Actual Rating 1.5

Mira and the rest of the people on her island are wreckers who swim out to floundering ships to loot them. She’s always enjoyed being in the water even though it claimed her mother’s life. But when she and her people fall into a trap, Mira finds her father taken captive. In an attempt to save him, Mira makes a deal with a stranger. But with only nine days to accomplish her quest, it’s a race against time and unforeseen forces to save the ones she loves.

What I liked most about this read was the world. The setting was interesting, and I enjoyed the incorporation of magic and magical creatures. I was quite intrigued by the deals and tattoos that were included relating to one character and felt that the author did an excellent job surrounding that aspect. I would have loved to see a bit more world building as there were many times when it didn’t feel as immersive as it could have, but those things might be more present in the second book.

There were several things I didn’t like, though. There were a few plot holes that weren’t major but were noticeable enough. The romance was one of the most absurd ones I’ve run across in YA. To call it insta would be giving it too much credit. The first scene when they’re getting frisky, I was certain it was a dream sequence because it just seemed much too soon for that kind of interaction – alas, it wasn’t. And they had negative chemistry. I’m also fairly certain it’s setting up for a love triangle.

The characters were not great. The secondary characters felt like caricatures rather than real people. More depth and development for all characters would certainly help this read. We’re also supposed to feel sympathetic for Mira and her people, but they literally kill people for a living so…that didn’t quite work for me. Mira was a mess. There was little-to-no logic behind her actions, and the author didn’t even try to explain why she did things aside from needing the plot to go in that direction. She isn’t a strong female protagonist, she’s a teen who is easily distracted by cute boys and promises of treasure (we’ve all been there, but don’t call her something she isn’t).

The book is set up for a sequel, which I won’t read. If you enjoy YA fantasy with insta love, the beginnings of love triangles, and a gullible and flip-floppy heroine, then you’ll likely enjoy this. My thanks to NetGalley and Inkyard Press for allowing me to read this work, which will be published February 27, 2024. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Tales of sirens and what amounts to piracy is always fun! I could feel the spray of the ocean and the ropes in my hands as the ship made its way to adventure and treasure. For me, the story fell apart a bit when a love triangle slowly emerged amongst the wreckage of misplaced trust and betrayal, and it ended on a note of vengeance I found disquieting. Plus, anything marketed as YA which has a sex scene between minors is going to frustrate me because that is an unwise for those with undeveloped prefrontal cortexes.

The concept of this story is very good, and I did enjoy it I do feel like there could have been more depth. I liked Mira, but there were also times I was so frustrated with her choices that it outweighed everything else. I also feel like there could have been more world building to engage readers more and give a better backstory of the setting. I went really back and forth between enjoying the story and being frustrated with it.

I liked the pacing of this story and the overall plot was well-planned. I did have some issues with the readability of the dialogue in this story but nothing that would deduct from the value of the story.

Definitely will be recommending this to my audience when I host a nautical themed reads week.

The story concept here is really interesting, but Mira is so wishy-washy as a main character that I found myself wanting her to “snap out of it.” When she and her crew go out to scavenge the latest shipwreck they’ve orchestrated, she saves a handsome stranger. Later, she ends up falling in insta-love with Seth, but then learns he isn’t what he seems. You could see this coming. Literally not a surprise that Seth really isn’t a great guy.

Mira’s rescue attempt of her father almost gets derailed. Again, you could see that coming due to the rather convoluted plan. I wasn’t entirely sure how Mira made the leap between opening her mother’s chest and finding her notebook and the coordinates to saving her father.

I know this is a series debut, and again, I really like the story idea with smugglers and sirens. There’s just so many tropes at play here that there’s almost too much going on in the book, Compass and Blade has the potential, but it’s off to a rocky start.

I feel like 3.5 stars is generous, but I’ve also never even attempted to write a novel, I appreciate the chance to read this early copy!

Rachel Greenlaw’s Compass and Blade takes you on an adventure across island and sea that you won’t soon forget. This vast world full of wreckers, watchers, magic and mysteries keeps you captivated and turning pages through twists and turns as you search for answers and next steps alongside main character Mira and a full cast of supporting characters, each with their own points of interest and intrigue. With scenes that haunt, I know I’ll find my mind drifting back to places in this unique world for some time to come. Already can’t wait for the next book in this series to see how Mira’s journey continues!

Thank you to the team at HarperCollins Children’s for the ARC.

