I really enjoyed this unique post apocalyptic story. Wanda’s journey, is both tragic and fascinating. I I love how she never gives up, but I didn’t quite understand the connection between the title and the story.

This is one of those books that will stay with you long after you read it. I had no idea what I was getting into when I started this one— Just that the cover was so amazing I hoped the story held up— Wow, did it ever.

I’m at a lost for words trying to describe the Light Pirate without giving too much away. Every bit of it was a surprise to me so I want to leave much of that experience for everyone else too.

It certainly impacted my thinking about modern living and the climate we know is changing.

I also couldn’t help, but feel my family connections to this book. Being born in Florida, having so many family members still living down there in that humid world— It literally hits home! I hope Lily Brooks-Dalton’s The Light Pirate will reach those nay-saying Floridians and give them a sneak peak at what could be a very wild future for the Sunshine state.

That said: Much love the the folks that just went through an horrific hurricane.

Thank you for the advanced read. It was an amazing book!

This was not at all what I was expecting however I throughly enjoyed it. The timing of reading this book gave me goosebumps as Hurricane Ian was ravaging Florida at the time, the main hot topics of the book. The characters were likes me but left a bit unfinished for me Towards the end. It’s fiction, however, seemed very close to reality. Scary to think about.

In Lily Brookes-Dalton's The Light Pirate, there are four elements to the story. Time, water, light, and power are interwoven in this apocalyptic tale

Immediately we are gripped by the story of Frida who is pregnant with Wanda as a hurricane named Wanda approaches. Kirby, Frida's husband, is called to work, leaving her alone. During the storm she enters into premature labor and gives birth to a little girl she names Wanda. We then enter Wanda's life as the story continues.

This book is captivating in its first half. In the second half the pace slows down, but is still easy to follow. This story is emotional and may not be suitable for all audiences. This is a melancholy tale of survival during the apocalypse. As I read, I reached for my Kleenex.

You'll love The Light Pirate if you enjoy strong people and the story of overcoming hardship! There is a lot of depth in the plot and the characters feel real!

The Light Pirate is available on December 6th.

NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing, thank you for sharing this breathtaking novel with me! I appreciate your kindness.

#TheLightPirate #NetGalleyReviewer

Lovely writing, about a serious topic of climate fiction. I loved learning more about Wanda and the strength she had to get through this wild climate. Being in Florida, it was a heavy to book for me to read, as the danger in the book seems inevitable.

This book was very well written and parts of it were captivating, but other sections really lagged. I welcomed a baby while I was reading this book, so I didn’t pick it up for a month and I honestly didn’t feel any motivation to finish the book. I powered through, and I’m glad I did, but I wish some of the supporting characters’ stories would have played out more.

3.5/5 stars

The Light Pirate is a lyrical example of climate fiction. Wanda is a compelling character and the structure of the novel is unique and resonant. Brooks-Dalton asks vital questions within the bounds of a compelling story.

This novel follows the Lowe family into the future where Florida is ravaged by more hurricanes and high temperatures. The story begins with Frida who moved to Rudder with Kirby after losing her mother to a hurricane in Puerto Rico. Another hurricane bears down on Rudder, drastically altering the Lowe family. Frida gives birth to Wanda during this hurricane, setting the stage for a new life filled with the array of human emotions. Details about linemen and electricity mixed with ecology make this a unique and interesting read.

This beautiful book pulls you in with the depth of its characters and the authenticity of the setting, a near-future Florida overrun by disaster and climate change, and as much a character in the book as any human. This is the story of Wanda, named after the terrible hurricane she was born during, and raised by a family formed by the shifting circumstances forced on those protecting her. The storms come more often and are more destructive, and eventually people stop rebuilding and leave. And the wilds and the sea returns. But like the times, Wanda is not ordinary, and learns from her survivalist mentor Phyllis to adapt to her changing surroundings. If anyone can find a future in society's collapse, it's Wanda.
Each of the characters is rich and deep and memorable, and the reader will care deeply for them. The gradual deterioration of Florida, both physically and socially is made so very plausible and believable, that it all seems completely natural and inevitable. Its wilderness identity forms it into the primary lead character next to Wanda at one point, and it holds its own quite nicely, with a touch of mystery and completely heartless. The writing is fluid and I simply loved everything about it. A wonderful read from start to finish. I give very few 5 stars. This certainly is. Highly highly recommended.

Gave me overstory vibes. I really enjoyed the environmental aspect of the writing. Hit a little weird reading this while Florida was about to get hit with a hurricane in real time but was also a good reminder of what people are going through as I sit in my comfortable Midwest weather.

Frida has been through a devastating hurricane once when she was younger, and is always terrified as they approach, but especially now that she is pregnant. Her husband Kirby is focused on preparing their home, boarding up the windows, and making sure they’ll be safe. As an electrical line worker, he knows he’ll have to check on the lines, as well, that’s his job. He leaves the boys, Flip and Lucas with Frida and soon after she begins to experience labor pains, so she goes to lie down and rest. Meanwhile, the brothers leave without telling her, and when Kirby returns, there is a new member of his family, a daughter, Wanda, who Frida names after the storm that summoned her birth.

