I had to abandon this one because the story-telling was borderline ridiculous, the narrative voice was immature, and I couldn't connect with characters that were fake. There was so much "oh my, you are a literal god in human form" descriptions and teenage hormones ruining around that any possible plot was obliterated.

Not for me unfortunately. It didn't grip me, I found myself finding excuses for not reading. A little disappointed.

Firstly I’d like to thank SparkPress and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book.

This book starts with a great looks in the form of Skylar Southmartins Mum. She loses her battle with cancer. Skylar delves into finishing her veterinary degree but soon discovers family secrets, an unknown link between 4 other women and a love triangle. Not to mention a mystical book all about Skylar’s past, present and even her future.

The books lore seemed to be well researched and as someone who has never heard of Akashic lore before it has made me want to learn more about it.

There is nothing in the synopsis about the possibility of sexual scenes. So this could have been mentioned, especially as it’s a young adult book.

My favourite character wasn’t the main character but someone that came into Skylar’s life when she went on to finish her degree. That person was Ronnie, she seemed strong willed and to me, a bit of a heroine on her own. I won’t go too much into her as I’d end up giving away spoilers.

I’m going to give this book 3/5 as although in a lot of respects it was good and worth the read, I felt like you didn’t really get to know characters and then before you know it, you’ve learned all the secrets you need to and it’s the end of the book. I’d still recommend reading though.

Initially this books synopsis excited me but once I began reading it diverged from that path so much. It does have many triggers and I wish it was the Greek mythology based book promised. Disappointed...

Contrived plot, awkward writing. I'm sorry, I really tried to like this but it just wasn't my jam.

***This book was reviewed for the San Francisco Book Review and via Netgalley

****Trigger/ age warning for explicit sexual situations

Ocean’s Fire, by Stacey Tucker, is the first in the Equal Night Trilogy. Young Skylar has recently lost her mum, Cassie, to the relentless ravages of cancer. In the maelstrom aftermath of such loss, Skylar learns of her family’s legacy, and the true power of the Book of Akasha. Is she ready for the responsibilities newly thrust upon her? It is time for the power of women, and women's mysteries, to reclaim their rightful place in world cosmology. Thankfully, Skylar has help along her path in the form of Ocean, Beatrice, and others.  

This book had a strong theme of loss which hit me hard. My paternal grandmum raised me much of my formative years, shaping a great deal of my spirituality. Even well-prepared, her passing was a harsh blow to me. Skylar struggled with the loss of her mum through much of the book, making it easy for me to be invested in her and her growth through the novel.

I enjoyed the lore behind the book. It came across as well-researched. I love when books incorporate known mythology, bringing it forward for new audiences, and interpreting it in new ways. It rarely fails to get people interested in the ancient lore as well. Greek mythos, and lore of the Akashic Record have been of interest to me for a long time, as an anthropologist, a lorekeeper, and one interested in the magickal side of life. Women's mystery cults and women's mysteries today are sadly lacking in many stories, as they are lacking in society as a whole. As a whole, we've chosen to cut off half of what makes us human. If writers today can help shepherd that neglected half back into the mainstream of our modern mythology, perhaps that change can filter to the rest of society.

Oh, and horses! I loved the horses. Especially on the beautiful cover. I must say, this cover ranks as a favourite for the artwork. While the main lore is Greek, the horse symbology reminded me of Rhiannon of Welsh myth, and, of course, the horse goddess Epona.

There are explicit sexual situations throughout the book. Nothing in the description suggested this might be contained within. It would be just as well served with implied sexual scenes, than those bordering on the erotic. If this is to be part of the draw of the book, as with books by Laurell K Hamilton, some mention is needed in the book blurb/synopsis. Several of said scenes did feel contrived, and not as necessary to the story.

There also seemed a theme of casual cheating. Now, I'm not a prudish person. I function in an open relationship. But we chose that, and are up front. If people agree to function in a monogamous relationship, and easily break that, I find them very untrustworthy. No one just 'finds themselves in that situation’. You can always say no. If you are weak-willed, either own up to that and accept the consequences, or make sure to avoid, or remove yourself from, temptation.

There were also times when the dialogue felt too stilted and formal, especially from twenty-odd college students. I would expect more contractions in speech with this age range. Most of the time I was able to gloss over it, but sometimes I got jarred from the story.

Overall, this was a decent read. Sure, there's room for growth, but I did find it enjoyable, and will likely check out the next in series, once available.

📚📚📚

Lyrical and powerful, this is definitely one that I am going to buy a copy of when it's out. It's writing is strong, the characters are relatable and this is easily one of my favorites. Five stars!

DNFing at 30%

When I first read the synopsis of Ocean's Fire, I was pretty excited to pick up this book. Greek mythology woven into a present-day setting is always intriguing, or at least, in my opinion. However, when I got into the read, it was more like a contemporary novel than anything, and it didn't really match the blurb provided. The story starts out fine and has a strong undertone theme of horses (which I loved!) But when the main character Skylar begins her sexual escapades, I couldn't keep interested.

I don't necessarily mind sex in a story. However, I want what I read to be wholesome and not explicit. I don't want to read a detailed description of someone else's "experience."

Second, can we stop with the mindless cheating? I truly don't believe these characters can just be so utterly powerless to their emotions that they "find" themselves in the act.

It's true; humans are pros at making excuses for their actions. But...think! Anyways, not to get into a morality conflict. I stopped reading this book because I was seeing a lack of character development across the board, the cheating, and the all-too-prominent theme of sex.

Vulgarity: Quite a bit.
Sexual content: Up until 30%, there was a moderate amount.
Violence: None.

I will not be assigning a star rating as I did not finish reading this book.

A big thanks to the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book!

Unfortunately, this book was not for me and did not hold my interest.

I requested to read this book as the blurp seemed interesting. After a couple of chapters I was already dragging my feet. The characters are so poorly developed. The main character Skylar's motivations are unclear, her emotions flat and one-dimensional. After reading the first 25% properly I started skimming. After 55% I gave up.

I hate not finishing books, but I really did not get on with this one.