Review: Princess of Death by Cortney Pearson

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Romance

Pages: 262 pages

Published January 10th 2019

Synopsis:

Never trust a pirate.

The plague struck without warning. Now, to save her people, Cali must cross the mysterious, impenetrable boundary to reach a treacherous land of magic and find the cure.

When she arrives, she not only discovers that she looks eerily similar to its princess, but that war is brewing on the horizon. The pirate king has come to call in a debt, and the price he demands is an alliance between his son and the princess Soraya. Soraya refuses to give in to the pirate’s whims and demands Cali meet him in her place.

Cali doesn’t have time to court anyone, especially not a pirate—no matter how beautiful or brooding he is—but she accepts in order to ensure her stay at the palace long enough to save her dying people. But when she is captured, her only hope to find a cure may rest in the hands of the pirate she scorned.

If only she could trust him.

My Thoughts

What I loved:

Pirates, princesses, and a curse! What wasn’t to love and be drawn in by the premise? I wanted to know what was happening next with the characters and storyline.

Right from the beginning, I was drawn into Cali’s plight to save her kingdom and loved ones. She must travel to a magical land that will cost her greatly, but she doesn’t realize how great. With a time limit of only 5 days, she’s tasked with a mighty job of finding a potion, and answer that will heal and help her kingdom.

We are allowed to experience and see the new kingdom through Cali’s eyes, which is seeing it for the first time, and it allows us to learn things with her at the same time. I thoroughly enjoy Bae as a character, he’s mysterious and interesting with more layers than I think we can see during this first in a series, and he’s by far my favorite character. He is the Prince of Pirates, the son of the Captain, and he has more than just a mysterious air surrounding him, he has secrets too, and those drive his actions and his father’s during the book.

What Left Me Wanting More:
The pacing left me wanting a little more depth between the characters. The entire book happens in a week or so, which leaves Bae and Cali’s interactions limited to 3-4 days. I would have loved to see this built up and drawn out a little more to make sense of their connection.

Outside of Cali, Darren and Bae, I felt as though the other characters needed more depth as well. They felt a little stiff for me, and I couldn’t relate or feel for their plight.

Final Verdict:
Princess of Death has an intriguing plot that anyone who loves pirates and princesses will love. With the promise of an action-packed sequel, this novel will surely hook fans of Pearson’s work! A fast-paced page-turner, that will have readers diving for it !

Good Points:

Epic world-building!
A promising series.

Originally posted on YABC: YABC INDIE STAFF REVIEWER