Daughter of the Siren Queen – Tricia Levenseller

Release date: 27 February 2018
Rating: ★★★★★★★★ – 8/10
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Daughter of the Siren Queen (Daughter of the Pirate King, #2) blurb:

Alosa’s mission is finally complete. Not only has she recovered all three pieces of the map to a legendary hidden treasure, but the pirates who originally took her captive are now prisoners on her ship. Still unfairly attractive and unexpectedly loyal, first mate Riden is a constant distraction, but now he’s under her orders. And she takes great comfort in knowing that the villainous Vordan will soon be facing her father’s justice.

When Vordan exposes a secret her father has kept for years, Alosa and her crew find themselves in a deadly race with the feared Pirate King. Despite the danger, Alosa knows they will recover the treasure first . . . after all, she is the daughter of the Siren Queen.

Man, I hate writing book reviews to sequels. I never know what to say! So, if you haven’t read Daughter of the Pirate King yet, go read that before reading this review!

OK, so we start about two months after the end of DotPK. Alosa is on her way to hunt down Vordan and steal the last piece of the map. I know the blurb says she has recovered the three pieces, but that’s basically the first couple of chapters. This is also why I don’t read blurbs. The story is good, there were a few plot points I didn’t see coming, but there were also others that I did (they didn’t always play out the way I thought they would though).

The follow on from the first book was good. Probably too good as I felt there wasn’t any further development in this book. It was different, but they were still on the same quest in a way. I thought there was an opportunity for them to do other things, but not so.

In terms of character arcs, I guess Alosa does grow somewhat. I mean, she has some self-realisation and starts being a bit honest with herself, and others, but that’s so far into the book that it was actually a little bit annoying. There is other stuff that happens (plot points, etc.) that I thought would bring about a development or something, but they didn’t really do much to change Alosa at all.

Riden was interesting though, I felt like he grew more as a character in this one, but maybe he was just being more true to himself as he didn’t necessarily have to pick a side between Alosa and his brother. (FYI, I was lucky enough to be emailed the very first chapter of the DotPK by Tricia from Riden’s perspective, and it kind of changed my views on him a little. Not that I didn’t like him, I did; but it shows a different side to him, and really puts his motivations into perspective.)

I will say that one of the things I love about this book is the emphasis on the crew as family. The way that Alosa cares for her friends and goes after anyone who hurts them is commendable. That she is willing to put herself in danger to ensure their safety is one of the things I really like about her.

The continuation of the world building was good. I thought we’d see more sirens, as this one is called Daughter of the Siren Queen, but there really wasn’t as much as I think there could have been, so I felt like that was a bit of a missed opportunity. It was pretty cool to see the difference in powers between Alsoa, as a half-blood, and the other sirens though.

As much as I really liked this book (it was a solid end to the duology), it just didn’t give me that 5 star feeling, and it’s really hard to pinpoint why. If I had to boil it down to something, I guess there would be two things, and they both have to do with Alosa and Riden’s relationship.

————————–SPOILER ALERT————————–

OK, first off, I don’t agree with the physical abuse scene where Alosa just beats on Riden. I don’t feel like it was necessary, and (as they are basically a couple) domestic abuse just doesn’t sit right with me, unless the plot point is that Tamlin is an arsehole. The second reason is the one where Riden just gives up and agrees to help Alosa train with her siren. I mean, I know it’s for the greater good, and it actually means that she doesn’t use her siren abilities on him; however, the way he just gives up and agrees is weird. Have some backbone man! Stand up for yourself and make Alosa tell you her feelings first. Get something out of it for yourself! Anyway, that’s my 5 cents worth.

I still loved it though. Just not 4.5 stars worth, but it’s definitely a solid 4.