I received a digital ARC as a part of Adalyn Grace’s street team. There is so much to love about All the Stars and Teeth (ASTAT): blood magic, pirates, mermaids, the high seas adventures, a race to save the kingdom. Grace does an excellent job of creating a vividly unique world and magic system. The jeweled islands fit perfectly within the YA realm, and the feat of creating a culture and magic unique to each one was impressive for a debut novel.
I was pleased to find the MC, Amora, not your typical pretty princess. She is raw and flawed, loyal and fierce. The fact that so many find her downright scary is definitely a plus in my book. The supporting cast of characters were adequately developed for a the first of a YA series. I found myself intrigued by the beautiful and fearsome mermaid, charmed by the pirate scoundrel, and empathizing with the jaded lover. I’m hoping to get to know them more as the series progresses.
While I enjoyed this book, it wasn’t love for me. This stems from my inability to connect to the writing. For the entirety of the book, I felt as though something was missing to give this book an edge over other YAs of the time. The writing comes across as flowery, contrived, and even corny at times. Anyone that knows me, knows I love cheesy lines, but this fell short for me. There also lacked a sense of urgency in the writing style, which the plotting demanded. It’s predictable. This being a high-stakes, on-the-run adventure, I expected to be on the edge of my seat and sorely missed the rush.
In the end, I was entertained reading it and intrigued enough to read the next book. I recommend this for YA fantasy readers who enjoy pirates or high seas adventure. Similar reads would be To Kill A Kingdom, Daughter of a Pirate King, and Ash Princess.