I never read Amie Kaufman's books (as a teenager, the format of The Illuminae Files drove me off, and as an adult, I avoid Jay Kristoff), but I was drawn in by the gorgeous cover art and the interesting summary (waking up old gods? yes please!). It is with a heavy heart that I must admit, this book is mid.

It's OKAY. For a teenager who consumes uncritically, this could be a good book. It hits all the major points of a hero's journey and includes some chapters from the villain's point of view, which adds some spice to the narrative. The prose, itself, is very good and some lines even stuck with me. I almost decided to rate and review the book based on just this, since I'm probably not the target audience, but my rating is based on more than just personal preference.

A few things I couldn't reconcile were that 1) I didn't find any of the characters very memorable or interesting. The most compelling character was maybe Jude, but he had the least amount of screen time, or Leander, because he was a cutie pie. Maybe the rest of the trilogy will fix this.

2) I didn't find the villain's motivation believable. Not just Laskia, but all of Mellacea. They have no agriculture production because of their environment, fine, but their first solution is to do imperialism? This might be a shortfall of the world-building and Kaufman's own lack of political knowledge, but it felt lazy, at least. Doesn't create a compelling secondary villain. Laskia's perspective made for a more interesting story, but I couldn't buy the whole organized crime subplot. The reader is expected to believe that Ruby's gang, which we are told has a few nightclubs, is powerful and dangerous, because we are told so. I'm not sure what they do other than own some nightclubs and also Jude.

And 3) the world-building is shallow The gods are cool, but the story only goes somewhat in-depth for two of them. I would have liked to know more about the one god that died. The two countries of Alinor and Mellacea felt pretty much the same, even if Mellacea is described as physically different (being on a big slab or rock i think?) and the people apparently have different accents. It left something to be desired. Also, they have steamboats and cars (called autos) but no way to have long range communications. Radio communication was invented only a few years after cars were. Maybe it would have been too easy to be able to radio someone hundreds of miles away for this plot's purposes, but I was constantly asking myself "why is face-to-face the only way that these people can communicate?" But that might be nitpick-y.

The ending was cool, though. Thank you Netgalley and Random House Children's for the ARC!

This book kept me entertained and I flew through it. I recommend and would read other books by this author.

After that ending, I'm so desperate for the sequel I would commit a crime just to have it. WOW!

From the very start, this book takes hold of you. The writing style was perfect, effortlessly painting a picture of this world & its characters. AND THE CHARACTERS! Honestly, it's always going to be the characters of a book that make or break the book for me, and I absolutely adored every single one of these characters (even you Laskia but my god...). There are 5 POV characters throughout the book and I was invested in every single one (a rare feat to be honest!).

I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a special edition (Illumicrate? FairyLoot? PLEASE! I'm begging!). HIGHLY recommend this one if you're interested in: pirates, battling gods, wonderful characters, and endings that will leave you dying for the next book immediately!

Such a good book! Full of magic and fast paced adventure, the characters were so well written and that ending was phenomenal! Run to your nearest bookstore!

Thank you to the publisher for a review copy.

Amie Kaufman is just so brilliant, she could do a retelling of the phone book and it would be 5 stars. Her writing style is impeccable. The set up/prologue of this book really set the tone and had me hooked immediately. I actually love multiple POVs and this was done in such a way that every character was well fleshed out and I felt that I was gaining so much more of the story with each perspective. The banter was just delightful, the contrast in personalities made this just so well rounded. The magic system was well thought out and executed. This was near perfection.

I think my biggest issue with The Isles of the Gods lies in the fact that the synopsis itself was misleading. You read that synopsis and you think ok we’ll have 2, maybe 3 POVS in this book, but there’s a total of 5! Which is POV overload imo and if I would have known there was that many POVS I probably wouldn’t have picked it up.

Another big issue, that sort of stems from the first issue, was the pacing. It was very slow and for a novel that promises about large adventures, you need to make good on those promises fast before the reader loses attention, which is what happened to me. I just stopped caring.

I was really looking forward to this book, but unfortunately, it wasn’t for me.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

This was such a good read! I absolutely loved the characters and the journey they went through. The author did an amazing job of keeping the story interesting with twists and turns. I will be recommending this book to everyone and looking out for future books from this author.

