After reading The Bridge Kingdom by Danielle, I just had to read more by her and this did not disappoint. A great story, string characters who are well fleshed our. I loved the character relations, how fluid and natural the friendships but but also the slow burn enemies to lovers!

Wow i was not prepared to devour this book the way i did. I finished it in two days. I was on the edge of my seat reading each heart wrenching part of this story. I love a lot about this book Roman influence, politics, world building is phenomenal, the camaraderie and hilarious antics. Their are a few characters that really stuck to my heart Bait and how he interacts with the sea dragon. Marcus how can you not hurt for Marcus. He try’s so hard to do the right thing but in the end he stuck with doing what the empire wants. Teriana who i think i hurt just as much for as she doing what she can to save those she loves but in the end is still dooming the land she swore to protect.

I really love the whole concept one part of the world not knowing anything about the other half of the world. The description of magical paths that you can travel to get places and the sea faring voyage that was taken to get to the Dark Shores. This is an amazing sea faring story and at the heart is various characters that are just trying to survive. This is a great story. I diving into Dark Skies which is out in May. Review post for that probably within the next few weeks.

While I was initially sold on this book because of the pirates, I quickly found myself to be disappointed in the route it took. I'm sad because I was really excited for it, but it ended up having a more political edge to it and I wasn't sold on the romance that did happen.

*Flails, because I LOVE THIS BOOK SO MUCH!!!*

This book checked ALL the boxes. A badass heroine lead. A fantasy world, phenomenally crafted with some of the most captivating world-building I've ever read. MYTHOLOGY. PIRATES! What's not to love?

It's action-packed, immersive and full of so much EPICNESS that you'll never want to put it down. I loved it!

I really enjoyed the Dark Shores by Danielle L. Jensen! Now I want to read all of her books. It was full of action, from beginning to start. There are lots of things still missing an answer so I will definitely be reading the second book. A little romance too, which is great as it wasn't the principal premise of the book. It wasn't really a pirate book like I thought it would be but I'm not disappointed at all.

Firstly, this book was giving me so many different vibes - all the pirate bits felt like Pirates of the Caribbean (especially the part with the whirlpool) and the legions reminded me of Ancient Rome! I was really getting the West being more inspired by Ancient Rome, which makes sense as that is where the legions come from, and with the beach and the jungle that they land on in the East, (and the fact that I already had Pirates of the Caribbean stuck in my head) it reminded me a lot of the islands in the Caribbean.

Teriana was such a great character! She was tough and wasn't afraid of speaking her mind and protecting her people, even if it meant she would be forsaken by them. But even though she is strong, we still see her struggle with taking on some of these new responsibilities and it makes her feel more like a real person with real struggles, rather than just a heroine who is great at everything. Marcus was also a great character, and while I hated what he stood for, his inner thoughts made you really root for him. Plus that love/hate relationship is just perfect!

There was a ton of great banter between not only Teriana and Marcus, but the side characters as well. We saw the personality of some of the more important side characters just as often as we did for the main characters, which is something that is sometimes glossed over in books. I especially loved Miki and Quintus, especially their relationship with each other! I was also surprised by how much I liked Servius, because I wasn't expecting him to be so supportive of Marcus and his views on how to treat women was refreshing for a soldier in a legion known for being brutal.

As far as the plot goes, it was a lot of scheming and betrayal and there was never a dull moment! Both Teriana and Marcus are keeping so many secrets from each other and it's clear that eventually those secrets will explode out and create a lot of trouble for them both. By the end of this book, there were definitely a bunch of unanswered questions and plot lines that seemed to just...disappear, but I have a feeling that we haven't seen the last of Lydia. After all, we spent a lot of time talking about how she was probably from the Dark Shores and we have Magnius who could possibly save her.....(read the description of the second book!!!)

Overall, this was a great book and I'm excited to see where things go in the second book, which comes out May 5th 2020!

*Review will be posted to my blog (www.meltingpages.wordpress.com) on March 13th 2020 and has already been posted to Goodreads*

[aventuras pelo mar]⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Dark Shores, de Danielle L. Jensen. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Sempre fui apaixonada pelo mar e amo mergulhar. A paz e o silêncio que encontro no fundo do mar não tem igual. É emocionante também, quando tenho a chance de mergulhar em um navio naufragado. Fico imaginando o que aconteceu e quais aventuras aquele navio teve. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Em Dark Shores conhecemos Teriana que é uma marinheira sagaz e corajosa. Para os marinheiros a regra é que as terras do oeste nunca podem saber das terras do leste e vice-versa. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Mas Teriana, tentando ajudar sua amiga Lydia, contou sobre a existência de outras terras, com outros povos e com outros poderes. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Mas é claro que esse segredo não ia conseguir ser guardando por muito mais tempo. O senado de Celendor já tinha indícios da existência de outras terras a serem conquistadas. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Lucius Cassius que foi eleito Cônsul chantageou e manipulou Marcus, o capitão da tropa chama "os trinta e sete", que tinham a fama e a reputação de serem grandes conquistadores e sem piedade. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Não vou contar como, mas Marcus e Teriana tiveram que viajar juntos para as terras desconhecidas e lá enfrentariam grandes desafios, que sequer poderiam ser previstos por Marcus, pois todos de Celendor eram obrigados a serem pagãos. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Mas as terras do Oeste eram comandadas por Deuses e pelos seus escolhidos. Cada um tinha um poder e uma missão. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Marcus e Teriana vivem em uma quebra de braço, pois em tese são inimigos, mas a convivência acaba aproximando até aqueles que tínhamos certeza que seriam impossíveis de entrar em acordo. Teriana era inimiga de Marcus, e ele dela. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Com a alternância da narrativa entre eles, temos a visão particular de cada um, o que muitas vezes nos deixa querendo esganar (brinks) o outro por não perceber alguma coisa ou algum sentimento.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Danielle nos apresenta uma aventura marítima e terrestre, que mistura histórias de piratas e dos guerreiros romanos. Prato cheio para nunca largar o livro.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Conhecem outras histórias de piratas?