This book started out strong and then devolved about halfway through. The plot doesn’t make a ton of sense. The main character, Mira, is VERY naive and makes incredibly bad decisions, so this was a frustrating read. She finally grows a spine in the last 10 pages of the book, so I suppose you could call this a very long, drawn out origin story. The romance was very unbelievable and there are two love interests for Mira, one of whom is a powerful lord with shadowy powers. They make bargains that show up as marks on their skin. Sound familiar? It’s Rhysand -1.0. And I say -1.0 because saying Rhysand 2.0 implies an upgrade with the update and there is none of that here.

Thank you, NetGalley, Inkyard Press, and Rachel Greenlaw for the ARC in exchange for my honest review. I think Rachel’s writing has a ton of potential but still needs some work.

"Compass and Blade" by Rachel Greenlaw offers an intriguing fantasy adventure with a unique world. The novel showcases inventive storytelling and a well-constructed setting. However, uneven pacing and character development prevent it from reaching its full potential. While the narrative has its moments, there's room for improvement in coherence and depth. Despite its drawbacks, readers seeking a fresh fantasy realm may still find enjoyment in Greenlaw's imaginative landscape.

Unfortunately, I think this is a DNF for me at 50%. This book started off strong...and then very quickly unraveled. I couldn't make sense of where the plot was going, the romance was so forced, and the big reveal is already very obvious—as in the reader knows by a couple chapters in and yet the main character just doesn't see it. I was getting too frustrated, so sadly I'm setting this one aside.

If you like a spooky pirate, atmospheric books with sirens and magic then I'd say this book may be for you! You really get into the action right away which was fun, and you get a lot of intrigue that holds your attention, but the insta love was a bit much for me and sometimes it felt like you never really get to know any of the characters. It wasn't a bad read at all.

This one just didn't work for me as much as I had hoped it would.

Thanks for the opportunity to read it early.

I loved this book so much! It was such a fun time and I loved the characters so much! I truly had so many feelings attached to the characters and couldn’t read this fast enough! I highly recommend!

Mira is drawn to the sea, but she can't explain why. After losing her mother to the sea: her father wants Mira to stay away from it. It would be an easy request if they didn't live on an island that survives by pillaging shipwrecks. This book is filled with underlying mystery, mislaid trust, and adventure.

I loved this story and it has stayed with me since reading it. Mira is a great mix of innocent and strong-willed. There are plenty of twists and turns, some more obvious than others, and a little bit of spice. I can't wait for the second book!

I received a free e-arc of the book through NetGalley and this is my honest opinion of the book. Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read the book.

This book had so much potential but falls flat so bad. The plot itself is interesting it's pretty standard secret sea explorer with humans. It is the author writing style that ruined the story for me. It's very choppy and direct. It doesn't flow well and feels very curt. This is the descriptions and the inner dialogue. The dialogue with other characters kind of flow better. The characters are very one dimensional but do have distinct personalities that are easy to follow. The book can be skimmed and followed very easily. This book sadly wasn't for me and I hope it finds it target audience.

This was bad.

Like, laughably bad.

I'm honestly shocked Compass and Blade is getting rated higher than 3 stars by anyone. The plot of the book itself makes almost no sense. Our main character, Mira, lives on an island where the majority of people make money by wrecking boats. They lure a ship into the rocks, then go out and strip it bare. Then they sell what they find and voila. Not only is this illegal, it's highly dangerous. We find out this is how Mira's mother died very quickly. So with wrecking being illegal, of course someone gets caught doing it and imprisoned. Mira's father, naturally.

SO SHE DECIDES SHE NEEDS TO RESCUE HIM. But instead of making any like...normal, sensible plan she decides she needs to open the super secret chest that her father has kept of her mother's things. When she does so, she finds some coordinates on a journal her mother kept. NOW WHY ON EARTH WOULD THESE COORDINATES HAVE ANYTHING TO DO WITH HER FATHER BEING IMPRISONED?

IT. MAKES. NO. SENSE.

Of course, the crew she hires to go out to the coordinates is full of secrets. They only have eight days before her father is hanged. Eight. Days. Over the course of these eight days, of course, OF COURSE Mira falls in love with the most mysterious crew member. Because why wouldn't she???? Even though she knows nothing about him, and what he does tell her is quite obviously lies.

This book made me angry. The reveals towards the end are so laughably obvious that it didn't even feel like a reveal. It just felt like WELL, OF COURSE THAT'S WHAT'S HAPPENING NOW. I'm not even going to go into the other mysterious guy with shadow powers that bargains with Mira to rescue her. He's so obviously the true love interest in this series that the author might as well have named him Rhysand.

I regret not DNFing this. I really do.

I'm not sure how you'd fix this other than going back to completely rewrite the book and make it make some sort of sense. Two stars.

