☆☆☆☆ /5
(english review below)

Le résumé annonçait un périple sur les océans. Et quel périple.
J’aime énormément les romans qui parlent de piraterie et la mise en scène cette étrange compétition pour la Couronne d’Os m’a captivée.
¤
Ne faites jamais confiance à un pirate.

La cloche de sang sonne, marquant la mort du roi des pirates et le début des épreuves, une compétition à couper le souffle où la récompense est la couronne d'os. Un seul concurrent peut revendiquer le trône convoité de l'île ; chacun jouera sa vie et son intégrité physique pour gagner.

Capitaine. Sœur. Jeune fille.
Csilla Abado aspire à prouver sa force à sa sœur aînée qui a toujours rêvé d'être capitaine et aux pirates chevronnés qui rechignent à sa jeunesse. Elle risquera tout pour devenir la première reine pirate, coûte que coûte.

Marchand. Fils. Héritage.
Kane Blackwater veut laisser derrière lui l'or sale et les métiers louches qu'il a faits pour garder le navire de son père, l'Iron Jewel, en vie. Les épreuves représentent un nouveau départ, mais les rumeurs d'un héritier secret tourbillonnent, menaçant ses espoirs de devenir le roi des pirates.

Passager clandestin. Fille. Tempête.
Lorelei Penny n'aspire qu'à venger la mort de sa mère. Se cacher sur l'Iron Jewel était censé la rapprocher du tueur, mais au lieu de cela, elle se retrouve prise dans la bataille mortelle où la loyauté et le désir se heurtent.

Csilla. Kane. Lorelei. Chacun en mission. La mer, cependant, a d'autres projets. Les marées noires montent, et s’ils ne font pas attention, ils vont sûrement se noyer.
¤
J’ai beaucoup apprécié découvrir chacun des personnages de cette histoire. On suit plusieurs points de vue. Csilla, Kane et Lorelei sont des pirates qui m’ont touché et parfois énervé durant leurs aventures. Ils ont chacun leurs raisons de participer à cette compétition (s’affirmer en tant que femme dans un monde d’hommes, prendre un nouveau départ, se venger…) et c’était si intéressant d’en connaître plus sur eux. D’en connaître plus sur leur personnalité, sur leur passé, leur état d’esprit durant l’intrigue… J’ai trouvé que la psychologie des personnages étaient bien faites.
La compétition pour la Couronne d’Os et devenir roi/reine des pirates est bien pensée. J’aime beaucoup cette idée qui ajoute une touche plutôt unique à l’histoire et qui nous tient en haleine car elle impose une ambiance lourde de tension dans le roman.
C’est un premier tome qui est assez introductif car il nous présente l’univers et les personnages que j’ai appréciés. Cela dit, j’ai peut-être manqué d’informations concernant l’univers que l’autrice a créé. J’ai trouvé qu’il avait un bon potentiel parce qu’on ne parlait pas simplement que de piraterie, mais j’ai eu de la difficulté à imaginer dans quelle contexte l’intrigue se déroulait.
Pour autant, l’histoire était entraînante, pleine d’action, stressante par moment, et je suis curieuse de connaître la suite.

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ENGLISH REVIEW

The summary announced a journey on the oceans. And what a journey.
I really like books that talk about piracy and the staging of this strange competition for the Bone Crown captivated me.
¤
Never trust a pirate.

The Blood Bell tolls, marking the death of the pirate king and the start of the Trials—a heart-stopping competition where the reward is the Bone Crown. Only one contender can claim the coveted island throne; each will gamble life and limb to win.

Captain. Sister. Maiden.
Csilla Abado yearns to prove her strength to the seasoned pirates who balk at her youth and to her elder sister who has always craved Csilla’s captainship. She will risk everything to become the first pirate queen, no matter the cost.

Dealer. Son. Legacy.
Kane Blackwater wants to leave behind the dirty gold and shady trades he’s made to keep his father’s ship, the Iron Jewel, alive. The Trials represent a new beginning—yet rumors of a secret heir are swirling, threatening his hopes of becoming the pirate king.

Stowaway. Daughter. Storm.
Lorelei Penny longs for nothing more than to avenge her mother’s death. Stowing away on the Iron Jewel was supposed to get her closer to the killer, but instead she finds herself caught up in the deadly battle where loyalty and desire collide.