By @hiatodaleitura

Dark Shores by Danielle Jensen is the first in the series. I went in a little weary of young adult fantasy novels and Jensen turned my mind and heart around. It was well written, flawed and interesting characters that I connected with, plus an intriguing world. I do recommend this book because for the first in the series it pulls you in. Hopefully she can keep the momentum. I will say I think the relationship was a little fast but I will not go on about that because in the grand scheme that is really not that big of a detractor. I like that there are Roman components and N.America and S.America being undiscovered ( not what they are called this in the book) because it helps with world building and me as a reader able to build the world a little easier. I am giving this 4 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan-Tom Doherty Associates for a free copy. This is an honest review.

For fans of Sabaa Tahir. A fun fantasy romp for teens who love romance mixed with adventure. The characters are relatable and the cliff-hanger ending will make sure teens pick-up book two right away.

The journeys and action and adventure are so fast paced in this one! It was a really fun read and I enjoyed it!

Dark Shores had been on my radar for quite some time now, and I'm glad that I finally had the opportunity to read it! I won't lie, there are two main reasons this book has been on my radar: 1, the cover is AMAZING and eye-catching (I am definitely the type of person to judge a book by its cover >.> ), and 2, FEMALE PIRATE. You know based on my love for Tricia Levenseller that I LOVE bad ass female pirates. So when I saw the cover and discovered the antagonist was one such character, I immediately requested it on Net Galley.

This was so much more involved than a typical female pirate story, which was refreshing to see honestly. I loved the idea of the existence of the Dark Shores and how only certain people know how to find it. It really reminded me of the Up is Down scene from Pirates of the Caribbean: At World End where they try to find World's End and the ship like turns upside down and everything. At least that's how I imagined it. Either way, SO COOL.

The story line was engaging and exciting and it had so many different elements to keep you interested. I loved the characters a lot, especially Teriana, but felt all of them were adequately planned out and executed.

Now I have to admit, I was a bit disappointed that it wasn't a true pirate story a la Pirate King or something akin to Pirates of the Caribbean, but I suppose that was my own fault for having those expectations. The story and world building are still top-notch and the writing was creative and inventive. I would definitely pick up the next book in the series when it comes out next year.

Thanks again to Macmillan & Netgalley for the review copy in exchange for my honesty!

I was excited to read this because I love Danielle Jensen's other series but I dont know after reading the first chapter of this book I just lost interest? I did want to force myself to read it. However, Jensen has very strong writing and is captivating in several ways but not enough for me to grasp this book and continue to read it.

Thank you Netgalley for this ebook ARC. I don’t know why it took me so long to read this book because I loved it! And I cannot wait for the next one. I think I may even preorder it. Marcus is hands down the best fictional commander there is and I cannot wait to see what else his story brings. Highly recommend.

I feel bad giving a not great review on this book as I can tell why this book would be enjoyable for a lot of people and I don't want to discourage people from giving it a go - this may very well be a 'it's not you, it's me' situation..

Unfortunately this book just wasn't for me, I tried multiple times to get through the book and I just kept struggling around the first quarter of the book. I think I was expecting a lot more action and not as much info dumping at the beginning - I understand that you need to provide the reader with background information to inform their understanding of what is to come, but there definitely is a thing as too much at once.

This was a fast paced adventure that hooked me from the beginning. There's something with a life on the water and the mythology that saturates that life that fascinates me so much. Danielle L Jensen has such a great writing style and this story was multifaceted, rich with details and I loved every word of it! Can't wait for the next installment!

Disclaimer: I was provided an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

This book is one of my new favorites. I could barely put it down, staying up extra late a couple of nights in a row to finish it because I couldn't just stop when such exciting events were happening! I'll admit, this isn't as pirate-y as I was expecting but I still maintain that this is the pirate fantasy I've been looking for ever since the Pirates of the Carribbean movies jumped the shark. It was a vibrant world filled with dynamic characters. The world building was phenomenal, filled with details that seemed so normal to the characters but was new and magical to us. I was enthralled a few times, specifically a scene in the capital city and when the characters crossed from the east to the west. The characters made decisions that were inconsistent but instead of feeling frustrated, it just made them feel more real to me. I received the e-arc of this (and I'm super late reading it), but as soon as I finished I ordered the finished copy. I can't wait for the sequel to this!

