Sweet Black Waves has turned out to be one of my favorite fantasy reads of the year. Branwen was such a unique and dynamic character, and I really enjoyed watching her embrace her magic throughout the story. Despite how her cousin treated her, Branwen was always there by her side, making huge sacrifices for the safety of the kingdom and her family. And the ending of the book had me shook! I can’t wait to read the rest of the series.

Amazing characters and very intriguing story. I loved the star-crossed lovers vibe. Forbidden romance is a favorite trope of mine. And the cover is so lovely. I am excited to finish the rest of the series.

I received this free eARC novel from NetGalley. This is my honest review.

I read this book a bit slower than I have been reading lately and that's because this story is a bit slow. I enjoyed the beginning and the end but that middle was a bit rough to get through. And honestly I was going to quit this series after this book because of that middle but that had me stunned so now I will read the 2nd book to see how things progress from that out of nowhere turn of events!

Essie pisses me off. I can't say it any other way. I know she is young. I know she is strong willed. But she is a spoiled brat who is constantly whining about her life. I also think she is bi-polar honestly.

And Branwen. She's like a doormat. She's letting everyone just treat her however they want to in the moment and somehow that doesn't bother her? She bending over backwards to babysit her cousin and no one seems to see the sacrifices she is making. It's really quite annoying.

Tristan is a middle ground character. I like him, but he's overshadowed with my feelings about the two girls. I love how dedication and determination when it comes to Branwen. I'll be interested to see how eventing unfolds with those two.

So yes, I'm going to try book 2. But only because of that ending. Hopefully things will pick up enough to keep my interest until the end of the trilogy.

I enjoyed reading this book I just never got around to writing a review. I will continue to read works by this author

This was such a fresh view of this retelling and I loved every moment of it. I will definitely and hopefully be continuing this series. I highly recommend if you enjoy retellings and fantasy romance esque novels. You will not be disappointed!

I so desperately wanted this to sweep me away with its warring kingdoms and magic and forbidden romance and THAT COVER.

Very much enjoyed Sweet Black Waves, though I'm late to review! Looking forward to more from this author.

After giving SWEET BLACK WAVES a chance, I have decided that this book isn’t for me at this time. I am sure fans of star-crossed lover and fantasy retellings will love this book/series.

This book was absolutely fantastic. I've already added it to our library collection and will recommend it to students.

DNF REVIEW • I didn't know much about SWEET BLACK WAVES before picking it up aside from the fact that it is a Tristan and Isolde retelling. I'm only familiar with the legend based on the film adaptation from 2006, but I was still excited to see it come to life on the page. When I started, I was swept up in the story. Branwen, the heroine and Eseult's cousin, rescues an injured man, Tristan, adrift at sea and learns he's her sworn enemy. As a fan of hate-to-love, I was ready for the feels. And then... it is instant attraction and lust with absolutely zero relationship development. The writing indicates that weeks pass, but we don't get to see any of that happening. We're told that Branwen develops feelings for this stranger (and he for her) but never get to see it happening. Based on Branwen's history, I expected her to be conflicted based on who he is/where he comes from, but that feeling is a blip on the radar. The things the reader is being shown don't match what we're told. At the end of Part One (20%), I decided not to continue reading. I didn't believe the romance at all, and there wasn't much to the story beyond that element. If the characters, writing, or world building were stronger, I might have continued. But I have no desire to see Branwen betrayed by her cousin (if this is truly following in the legend's footsteps) and complete a trilogy when I'm not invested in the relationship at its heart. Would I have liked this more if I was a teenager? Quite possibly. I'm not the intended audience, and that may be part of the problem. But I've read lots of YA fantasy that I adore, and this one just didn't hit the mark.

This was a nice atmospheric read. I enjoyed the aspects of it that were true to the original story and how the author twisted it to make it their own. I really enjoyed it and look forward to reading more of the series.

***Review not posted on blog***

This book was comped with Kristin Cashore's series, which was an instant hook for me. Unfortunately I am unable to post a review of this book on my blog at this time. I am excited to read more by Kristina Perez and this publishing imprint. Thank you so much for the opportunity.

The Eater of Books!

Thanks for the review copy. I was not able to read this one, so I did not leave a review on social media.

I had such high expectations for this book, and Sweet Black Waves blew them all out of the sweet black water! Loved everything about this book, from the characters to the plot.

That ending!! It's quite frustrating, so beware and have the next book ready to go. Great characters, fantastic setting! My only real complaint is that this book is huge, and didn't have to be. The pacing was a bit slow for me in the beginning. but I'd still recommend it.

DNF @ 45%

Took me a long time to finally admit this to myself. But I think it's time I do. I was super excited when I received an e-arc of the book but it just wasn't as great as I hoped it to be. I think I built it so high up on my head that all I felt was disappointment when it didn't live up to that expectation. I feel horrible.

I really enjoyed this book and found it very interesting with this take on this romance. I enjoyed the description of the romance interests and the different point of views . Overall I enjoyed this book and loved the cover. I can't to read other books by this author.

This book. I honestly am having trouble writing a review for it. This is one of the most polarizing books for me. I’ll admit that I was pulled along from page one; completely invested. And I think that’s why I’m having a difficult time. I loved the two main characters. I was rooting for them. But, if you’ve ever read any version of Tristan and Isolde than you’ll know, that there’s bound to be heartbreak.

Only in this story, I wasn’t sure how it was going to happen until about three quarters of the way through. I was hoping and praying for a decent ending, I really was. But, it killed me.

Ms. Perez’s writing is, quite simply, superb. It’s not always easy to write retellings and make them compelling and unique but this book was full of its own charm and prose.

You also don’t need to know the story of Tristan and Isolde. But, knowing it, helped me not to be blindsided into thinking that this book would have a fairy tale happy ending.

The side characters weren’t as intriguing for me. Princess Eseult made me want to throat punch her half the time. Problem is, our heroine, Branwen, truly loves her cousin, the princess. And I’m still not convinced there’s any coming back for this character.

All I can hope is that, since it’s a trilogy, things will come full circle and all will work out.

It was a good start to a series. The writing was good and the pacing was good. Not great, just good. The relationships were infuriating. So much loyalty to an insufferable brat. The ending was... rushed, in my opinion, and still, I think this book could've been 100 pages shorter. So it was a good beginning.

This was a pretty cool twist on the Tristan and Iseult legend, with Princess Iseult's cousin and lady-in-waiting Branwen as the main character and Tristan's love (until, well, you know how it goes...). It was refreshing that the main character WASN'T the princess, that the queen was actually a powerful AND kind person, and that the young female main character embraced her power and <spoiler>actually walked away when the dude treated her like crap</spoiler>. I liked how as the book went along it got more and more into the mythology/magic, following Branwen's own journey into her belief and power. And that cliffhanger...GAH. Going to reserve the next book from the library RIGHT NOW.