Thrilling Adventure on the High Seas

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4.5 Stars

Thank you to Bookish First and Fierce Reads for a copy of this book!

In this retelling of Treasure Island, Xiang just wants to be accepted by her mother and explore more of the world she's grown up only hearing about. But when she discovers a hint toward the location of the secret treasure hidden by the fabled Head of the Dragon Fleet, Xiang goes on an adventure with Anh and her crew to find the treasure.

This was thrilling! It took me a little bit to really get into it, but once it picked up pace I absolutely loved it! Xiang and Anh are absolutely adorable! I loved the lore and the adventure and the piracy. The character development was also really good and I loved the relationship between Xiang and her sort of father. I also loved Anh's mother and her crew, and the discussion of queerness within the world! They even talked about Matey logs (idk if I'm spelling that right) which is a really interesting pirate concept that I learned about recently, so I thought that was cool!

This was such a great retelling of a classic and another to add to your list if you're a retelling fan!

Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Kidnapping and Homophobia