I was absolutely entrantsed from the first page til the end. This book has everything you want ina great fantasy, love, magic, gods and of course the sea! I cannot stop thinking of this book! I absolutely am waiting to see when book 2 comes out because I have to have it!!
I just reviewed The Isles of the Gods by Amie Kaufman. #TheIslesoftheGods #NetGalley
[NetGalley URL]

This is a hard one for me to review. The first chapter sucked me in, and I couldn’t wait to continue. Then the story jumped 501 years into the future, and we had,IMO, way to many perspectives. And I did understand the need for multiple perspectives, but four seemed excessive. I followed Selly and Leander and even understood the perspective of Laskia. Jude’s chapters mostly confused me. This book is the start of either a duology and trilogy. I am hoping Jude’s chapters bear fruit in the next installment. Otherwise they just felt like filler. Overall, if you have read anything else by Amir Kaufman or any of the Shadow and Bone books, you will enjoy this book. I look forward to the next installment. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Reviewed for NetGalley:

Beautiful cover, nice start to the story.

I found Sully's perspective enjoyable, and could have just continued the whole book with her interactions with Leander and the other characters.

The story lost me with the gods, the search of the island, and the multiple perspectives.

Another great series by Amie Kaufman! I love the world building and the concept of the Gods interfering with humans. Selly is such a strong character and I love her development throughout the book. By far my favorite character is Keegan because is a book lover and learner. He is coming into his own while also adding a little humor. Leander could have avoided all of these issues by not being selfish, but he is trying to make it right. I do like the connection between him and Selly, but the chemistry is a little lackluster for me. Hopefully that grows into something more plausible. What I absolutely don’t understand is that no one is supposed to know how to get to the isle of the Gods. So how can anyone be sent ahead to intercept? I love the storyline and the feud between Barrica and Macean and their related countries. This is an amazing start to a series and I can’t wait to see what happens! I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving a free copy.

Poor Selly. Her father has left her to apprentice on one of his ship's and she is learning nothing that she wants to learn. Her magic is stunted and useless, so she hides her magician's marks under gloves to keep from revealing her shame. When her father writes to let her know he won't be returning as scheduled she decided her only option is to run off to find him.
But the fates... or the gods... have other plans for Selly.
Leander, younger brother of Alinor's reigning monarch has sent him to make a sacrifice to their god using a decoy ship - the Lizabetta, which is Selly's father's ship, effectively ruining Selly's escape plan. And in an interesting twist, it also ruins the escape plan of Leander's former classmate, Keegan, who just wanted to run off to what sounded like the world's best library/university and study forever.
And instead of a quick sail to the Isle of the Gods and back, the three find themselves fleeing for their lives, exploring new places and learning new skills.
I was not prepared to enjoy this book as much as I did. Selly and Leander seemed a bit predictable at first... both a bit spoiled in their own ways, but as their journey went on they grew on me. They both opened up to one another and Keegan (who was delightful) and I really enjoyed their potential slow romance.

The Isles of the Gods is the first book in a new series by Amie Kaufman. The story follows Selly as she works to help Leander fulfill a ritual on the sacred Isles to stop a God from rising. However, what should be a straightforward mission turns into a race they’ll be lucky to survive.
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Kaufman has created a masterpiece of action and suspense that will have you desperate to read what happens next. This is easily the type of story that you’ll feel you need to consume in one sitting. By telling the story through five different characters including a villain, you get to experience the full gambit of emotions. You can feel the anxiety and desperation from certain characters as well as the sheer will to survive from others. In my opinion, the stories that can make you feel are the best kind of stories and Kaufman has achieved that. Beyond the emotions Kaufman was able to inspire, she also crafted an imaginative magic system and complex world building. There were many things to love in this story. First, the banter between Selly and Leander is top notch. You won’t be able to help smiling to yourself over Shelly’s snark. Second, Keegan must be protected because his character deserves everything. Third, be ready for an emotional rollercoaster. There were plenty of laugh out loud moments, but there were also incredibly heartbreaking scenes. Finally, that ending - I can’t wait to see where Kaufman takes us in the next installment.

*Thank you Netgalley and RHCBEducators for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

4.4 (rounded down to 4) out of 5 stars.

*mild spoilers in character bit, not revealing of overall storyline*

This is my first Amie Kaufman book so I had no idea what to expect beyond its summary. I was relative pleased with the story though! It was based heavily on the seas which is a setting I’ve really come to love and enjoy. The world-building alongside it was spectacular too. It was amazingly done down to the very sights of the other ships and the places they travel through. It helped to truly get immersed in with the characters and what they went through also as if blending in alongside them while they traveled the Port Naranda and voyaged to the Isles of the Gods.

