Loved Sorinda’s story! It was a great adventure full of action, mythical beasts and self discovery. I loved seeing her grow and develop as a character and captain. A wonderful addition to a great duology.

I sped through this book in a few days. As a big sucker for pirates, I was happy to set out on a voyage again. I won't spoil it, but if you like a good heart-pumping, exhilarating sea fight? You'll get some in this.

I'll admit it's not a fair comparison since it's been a couple of years since I read the first book, but this sequel definitely stands out. It doesn't add anything to Alosa's story or focus on sirens if that's what you're looking for. But Levenseller has given more depth to these previously side characters and slowly reveals their backstories and motivations throughout the book. They're not all beautiful and witty and swoon-worthy attractive like every other romantic couple seemingly is, and I appreciate that. There's a rawness and uncertainty that brings their relationship to life.

Of course, that's not to say this book isn't without the ordinary melodrama and tropes of YA fantasy. Sorinda's distrust of men, her traumatic childhood, and the overt feminism are reiterated (and I feel needlessly explicit) time and time again. Yes, we had an entire section explaining why women are better pirates. Every stronger leader in this story is a woman. If a male leader? They're incompetent.

Nevertheless, considering the genre and target audience, it is understandable and did not detract majorly from the plot. If you enjoyed the first book, you will definitely have a blast with this sequel.

Thank you to Netgalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

Tricia Levenseller is an autobuy author for me, and I was so excited to return to the world of Daughter of the Pirate King. Sorinda was a firm favourite from the other two books, and I loved seeing the World expand. I had a few issues with some of the plot points - like lots of indiscriminant killing that made me question who the "good" guys actually were. But overall, a really enjoyable addition to the series!

I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Sorinda Veshtas is an assassin pirate with a whole trove of knives that she keeps sharpened, shining and at one arm's reach at all times. Kearan is the "bulky", once-drunkard who is an incredibly loyal and capable crewmate. Together on the Vengeance, sent by the pirate queen after the missing Wanderer, this is so much more than just their romance.

It's a whole rollercoaster adventure, beginning (for me, at least), when Sorinda finds a stowaway aboard. Dangers are conquered and gruesome otherworldly creatures are vanquished in this world of cresting tides and rollicking magic. It was quite a quick read, but the pacing was masterful and the character development was realistic (plus touching). Explorations of Sorinda's past were made, and I adored how Tricia Levenseller had Sora emerging from her tough cocoon to warm up to her crewmates (especially Roslyn! Reading her interactions was so incredibly fulfilling and wholesome).

The crux of the story took me by surprise, that's for sure. I could have never seen that whole event happening; it was so wild, but more than adequately fleshed out. This was my first time reading Tricia Levenseller; while Vengeance of the Pirate Queen can absolutely be read alone, I'm so excited to dive into Alosa's story next! Thank you to Netgalley and Pushkin Press for the ARC, as well as to Tricia Levenseller for the incredibly laugh-eliciting annotations in the first chapter!

Having previously read and loved Daughter of the Pirate King and Daughter of the Siren Queen, who am I to turn down Tricia Levenseller’s offering of another slice of swashbuckling adventure in Vengeance of the Pirate Queen!

“You can’t be afraid of the dark when you’re the monster lurking in the shadows.”

This next chapter of pirating adventure turns it’s focus on Sorinda, deadly assassin and Pirate Queen Alosa’s newest captain, as she sails away on a mission to search for and rescue members of Alosa’s crew. This mission takes Sorinda far away from her comfort zone, mentally and physically. Charged with protecting her crew and transporting them far from balmy, tropical shores to frozen seas, icebergs, sea monsters, and ice islands.

Unfortunately, they accidentally awaken the King of the Undersea, who controls a siren artefact that grants him immortality and control of the undead; leaving Sorinda and the particularly infuriating Kearan with no choice but to save the world from the terrible King of the Undersea or fall prey to his control, and become his undead queen!

I absolutely adore this series, and whether you’ve read or haven’t read the first two books in the Pirate Queen series, you can dive straight into Sorinda’s story. Be warned there are spoilers for the first two books but, if you can’t wait dive in, although I recommend reading them first.

