are drawing in as the world that we know vanishes, replaced by a wild future.

I think this will get a lot of hype once it's published! A girl with remarkable powers navigates a climate crisis. This took me about 15% to really get invested, but I did enjoy the story. This one has staying power!

This is the story of Wanda, named after the huge hurricane that came to symbolize the beginning of the end for the people of Florida. Over time, waters rose, storms grew stronger and, little by little, people abandoned the state. Wanda’s family hung on, but eventually Wanda ended up with a family friend and the two of them spent time documenting Florida’s changing ecosystem..

This book was scary as hell because it describes Florida, and a nation, besieged by climate change. Unfortunately the second half of the book was weaker than the first. It’s hard to carry on when you keep losing strong characters, but new characters and situations need to come along to keep the plot moving. It’s a delicate balance in a book with no happy ending, but I do feel like the ending could have been stronger.

Still, I think this book deserves a place in every collection. It is a realistic description of climate change with characters I cared about deeply.

The Light Pirate follows the Lowe family as Florida sinks into ruin due to the lasting effects of climate change. During one devastatingly brutal hurricane, a child is born and named after it. Wanda grows up with a special gift that begins a change with her generation as they fight to survive the dying world they know.

This tale consistently deals with loss as it imagines a world that no longer tolerates the abuses humanity has consistently given it unleashes its fury. I thought the characters were written well, and this new dystopian environment written very believably/realistically. The pacing of this novel was spectacular, I only wish Wanda and her gift would have been used a bit more. For the book being named after her and this gift, it was more subdued than I expected.

Otherwise, a beautifully told story and one I will be thinking about for a very long time afterward.