How lovely and fascinating and yet, horrifying! This is a story of climate change and its ever increasing effects on the world. The book is filled with rich characters and the plot is riveting. I would have difficulty reviewing this without spoilers, so I’ll just say it was wonderful.

Florida is slipping away as climate changing patterns and rising sea levels are starting to wreak havoc on the state's infrastructure. Kirby, an electrical worker, his pregnant wife and their 2 sons are prepping for the worst as a hurricane bears down on them. The boys go missing just before the hurricane hits, and Kirby heads out to find them. As he's gone, his wife gives birth to Wanda.

The book follows Wanda from childhood to adulthood as Florida unravels. Her life changes as the landscape of Florida and the rest of the states continues to decline. The realism of the first half of this book was great. I felt as if I was living through this hurricane and the aftermath of cleaning up with this family. Although this book is advertised as a dystopia, I feel like we are not very far off from this becoming a reality.

The author lost me about half way through. Adding elements of 'magic' really didn't do this book justice. The second half seemed to drag a bit with nothing really monumental happening. This 5 star book turned into a 3 1/2 real quick.

Thank You Net Galley and Grand Central Publishing for the free e-galley.

Told in four parts, this is a beautifully written post natural disaster tale. Climate change has taken it’s toll on Florida and Wanda is trying to endure.
Many thanks to Grand Central Publishing and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Holy guacamole! Pogo-stick time!

I’m on my pogo stick, you better believe it! What a book! Another all-time favorite! My pogo stick doesn’t work so well here in the Florida swamps, but I’m on it anyway. Slow-mo, float city, but that’s okay. I’ll use it as an oar if I have to.

Speaking of oars, the star of the show is a girl in a canoe doing some serious rowing. She’s named after a hurricane and she steals the show. There’s also a pregnant woman, two boys who go exploring during a hurricane, an earnest and hard-working dad-slash-utility man, and a woman survivalist.

Meanwhile, it’s water, gush gush. Wind, push push. And floating and flailing and hot skin and climate change. Hard rain and disappearances. And tragedies that will rip your heart out.

The genre is dystopia, which is not usually my thing, but my word, did this one turn me inside out. Oh, and there’s also some magical realism going on. What? I’m liking dystopia AND magical realism?! What is happening to me?

Shivers. That’s what you get with this one! It’s depressing and scary as hell, but it’s impossible to put down. The characters are vivid and appealing, the setting is so unbelievably real and ominous.

The book starts with incredible tragedy. It pulled me down down down. It was so awful, but I was mesmerized. It’s good writing that can make you stay and want more even though it’s sad. It was unusual to have such intensity right at the start, and I wondered where it could possibly go from there, without it being anti-climactic. I must admit that it did lose its juice for a teensy while (it had to, after that whopper of a start), but the semi-loll was short-lived. Plus by then I was completely invested so I didn’t mind.

Like Euphoria, State of Wonder, and Miss Benson’s Beetle (three favorites), this novel is about a woman surviving in the wilderness. I like women in the jungle, despite the fact I hate the outdoors and its heat and bees. Go figure.

All my life I’ve been bicoastal, but after reading this book, I’m imagining a life in the center! And believe me, I’ll avoid Florida like the plague.

As I usually say, don’t read the blurb because it tells too much.

I read this book a couple of months ago and it still shakes me up. If climate change already gives you the heebie-jeebies, I advise that you skip this one. But if not, this book will hit you, grab you, haunt you. It’s so powerful!

Thanks to NetGalley for the advance copy.

The entire time I was reading this, I wasn't sure what I thought about it. I requested it because it was compared to Where the Crawdads Sing but the only thing that was like that book was the fact the girl is living alone in a swamp. Everything else is completely different. Other than the WTCS comparison, I went into this book knowing nothing else.
At times it had me capitivated, other times it seemed to drag on. It took me months to read this and though I enjoyed parts I still don't understand a lot of what was going on. I hoped when we got to the ending there would be a better explaination for the lights but I didn't feel like it explained well.

When a child is born during a devastating hurricane, her mother can only give her a name that will give her strength for the life she is destined for. . Wanda is born while a hurricane is causing destruction in Florida, her brothers are trying to find safety from the storm and her father desperately tries to return to his family. I throughly enjoyed this book . The atmosphere was so well detailed, characters were developed and became like family. Thanks to #Netgalley for allowing me an early release to this beautiful and soul searching book.

Really enjoyed this coming of age, speculative cli-fi book. Some parts were written so well I gasped out loud. The imagining of the water rising in Florida felt so realistic I’m completely convinced it has already happened. And the overall theme of change is nicely placed throughout all aspects of the story.

The ending wrapped up a little too neatly for my taste but other readers will love it.

