DNFed at 29%. I couldn't get into this book, unfortunately. I had a hard time sympathizing with the FMC. She was very obtuse. And whenever someone died, she mostly thought about how she was disappointed that she couldn't use them to become the village's hero. It seems she was intended to be an innocent, kind character, but her thoughts said otherwise.

My other issues with this book were more minor, but they still bothered me. It alternated between first-person POV for the FMC and third-person POV for the MMC, which I found jarring. And there were a lot of things that just didn't make sense, like things looking tiny to the FMC when she's only 12 feet off the ground or another character somehow keeping an arrow trained on her while holding a bag and digging around in it. It bugged me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Entangled Publishing for the ARC.

Starling’s Weave was honestly such a good read! I am so glad I gave it a read. This was a character focused book which I always love! The plot was a bit slower paced but I don’t mind that.

I would highly recommend this upper YA fantasy book to anyone, and everyone!

Thank you NetGalley for granting me access to this e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

This one felt pretty young adult, but was also an interesting and fanciful feeling story. The plot was creative, and kept me engaged.

This was a great read! This book caught my attention from the first page! Loved the plot and the characters of this one. One thing that had me getting lost a bit as I read was the switching between character POVs. Overall a great read that I definitely recommend giving a read!

I loved the backwardness of the premise: a girl who is shunned from her village due to her lack of powers in a town full of water magic users. The world building and history were excellent. However, I didn't love the third-person POV, with switches back and forth between Manseray and Nieve. It made the story a bit harder to follow and felt like I was being jerked back and forth as I tried to figure out what the plot exactly was. Overall, I enjoyed the journey, but I feel like it could have been smoother.

I really enjoyed this book, but honestly who doesn't enjoy a fantasy pirate adventure, it had really excellent world-building and I enjoyed the magic system. I was super intrigued by the history of the world and ate it up. Keir and Neive are a dynamic pair and though I've seen some reviews say it was insta-lovey, I disagree. I felt it was more instant intrigue and attraction but I thought their relationship built up really great and felt very natural. Overall, it felt very creative and inventive, I've read a ton of fantasy and romantasies this year but this one managed to stand out and stick with me, I really hope we get more!

This book was something magical. At first it is quite slow-paced, making me almost DNF. However I struggled through and started to like the story more and more, I liked the storyline and all the magical aspects.

I thought this was very good and I will have to add this to the shop shelves. Thank you for the chance for us to review.

The switching between 1P and 3P really drove me up a wall, I was just like, stick with one or the other, please! I really loved the concept of this book and thought it could have been so amazing, but I am just not about the switching of first/third person.

Well well, I fell in love with the cover and then I fell in love with the fast paced, twisty, and highly entertaining story featuring a cast of interesting and fleshed out characters in an fascinating world.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

I think what I enjoyed most in this book was the world building and magic system. I had a good time with the dual POV between Nieve and Elder. This book was a little slower paced than I typically lean towards but overall the plot was interesting.

Here's the review rewritten in your own words:

"In L.E. Sterling's 'Starling's Weave,' the fate of a magical village rests on the shoulders of Nieve, a young woman born without the water magic that sustains her people. When a pirate captain arrives with his own agenda, Nieve is drawn into a perilous adventure.

This story, with its intricate magic system and richly imagined world, reminded me why I love fantasy. Sterling masterfully weaves together the perspectives of Nieve and the pirate captain, revealing their motivations and the complexities of their relationship. The story is full of suspense, with twists and turns that kept me hooked until the very end.

Nieve's unique perspective, as someone who doesn't possess the magic she's surrounded by, adds a fascinating layer to the narrative. Her journey of self-discovery and her growing understanding of magic are truly compelling. 'Starling's Weave' is a captivating and unforgettable read."

I don't know how else to describe my feelings about this book, other than it feels like a translation with something lost in the translation.

Now, from what I can tell, that isn't actually the case, but the writing is oddly soft...with not plot holes exactly, but connection holes.

Also, this is another one that was so busy world building that the author got to almost the required page length and was like "oh no, we need a resolution" and resolved everything in 5 pages. I had truly been expecting a cliffhanger because there didn't seem like enough pages left to resolve things properly.

I would definitely try another book from this author again, because I liked the characters and the interesting magic system, but it just needs a bit more polish and firming up.

DNF—this one sadly was just not for me. I loved the premise, but the execution was too disjointed for me to be able to stay on board. Hopefully the editing process added/will add some polish to this otherwise enticing narrative.

Starling’s Weave follows Nieve, an outsider in her village, as she strives to save her village and find her place within it.

A mix of a pirate adventure with living gods and goddesses trying to save the world by bringing forgotten magic back into it, I enjoyed this story and the unique world it builds.

Not for me, but that's not to say you won't like it so give it a try! I thought I would love this one, but it was just a bit slow and kinda all over the place.

Thank you to Entangled Publishing for allowing me to arc read.

This book had an interesting concept. However, the writing style was not for me. I do think that there are people who will love this book.

Book Name: Starlings Weave
Author: L.E. Sterling

ARC
Thank you to NetGalley and Entangled Teen Press for an ARC

Stars: 5
Spice: (0 YA)

New Series
Cliffhanger (ish)
Fast Paced
Dual POV
High Seas Pirate Fantasy

Similar to Fable by Adrienne Young

- The Good
- Highly Entertaining
- TROPE heavy
- The MMC POV is some of the best parts
- Tension and Longing
- Finding One's Place Themes
- The Bad
- Does it Reinvent the Wheel… No
- The Ending was… a bit jump the shark but it is YA
- Infant and Mother Death in the first 20 pages messed with me (we could have had this effect less brutally)
- Overall
- It is a GREAT bridge book from Younger YA to Older YA (you get Tension and Some DARK elements but an overall fun and engaging storyline
- As an Older Reader, I loved this but as a Parent this is for a tougher kid who can handle the emotional scenes

This book was really good. I liked how well the author described the characters and the environment of the scenes. The world building was also really good, I especially liked the magic system. Since I like fantasy books with magic and mages this one was perfect. The story also captured me, after reading the synopsis already not gonna lie. It didn´t get boring (for me) because I was invested into the story.
Definitely going to recommend this to friends.

Thank you to NetGalley and Entangled Publishing for allowing me to read an E-ARC of Starling’s Weave.

Plot: Nieve is a member of the Talin race who are hidden mages and harness the power of Ocean - their deity. The power of Ocean is starting to wane for the Talin race and food sources are starting to die off and people are dying. Nieve swears that she is going to figure out the issue. Enter Keir Manseray who blows Nieve’s world wide open. She ends up traveling the seven seas with Keir and his crew and meeting Elder Wrights who help her find her true power.

Review: I enjoyed the book. I thought the storyline and concept was creative and inventive. I really liked the MMC, Keir. He was dark and broody but caring and sweet. He had total cinnamon roll vibes. Even though he had insta-love I still liked him for the way he supported Nieve and her journey. The FMC Nieve was determined and driven on her quest to find the story to help her people even though she gets thrown off course by Keir and his quest. However, there were a few things that I struggled with. It took about 50% of the book before I truly got into it but once it got going, it was so good. The slow burn was definitely burning. This one ended with an opening for a second book. I truly hope there is because Keir and Nieve’s story needs to be completed.

Fantasy Tropes
➡️Hero’s Journey
➡️Chosen One
➡️Mentor
➡️Good vs. Evil
➡️Magic
➡️Pirates “Mutineers”
➡️YA fantasy

Review posted to GoodReads on 10/8/24
Review posted to IG story on 10/9/24
Review posted to Amazon on 10/21/24
Review posted to Barnes and Noble on 10/10/24