Big thank you to Netgalley for allowing me to review The Isles of the Gods by Amie Kauffman!

Isles of the Gods was a book that I was really looking forward to, even though I was in a bit of a reading slump. And I am very happy to say that it definitely pulled me out of that slump!

The world that this book is set in has mythology at its core. The mother goddess created other gods to look after the world for her, but they became envious of each other's lands and wanted more power. This started a war. 501 years later this war is set to erupt again and the one that can stop it is late for his family's sacrifice.

Here's where our main characters come in. In general there are 3 that are the biggest players - Selly, Leander and Laskia. Selly is born and bred to be a sailor and when her father can't make it back before winter she sets out to find a way to get to him. All of her plans are dashed by Prince Leander. He has to make a journey to strengthen his goddess and prevent war from erupting again. But he doesn't realize that he might already be too late.

Laskia is from a different country. One where their god was defeated and trapped in an eternal slumber. Her goal is to get her older sister to see she's ready for more responsibility in the criminal underworld, but nothing seems to work. Laskia's faith leads her to find a plan to wake up their sleeping god and start a war that would change their country's destiny forever.

I would be interested in seeing more of the other gods in their pantheon be involved, since this one just involved Barrica (the warrior/Sentinel) and Macean (god of risks/Gambler).

I absolutely loved all the characters, and the plot was quite refreshing. I've previously only Amie Kauffman's collaboration works with Jay Kristoff, and I have to say that I loved this just as much. I'm excited to see where the story leads and to meet these characters again!

Genre: YA Romance, Fantasy
TW: Murder, Death, Ill parents
Spice: None
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️[4/5]
Review written by: M
*Thank you NetGalley & Random House Children’s Books for this eArc in exchange for an honest review*

Plot:
Five different characters take you through a series of interconnected events that take place within a few days. Selly the fearless sailor, Leander the prince, Keegan the bookworm, Laskia the villainous sister & Jude the troubled boy.

Selly’s mind is made up to run away when a random stranger with magician’s marks boards her father’s ship and wrecks all her plans. The stranger comes with the dangerous mission of crossing the Crescent Sea without being detected to deliver him to the Isle of the Gods in time to complete the sacred ritual. What started as an inconvenience became a whirlwind of catastrophic event. Will they make it in time to the Isle of the Gods? Will they live long enough to stop the sleeping God from waking and with-it bringing destruction and chaos to the world as they know it?

Thoughts:
The start of the book took me a bit to grasp since I could not quite understand in which period it was being modeled after. At first it felt like Ancient Greece with talk of the Gods and merchant ships, but then there were also bars, cocktails, and cars. Once I got over the initial hump, I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this read.

The plot of this book was very intriguing to me, Gods, magic, a war simmering in the horizon, pirate vibes and a prince, I am here for it all.

I enjoyed not only the 5 main characters, but the side characters as well. There was enough given on them to make them memorable, but not enough where they overshadowed the MCs. Sally was one that I related to the most. Her rebellious side, and the banter between her and the prince was great. The writing was very fluid, and the authors descriptions made it easy for me to play a movie inside my mind.

There we a few plot holes in the magic system that I felt should have been explained. We know that there are Gods & Spirits, but there was not much explained as far as the spirits went. Why do they help the magicians? Who are they and why are some magicians gravitate to certain spirits? Regardless of these things not being answered, I truly enjoyed the book as a whole and I am intrigued enough to know what happened in the rest of the series. My biggest complaint about this book was that it ended in a major cliffhanger and now I must wait until the second book is released.

The Isles of the Gods, by author Amie Kaufman, is the first installment in the authors The Isles of the Gods series with the sequel releasing Summer 2024. The story alternates between a variety of characters from Selly Walker, to Prince Leander, to Scholar Keegan, to Laskia who is tired of being under her sister Rose's thumb and has her own plans, and Jude, a boy who knew both Leander and Keegan, but found himself fleeing to a new country after his father died and left him and his mother penniless. Depending on the character, the setting could be a ship, or a country, or even the Isle of the Gods.

In this world, the Mother made the world and watched it grow. The most annoying and also the most entertaining began to demand more and more attention. She created (7) children: Barrica and Macean always jostling for leadership. Then Dylo, Kyion, Sutista, Oldite and finally Valus. They each took on the tribes that would eventually become countries. Unfortunately, like most humans, they started coveting what others had. It all began with jostling and ended in a war.