"The sea gives. The sea takes. And it’s up to her to do what she must to save the ones she loves."
If you are a fan of the Daughter of the Pirate King series, then you will be a fan of Compass and Blade!
Mira has lived on an island all her life and is one of the seven who swim out to ship wrecks to loot and save people on board. When the Watch (who give off Britain redcoat vibes) takes her father, Mira goes on a quest to save him and her island.

I really enjoyed this! I love a good pirate/siren theme and there were some very exciting twist and turns in this one.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc! Opinions are my own.

This is the perfect mix of spooky and pirate theme book.

I really like the tone of this book, you really get into the island dark atmosphere in the first chapters. I fear that a couple of characters did not get fleshed out enough besides the main characters. The betrayal got me good! This is a perfect summer, water element book if you want to read it!

Thank you Netgalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for this e-arc!

"The sea gives. The sea takes. And it’s up to her to do what she must to save the ones she loves."

I expected this to be one of my favorite books of the year. It has everything I look for in a YA story: reluctant allies, pirates, an ocean adventure, and a sprinkle of romance. Ultimately, the way this book is marketed ended up hurting my opinion of the story. I went into this expecting a cunning main character and a likable love interest. What I read was something else.

"When the sea folds me into her wild embrace, I am at peace. More than anything, I want to wake with the sea surrounding me. To find a crew and a ship to take me on, and sail away into the iron-gray abyss."

I have mixed feelings about the main character. Mira grew up scavenging shipwrecks and walking the beaches of her island. She cares for her village and is protective of her father. These are admirable traits, but they come at the cost of her character development. Mira's main personality trait seems to be her naivety, which is frustrating as a reader. Several of her choices led to bad outcomes that could have been avoided. If you're the type of reader who connects with characters that grow with the plot, then you'll love this book! But if you're like me and prefer strong, intelligent damsels who take their distress into their own hands, then "Compass and Blade" might not be the best fit.

"He looks back at me as lightning splits the sky once more. The shape of his face, the depth of his eyes, burn into me and I feel a tug. Something strange, something like the pull of the tide. Like a song that is at once familiar, and yet evades me however hard I listen."

I also thought the romance was a letdown. Mira felt an instant connection to a man she'd just met. It isn't fate either—instead, it's the dreaded insta-love. There's also a third character that I think is supposed to make a love triangle? Honestly, I thought he and Mira had even less chemistry, but the way the book ends seems to lean in his favor. I still enjoyed the story, but I think it's misleading for the publisher to market this book as a romantasy.

"They say we are lawless on Rosevear; that we’re not all human, and maybe that’s true. But when the storm clouds bloom, casting darkness over our islands, I can hear the song of the sea. The call of the deep, the answering beat in my heart."

My favorite parts of this story are the descriptions and the setting. The author does a beautiful job describing Mira's village, island, and adventure on the sea. I feel like there's a perfect balance between the number of descriptions and the pace of the plot, and that can be tricky to do! If I were rating this book based on the writing style, it'd be five stars.

If you're a fan of "Daughter of the Pirate King" by Tricia Levenseller or "Fable" by Adrienne Young, then I definitely recommend this book! As it is, I'm rating it 3.5 stars (although I'll probably round up to 4 stars because of how beautiful the cover is!).

I received an ARC of this book courtesy of the publisher and Netgalley; all opinions are my own.

This is a fantastic YA Romantasy debut from Rachel Greenlaw.

If you are a fan of the Daughter of the Pirate King series, then you will be a fan of Compass and Blade!

Overall, I gave it a 4 star. The main character, Mira, was likable and passionate and I found myself wanting to know more not just about her, but the side characters as well and to know more about this world.
The reason I gave this book 4 star instead of a 5 is this:
#1 Mira gets betrayed by a character. It cuts deep for her, but then she seems to give trust to the same character again way too easily. It didn't feel like a genuine choice that someone who went through that kind of betrayal would make.
#2 the beginning of the book is a little slow and it takes awhile to pick up pace. Once it picks up, it's fantastic! But it was hard to get into at first.
#3 Outside of 1-2 other characters, the side characters seem basic and one dimensional. Some have A LOT of potential that I hated that we see so little of them.

Overall, I loved this book and I plan to read the next one when it comes out.

This book had a very Moana meets Shadow and Bone with a pirate twist and I was hooked! There was a shadow daddy who felt very much felt like the Darkling in Shadow and Bone!

Mira has lived on an island all her life and is one of the seven who swim out to ship wrecks to loot and save people on board. When the Watch (who give off Britain redcoat vibes) takes her father, Mira goes on a quest to save him and her island.

I really enjoyed this! I love a good pirate/siren theme and there were some very exciting twist and turns in this one. There were a couple times where I was like “Mira what the heck are you doing??” but I think it really sets her up for some amazing female rage for the second book!