Tricia Levenseller has created a truly wonderful world that is full of adventure, excitement, some very grey characters that you’ll love because they are so morally grey and a plot that just grabs you, every time!

Once again I was unable to put this book down once I’d picked it up and I’m really excited by the hints that there may be more books to come about other characters in this pirate world!


Thank you Pushkin Press, Pushkin Children’s Books and Netgalley for the arc of of Vengeance of the Pirate Queen by Tricia Levenseller in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

For as long as I can remember, I’ve been obsessed with pirates. My comfort movies have always been the Pirates of the Caribbean series and my comfort character has been Elizabeth Swann since I discovered her. I’m writing this review while listening to the soundtrack if that tells you anything. You can say I had high hopes going into this book and incredibly high expectations that would be hard to meet but I can tell you that Vengeance of the Pirate Queen blasted straight through those expectations. As soon as I turned the first page, I was hooked (pardon the pirate pun, it was unintentional). I read this entire 300+ page book in less than a day, that’s how good it truly was.

!!SPOILERS AHEAD!!

Levenseller throws us into the action immediately and I can’t do anything other than love it with all my heart. Without even knowing Sorinda’s name, I fall in love with her because she is everything I want in a pirate FMC. She’s strong and unwavering and so incredibly deadly. I went into this without reading the other books set in this universe and I am honestly really happy that I did so because it really allowed me to experience all of the characters for the first time without having any expectations of them.

I found Alosa to be very interesting along with the magic system we see with her being a half-siren. She had such a sweet undertone when they were in private and I really liked that about her as a character. She knew when she needed to be the queen but she could also strip that away to be a real person which gave her such depth in my opinion. I love the found family that she created with her crew and how they all respect her. It truly makes for something beautiful to behold. I also really enjoyed that at the beginning of the book there was an atmosphere of supernatural elements hiding in the background because it gave me a sense of suspense and anticipation about what might happen with that element in the future.

At first, I thought there might be a sapphic romance brewing between Alosa and Sorinda because it seemed as though Sorinda was jealous of the relationship that Alosa had with Riden but I quickly realised it wasn’t a romantic connection that they had. It was one of companionship and friendship that was lovely to read. Once I got more into the story, I saw that Sorinda wasn’t jealous of Alosa being with Riden but of the fact that they had love that she felt she wasn’t worthy of because of her past. It’s honestly quite sad when you notice that.

Once Kearan was introduced, I assumed he was going to be the love interest and I was correct in doing so. I’m so glad I was right about that because Sorinda and Kearan have very quickly become one of my favourite book couples. I enjoyed how Sorinda knew she liked him but she would never admit it. She describes him as not being a handsome man but being a real man which I honestly thought was such a different take. I’ve seen so many books where the MMC is portrayed as being effortlessly handsome and for Kearan not to be that paints such a unique and realistic picture of love. Later on when Sorinda opens up to him in an effort to push him away once and for all, his reaction made me so emotional because it was so raw and loving and just beautiful. It genuinely made me love him for her. Their romance is slow burn done so goddamn right. I loved how he opened up to her and how vulnerable he allowed himself to be despite his size. I really liked this portrayal of a man.

The entire found family aspect of this book made it something special to read. I loved the dynamic between Sorinda, Kaeran, Enwen and Dimella. It added some comedy and fun to the story that I really enjoyed. I adored it and only wish we could have more moments between the four of them but that would be the only thing I’d change about the whole entire book. The interactions between Kaeran and Enwen genuinely made me giggle. The way Levenseller brought their story to a close was perfect with Kaeran finally admitting that Enwen is his best friend. Rosalyn was so adorable and the fact that she would have done anything for Sorinda was spectacular. So much depth from a child character is something I’ve never experienced before and it’s something I wish more authors would do because it makes you fall in love with them the way you do adults.