King Anselm was a royal magician who could control all four elements. He stood shoulder to shoulder with Barrica. Unfortunately, the war between the Gods destroyed Valus and his lands and created what's called the Barren Reaches. With Anselm's own sacrifice, Macean was put to sleep, the other siblings stepped away from the world no longer walking the world. Barrica became the Sentinel staying around to ensure that Macean would never rise to cause trouble again.

Now every 25 years a member of the royal family must renew that sacrifice on the Isles of the gods but Prince Leander is a year late because he loves to have fun, and party with his friends. This has caused Macean’s forces to grow stronger. And now they are trying to hunt Leander down so that he cannot make the sacrifice. She is the daughter of the man who has the largest sailing fleet in the known world. A man she yearns to reunite with to further her path to becoming first mate. She has mysterious magician marks on her hands which she keeps covered with gloves.

Selly's has spent most of her time with Captain Rensa of The Lizabetta who was told to make sure Selly has the tools she needs to one day become her own captain of her own ship. After making plans to escape Rensa, and make her way to her father, she is interrupted by Prince Leander of Alinor who just happens to be a royal magician and descendant of Anselm. Leander has a mission that certain people (like Laskia) will do anything to stop. Selly's ship has been tasked with taking Leander to the Isle of the Gods where he can make a sacrifice to Barrica so the other gods do not wake up, especially Macean.

Along for the ride Keegan who went to school with Leander. Keegan is a scholar who just wanted a ride to the Bibliotek and now here he is on this top secret mission. After setting sale with a minimum crew, Selly and crew soon find that their mission has been compromised, and now they are being chased by Laskia and a crew who will do anything to stop Leader from reading the Isles where he can make a sacrifice to his God. After a series of trials of fire, and being chased to all corners of the known world, Selly must prove that she is the person who is able to step up and be a leader.

It is fair to say that Selly and Leander's narratives were the most interesting while Laskia's was the most twisted. Jude is still a mystery and his status as either a villain or a hero is still outside in the gray area. I kind of feel for him after what he and his mother have been through, and now his mother is pretty much a hostage to keep Judge in line. The more time Selly spends with Leander, the more impressive she becomes, and proves that she is a capable Captain. Of course, there is a cliffhanger ending which leaves more than a few characters in a curious situation.

This book is exceptional. Any fan of character-driven YA fantasy romance is SURE to devour and enjoy.

Selly is a sailor, out to reunite with her father. Her plans are sunk, however, when her captain takes on the task of ferrying a handsome stranger to a remote island to complete an important ritual. In another land, there is a gang jockeying for power, with plans to exploit this ritual voyage and incite a war of catastrophic proportions. Chaos ensues as their paths all collide.

This story is told in four parts and in five points of view, but it's paced so well that the complexity of it is in no way a hindrance. We see all sides of the story, all motivations, even for characters we don't feel compelled to root for. Along with the characters, the worldbuilding is rich and varied, and there is a history of the land and its religions that feels so well-realized, believable, mysterious, and fascinating.

The story also features some of my favorite YA fantasy/romance tropes, and they're done extremely well. Reluctant hero, chosen one, quests, hidden powers, only one bed, it's aaaall here. I will never get sick of reading these kinds of stories, especially if someone as talented as Amie Kaufman is the one writing them.

I'm desperately waiting for the next book, and I thank NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read a DRC.

4.25/5

WOW. I could not put this book down. This multi-perspective book takes you across the high seas as our “heroes” (you’ll understand why I put quotations…) race to appease a god to prevent an all-out war. If you’re hesitant about getting into fantasy, this is a great “starter” fantasy series that I can’t wait to continue.

If you like the elemental magic of Avatar: the Last Airbender & Legend of Korra series, you’ll love the way Kaufman incorporated elemental magic into her book. It’s similar but definitely unique to the world she’s created. The story is very fast-paced and has extremely high stakes with every page. A theme that’s very present in the story is that the world is bigger than your own self, and I think she does a great job at conveying that. The characters had to truly fight for their survival and I appreciated how they never got the “easy” way out. They were never protected or cushioned for the sake of the plot.

The only regret I have for the book is that there isn’t a more “complex” writing style you find in high fantasy books. I would have LOVED for the novel to go much deeper in its world-building and magic system.

I can’t wait to see where Kaufman takes us next.

I was given an Arc copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

So I was so excited for this book because who doesn’t want to read a pirate book…but by 30% in I was still bored! I felt like it kept dragging on and I questioned whether to push through or not! I always DNF a book by 30% if I’m not enjoying it! But I kept going and it did pick up a bit!

