Gain Beneath Black Sails (Beneath Black Sails, #1) Translated By Clare Sager EBook

DecTo celebrate the end of the year, you can get BBS for FREE for the next couple of days.
Happy reading! I can't say I've ever read a book like this as a romance reader I wasn't sure what to expect, but I wasn't disappointed.
Sager weaves a beautiful tapestry, pulling fine threads together and the end result is a piece of art.
This book has depth, angst, strength, sarcasm and sass in spades pre ordered bookand can't wait! A simmering enemiestolovers swashbuckling tale with pirates obviously, morally grey but completely loveable characters and sword fights galore.
This was damn fun.

We follow strong willed Lady Vice, a runaway noble, as she struggles to prove her readiness for Captaincy while outwitting Knigh Blackwood, a calculated pirate hunter hot on her heels.
One thing to note is Beneath Black Sails takes place in the same universe as Counterfeit Countessa it's an oldworldy vibes setting with fantastical elements like fae and rideable sabrecats.
You definitely don't need to read CC but figured it was worth a mention,

The plot is action orientated and establishes itself quickly,
There's no info dumps here we're gradually introduced to fragments of Knigh and Vice's pasts which begin to interweave and connect.

Rather than twistyturny developments that blindside you, Sager lets the narrative unfurl so the reader is able to connect the dots before Vice and Knigh.
This has you yelling at the book while you see misunderstandings unfold,

Now to Vice and Knigh,
Vice is stubborn to a fault, and at times her unwillingness to let anyone in was frustrating but she was still a pleasure to read.
Knigh is similarly stubborn as a bloody mule and guards his emotions closely, Together though, they are actual dynamite, The tension was intense, and I am wholly on board to see how this plays out over the course of the series.
What a story. Intrique, suspense, what more can you ask for in a pirate book, Lady Vice would love a ship of her own, who knows, it might happen, The characters are fascinating. Dont miss out. This book had everything I loved pirates, spicy, violence but there were somethings I didnt like for example the miscommunication troupe that was in the book was soooooo dumb like it made no sense and just made me hate the male love interest a little bit.
I will be reading the second one though because I might not be the biggest fan of Knighton Blackwood but I loved Lady Vice she was an amazing pirate queen!!!! Also no one can stop me if I have a baby girl one day her name will be Avice.
I thought this was a good piratefantasyromance book and it will definitely be an exciting series

I LOVE A GOOD PIRATE story and I felt like there were definitely parts of this that gave my Pirates of the Caribbean vibes, which was great because I loveee that franchise I also enjoyed how there were some other fantasy/magic elements brought into this world and it wasn't only pirates

MY BIGGEST ANNOYANCE in this book was the main character, Lady Vice.
Her swagger and cockiness felt a little childish, I actually agreed with some of the other characters when they pointed out her flaws and how she wasn't ready, so it was a bit annoying being in her head sometimes because she thought a little too highly of herself

THE ROMANCE HAD a lot of fun tropes to read about.
. . enemiestolovers, hidden identities, forced proximity, to name a few, It was also spicy so if you want something a little more explicit that isn't fadetoblack then this is a good option!

THE STORY AND HOW everything came together was a little predictable and could have been prevented with clearer communication between characters, but nonetheless, it was still highly entertaining! Especially towards the end there was so much drama that unfolded

Overall, I think this was a good introduction to a fun new series.
Even though it was a little predictable, it sets the story up really well for what I'm hoping is going to be some entertaining redemption and revenge arcs I recommend this if you're looking for a good balance between piratefantasy adventures and spicy romance.
Ive read a lot of pirate books,
At this point Im pretty sure I can be a convincing pirate myself! So for me to say this was one of the best ones Ive read while they werent actual willing pirates, ugh this was amazing.


Vice was an incredibly flawed character, and I absolutely loved her for it, Most flaws came to be because of pain of being hurt again, which makes it the start of a journey instead the end of one.
Im spotting a lot of character development on the rise! haha do you get it pirate joke

Knigh was so, uh, Knigh.
HAHA.
He is stuck in his ways, lost the ability to loosen up, but luckily he has a very fun pirate to chase so its fine wink wink
No, Knigh was awesome.
The way he is so soft under all the masks he uses to hide himself, ugh, yes.


But the real star of the show is of course Barnacle, the cat, How could I not.

