I was not expecting to enjoy Fable as much as I did. But I’ve been in the mood for a nautical adventure and pirate story and decided to request the ARC. And wow, did I enjoy that. The action of the story almost single handedly swept me away. By the end of the story I was hooked and so ready for the sequel. Read the rest of this book review to find out my full thoughts.
Summary
As the daughter of the most powerful trader in the Narrows, the sea is the only home seventeen-year-old Fable has ever known. It’s been four years since the night she watched her mother drown during an unforgiving storm. The next day her father abandoned her on a legendary island filled with thieves and little food. To survive she must keep to herself, learn to trust no one and rely on the unique skills her mother taught her. The only thing that keeps her going is the goal of getting off the island, finding her father and demanding her rightful place beside him and his crew. To do so Fable enlists the help of a young trader named West to get her off the island and across the Narrows to her father.
But her father’s rivalries and the dangers of his trading enterprise have only multiplied since she last saw him and Fable soon finds that West isn’t who he seems. Together, they will have to survive more than the treacherous storms that haunt the Narrows if they’re going to stay alive.
Review
(Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
Full of high sea action, Fable is a book that immediately hooked me. As someone who is an awful swimmer, diving is a superpower to me. But even more so, Fable begins with a mystery – Fable herself. How did she get to Jeval and will she ever be able to escape? Fable is firmly rooted in her journey. Alliances are tenuous and friendships are fable in her world. This world has hardened her, made her have to fight for everything with blood, sweat, and desperation. Her world is roughened and cruel, where allegiances and decency mean little.
Deeply yearning for sea adventures, Fable delivers nautical quests and more. Fable is determined and fiery, used to a world that demands everything and gives nothing. Her recklessness can get her into trouble, but she’s committed to finding her father and escaping. The dynamic between Fable and her father was intriguing mostly because it feels so alien. A relationship balanced on the edges of knife point. Ruthless, rough like sand paper, and bargains being struck between blood.
Considering how much I love crew dynamics and found family, I do wish there had been more development in the side characters. However, I am optimistic the sequel will deliver more side character action and intrigue. Another element I hope is developed more in the sequel is the romance which I enjoyed, but felt a bit abrupt. That was my first impression and only solidified more the more I thought about it. Overall, Fable delivers a story full of twists and turns, pirates and betrayal, sacrifice and diving. The past comes back to seal our own coffin and is she ready for that reckoning?
Find Fable on Goodreads, Amazon (US) (UK), Indiebound, Bookshop.org & The Book Depository.