There are so many points of view that it’s difficult to keep up and I honestly found it a bit unnecessary. I felt like all the different perspectives is what kept the book from progressing faster so it just drug on!

By the end I did enjoy this book but I don’t know if I would pick up a second one!

I had only read books co-written with Jay Kristoff before this one, so I was very excited to get a review copy of Amie Kaufman on her own. And I adored it.

One of the things that drew me in right away was the fact that the mythology of this world is tangible. The gods literally walk among them. So often, the gods in a world are an amorphous thing driving things forward, but not here. It set a unique tone right out of the gate that I really enjoyed.

As we got into the meat of the story, it did take a while for me to adjust. I don't always handle time jumps very well. I will say I think that was a taste issue, not execution.

The other thing I thought was handled particularly well was character introduction. You could always see who was important, but not necessarily why. Also, my guesses for people's action and motivations weren't always correct, which I really appreciate. It's no fun to read something and feel like you can predict every single thing that happens. No thank you.

The plot wasn't the most original, but because of the characters and world-building, I didn't find that to be a distraction. Just something I noted as I read. None of my notes were plot based, which is a good thing on the whole, but I like when I have to sink my teeth into it a bit.

My biggest complaint was that I wanted there to be just slightly more. I don't even know where the more would be, necessarily, I just wanted more. Everything was concluded nicely, but the world as a whole fascinated me, and I feel like I know enough about it.

I wasn’t expecting to enjoy this book as much as I did. I loved the elemental magic and the spirits and their personalities, such a fun concept. Also, slumbering Gods who were at war and a story set on the sea, the book was jam packed with great content.

The characters were intriguing and well thought out. I liked the multiple povs and that they were from different sides, giving a much broader understanding of the world and the gods. The relationships were well done and I loved Selly and Leanders dialogue.

The author did a great job bringing this story to life and I am excited to see where it goes next.

Actual rating: 3.5 stars

Not fully in love with this, but I won't deny it was a fun, enjoyable read. When I read a Kaufman book, I can always expect strong characters, lots of internal struggle, witty banter, and a tingly romance. This book is no exception. My only qualm is that I thought we had too many POVs, some of which I didn't really like or care for because I didn't feel wholly immersed in their story like I did with Selly and Leander. Kaufman crafts great characters though, and there's no doubt I'll read the sequel, especially with that ending.

Kaufman always has great world-building as well, and like most of her other stories, the magic here in unique in terms of how it is used. I'm definitely eager to know more about Selly and her growing romance with Leander, the prince. They're both fun characters even though he obviously gets on her nerves, but that makes the banter between them quite fun. Despite what I thought were too many POVs, I liked Keegan and Jude well enough. Perhaps I didn't really care for Laskia because she's the "villain" but the fact that she's trying to prove herself to her sister and make something of herself beyond that is admirable. I'm a little iffy to the almost manic devotion to she has for her god, though.

Like I said earlier I definitely plan to read the sequel and I hope we get to know more about Leander's family and how everything ties together.

I devoured this book. Amie Kaufman's writing takes you on an adventure with beautiful storytelling. The Isles of the Gods is a fast-paced, action-packed tale filled with flawed characters and an interesting world. I enjoyed the magic system, and always love a good story about warring gods that drag humans into their mess.

The story is told from multiple POV's, and most of the setting takes place at sea which I really enjoyed. The descriptions were spot on, making me feel in the setting. This is definitely a good book for summer, and I wish I had been able to read it while on a cruise!

I love that I still have questions and am certainly looking forward to book 2! Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Children's for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I think I forgot how much Amie Kaufman's stories hurt my feelings, but in the best way. I really enjoyed this book. I loved the sea/sailing aspect as well as the magic and religion element. Leander and Selly starting out as sort of 'flirty' enemies was a great addition too. I am really excited to see where this series goes because the ending definitely makes me want more of this story and world.

Full review here: https://theweatherwriter.wixsite.com/blog/post/book-review-the-isles-of-the-gods-by-amie-kaufman

I have been a longtime fan of Amie Kaufman’s books over the years, so it was a no brainer when I saw this book. But for some reason I struggled to connect with this book and it’s characters. Personally I felt like there were too many POVS, we didn’t get to spend enough time with each character and as a result they felt underdeveloped. The pacing also felt very slow and it dragged especially in the beginning.

Thank you to Netgalley, Random House Children’s, and Amie Kaufman for an e-arc of this book in exchange for my honest thoughts.