Csilla. Kane. Lorelei. Each on a mission. The sea, however, has other plans. Dark tides are rising, and if they aren’t careful, they’ll surely drown.
¤
I really enjoyed discovering each of the characters in this story. We follow several points of view. Csilla, Kane and Lorelei are pirates who touched me and sometimes annoyed me during their adventures. They each have their reasons for participating in this competition (to assert themselves as a woman in a world of men, to make a new start, to get revenge…) and it was so interesting to know more about them. To know more about their personality, their past, their state of mind during the plot… I found that the psychology of the characters was well done.
The competition for the Bone Crown and for becoming Pirate King/Queen is well thought out. I really like this idea which adds a rather unique touch to the story and which keeps us in suspense because it imposes an atmosphere heavy with tension during the reading.
This is a first book that is quite introductory because it presents the universe and the characters that I liked. That said, I may have missed information about the universe that the author has created. I thought it had good potential because we weren't just talking about piracy, but I had a hard time imagining the context in which the plot was unfolding.
However, the story was catchy, full of action, stressful at times, and I am curious to know the rest.

I received this book free from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

When I saw this gorgeous cover I knew I needed to read this book. Then I found out it was about pirates…. SOLD!! This book basically had everything, friends, friends to lovers, hate to love, villains, magic, pirates, a quest, a good moral to the story, fighting, adventure just an all around good story. My only issue was there were a lot of characters but they were well done and I didn’t have to try to figure out who was who they were all very memorable.

I’m not sure if this is a standalone or a series but I’d continue on with it. I’d definitely read more by this author. I’d also recommend this book.

Let me start out my saying that I love pirates. I love every dishonest thing about them. I wish there were more adult pirate romances out there. But until that happens, I’ll be over here reading all the YA ones in the meantime.

That being said, Crossbones didn’t grab me as much as I’d hoped. The many POVs were distracting to me and I found myself skimming a lot. I’m rather sad about it because I wanted to love it. But I didn’t. I may try book two when it releases but I won’t be rushing to read it on release day.

Actual rating: 3.5

Crossbones is a YA fantasy told in three points of view, including pirate captains and a girl who is much more than she seems. When the pirate king dies unexpectedly, captains of various pirate ships, and their first mates must compete for the Bone Crown, which will elevate their status to royalty among pirates.

Crossbones was a fun read, but it wasn't perfect. The pirates (and the amazing first chapter) drew me in, but as I read I was also drawn in by the dynamic characters and the intriguing plot. The magic system seemed interesting, but was slightly underdeveloped. I didn't always feel like I truly understood the "rules" or the inner workings of the magic Crossbones features. Now that I know that this series will be a trilogy, I expect the magic system will be explained more as the series goes on. My only other issue with the book was that the action scenes felt rushed at times.

Besides those slight issues, this book was able to surprise me and it also ended in a way that made me want to see what was next for these characters.

Crossbones is a very enticing and exciting first book in a series. If pirates, a treasure hunt, and a great group of characters with complex relationships intrigues you, I would definitely recommend checking this out.

I'm looking forward to exploring this world more in the next installment!

*I received an e-ARC copy of Crossbones on NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

I find that I prefer to watch pirates than read them. But with a cover this gorgeous, I had to give this book a try. I still prefer to watch pirates than read them, but I am glad I picked up this book!

this book was good but not one of my favourites. it was a little hard to get into but overall would recommend to a friend!

I was excited to, and requested this book, because of the pirate synopsis. However, I was not a fan of this book. The writing was simple, and the story is too much like all of the other popular YA books the past ten years. There was no good romance or world building to keep the reader hooked. There were too many filler descriptions that didn't quite go with the story. I believe the character is supposed to be POC, but it also wasn't really clear. It is a great story in theory, but really missed the mark.

I really liked the idea behind the trials present in the book, however, the writing of the story came off as a bit overly simplistic so I never found myself truly invested or caring about the characters. I thought how they all worked together was done really well, though. The lack of hard world-building, though, is where this story really lost points from me. I do think, although this first installment was a bit simple and needing world building, it was a good foundation if the author continues in this world!

Give me all the pirate books!! Wow I loved the different POVs that were provided and how the story just kept twisting and left me wanting much more..:in the best way possible. This was a great read!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

First off, Kimberly Vale knows how to grab her reader's attention immediately! The first time we meet Csilla Abado, she is on her way to be hung for her crime of being a pirate. So obviously I was hooked and had to continue reading on to see if/how Csilla made it out of this debacle. This story follows Csilla, Kane, and Lorelei as they fight for the title of the Bone Crown to become King or Queen of the pirates.

Personally, I enjoyed this read. I haven't read a lot of pirate fiction, so it was different than my usual reading choice, but I was drawn into the story. Honestly, just the cover alone drew me in. But as I was reading the story, I got about half way through the digital version and knew I would want the physical copy on my shelf so I had to pre-order it.

Overall, I rated Crossbones 4 out of 5 stars. I am excited to read the rest of the books in the Trilogy as they are published!