Every once in a while, a book like this comes around, and reminds me of why I like reading.
The Light Pirate is told mainly from the perspective of Wanda, a young girl, and then woman, who is born during a devastating hurricane that changes her family’s life.
I don’t hear a lot of people talking about this, which I think it’s because it was somehow marketed as global warming fanfiction. Which is not the reading experience that I had. Rather, it is an unflinching glance at the resilience of humanity and what remains when civilization as we know it does not.
Rarely do I describe anything as necessary or urgent, but this book is both.

Really enjoyed the environmental aspects of this book. The character development was also incredible. This one stuck with me after finishing for a while!

A descriptive, atmospheric novel that will have readers reflecting on our changing world.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

𝑮𝑶𝑹𝑮𝑬𝑶𝑼𝑺. 𝑰 𝑾𝑨𝑵𝑻 𝑴𝑶𝑹𝑬.

In The Light Pirate, Lily Brooks-Dalton has crafted a beautifully written and deeply affecting novel about the enduring strength of community in the face of natural disaster.

The story follows Wanda, a young girl growing up in Florida as it begins to crumble under the effects of climate change. As the state descends into chaos, Wanda loses her family and finds herself living with a new community of survivors who have learned to adapt to the new, wild landscape.

What makes this novel so powerful is Brooks-Dalton's skillful portrayal of the ways in which people can come together in times of crisis, forming bonds that last long after the disaster has passed. We see Wanda grow from a child into an adult, adjusting not only to the changing scenery but also to the people who stayed behind in a region abandoned by society.

The Light Pirate is told in four parts—power, water, light, and time—reflecting the cycles of the elements and the sometimes fast, sometimes gradual breakdown of the world as we know it. It is a meditation on the changes we don't want to see, the future we don't want to face, and a return to the beauty and violence of an untamable wilderness.

This is a powerful and important novel that will stay with you long after you finish reading it.

𝗧𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗸 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗼 𝗛𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗲 𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗚𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗽 𝗖𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗱𝗮 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗮𝗻 𝗮𝗱𝘃𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝗼𝗽𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸. 𝗜 𝗮𝗺 𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗹𝘆.

Link to Instagram post: https://www.instagram.com/p/ClevGt4rAy3/

Link to Goodreads review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5073915829

Thank you to NetGalley, author Lily Brooks-Dalton, and Grand Central Publishing for providing me with a free ARC in exchange for my honest opinion!

This was SO close to being a really great book instead of just a good book. I loved the themes of environmentalism and found this near-future book to be one of the most realistic I've read. It is scary to think that global warming is progressing and that Florida going underwater could truly happen. I thought that Wanda was a fascinating character, and I liked seeing the urgency progress as both Wanda and the Earth grow/age. However, this book was just way too short for everything it had going on. We spend a considerable amount of time with the family before Wanda is born and with Wanda growing up, so it feels that once the book sets everything up and gets into Wanda as an adult, it is then over. I also didn't fully understand Wanda's abilities and think that they should have been flushed out a bit more; the book just kind of said she had them and didn't give any sort of clue/reasoning to what they were, how they found Wanda, or even how they helped her. It felt like this book had such potential and really interesting bones, but it was not executed to the best of its potential.

This is the first book I've read by Lily Brooks-Dalton, but it won't be the last. This "climate fiction" novel tells the story of a girl who is named Wanda after the hurricane during which she was born. The setting is Florida in the not-so-distant future, where climate change is making the hurricanes even more dangerous and threatening to flood over the entire state. The book is broken up into 4 distinct parts, which build and build upon one another.

I really thought the writing and descriptions were so haunting and realistic, that I often forgot that I was reading fiction, and not someone's real experiences.

I'm very eager to read more by this author.

Many thanks to #NetGalley and #GrandCentralPub for providing me early access to this novel in exchange for my honest review.

This story of Wanda, born during a hurricane as climate change is destroying the Florida landscape, was both sad and hopeful by turns. The setting is vividly depicted, the writing is beautiful and the characters are well drawn. I remember liking Good Morning Midnight a few years ago but also feeling like it lacked relational connections. I think the author has done much better building emotion into this story. I loved the theme of the necessity of human connection as the world slowly isolates everyone.

Fans of Station Eleven, Migrations and After the Flood will enjoy this one!

The Light Pirate by Lily Brooks-Dalton was a riveting, emotional read. The novel can stand beside other recent climate-centered books like Lark Ascending by Silas House and Anthony Doerr's Cloud Cuckoo Land. Brooks-Dalton's The Light Pirate takes place in the state of Florida in the not-too-distant future, and it focuses on how the climate crisis impacts a world, a country, a state, and a family and their neighbor. Although futuristic, the events of the novel are entirely plausible. If Florida started going under water tomorrow, then all predicted events could become reality. This writing in the novel is clear and economical, and does a fine job of observing the events without bogging the reader down in superfluous scientific explanation. It's enough to say only that yes, all this could happen, and yes, your life, too, could be turned around if it does.

A compelling, interesting and engrossing view of Florida in the future. As storms bear down and the heat rises, Wanda, born during a hurricane of the same name, must learn to survive. The Florida of the future is a tough place, but pockets of humanity survive.