The Isles of the Gods was certainly less swashbuckling than I hoped it would be. Instead of swashbuckling vibes I found the story to be very politically focused and I was definitely disappointed by that. I was looking for a pirate adventure with gods and enchanting islands and very little of the book was focused on that. However, this was still a good read and it had a strong storyline and even stronger characters. The magic system was unique and I liked the idea of the spirits but also wished we got more detail on them. The 5 different POV's was interesting at times but other times I felt like it took away from the story. Overall this was a good read it was just way more politically based than I was expecting.

I enjoyed this book with one caveat. We follow three main characters, Selly, a young sailor wanting to impress her father, Leander, the prince of Alinor, and Keegan, a scholar trying to get to the life he wants. All are thrown together to try and get Leander to the Isle of Gods to make a sacrifice to his goddess in the hopes of averting a war. But there are players that want nothing more than a war. The three of them have to keep their wits about them and lean into each of their strengths to survive and stop the war. This book explores relationships, magic, and religion. I liked the characters, the plot and the pace of the story. The only nitpick I have is Selly’s reaction when something goes wrong with her magic. It’s all the horror! Something almost bad happened! I’ll never do it again! It was just eye-roll inducing. Her character is so good (even the bad parts) that those reactions really took away from her character. But overall, I liked the book and am looking forward to book two.

A girl who wants nothing more than to sail away, a prince who is trapped in his duties, and a scholar who wants to escape his life all find themselves thrown together trying to survive a deadly girl who wants to awaken dangerous gods and kill the prince. Selly has salt water in her veins, she was made to captain a ship, but after her father left she is nothing more than the errand girl for the current captain and she yearns for his return to make her leader of her own ship. When she runs into a handsome stranger with magician marks on his arms she soon discovers that he is going to commandeer her ship and that he is Prince Leander of Alinor, the playboy prince who only knows how to party and cares little for anything else... and now he needs to cross the Crescent Sea so he can complete a ritual on the sacred Isles of the Gods. Selly wants nothing to do with the prince or his mission, despite how much he very much wants her to notice him and like him. What was suppose to be a leisurely voyage soon takes a turn for the worst when everyone on the ship is killed save for Selly, Prince Leandor, and the scholar Keegan. Three very different people, now must find a way to trust one another and help each other survive the murderous person hunting them and to find a way to get Leandor to the Isle to make the sacrifice before they’re all doomed. Not to mention that there is a growing romance between Leandor and Selly, despite the fact that they’re romance isn’t meant to work it does, but can they survive long enough or will they die? This one was an interesting one, it started off really slow and the there are 5 different character POVS. The character povs started off as very blended and it was so hard to differentiate the characters form each other but it did pick up around the 40% mark of the book and the ending was interesting.I think if you are a fan of sea quest, gods, magic, and unlikely romances, then give it a go! I do look forward to seeing where the next book goes.

*Thanks Netgalley and Random House Children's, Knopf Books for Young Readers for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

This book has many POVs in it, but I would say our main protagonist would be Selly. For the last year, Selly has been working on a ship basically to learn to be first mate while her father went North and promised he would be back for her after a year. Well, a year has come, and instead of returning, left her note stating he would be gone longer than expected. Now, Selly is determined to get off the ship she is on and go to her father instead of waiting for him to come to her, when the same evening she plans to leave, an unexpected person comes on board and their captain has them all leave immediately causing Selly to have to say on the ship and have to take this mysterious person to their destination instead, the Isles of the Gods.

I don't want to spoil too much of the story because I think trying to explain the synopsis would give away just too much, and I don't want to do that because this was such an enjoyable book! Sometimes I get a bit overwhelmed at first when there are so many POVs, but as usual, Amie knows what she's doing when it comes to different viewpoints and having them come together at some point and see why we are meeting each of these characters at different points in the book.

One of my favorite things about this book is the fact that it is set at sea! I don't know why I thought it would be different, but the synopsis clearly shows, as does the cover, that this would be at sea. And I loved every moment of it!

Each of the characters are all so different too and each have their personal demons they're having to deal with, and then meeting one other and having to get along, so well done. One of my personal favorites would be Jude. One of those first chapters with him and his mom, my heart just melted and I fell in love with him.

This is a fantastic story with an impossible voyage that was such a fun read! Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the free digital copy to read. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I loved this book! Amie Kaufman has such a brilliant way of world building that draws you in immediately. I thought the story was so fun, and was rooting for each of the characters. I can't wait to own a physical copy of this book so I can reread it!

5/5 stars for me!

