A love story as old as time. Witch meets pirate, witch blackmails pirate for freedom...and the rest is history. I loved reading this story and will most certainly be adding it to the library catalogue.

I absolutely loved this swashbuckling fantasy. FINALLY the publishing industry is bringing us more pirates. We've needed this.

Angela is a joy and an excellent storyteller. I cannot wait to read all the other books that comes from this debut author.

This was SUCH a swoony spellbinding fantasy about a island captive and was full of suspense and she longs to leave her island. Full of twists and turns, intrigue and blackmail. JUST PERFECTION.

When a book is comped to two of your favorite things - Serpent & Dove and Pirates of the Caribbean - you KNOW you’re going to love it! Add a diverse cast of characters and a Latine inspiration and you have me hooked before I’ve even started!

That excitement for this story only deepened as I read it! The characters and plot were so engaging, and I found myself unable to keep turning the pages! I absolutely loved it and can’t wait to see what Montoya does next!

This reads a lot like a Disney fairytale. Our FMC is a damsel in distress about to be essentially sold off to the highest bidder, but she has the potential to be a badass if she lets herself, and our MMC is a questionable hero pirate. Both are described as exceptionally beautiful and have large reputations/talent. The story is a tale of freedom with some romance but I think it might have been better if the focus was either more on the two main characters as individuals without the insta love or if there were more scenes with the two of them together to at least give the readers a chance to see a relationship grow. There is a magical soul mate type bond going on so while that explains the inevitability of Rosalinda and Mariano and the constant pull towards each other, I think it would have been better if they didn't fall so quickly with so little interaction. I really liked the ending and the premise for the story but would have liked more action, witchy behavior and pirate scenes. I also would have loved for some of the side characters to have had more depth. Overall, it's a pretty good debut young adult fantasy.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced digital copy; all thoughts and opinions are my own.

One of the most brilliant debuts of 2023, I was lucky enough to get to read it early and my gosh! Angela’s writing is a gift to us all and I can’t wait for more books from her. She’s definitely a promising new voice in the book world, one we needed for sure. Also, if audiobooks are your thing then I highly recommend the audio! I also got to listen to it early and was just wowed, I enjoyed it so much and might actually be my favorite audiobook that I’ve gotten to listen to this year!

Regardless of which format you decide to read it in, make sure that you do because this one is a fantastic debut that you will want to read immediately!

Rosalinda lives on Sinner’s Isle, where she’s been kept for most of her life along with other Majestics, who are witches. Rosa is a powerful Majestic, with shadows that can do her bidding. Every year the Majestics are offered up to powerful men in the world, so they can be bonded for life and use their powers to help the men. It’s Rosa’s year to be offered, and she’s the most powerful girl of the year. Mariano is the son of infamous pirates. When his father dies suddenly, he must escape their ship before his uncles kill him to take his place. Mariano washes up on Sinner’s Isle, where he encounters Rosa. They make a deal for Mariano to help Rosa and her best friend escape their fate as Majestics, but it isn’t easy to escape their destiny.

This was an exciting and original story! It was interesting how the Majestics were both revered and ostracized from society. They had magic powers, so they were used to be bonded with powerful men, but they were also sent to an isolated island away from the rest of society. There were some surprising twists that I didn’t see coming. The story had a great, complete ending, but there is also the possibility for another book in this world in the future.

Sinner’s Isle is a great debut novel!

Thank you Penguin Teen Canada for providing a copy of this book!

Content warnings: death of parents, death, blood, violence

I loved this book! It's got everything a good pirate story should have! Daring sword fights, magical creatures, beautiful settings, and heartwarming romance! The plot immediately drew me in. The idea of Majestics and the entire concept of Sinner's Isle was so intriguing to read about! There were plot twists at every turn and they kept me on the edge of my seat. But there was also a great balance between the action scenes and slower scenes that focused on the romance and friendship side plots. The history of this world felt as if it was about a real place, and I could easily immerse myself in it. Also, the writing style perfectly matched the tone of the story. I quickly got lost in the chapters and couldn't put it down! In addition, there were so many interesting characters that I just had to learn more about. My favourite character would have to be Rosa! I loved her determination and one thing I loved the most was that she made mistakes and learned from them. Plus her relationships with her friends and with Mariano was so much fun to read about. Speaking of the romance, it was adorable! It does begin quickly after the characters meet, but this was acknowledged and I felt like it was written in a believable way, especially when it came to the magic and fate of this world. I am so excited to read more of Angela's work in the future! This is definitely a new all-time favourite read of mine!

I liked the main characters on their own, but nothing divine happened with them together. These two had like 5 scenes together in the whole book and then they were burn the world down in love by the end. Uh what? I understand there was some version of a mating bond, but I personally don't think having a mating bond automatically equals being in love, especially since these two had very little interaction (they didn't even know each other's names until over half way through the book).

But the end redeemed some of this; it almost felt like it belonged to another story with how explosive it felt and some swoon worthy scenes, but it felt disjointed since it didn't really have the rest of the story to back it up.