Everything changes for Kirby and his family on that night. All the loss surrounding so many is devastating, but there is also a generosity of spirit by those whose loss is replaceable. A broken window, a car smashed by a fallen tree, loss of electricity. These are nothing compared to the loss of human lives, to losing those that you love.

As Wanda grows and attends school, she is taunted and ostracized for her name and its association with the hurricane that arrived as she was born. At one point they come dangerously close to worse when a group holds her under water. What happens makes it apparent that she has a gift, a gift that even she doesn’t understand.

Separated into four sections titled Power , Water , Light , and Time there is so much more to this story. So much beauty in these pages, and also much desperation as living in this place becomes untenable. There are few who have the skills necessary to survive what will come. Little by little, homes are left vacant, businesses abandoned, and life changes drastically. As time passes Wanda loses other loved ones, but finds comfort in nature, even as it rapidly changes. The world has forever changed, still, somehow she holds on to hope.

Slightly more than six years ago I read Lily Brooks-Dalton’s Good Morning, Midnight’, one of those books that quietly seep into your heart and soul, and so beautifully written, so when I saw this one, I knew I wanted to read it. This one stole both my heart and soul completely. I found the same sense of quiet isolation, that same sense of serenity despite the chaos, as well as the author’s ability to pull me into this story completely.

A beautifully shared, powerful story.


Pub Date: 06 Dec 2022

Many thanks for the ARC provided by Grand Central Publishing

I was honored to receive an ARC from Grand Central Publishing and NetGalley. This review is my own opinion. You need to be in a good mind spot to read this book. It is heavy reading that highlights the disappearance of small, coastal towns in Florida that are impacted by destruction from hurricanes. The main characters are loyal to their town and want to only save it and the environment as they move through the years. This thread is what enabled me to find some hope in this book. It takes you through year after year of hurricanes while the main characters took second place in this book. This was not the escape I look for when reading.

Because of "The Light Pirate," "Good Morning, Midnight" has now moved to the top of my reading list.

Lily Brooks-Dalton's second novel is one of the best books I've read this year. I was wholly engrossed from start to finish in her story of Wanda, a young girl who must learn to survive in a collapsing Florida.

I'm finding I am quickly becoming a fan of "eco-lit" or "eco-fiction," especially when it has a speculative bent to it. And "The Light Pirate" fits this bill. It's a quiet novel, filled with exquisite writing and powerful emotional resonance, and Brooks-Dalton does a masterful job of showcasing the environmental decline and ultimate collapse of the world we live in. The science propelling the story is logical, and you can't help but believe you have been handed a crystal ball, one that is revealing the future of our beloved Earth.

What I found most impressive about Brooks-Dalton's writing is its subtle, understated beauty. The story is quietly told, never overly dramatic or too "in-your-face." And it's both complex and simple. Dreary, yet hopeful. Heartbreaking and uplifting.

"The Light Pirate" is a novel I will not soon forget. Many other readers will feel the same, I am sure.


My sincerest appreciation to Grand Central Publishing and NetGalley for the physical and electronic Advance Review Copies. All opinions included herein are my own.

I wanted to enjoy this one but felt the overall mystery, plot and characters hard to relate to. I can totally see the potential here though, I might just not be the target audience.

“Kirby would like to say something reassuring to his son. Even more, he’d like to say something true. But the convergence of these qualities is rare when it comes to the future of certain parts of the world.”

THE LIGHT PIRATE imagines a devastating future that isn’t outside of the realm of possibility and infuses it with just enough science and (maybe?) magic to make it hopeful. Brooks-Dalton’s writing is cinematic and beautiful, and while this is not a light read (it’s cli-fi, so…) I still managed to gobble this story up in no time. For those of us who read this book, I think we’re going to find that it'll stick into our brains whether we want it to or not. There are storm descriptions that made me feel the need to check outside my window.

The book is written in four sections- the pace at the beginning is relentless and while it does slow down, it does not relent. Brooks-Dalton includes short sections that personify bodies of water- oceans, groundwater, the water contained in storms- that are almost like a Greek-chorus (if the chorus didn’t actually comment on the action because they are giant bodies of water and don’t care one whit for humanity- this made morse sense in my head but I’m sticking with it) and serve to remind us that humanity is minuscule in comparison.

There are two specific themes (of many) that pop up repeatedly that I particularly liked:

1. Life will go on. Adaptation and evolution have not ceased.

“...she trusts that this place will go on changing long after she is gone. The elderly die, and the old ways die with them. The young are born, and fresh traditions begin. One of the children here sees through the darkest nights as if it were day. Another can hold her breath for a long, long time. Another has learned to hear the fish chattering beneath the waves. They do not call these gifts magic and they do not call them science. They call them what they are: change.”

2. How do we exercise our agency?

Two quotes that I liked:

“...she cannot shake the feeling that she’s been washed ashore on a strange beach. Did she really choose or did she just succumb? Is it a decision to hold on to a life raft, or is it something else?”