On to the characters though. I think I have a strong unpopular opinion here when I say that I enjoyed every character- even Laskia. Leander had to grow on me though. He was about every inch full of himself and arrogant, and I definitely had to see more of his backstory before coming around to eventually liking him.
Laskia was an underdog of sorts, trying desperately to climb the ranks to be noticed by her sister who seems to be all that she has. She has that need to prove herself to Ruby- which I think was where my soft spot for her grew. She wanted nothing more than a sort of acceptance and belonging that she was denied.
Jude ties in along this same ideal as he also was rejected after falling from that higher status he technically never had. Jude was a bit of that in-between character that helped further tie in each side and almost made it difficult to choose who you’d rather see prevail- especially with similar goals in mind and each stake and sacrifice given to reach that end goal.

On the side of sacrifices though, what Selly and Keegan went through and gave up easily made them on the higher side of my favorites list. Especially for Keegan who just unfortunately was on the wrong ship at the wrong time, getting himself roped into something larger than he could’ve imagined. Selly also lost a lot, yet continuously moved forward and forward- displaying the strength she had and yet also showing her flaws from that constant self-push.
The characters were pretty well done and I loved seeing their changes, their growth and declines with how they chose to handle what was thrown to them.

This book has a few typical tropes of it, and the romance arc was all sweet and cute- I personally just felt it was pushed a bit suddenly from a gradual warming up to each other to suddenly relying on one another. Still though, it was a sweet thing to see unravel.
There are a lot of places in the book like this, however. For the most part, it has a slow moving pace considering everything happens in the span of some days. The beginning was especially slow as it was the introduction to the magic system, to the divinity system, and to the characters. Even then, I liked the pace as it didn’t throw everything to you at once. You get snippets throughout and in ways that doesn’t seem like information dumps.

‘The Isles of the Gods’ was a book to win me over when I wasn’t expecting it to. From its maritime descriptions to its slumbering gods who still demand prayers and gifts, Amie Kaufman’s latest release has me excited for what’s next! I can’t wait to see the aftermath of what’s happened in book one and see how it goes for the characters in book two!

I really loved this one! I didn’t know how much I adored the sea as a setting until I picked up this story, and I’ll miss it until the story is continued. I love the gods and the faith and how it intersects with each character in its own unique way and I’ve never been more thankful for multiple POVs.

I typically love Kaufman's books, so I was definitely excited for The Isles of the Gods. The premise was intriguing, and it felt like something that I could easily fall into. However, there were some significant issues that prevented me from enjoying this novel as much as I'd hoped.

The general plot and surprise twists were enjoyable, if a bit predictable. Like any good YA fantasy, it gives the reader an odyssey that leaves you wanting more---a true conclusion. The worldbuilding was one of the best parts of this book, by far. The cities, social dynamics, and general ambiance kept me engaged and moving forward in the story. While we didn't get much of Alinor, Mellacea was a rich city full of organized crime and religious zeal. I truly loved this world, and I wish it could have been explored even more.

However, the multiple points of view work to the detriment of the storytelling, in my opinion. There are too many voices, none of them particularly distinct (aside from the villain). Unfortunately, this makes it difficult to establish relationships and provide the depth necessary to keep readers engaged. This ultimately leaves the story itself feeling underdeveloped in ways that left me struggling to continue reading.

I wanted more from this book than it gave. I might enjoy any further development that might unfold in a sequel, but ultimately, I'm not sure.

Thank you to Knopf and NetGalley for an ARC.

I love Kaufman's writing style. I was engrossed in this book and couldn't put it down; there was so much to love about it. The flow especially worked for me in this book.

This book was so interesting! I love a book that deals with war and gods, and this one hit all the high marks for me -- the only part I had a bit of an issue with was the pacing. The beginning (chapter 1) was a bit slow, and I was left a bit confused at first, but all of that faded off pretty quickly. However, the prologue was amazing -- it made me want to keep reading. And honestly, I could use a whole prequel about that time. It was just as interesting.

One of the reasons it got four stars is because we had several POVs, and while I understood some of the choices, I just wasn't loving some of them.