Stars: ✨✨✨ + 1/2
Spice: None

Tropes:
- Elemental Magic
- Religious Conflict (Good vs. Evil)
- Found Family
- Opposites Attract
- Cinderella Story
- Hints of The Chosen One
- Not like Other Girls

First, I would like to thank Knopf Books for Young Readers and NetGalley for the eARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This is the first book in a YA high seas/pirate fantasy series with romance elements and multiple 1st person POVs. The characters are framed by the conflict between different religious ideologies that are the foundation of the world's political systems. Each nation-state is working to empower its representative god - either to spark or prevent a war. Certain individuals, magicians, have the power to control a spirit element (earth, wind, water, fire). The strength of these powers varies within individuals and are used in both spectacular and mundane ways.

The seven god "children" with the "Mother" god isn't a unique idea, but it is done entertainingly - weaved into a love letter for sailing and the sea. The POV characters each have their individualized relationship with their god and country. Selly (the FMC) embodies several YA main character stereotypes - a mouthy tomboy and "not like those other girls", but still lacking confidence in herself. Leander (MMC) is a selfish royal playboy with room for character growth. The bookish, unpopular Keegan acts as a plot device in feeding his academic insights to the main protagonists - Leander & Seely - to move the action forward. My primary criticism surrounding the Big Bad (Laskia) is that she is one-dimensional, unrelatable, and seems to get all of the one-in-a-million lucky breaks she needs to achieve her plan of the moment. It's very difficult to sympathize with her and take her superficial motivation seriously. Jude is not a well-developed character, but the reader does not get much of his POV. The sea exists as another main character of the book with loving descriptions of sailings, boats, and the water as a consistent thread through the book.

The main characters are generally late teens/early 20s, with a significant amount of discussion given to the relationships they established when they were in "school". Several of the POV characters seem to struggle to know what to do now that the school friends are not what they expected. It's typical of YA, but a pet peeve of mine.

There is a fluctuating mix of high fantasy and urban fantasy depending on the location of the action. The technology seems to be somewhere around the early 20th century - with cars, guns, and electricity. The intense high fantasy elements don't come forward until the last quarter of the book - and this is where the action kicks into gear.

But even with my complaints, I will be looking forward to the next book in the series.

<spoiler>Isle of the Gods ends on a major cliffhanger.</spoiler>

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The Isles of the Gods - The Isles of the Gods #1 - Review

Couple: Selly & Prince Leander

Author: Amie Kauffman

Tropes: PNR, YA fantasy, many POV, adventure, quest, gods/magic

Review: This book is a YA fantasy that will leave you needing book 2 right away. It is high action and clean romance. The book is written from many POVs but alternates mainly between Selly, Leander and Keegan. It chronicles their voyage across the sea to the Isles of Gods where they hope to prevent a war.

I loved this book. I thought the characters were well developed and each was exceptionally original. I enjoyed Selly’s with, banter and cynicism about the world. I also liked how once Leander helped with her magic she realized that maybe she is not ready to wield it. TO me Selly was the glue that held the story together and I cannot wait for more about their adventure and her and Leander’s romance.

Leander was also a character I really enjoyed. I was pleasantly surprised at how much he grew and matured in the first book if this series. I felt like his happy go lucky attitude was done artfully to hide his inner fears and I was almost in tears at the end from his sacrifice. My favorite thing though was how he owned up to his shortcomings and tried to become better during their voyage.

The book is a sweet romance and does not have spice but both characters are drawn to each other. The chemistry between them is innocent and intense and I cannot wait to see where it goes. I really enjoyed how they leaned on each other and how their magic played a role in the formation of trust and loyalty.

I also enjoyed Keegan in this book since he fit the mold for a solid third friend. I thought he balanced both Selly and Leander out since he was more in in the middle. I also loved how he had random facts about everything and am curious to know more about his marriage arrangement.

Rating: 8.5/10, Leander!!!

I was so excited to read this book, because the synopsis sounded like everything I usually like.
Then, I read the first few paragraphs and realized it was told in first person, present tense. I almost gave up immediately, because the only thing I hate more is third person present.
But every so often a gem comes along that's so well written that I forget about the tense, and end up immersed in the story. I decided to give it at least three chapters.
And then it was two am and I was desperately trying to force my eyes to stay open so I could finish reading.
This book was absolutely wonderful.
The magic system is unique without being needlessly complicated. Every character is written in a way that you understand why they make the choices that they do, even if you hate those choices. I'm really looking forward to the sequel.