“Standing there with his hands full of fur, he feels that they are both helpless creatures: wet and lost.
‘Oh, Kirby,’ Phyllis says when she sees him, and he can’t tell whether this is admonishment or approval or something else.
‘I found it,’ he mumbles, as if to say, An event occurred and I succumbed to it, which is not incorrect.”


There is also a smattering of humor, such as this interaction of father and son:

“‘Wash your hands, Lucas,’ Kirby says, his mouth full of ash.
‘I already did.’
‘So do it again.’
Lucas makes the sound of a child being forced to do hard labor and stumbles toward the sink, suddenly limp under the weight of this task. This time, he uses the soap.”

While the storms (in my opinion) are the star of this book (honorable mention to the manatees), the way Brooks-Dalton formulates the relationships in this book is also something special. Phyllis and Wanda, Lucas and Wanda, Kirby and Lucas… it’s all lovely.

Huge fan of this book. Thanks so much to Grand Central Publishing for the review copy!

Yes! I will read anything Lily Brooks-Dalton writes. I loved this every bit as much – more, I think – than Good Morning, Midnight. Another new favorite author alert!

It is no spoiler to say that the story starts with a heart-thumping hurricane that gets the pages turning (book-jacket copy tells you as much). But equally impressive is how emotionally evocative the story is, placing the reader inside the heads and hearts of ALL the characters.

And, the writing… it is gorgeous! Some samples:

The big coconut palm hanging over the yard sways. Its roots are sunk deep beneath the wilderness lurking at the edge of the property, but its trunk swings out over the lawn as if the wild is reaching for the house with those big fingerlike fronds.

… when he follows Lucas into the kitchen and catches the look on her face, puckered and tearful, he’s instantly ashamed of himself. He only meant to make his son feel safe. But then his guilt swells too big and it changes into something bitter, something charred.

Wes is scraggly, tall and thin like an adolescent pine tree, with a mouth that never stops flapping.

I’ve grown to love cli-fi/eco-fiction set in the not too distant future, and this one is now among my favorites. It combines light touches of science (presented through the lens of awe) via the character of Phyllis, a once-university-professor/biologist with concern for a changing planet. If anyone read The Overstory and fell in love with Patricia Westerford, you will adore Phyllis as well.

Power, water, light and time are given a voice through short chapters in their perspectives – such a brilliant way to include science and bring the natural elements to life in a book about climate change!

I appreciated this novel, also, because of the deep connections to a sense of place – all the characters’ love of Florida and their reticence to ever let go of it; it mirrors my feelings about an increasingly dry and threatened desert (my home). In many ways, this book felt all-too near.

As expected by the title, themes of light are sprinkled throughout with grace – power companies “keeping the lights on,” bioluminescence in the seas, the desire to fix and bring light to a struggling/changing Earth. (view spoiler)

As Phyllis says, “Humans have spoiled so much, but nature is resourceful. It dies and is reborn as something new. Her work now is to watch this occur.”

I continue to find hope in novels like this that lean on science to explain that, yes … our current Earth as we know it is going to change, but something else will very likely come in its place. Life, in some form, will go on.

Many thanks to Hachette – Grand Central Publishing -, through NetGalley, for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review. I loved this book!

Very good story about a baby born during a hurricane. The Light Pirate goes through Wanda’s life as climate change takes back Florida.

This is going to hit the spot for all the climate fiction lovers out there. We follow a Florida family, mainly the young daughter Wanda, who was born in the middle of a super hurricane, as they navigate life as the world around them falls apart. Slowly, Florida succumbs back to the wilderness it once was. Wanda fiercely loves her life in Florida, even as her big brother and father make plans to leave. There's also a small bit of magical realism thrown in, which gives this story a bit of a sweet tinge. I loved it, and I couldn't turn the pages fast enough. I felt like I was right there with Wanda. This book is going to be a hit--well written and very atmospheric!

Thank you NetGalley for the chance to read this one :)

A powerful story on climate change set in the near future. The main character Wanda, whose names after hurricane Wanda - the worst in Florida’s history, experiences the harsh effect of global warming and the ever changing weather in Florida. Follows her from adolescence to adulthood, It deals with loss, adventure, violence and more. What’s real about this story is how close It hits to home and what we could really see in the future.

A haunting book that weaves the incredible loss and destruction that nature and climate change can bring with a feeling of resilience in the face of adversity and, in time, the hope for something new to be born from the ashes.

Hurricane after hurricane batters the Florida coast, wildfires rage in the west, and weather and temperature grows more extreme as the effects of climate change begin to finally overwhelm America in this book which follows Wanda, a girl born during and named after a devastating hurricane. As civilization begins to falter in the face of these mounting challenges, and her hometown and loved ones struggle to survive, people must learn to live differently and make choices in a very different world.

I really enjoyed this book, and found Wanda and many of the other characters to be wonderfully written. The depiction of climate change and its effects here are bone-chilling and disturbing, but the focus on people's resilience in the face of such incredible challenges was inspiring.