Tricia Levenseller is one hell of an author and that’s saying something from a person that has such an intense love for pirates like I do. Her writing truly immerses you in the world and her descriptions of the characters are simple but beautiful all the same. A particular thing that stands out to me with her writing was the lanterns guiding the souls of people lost at sea to the surface so they could see the stars and be guided home. It is just absolutely gorgeous and so heartwarming, it took my breath away. The fight scenes were gripping, so easy to read and there wasn’t too much going on to the point where I got lost but most of all, they were exciting. Every fight scene had me on the edge of my metaphorical seat every time they happened. The plot twist that came with Threydan was entirely unexpected for me but it was so interesting and different to anything I’ve read in recent times. It genuinely made me excited to read more and to see where it went. Bringing the supernatural element to the forefront of the plot didn’t feel out of place at all and I think it was the perfect choice for this book.

At its very core, Vengeance of the Pirate Queen is a feel good story about redemption and finding love with the supernatural thrown in for good measure. It felt like a feminist version of Pirates of the Caribbean and I was so here for it. Most of the pirates were female which is something that really stood out to me as they could hold their own and were revered for their capability, it’s something you rarely see in the pirate genre. If I could give this book 6 stars, I would but sadly that isn’t an option. Thank you again to Pushkin Press for letting me read this masterpiece. <3

I was so so excited to read this book after loving the other 2 set in this world! Sorinda was such an interesting character throughout them both so I was super excited to spend this book in her company.

I really enjoyed the adventures, the start of the book was great and the journey was great!

I did find that it was a little repetitive and not as exciting a plot as I had hoped for, the villain of sorts was incredibly weird and not really my cuppa…

I enjoyed the romance aspect as well, it was nice to see how they showed each other their love and proved it was more than just a fancy 🥰

3.5 stars

Thank you so much to Pushkin Press and NetGalley for my e-ARC xxx

Sometimes we need to realise we are not at fault and forgive ourselves. Character driven fantasy, with plenty of pirate mayhem, humour and a bit of romance (not overdone) for older teenager readers and up. Interesting title (though I understand it), since the Pirate Queen features little. However we are allowed to spend time with some of the other main characters in the series. Much of the book is about Sorinda and Kearan. Read the books in order if you can, each is a story in its own rite but the story line flows from book one page one onwards. Thank you to Pushkin Press and NetGalley for the ARC. The views expressed are all mine, freely given.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I recently read the Daughter of the Pirate King duology and immediately requested this when I saw it was up. What a treat it is to be back in this world! I really liked Sorinda in the original duology so I was very excited to get a story from her perspective.

The action packed adventure to the splash of romance had me hooked throughout. I also enjoyed watching Sorinda learn to be a bit more vulnerable and trusting, especially with Kearan. It was a nice change given she's an assassin. I also enjoyed watching her come into her own as a leader and make the big decisions, even when they weren't always easy to make.

Full of fun, adventure and romance, I cannot wait to see what comes next.

After recently finishing the first two books, which I really enjoyed, I was excited to find out there was going to be a new book. This was going to be told from Sorinda’s POV and I was looking forward to diving back into the world of pirates.

Sorinda is an assassin working for the pirate queen and is surprised when her next task is a rescue mission and not a kill order. Sorinda is used to hiding in the shadows, not being front and centre as a captain of a ship and crew for the first time. This crew includes Kearan who irritates Sorinda but is the queens best navigator and essential to this mission. Sorinda will need to learn to come out of the shadows and break down her walls if this mission is to be successful.

Sadly this was a mixed bag for me. I really struggled with the pacing the most. I found that the first half was quite slow with not a lot really happening as the pockets of action were few and far between. I found that the story finally started to engage me around the half-way mark at which point the story finally picked up. I thought that where the plot went in the second half was more interesting and I really enjoyed that portion of the story. There was more action and it reminded me a lot of the first Pirates of the Caribbean film but it was over so quickly and the ending felt a little bit rushed especially with how easily such a powerful enemy was taken down.

It also took a while to get into Sorinda’s narration as she has a very different personality from Alosa’s. Sorinda spends a lot of the book being closed off from everyone and there wasn’t any of the fun and banter that made the first two books so appealing. I usually enjoy the forced proximity trope but I didn’t really feel the connection between Sorinda and the love interest, as although they were on the same ship it almost felt non existent at times.

As far as highlights go, I really felt that Roslyn stole the show. She was such a smart and sassy character and I hope we get a book about her with her grown up, I think that would be fantastic. I do feel like it’s been set up for another characters story but I guess we will need to wait and see what happens there.