This could have been way more epic I think if maybe some other POV's were included and the story was elongated. Definitely had the makings for a great duology that ended the same way this one did.

But kudos to the author for her debut novel.

Prepare to be captivated by Angela Montoya's thrilling masterpiece, "Sinners of Isle." This dark and enchanting novel takes readers on a spellbinding journey into the heart of an enigmatic island, where sin and salvation dance in a delicate balance.

Montoya's prose is nothing short of poetic, painting a vivid picture of Isle—a place where shadows whisper secrets, and the line between right and wrong becomes tantalizingly blurred. From the opening chapter, readers are drawn into a world of intrigue and temptation, where sinners and saints coexist in a delicate dance that keeps you guessing until the very last page.

This was a very enjoyable read! The world building was easy to follow, the slow burn romance was done really well, and the ending was amazing! I love witches and pirates and fantasy book so to get both in this was perfect. Plus who doesn’t like shadow magic! I was so ready Im for Rosa to get her revenge and when that time came I was cheering her on! Thoroughly enjoyed this!

Witches and Pirates turn the Tides of Love
3.5 stars

Montoya has created a vibrant universe filled with fascinating cultures and magical systems. You can practically feel the sea breeze and the colliding motivations as you explore mysterious seas alongside Rosa the Majestic and Mariano the Sailor (son of the Pirate King). There’s solid storytelling in this romantasy but I wasn’t quite hooked. However, readers who are looking for romance in a world similar to One Piece should give this one a try.

In the Kingdom of Coronado, Majestics – girls born with powers – are sequestered on Sinner’s Isle until they come of age, when they are bound for life to whoever will pay the highest “tithe” for their abilities. Rosalinda is the most powerful Majestic Sinner’s Isle has seen in years; she is expected to be bound to King Sebastián himself in the upcoming Offering. But Rosalinda refuses to submit to a life of slavery and makes plans to escape from the island with her best friend, Juana. When the girls are caught by Doña Lucia, who rules the isle with an iron fist, Juana becomes a hostage to guarantee Rosalinda’s obedience. Rosalinda needs an ally to break Juana free, and makes an unwilling one out of Mariano, the Prince of Pirates, who finds himself stranded on the island after his ship was attacked. Teen fans of witchy narratives, swashbuckling pirate stories, and swoony romance will find much to appreciate in Sinner’s Isle.

Sinner’s Isle is about Rosalinda, who is one of a group of women with powers, called Majestics. They live in a world where Majestics are bound to controlling and influential men and forced to use their powers as their keepers see fit. Majestics live together on an island called Sinner’s Isle until they come of age and are basically handed over to the highest bidder.

Rosalinda has just come of age and wants to sneak away from the island in the night with her best friend, so the two can live by their own free will and avoid being Bound to a suitor. Things go wrong, of course, and Rosa finds herself more trapped than before...

Mariano is the son of a famous pirate, but when his father’s dying wish is for Mariano to leave the ship and find a new destiny, Mariano is torn. But his rowboat ends up steering him to Sinner’s Isle…

The two find each other and end up working together to make sure Rosa doesn’t get bound to a horrible lord, that the wrong people don’t take over power of their kingdom, and also just to finally get off the dang island. And they can’t help but be drawn to each other… almost like there’s a force bigger than themselves that connects them…

It’s adventurous, feminist, and inclusive, with a whirlwind romance. I also love a good standalone fantasy every now and again, especially when pirates are involved!!

A very enjoyable romance, plenty of twists and turns to keep the reader interested and a romance that was actually romantic. I particularly enjoyed the magic system, and who doesn’t enjoy pirates? Looking forward to what else Angela Montoya writes!

Thank you to NetGalley and Joy Revolution Books for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this book! I devoured it in only a few sittings and wish there was more to read. The story line was paced very well and the characters were easy to love!

I very strong book for a debut. Sinner’s Isle was captivating and witchy! Rosalina was such an inspiration.

Full of action and adventure, when it comes to pirates and witches, I got more than what I was expecting.
Full of plot twists and intrigue, it definitely gave me some stress and anxiety of the good kind. If anyone enjoys a thrilling book, this is it.

I love this cover and the idea of pirates and witches is wonderful. For me, this ended up being an okay read that I didn't think was that memorable. The magic is interesting and the friendships were definitely the best part for me. I rooted for the main characters to get with other people, because Rosalinda and Mariano don't actually spend that much time together.

Not a bad debut, just not what I hoped it would be.

I voluntarily read and reviewed this book. All opinions are my own. Thank you to Joy Revolution and NetGalley for the copy.

Sinner's Isle is a swoony adventure story about pirates and dangerous magic. Steeped in patriarchy and power, the Majestics are witches which are used as power pieces. The very things the world desires - power - they claim to abhor while making backhanded deals which overwrites Majestics's free will. On the surface it's a story about pirates and witches, but underneath it's a story about the value of choice and love freely given

I absolutely loved this! It was so much fun and such a great, original world and characters. I highly recommend.