Leander/Keegan/Selly are some of the best parts of the entire book. I love their interactions, especially the banter between Leander and Selly. It made me laugh at several points.

This book did have dark aspects though -- one of the main characters is a villain, Laskia (which, that was an interesting POV) and death does happen a lot in this book. I wouldn't say it is vivid, but there are moments where I was like "oh jeeze".

Jude is our other POV character, and I just went between aww poor guy and UGH YOU FOOL.

Anyways, this book had me feeling a lot of things. It had Fable/Daughter of the Pirate King vibes because it was shipping, but not so much pirates. In many ways to me this harkened back to Tamora Pierce, who I adore.

Also, there's this really cool magic system.

This book is definitely going to be one I purchase, because I thought it was great. There is also a lot of diversity in many forms in this book, which I liked.

An excellent book, and I can't believe how long I'm going to have to wait to read the next one.

I have to admit that I almost put this book down, but by the end, I was a true believer. The story starts off by introducing you to several POV characters, when all I cared about were Selly and Leander. I still mostly care about Selly and Leander, but then I began to appreciate Keegan with eccentricities, and Jude being stuck between a rock and a hard place (Laskia, not so much, but I don’t think we’re supposed to fall in love with her). At first, I found all of the characters off-putting, honestly, but we’re meant to see their faults and then watch them accept and overcome them.

The book plots a slow course until about the 40% mark, and then it's a no-holds-barred race to the finish. It feels like any character can perish at any moment. The ending packs a gut punch and then leaves you reeling, wondering what’s next.

The setting seems to be a fantastical world with similarities to ours in the early 20th century, with warring gods, so not too dissimilar from Rebecca Ross's "Divine Rivals," but still quite different - like "Divine Rivals" + "Six of Crows" + "Fable."

Besides the action, the characters do a lot of introspection, and there are heavy themes of faith, humility, responsibility, intention, and sacrifice. There's diversity and LGTQIA rep. Also, the book has the one bed trope, for fans of that, and a sunshine boy and grumpy girl.

Also, I really liked the prologue with Anselm, and I was kind of hoping he'd make an appearance somehow?

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Rating: 2.5 stars

I’ve been dying to read this book ever since I saw it announced. The cover is gorgeous and the blurb was very intriguing for me. I did like certain aspects of this book, but others left me feeling underwhelmed. It’s really unfortunate since I wanted to love it.

The book is told from multiple point-of-views. I don’t know if I would say all of them were necessary and I definitely had favorites. A couple felt the same and if it wasn’t for the header at the beginning of the chapter I wouldn’t have been able to tell them apart.

Selly was an intriguing character. She started off making choices based on seeing her father and I can understand that. Family is very important. She has had a different life than the other characters, although that could be said for all of the characters. I think that is why she butts heads with the prince. He has come from privilege and hasn’t wanted for anything. His life isn’t always what it seems though because his family and goddess is asking for quite a lot from him.

The three other characters haven’t had as much impact in the story, but I feel like their stories will only grow in the sequel.

There is a bit of romance and frankly I’m not sure if there is a love triangle brewing or not. I hope not because I don’t think it will work but who knows. The romance that there was felt very underdeveloped and takes a lot to believe there is any feelings between them. I just didn’t feel it.

The most interesting thing for me, but also the smallest plotline, was the interactions and talks about the gods. I always find it fascinating what authors come up with when they create their own mythology. The book ended with cliffhangers that involve them so I am hoping it will be expounded upon.

A couple other things that I had issues with was the pacing and the climatic moments. The pacing was very slow and then would speed up only for it to die down again. It felt like it was all over the place with more slow moments than anything. It’s one reason it took so long for me to get through the book. I just had a hard time wanting to pick it up. The climatic moments/plot twists were fine but because I didn’t get to know the characters they felt very lackluster. I didn’t feel anything and that’s a real bummer because I should have.

Overall, this was okay. I feel like the sequel has potential to be better since this book ended on a big cliffhanger. There should be more with the romance and gods and hopefully the pacing is a bit better. Will I pick up the sequel? I don’t know. It could go either way lol. If you have like this author’s previous work then I would still give it a go. It may work out better for you than me!

The cover and the map are beautiful. The text is solidly young adult, complete with over-explanations and pointing out the obvious. I stopped at 8% in, but I can see this going over well for middle grades and lower high school age.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Children's for the ARC.