The cover is so pretty, and I absolutely love the idea of a pirate story, but this one didn't hold my attention. Csilla, Flynn, and Kane are the youngest pirates in the business but it feels like they're only so young because we wanted to have YA-aged characters. Like the whole training school for pirates doesn't really make sense and also the fact that there are only 5 sovereign ships when a kingdom is out here conquering the world seems like a rookie mistake. I could sit here and poke holes in the whole story. There was a really strong opening chapter followed by a slog as nothing much happens. I wanted epic sea battles and rich descriptions of magic, but that's just not what I got.

I wanted to like this one so much more than I ended up liking it. Maybe it just wasn't the right time for me to be reading it since I've been on such a huge, fluffy romance binge lately, but I just couldn't fully immerse myself in the story. It was good, well written, I liked the characters, but I just didn't LOVE it. I'll give it another go when pirates are on my mind, maybe that will change my feels.

I absolutely enjoyed this book! It has 3 povs throughout but it flows so smoothly and the depth to each character is so nice. I really felt the emotions of them while reading and I really hope there's a second book. The adventures throughout the book are great and the pace of the book was nice too! Definitely a must read!

I LOVED this book.
The pirates
The intrigue
The Hunger Games esque competition.
The cover!!!!

The story was a little simple so I would love the author to dive into the foundation they built on and tell us more about the world, and weave in a more complex plot.

Crossbones by Kimberly Vale reads like a quintessential Wattpad pirate adventure. It's fast with a loveable ensemble of characters, and a dash of romance and betrayal to spice things up.

The book opens with Csilla's execution, and the pace keeps building from thee. Once rescued by her sister and the Scarlet Maidens, she sets out to join the Trials, a competition among pirate captains to crown the next ruler of Cerulia.
With the first half of the book concentrated on bringing the players together, it allows for an exploration of each captain. Kane is plagued by guilt over unresolved feelings towards his dead father, Flynn hides behind a joking veneer, Csilla erects a wall around her because she's been taught that anything less than ruthlessness is weakness, Rove is the story's unrepentant villain, and Lorelei is out for revenge.
Despite the book's short length, Vale explores their motivations at length with each character having a character arc.

She also goes above and beyond in her worldbuilding. Set in a world where four nations each worship a different element associated with a deity, the story focuses on the clash between water and fire through the pirates vs the looming empire. There is a lot to take in, in a short time which left me somewhat confused as well as wanting more. There could have been more done in this regard.

As there are so many characters, the arcs felt rushed at times, a feeling that comes back in other parts of the book. Vale spends a lot of time bringing the MCs together, which means the Trials are much shorter than what I expected for something that's so prominent in the book. The worldbuilding also felt too big for the book as there were a number of info dumps to catch the reader up. This really is my overall criticism, it should have been longer and could have while still remaining a standalone.

Other than being rushed, I have no qualms with Vale's writing. Her pacing was good and kept me reading, her writing was easy to breeze through without standing out too much and the overall plot was formulaic at times, which allowed the characters and world to take the spotlight.

Crossbones by Kimberly Vale reads very much like a wattpad story. As I enjoy this format, I enjoyed this book as well despite its flaws. Vale is certainly an author to look out for!

Thank you to WattPad and Netgalley for the advanced copy! This book was a fun surprise, a nice Pirates of the Caribbean vibe with a fresh twist. The plot was exciting and the characters were easy to love and root for!

I felt like this story had a great foundation, and a great premise- Pirates and the whole idea of the trials. I also really enjoyed the main characters and their interactions. I was interested as soon as I read the description, but in the end, I had a rough time getting all the way through. The story was very simple, but has good bones, is what it comes down to.

When I read the description for this book I was really keen in reading it. I requested it as I thought there was a lot of potential in this story, but I felt flat. Unfortunately I DNFed this one around 75% and couldn't pick it up no matter how much I tried.

Overall the ideas and plot was pretty good, but the execution of the plot made it hard to really get into this book and to enjoy it and complete it.

IT'S A BONES DAY, PEOPLE, AND YOU NEED TO READ THIS.

I read this solely for the cover, and I was not disappointed. Pirates compete in a trail for a crown to be the new King or Queen of bones? This is definitely a slow-burn book, and it takes a while to get to the genuine exciting parts, but I feel like it moved great for a YA novel. I enjoyed the four-character split and how each had the unique past that gave them theirs on the story. This is a terrific cozy-up book for the colder nights coming. It was a fun read, with a slight touch of romance and some tremendous page-turning adventure. It will be one of my top YA adventure book reads for 2021.

Thank you NetGalley and Wattpad books for this book in exchange for my honest review.

The book was action packed and enthralling right from the beginning. The characters were diverse. I loved the strong women, which is so rare in books.