I gave this romance a 3.9/5 star rating and it could technically fit into a few subcategories like historical fiction or fantasy romance.
In the first chapter we learned of Charlotte, a troublemaker and thief who dislikes pirates & idolizes Jane Austen and of course arrogant her nemesis, Irish pirate, Captain O’Riley who was already adorably flustered by her. (I didn’t enjoy the head hopping and POV switch mid-chapter but the witty comedy and dialogue felt like a great mix between Sherlock Holmes & Marry Poppins.)
Chapter two skipped to a third POV already and made “the chosen one” trope obvious from the get-go.
I loved the funny banter and sarcasm between the two but the wordage of the prose was difficult and tedious to get through because of the style of language used. It didn’t flow well and I often had to reread. There was also minimal purpose of multiple points of view since we didn’t get into the different characters’ heads much. Sometimes I wasn’t even sure whose perspective we were in.
Sidenote: the flying house idea was incredible and I loved that aspect. I could definitely picture many of the scenes like a movie.
Unsure how to rate the sexy times- maybe a 2.5/5?
At the halfway mark I loved their chemistry. Overall not much had happened in the plot, but the story was sweet and endearing.
There were a bit too many aimless side characters and secondary storylines that didn’t really add to what I cared about (Charlotte & Alex interactions)
Here is an example of the confusing prose: “If Charlotte disapproved more of Captain O’Riley’s house, she might be able to talk about it less.”
After chapter fourteen I was still frustrated with the half-omniscient POV & half not. It was distracting which made me enjoy it less since the inconsistency kept taking me out of the story.
By the way, the ramblings of the chapter titles were super unique, though a bit confusing, yet endearing adding a whimsical vibe overall.
Once I reached page 200, the adorable bantering of who was worse- witches or pirates- became a bit monotonous and predictable, losing its effectiveness.
So, I was thoroughly enjoying the enchanting vibe of the novel, but at chapter 24 was another example of confusing prose that slowed the pace and made the writing confusing: “Gentlewomen in England still a-bed would not doubt think themselves accurs’ they were not on the shore promenade if Clacton-on-Sea, and hold their womanhoods cheap whilst any spike that watched the pirate battle houses fight each other than morning.” … like WHAT? I had to reread that five times.
At the end, I was glad everything was tied up in a bow, but then … looking back I wasn’t sure when the big climatic scene happened. Which means it must’ve been anticlimactic to not stand out enough. I had a guess of what the climax scene was but there were so many chapters after that … which got me wondering.
I was happy how Alex ‘saved’ Charlotte from her fate lol since it was unexpected. Basically all the sarcasm was done super well throughout abs what I will remember the book for.
Cassie Swindon 