Hello everyone!! Hope you’re having a great Monday!
Welcome to another book review, today’s book is actually an ARC I received from the author (thank you!!<3), a fact that didn’t alter my opinion in the slightest. I have previously read the first book in this really beautiful series; A Land of Never After (my review is here) and I’m very happy and grateful that I got to read the second one.
A Sea of Eternal Woe (Curses of Never #2) by R.L. Davennor
Genres: fantasy, rettelings
TW: language, violence, sexual content, gender dysphoria, and instances of transphobia, including misgendering.
Blurb:
As Captain Wendy Maynard…
I have everything I ever dared dream of. A ship all my own. Friends by my side. A purpose—and a home.
I should have known it would all go to shit.
The exhausting combination of storms and outrunning monsters have left The Jolly Serpent battered and broken, and my crew no longer trusts me to pick up the pieces. Just when it looks like Peter and I are about to be thrown overboard, the unlikeliest of saviors shows up…
My father.
I didn’t plan on seeing Captain Hook again so soon, but he needs me, and I need him. The sea witch Ursa is hiding far more than secrets, and if the rumors are to be believed? Her realm makes the horrors of Neverland look warm and fuzzy in comparison. Failure to retrieve what we’ve lost simply isn’t an option. If we do, it’s not our lives Ursa wants.
It’s our very souls.
A Sea of Eternal Woe is book two in the Curses of Never Series: dark fantasy retellings inspired by Peter Pan and The Little Mermaid. Perfect for fans of Pirates of the Caribbean and Lost Boy by Christina Henry, these LGBTQ+ friendly adult reimaginings are filled to the brim with monsters, magic, and pirates. This installment contains language, violence, sexual content, gender dysphoria, and instances of transphobia, including misgendering.
Raelynn Davennor is an author of fantasy and science fiction, a musician and composer, and a creature of the night.
Nestled among her fictional worlds full of darkness, dragons, and sassy heroines, you’ll often find a musical number or two. An accomplished performer, she’s made appearances with artists such as The Who, Weird Al, and Hugh Jackman on many of the largest stages in the United States.
Raelynn is usually lost in her head, dressing up in costume, or humming a tune she can’t wait to scribble down. When not obsessing over her latest idea, she enjoys pampering her menagerie of pets and pretending she isn’t an adult. Her home base is https://rldavennor.com where you’ll find more information, her newsletter, and links to social media.
If I said I loved A land of Never After, I don’t know what to call what I’m feeling right now for A Sea of Eternal Woe. I actually loved it more than the first book like A LOT!!
As with the first book, the writing style is SPOT ON. I’m really loving how things are developping, it was very entrancing and I found myself unable to do anything but read. There were a lot of unexpected things revealed that truly shocked me, and I ended up with even more questions than I started. This ended on quite the cliffhanger, I honestly don’t know how I’m going to wait until the next one comes out next year!!!
Everything just flows so magically and even when disbelieving revelations came to light, it wasn’t far-fetched–it was rather pleasantly surprising and entertaining! This definitely has more violence and dark themes than the first one in my opinion, but I didn’t feel put out because of it; maybe a little uncomfortable and angry a few times, for good reason though.
I really liked seeing the way the characters have changed from the first book and throughout this book. It was really interesting and the relationships were well described, the characters themselves were quite relatable despite being in this world full of magical creatures and things that we don’t have(?).
Another thing I want to talk about is THE AMAZING COVER. I really love the style of these book covers and they are definitely books I would pick solely because of their covers. Would you??!
So, what do you think of A Sea of Eternal Woe? Will you pick it up and try it for yourself (along with the first book)?
librorum in sempiternum 