Overall, I did enjoy this book just not as much as the first two books in the series. This was lacking the action, romance and banter that made this series so enjoyable in the first place. This book can definitely be read as a stand alone story if you haven’t read the previous two books, but I would still suggest reading them as they are really good. That being said it was still interesting to learn more about the world and characters that I had come to love and I would recommend the book on this basis.

Thank you Pushkin Press and NetGalley for providing me an e-arc in exchange for an honest review. My review is my own and not influenced by others.

I’ve read almost all books of Tricia Levenseller and for me, her books are a hit or miss. There are books which I love written by her, but there are also books written by her which I really didn’t like.
I loved reading Daughter of the Pirate King and the sequel Daughter of the Siren Queen so I was thrilled to see another book in this world building would come and see the characters from the first two books back in this book. With the love and humor I had for these two books, I decided to dive into this book.

This book felt boring for me to be honest, there’s not much that really happened until the last part of the book. I didn’t feel any chemistry between the two main characters. Beside that, Sorinda, the female main character is for the most part of this book closed up and gives everyone the cold shoulder. I didn’t like her and even though she explains herself towards the ending, I still didn’t like her because it took her too long, to feel any sympathy for her or the choices she made.

The first two books had a lot of banter, romance, action and characters I felt, too bad this book didn’t had any of this.

I thoroughly enjoyed returning to the world of DAUGHTER OF THE PIRATE KING with VENGEANCE OF THE PIRATE QUEEN. This is a swashbuckling tale of an ancient evil accidentally awakened, and how controlling people can be.

I really enjoyed the contrast between Theydan (the villain) and Kearan. The villain is trying to control Sorinda, saying he's looking out for her interests and she'll want this when she stops and thinks about it. By contrast, Kearan always gives Sorinda the space to work out what she wants. By having Kearan's actions oppose Theydan's, it was an effective way of highlighting just how toxic such behaviour is, and how insidious.

Unlike the more tropical settings of the original duology, this book takes place in cold waters full of icebergs and a very horrible monster (that fight and the preceding scenes were one of my favourite sequences.) It was so chilly, perfect for the coming winter!

While this book does come after DAUGHTER OF THE PIRATE KING and DAUGHTER OF THE SIREN QUEEN, and contains spoilers for it, it is a standalone story rather than the third book in a trilogy. Some characters return from the original duology, though (nicely) the focus of those books are hardly in this book, giving Sorinda, Kearan, and the new characters more space.

There are hints that there might be more tales to tell in this world, which I am not going to object to!

It was so great to return to this world! I loved spending more time with some of the favourites from the original duology, and delving into the back stories of some of the new ones. I did enjoy the slow build up of the romance in this book, but it lacked a bit of the spark and heat I'm used to in TLs books

What a joy to be back in this world... Alosa is the Pirate Queen now and Sorinda her trusted assassin, so when some of Alosas crew are missing and need rescue, she trusts Sorinda with this job unboubtly.

Sorinda, however, does not overly trust her own abilities and is a bit closed off, so when she thinks Kearan is interested in her... she does what she does best, pushes him away.

However, Alosa knows both of their skills are needed for this rescue.... but when the rescue mission goes awry and the challenge becomes a matter of life and death, can Sorinda accept who she is and fight for herself, and the greater good??

There is just something about Tricias writing and the worlds she creates that have me hooked, and returning to this world was no exception.

Cannot wait for whatever is next... thanks to NetGalley and Pushkin Press for the early review copy of this book! However, I know I would feel the same regardless and all opinions are my own

You can’t be afraid of the dark when you’re the monster lurking in the shadows. Beautiful. It was the only word that came to mind when reading that sentence. This book can only be described as epic. A seafaring standalone young adult fantasy romance with incredible character dynamics and backstory, and an epic world that you won’t want to leave. This book I set in the exisiting world of Tricia Levenseller’s Daughter of the Prate King duology and can be read by itself. Should you add the existing novel to your to be read pile? Yes, immediately, if you haven’t already.