I had no idea this was a series when I requested it, but I can't say I didn't enjoy myself or this story. It's fast paced, it had some enemies to lovers happening and characters easy to root for. I'm a little let down by the fact that this isn't about pirates?? But, I'm excited to see what happens next.

This is my first book by Danielle. It had all the elements I enjoy. The ending was expected but I loved it. I enjoyed this book. Can’t wait to see what she does next.

In a world divided in two, East and West, where neither side knows the true existence of the other, one people, the Maarin, control the in-between.
The Maarin are a seafaring people who recover lost and stolen goods and trade along the coasts. They are the only people living who not only know the existence of both East and West, they are also the only people who know how to navigate the savage seas between the two.
Living under the mandate of, East must never meet West, all this goes astray when young Teriana, heir to the Maarin people, exposes deeply held secrets to her dear friend, a part of the Celendor Empire, Lydia.
Now higher-ups in the Celendor Empire have conquest on their mind and they will do whatever it takes to discover the route of the Dark Shores. Taking Maarin and her crew prisoner, she is now forced to show them the way or risk all of her people's lives.
Strong armed by Marcus, Commander of the 37th, a legionnaire for the Celendor Empire, she does the only thing she can do; she shows them the way. Not all is smooth sailing on their voyage however and Teriana and Marcus end up forging an unlikely alliance in order to make it through.
I thought this was such an interesting story. You can definitely feel the ancient Roman inspiration for the Celendor Empire and I love the mystery of the Dark Shores themselves. The relationship between Teriana and Marcus is good, although a little instalovey, not too bad.
In addition to a bit of romance, there is quite a bit of political intrigue in here which I am always down for. There's nothing better than good ole-fashioned blackmail for political gain to keep a plot progressing!
I had a lot of fun reading this and definitely plan to pick up the next book. This one left off in a great spot with a horrible villain still on the loose. I'm not sure how long this series will end up being but I am seriously hoping for at least three.
Thank you so much to the publisher, Tor Teen, and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this to read and review. I had so much fun reading this and really would like to hear more people chatting it up. If you like ocean-related content, Roman-inspired worlds, unlikely alliances, political backstabbing and meddling gods, pick this one up!!!

First of all, a huge thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a free eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. Secondly, a huge apology to Jensen and the publisher for being SO LATE with this review.

I started this book first back in June, but I restarted it recently. I loved it just as much and was so happy to be able to keep on reading this time!
This book swept me off my feet with its world building, its characters, and its story. What I love most about it is that the two characters whose POV you follow (Teriana and Marcus) aren't inherently good or evil. They're human, and their being torn on things is so realistic, I often wasn't able to pass judgement one way or another. I could be annoyed at them for doing or thinking something, but then realizing it's not as simple as all that. It makes for a very compelling story, whether you're into the slow burn romance or not.

Personally, I'm still torn on the romance, but that's because I feel that often romance is not needed in such stories, and the predictability of it is just aggravating. However, when characters have chemistry, and they then don't end up together, I also get annoyed, so all in all it's very difficult to please me haha! So, quite simply:
Is the romance necessary? Not at all. All it does is cause more drama.
Is the romance cringeworthy? Nope. I actually quite liked their chemistry, though the slow burn was handled a bit poorly in my opinion. The switch from EW to YES went too sudden.

In conclusion: I don't hate this romance, but fear for how it will go in the sequel.

Speaking of the sequel, I cannot wait! I am already so excited, and I have foolish and naive hopes for the characters that I'm sure will get crushed haha!

I love pretty much all of the characters, and the ones I don't love, I'm not supposed to love, so I guess that's alright. I have a massive soft spot for Servius and even though he does not need my protection, I will protect him with my life. I also want to give Marcus a hug. And Teriana. A genuine, empathetic hug. And if I can't, someone should. They need hugs. Just saying.

Unfortunately, I cannot give this book a full five stars. The slow burn was jarring during the switch which pulled me out of the story, and the line 'sweat pooling under my breasts' makes me twitch every time. And it's in there twice. *shudders*
I *adore* that gay relationships are perfectly okay and accepted. It's such a joy to read it not being a big deal, it just being a thing, just like straight ones have always been. I was not okay however with how two characters were treated near the end, because anno 2019 we should be over the Bury Your Gays trope. If in the sequel they end up being alive, I might reconsider my 4,5 star rating, but for now, I am very angry at the way it was left. Also not sure how I feel about the implication that a man in love with another man is willing to kill a woman who is 'competition'. But as that is still up in the air, I'm not passing full judgment on that just yet.

So yes, I have some conflicting feelings about this book, but overall I loved it and cannot wait to return to this world, to this story. I definitely plan on having my own physical copy some day, even if just so that I can drool over the cover. It's definitely a book I will be rereading and recommending!

4,5/5