Rating: ⭐⭐

A fast paced and adventurous sequel, yet seems to lose the charm of the first book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Collins for the e-ARC.

Following on from Compass and Blade, Mira knows it’s time to call in her bargain with Elijah, and tear down Captain Renshaw and the watch. She turns to the witches for help, yet they are the very coven who have accepted a deal to capture her.

Whilst I enjoyed Compass and Blade, I was hoping for more with its sequel and was sadly let down. Much of this story was predictable and felt like so many other YA fantasies, with less emphasis on sea-faring adventures; instead we got training with daggers, lacklustre villains and lukewarm sexual tension. Renshaw is still very much a threatening presence, yet we now meet a witch coven leader who appears to have the same personality and disdain for her offspring than the captain.

I also felt there were several convenient plot points, for example Renshaw suddenly doesn't need Mira to read the map, she found some witches that can reveal it to her. This made the story feel like a messy afterthought. I didn't really care about any of the characters by the end.

What I did enjoy was the additional pov for Brielle, the hunter assigned to capture Mira. I would have liked more of her backstory, and enjoyed her relationships with the various other characters.

The story is perhaps too YA for my current tastes, so if you enjoy the themes or you're a younger reader, this might be a decent fantasy series to pick up.

Honestly, I liked this book more than Compass &
Blade. It could get confusing at some points with all the side characters and different stories, but it had a good pace.
I felt all types of emotions whilst reading, which is a sign of a good book. You feel invested in getting justice.
It is very YA but felt a bit more mature than the first book.
The book dives straight into the story and keeps you interested.

I enjoyed the first book in the series and was looking forward to the second book but sadly it was just not for me. The writing was great, as always but the story just didn’t work for me. I found the connection between Mira and Elijah so unbelievable - one minute she’s in his arms, the other she’s comparing their bargain to a life sentence. Mira as a FMC was quite frustrating and I felt like she didn’t learn on her mistakes from book one. This story just didn’t hit the spot at all.

A stunning sequel, filled with high stakes, peril, new faces and romance. I love all the new characters and the twists and turns in their stories as well as Mira’s. I am so excited to see what happens next,

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It is as good as the 1st book. Now, i loved the 1st book, it was one of my favourite reads last year, and this is slightly better than the 1st one but not by much.

We continue from where book 1 finished off. Mira is fighting to save her isle from the watch but she has bound herself to Lord Tevellian and he comes to Rosevear to make good on that debt. Mira goes with Lord T to his Castle and together with a band of misfits they plan to take down Captain Renshaw, her son Seth, and the Watch.

We are introduced to a whole bunch of new charcters in this book, Caden, Lowri, Brielle, and others.

Prepare for the introduction of Witches. We meet an entire coven of Witches led by the Malfent who happens to be Lord T's Aunt. She is not a good person and the coven have hunters, warriors, and they kill creatures to harvest their blood for apothecary purposes and to gain power. One of the hunters is tasked to hunt down Mira and so a game of cat and mouse ensues on top of everything else.

This was a fast paced great yomp of a read, i thoroughly enjoyed it. Can i just say well done to Rachel for making the one and only sex scene to be left to the readers imagination, not only does this make it more suitable for younger readers, but it makes it a more enjoyable read overall. I am not a fan of gratuitous scenes for the sake of it. I thought it was super sweet the way it was done, they spent the night together, and then the following day they took ribbings from their friends which would absolutely happen in real life and it did make me smile and take me back a good 40 years to when i was that age.

I am in my 50's now, but this is a great read, an easy 5 stars, and i cant wait to read the conclusion of the story.

I know I enjoyed the first book but it was a 3 star read, a solid 3 star but 3 star nonetheless. This…WOW!!! compass and blade set the tone for this one to FLY. I absolutely flew through it, something was happening on every single page. Action action and more action and I LOVED it. If you’re wanting fast paced and adventure, get on this!!!!

I loved Compass and Blade so I was really excited to read this sequel! This was even better than the first book and I LOVED learning more about the witches and sirens. It’s a fast paced book set against the stormy islands that captures you from the first pages.

Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins for the chance to review this book.

I wasn’t a fan of the first book but after reading the second book I have changed my mind!

The worldbuilding continues to expand in this book, we get introduced to more monsters, places and people.

I loved the dual pov between Mira and Brielle especially with their encounters. Mira’s character continues to grow both in her relationships between characters, her feelings, views and as she figures out who she is.

Plus I loved seeing more of Elijah and his story as we see his struggles and his family relations.

The corruption in the politics and the supposed neutral covens was well done and the fact that the council don’t want magic unless it’s in their own hands.

There were some points where it felt like we were told loads of things rather than actually being shown.

The romance was so sweet and had me at the start wondering if it will or won’t happen.

I was worried a bit with the introduction of the witches thinking that it may take away the sirens and Mira’s journey but it didn’t and I loved how they were interlinked.

I couldn’t put the book down and after that ending I’m excited and needing the next book.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book. A gorgeous 4 star read book from me. What an exciting plot, vivid storytelling and relatable, rich characters. I could put this book down – absolutely loved it.

Shadow and Tide by Rachel Greenlaw is such a good story. I rated it 5 stars because I loved the experience of reading it. It was really inspiring for me.