Sorinda is a deadly assassin with a reputation to match. But her latest assignment is like no other. The Pirate Queen, Also, has tasked her with captaining a handpicked crew on a dangerous rescue mission. But she is an assassin not a captain. How will she be able to manage the new responsibilities, and keep her head while all she longs to do is move back into the protective embrace of the shadows.

Her crew and herself must navigate through treacherous waters, and they accidentally awaken the King of the Undersea, who summons an army of undead soldiers from the depth. He’ll do anything to claim what he belies is his and Sorinda must do everything in her power to survive, With the infuriating Kearan by her side, she manages to keep her head, and her life, while trying to save the world. Will she and her crew manage to save the world or will she face a fate worse than death: becoming an undead queen controlled by the King of the Undersea himself? I’ll guess you’ll have to read the book to find out but it’ll be worth the read, promise.

Thank you to Pushkin Press for an advanced ready copy of Vengeance of the Pirate Queen by Tricia Levenseller on NetGalley

We met Sorinda when she was a part of Alosa's crew. Now it's time for her story.

Sorinda is the assassin of the Pirate Queen. Girls went missing and had to be found, so Sorinda was tasked to do it. Captaining her own ship for the first time and navigating feelings she didn't know she could feel and those she didn't want to feel made for an interesting journey still packed with the siren mythology.

Kearan made her face all of her shortcomings - or what she thought of as shortcomings and I loved both of them together. I also loved Kearan and Enwen's friendship but I'd also would have liked to see more of it.

Sea monsters, siren artifacts, little Roslyn - this book has it all.

It's as easy and fast to read as the original duology but I'd would've liked more of the romance aspect to develop. I also would've liked if the artifacts would've been a bit more explored. That part seemed a bit rushed. I also wouldn't have said no to more Alosa and Riden but Sorinda was a great main character so I can live without it. Sadly, I really dislike the cover.

It was really nice to go back into the world of the seventeen isles and to go on a pirate adventure once more.

Straight away we jump right into to some action and it doesn’t stop throughout the book.

We follow our main character Sorinda who is an assassin for the pirate queen Alosa. She is tasked with captaining a ship for a rescue mission to find and save the crew of a ship that mysteriously went missing.

Continuing on from the previous duology it is nice to be back in the world. With no need for world building but still enough backstory for this to be read as a complete standalone from daughter of the pirate king

A very slow burn relationship that I thought was pretty cute and much more appreciated than a insta love which I’m not a fan of.

Overall I preferred the first half of the book more than the second. But I think it comes down to personal preference that I just wasn’t interested much in the conflict that occurred

This was still a great book, very fast paced and perfect for fans of the original duology.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review

I enjoyed this story a lot. Sorinda is a very sympathetic protagonist, and I really enjoyed watching her slowly losing her protective shell and blossoming as she learns to love and that she is worthy of love. And of course there was plenty of swashbuckling pirate action. Rosalind is adorable, and I loved Sorinda's interactions with her and the way she takes her under her wing and protects her. And of course the romance with Kearan was executed beautifully. It's not strictly an enemies to lovers - more an annoyance to lovers, but it does have that flavor.

Tricia Levenseller's writing leans just a little bit on the younger YA side and is a little simpler than my usual taste. I still enjoy it, but it doesn't become my favorite book ever.

The audiobook was very well done, and the narrator voiced each character believably. It was clear form the voices and accents who was who. The pacing of the narration was just right as was the emphasis and infections of the narrator.

*Thanks to NetGalley, Pushkin Children's Books, and Macmillan Audio for providing an early copy and early audio copy for review.

I received an advanced reader copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review via netgalley and the publishers.

5 star review!

What an unforgettable read! Absolutely loved this book, i whizzed through the first two books and had to have a reread before reading this one and it did not disappoint. I love all books written by Tricia Levenseller and hope there is another book in this series!!

Made my day to receive an early copy of this book so thank you so much!!!

Thank you NetGalley for the E-arc in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely loved the Daughter of the Pirate King series when I read them a couple years ago and I feel the same about this instalment. I love that we got to delve deeper into Sorinda and her background, you get to see her in action as a badass assassin while also showing her sensitive side to Kearan.

A brilliant instalment again from Tricia Levenseller.