Sky Pirates by Liesel Schwarz
Title: Sky Pirates
Author: Liesel Schwarz
Genre: Adventure, fantasy, romance, sci-fi, steampunk, historical fiction
Publisher: Random House UK
Pages: 352 pages
Publication Date: 5th June 2014
My Rating: 4/5
Hi there friends,
I have thoroughly enjoyed reading the latest instalment of this wonderful steampunk story. It’s been a thrilling read, let’s get on with the review…
I received a free ebook copy of this book by the book’s publishers via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I was fortunate enough to meet Liesel Schwarz at a book signing in London earlier this year, where she was signing copies of this particular book. Having not read the previous two in the series, I bought the first two after reading the blurb as well as part of the first chapter and such a good decision that was. In fact, I wish I had bought this third instalment of the series as well whilst I was at the signing.
Elle is not your stereotypical woman, she doesn’t like wearing dresses and she’d much rather be chartering flights. But that’s not all that’s different about Elle, she’s also the Oracle. With this comes both great power and responsibility, both of the light and shadow worlds. Schwarz presents Elle as likeable and unlikeable in equal measure, providing plenty of opportunity for character growth and development as the story progresses. Elle’s husband Hugh is lost in the netherworld and presumed dead. Can she save him? Or will the charming Captain Dashwood sweep Elle off of her feet first? But can either of these men cope with the powerful force that is Elle Chance?
This is another brilliant instalment to the Chronicles of Light and Shadow series. The characters leap from the pages straight into your imagination. I have become a great fan of the world which Schwarz has created and hope that this is not the final part of the series. The book is left at a point where there is plenty of opportunity for continuation and I truly hope that this is the case. Her writing is beautiful, well-paced and gripping all the key components needed in such an imaginative story. I have never been a huge fan of steampunk but this has somewhat converted me to the genre.
Elle’s grief and trauma at the loss of Hugh is told in a moving way. How his loss affect her actions and emotions demonstrates the changes she undergoes and her drive to continue making herself useful. Despite this, her later infatuation with the Captain seems somewhat out of character, regardless of the mystic powers the water is supposed to hold. This was one of the main flaws of the novel for me as her friendship/relationship with Dashwood seems to build seemingly from nowhere. Elle very rapidly goes from threats and hatred to friendship and more, somewhat strangely.
Overall this is a great novel and one that’s certainly worth a read. If you enjoy adventure, pirates, supernatural and excitement with a strong female protagonist then this is just the series for you. I’ve throughly enjoyed reading this series so far and can’t wait to read more of Schwarz work in future.
If you are interested in purchasing a copy of Sky Pirates, please do so from your local independent booksellers and book shops. They rely upon our support and are great places to devour books anyway! If you can’t get a copy from a book shop, here are a few places you can get a copy from: Amazon UK, Barnes and Noble, Waterstones and Forbidden Planet where there are signed copies available.
Let me know what you thought of the book in the comments!
Happy reading,
Anna x
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