If you like pirates, and a bit of spice, and a lot of banter, and sexual tension, and a cat named Barnacle.
Go read this book. I love a good pirate story and I love it even more if it has a feisty lady pirate.
Add in some Fae magic, steamy enemies to lovers, and betrayal and Im a happy gal.
Cant wait to read more about Vice and Knigh! I've read this title for SPFBOin which it is one of RockStarlit BookAsylum's semifinalists.
Check out the reviews of the team sitelinkhere,

Actual ,

I admit, when Belle announced her semifinalist which did not come as a surprise, really, Beneath Black Sails, I had to brace myself.
Not because I expected it to be bad I know Belle better than that, but because books with a romance plot in the focus arent something I pick up too often.
Nor am I a big fan of nautical fantasy in general, So, I had to keep an open mind this being SPFBO and all that, but I also prepared to be the bad guy once again.
Luckily for me, I was in for a nice surprise,

I pretty much agree with the others, There is definitely a lot to like about Beneath Black Sails, especially if you like your fantasy populated by pirates.
Our main two characters are Lady Vice, the infamous pirate queen and Knigh, the captain of the Navy.
By the way, I agree with Jen, I didnt like his name either, So, we have two protagonists with completely different personalities, Needless to say, all kinds of fun ensues as they try to intercept each other in their quests.
Its definitely entertaining to watch them circling each other and as they become lovers from enemies.
If I had to chose, probably this is the romance trope I like the best, I mean, sure, its predictable what is going to happen, but its still fun, But what really won me over was that while the romance itself was a bit predictable, there is plenty of twists to keep you at the edge of your seat.


As for the characters, I liked Knigh and his character arc throughout the book.
Vice, on the other hand, I had some mixed feelings about, At one hand I liked and admired her for her standards, but on the other hand, at times I found myself frustrated with the level of recklessness and abandon she put herself in situations, seemingly without thinking.
I felt a deep sympathy

for Perri who had to put up with her,

As the others mentioned, the secondary characters in Beneath Black Sails are just as intriguing and welldrawn.
I think my personal “favorite” was the Duke of Mercia, Im sure he is a very charming fellow And lets not even talk about FitzRoy, The narcissistic bastard.

In terms of criticism, while the writing is really good and this book is a super quick read, I felt like the dialogues could have been a bit smoother.
I also would have liked just a touch more worldbuilding, We know there are people who are Faetouched or Feablooded, but not much explanation about how this came to be.
Though Vices weatherbased magic is definitely cool, But as Beneath Black Sails is only the first book in the series, we might get more on this in later installments.


Overall, I can see why Belle picked Beneath Black Sails as her semifinalist as its an entertaining adventure full of twists, magic and a burning romance on the high seas.
Stars

What a hidden gem!!! I've been feeling like a shitty reader lately because I've found issues with every single book I picked up.
If it wasn't the pacing then it was the characters, The plot was either too convenient or it was so predictable I could DNF it and still write up an accurate summary.


It got to the point where I thought two or three misses in a row might be the books' problem, but close to five or more Shit.
. . maybe I'M the problem.

I was thinking maybe I've grown out of my love of reading yes like wtf!!! when I randomly came across this book that advertised the following:

a Sea WITCH
a Pirate Hunter
Battles at sea
Scheming crew mates
Tension that crackles

Daaaaamn was I sold.


I did notice that the little goodreads blurb mentions "perfect for fans of Sarah J Maas" and usually I straight up RUN when I see those dreaded wordsnot because I hate SJM or anything but becausetimes out ofwhen a fantasy book brings up fans of SJM I know I'm about to experience the most crusty, dried up, three times reduce reuse recycled plot of my life.


But no this historical pirate romance really took me by surprise, I expected it to land at aand it ended up being astar read for me.
I liked the characters, the imagery of life out at sea, the tension during the riskier excursions, and the whole atmosphere of the book really.


I see some reviews describing the FMC lady vice as a Mary Sue, and while she does have some pretty intense capabilities, I think there's enough to her background and character development throughout the book that she's well beyond the Mary Sue category.
She's a pirate and a damn good one, honestly I was a huge fan

The plot had elements of romance we aka my goodreads friends and I love so much without dominating the entire book.
There's a lot of focus on pirate lifesailing the sea, finding hidden treasure, attacking merchant ships.
All exciting stuff.

Fingers crossed the rest of the series keeps my undivided attention the way this one did.