📚 So Many Books

📖 Book Review 📖

📱”The Light Pirate” by Lily Brooks-Dalton

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 published December 6, 2022

Wow- a little dystopian, very unique, powerful and sad.

Broken into four parts - power, water, light & time. The coastal town of Rudder, Florida where the Lowe family prepares for Hurricane Wanda. Frida, the mother, is very pregnant and while she believes they should evacuate, her husband Kirby wants to ride it out. He is a lineman, knows how to prepare for this storm and he feels obligated to stay and restore the outages that come with the destruction. Hurricane Wanda brings tragedy to this family leaving Kirby with a newborn, named Wanda to raise on his own.

As Wanda grows up, Florida changes- people leave, infrastructure falls, storms increase and water levels rise. Wanda is left with her neighbor Phyllis, who is a survivalist, preparing to live off the grid.

Phyllis teaches Wanda everything she knows but once she passes away, Wanda is left to survive alone. Adapting to the changing environment, abandoned by civilization, Wanda knows there are still others in the area, but can she trust them?

This is a fascinating, well-written book that gives a realistic look into a possible future for us all. Readers live the life of Wanda from cradle to grave, observing the ecological evolution as she does.

It definitely gave me some “Where the Crawdad Sing” vibes in the way that Wanda and Kya have to learn to survive on their own, abandoned yet resilient. The characters are relatable and the story is a very heavy, realistic topic.

Thank you to @netgalley for the digital ARC.

#givemeallthebooks #books #letsread #bookfriends #homelibrary
#somanybooks #readsomemore #audiobooks #bookstagram #bookrecommendations #readersofinstagram #readmorebooks #booklover #bookishlove #readersgonnaread #bookishaf

This was such a beautifully written book. I felt so many emotions while reading it and I could picture all of the events occurring. I loved the characters and the story line and I could not put it down.

For those wondering what our near future may hold, this novel gives an idea of one possibility. Climate change is becoming a reality at the beginning of the story when the book’s protagonist Wanda is born during a Florida hurricane. We feel her sadness as she experiences family loss and her excitement as she learns and explores with a biologist neighbor. As predictions of catastrophes come to pass, Wanda has to adapt and change in most every area of life.

This story just feels so prescient that it is both haunting and thought provoking…a novel that everyone should read. It will dwell in my memory for a long time.

Thanks to NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for the ARC to read and review.

I have a lot to say about 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗟𝗜𝗚𝗛𝗧 𝗣𝗜𝗥𝗔𝗧𝗘 by Lily Brooks-Dalton, so let’s just start with what’s most important: I 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄𝐃 this book! I first became a fan of the author after reading her debut, 𝘎𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘔𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘔𝘪𝘥𝘯𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 in 2016. That was a gently dystopian tale of an aging astronomer and a young girl stranded at an Arctic research center. It was thoroughly original and extremely compelling. The same can be said of her sophomore novel, only more so.⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
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𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘓𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘗𝘪𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦 falls firmly in the rapidly expanding micro-genre of climate fiction, one of my new favorites. The entire story revolves around Wanda, an unusual child born in the midst of tragedy, on the Florida coast during a hurricane. It’s the not too distant future, hurricane season is longer and longer, temperatures soar, sea levels are rising, and infrastructure is slowly becoming inoperable. Despite all that, Wanda’s family is deeply committed to the place they live and love. As Wanda grows, her heart feels the same, her bond even stronger. ⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
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That’s all you get! Don’t read the publisher’s blurb. It tells you too much. I went into this book nearly blind and am so thankful for that. It made every section special, and many surprising. If you were a fan of 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘋𝘪𝘴𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴 by Bruce Holsinger or 𝘈𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘞𝘢𝘳 by Omar El Akkad, you’re going to be knocked out by this one! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
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“𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘩𝘶𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘩𝘢𝘵𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘹𝘪𝘮𝘪𝘵𝘺. 𝘠𝘦𝘴, 𝘪𝘵 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘣𝘢𝘥, 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺’𝘥 𝘴𝘢𝘪𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘸𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴. 𝘞𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦. 𝘚𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘸𝘦’𝘭𝘭 𝘴𝘰𝘭𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘺. 𝘏𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴𝘯’𝘵 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘨𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘳𝘺.”⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
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Sound familiar???⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
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Thanks to @grandcentralpub for an ARC of #TheLightPirate.

From the moment I finished the first page, I was drawn right into this dystopian Florida and Wanda's story. Told from four different time periods, Brooks-Dalton's prose and ability to create a vivid world full of hardship, water, and a desire to survive made this one of my favorite reads this year.
As I read, I found myself wondering how I would react both as a parent and woman in the face of catastrophe and destruction of home and civilization, which for me is a definite indication that the work is making me think and relate to the characters as more than simply letters combine on a page.
4.5 stars! Readers that enjoy dystopian fiction, literary fiction, survival, hope, or simply a really good story will enjoy this work.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the dARC of this work in exchange or my honest review