A Ship of Bones & Teeth (Nightwind) Paperback – May 25, 2023

I almost didn't read this book due to the warning in the beginning, but man I'm glad I did! I've read way worse books that did not provide a warning at all. This book had a great story, main characters had chemistry and were interesting, spice was perfect. Great job!

"I've never had an addiction before," he says hoarsely. "But I think you'll be mine." Umm, yes please!This dark retelling of a Little Mermaid was super fun to read, keeping you engaged and a quick read. The MMC is Ramsay, a morally gray (lite) pirate captain of a ship and a crew that are more than what they seem, and the FMC is Maren, a Syren that made a foolish choice as a teen (who hasn't) and spends the next decade regretting it. The spice was 🌶🌶🌶. And Karina Halle can write a good villain- I was actively hoping for a gory end to Aerik by page 33, hopefully fed in small pieces to Maren's first protector, a shark named Nil. Alas, it wasn't to be, but what happened was much more satisfying.

This book falls a little flat for me. I love Karina Halle as an author but this is not to me a dark romance. I think it's a NA Fantasy with some trigger warnings attached. The spice level to me is a 2/5. It's there and good but it could be better.The good: The character development is on point. The MMC and FMC both have a sad past and I think together they are able to overcome it. There are a lot of twists and turns. There is comic relief. The ending was good.The meh: The story line is kinda meh. The story gets slow in some parts and towards 75% I almost got lost with who the author was talking about ya the time. The fantasy part needs more work and it's pretty confusing...

This book will never makes you thinks of little mermaid ever the same again. It’s absolute gems!!! This book is great for reader who want to drive into dark romance by afraid to. I’m new to this kind of genre but I loved every single minute. It’s amazing how 400+ pages makes you attached to most of the characters, especially FMC & MMC. The book is pack with actions, dramas, romances, and of course a really delicious spices+++. This book is earning my top spot of the year (1/60) which includes Acotar, Fourth wings and etc….

I enjoyed this! I love vicious sirens versus sweet little mermaids. This was fun, dark, and spicy. Loved the ending.

I think this might be my first Little Mermaid-inspired romance, and I am absolutely obsessed. This book has everything you could wish for: mermaids, pirates, princes, kingdoms, mythical creatures, and epic battles. I picked it up while on a cruise because the cover and blurb were so enticing, and it turned out to be the perfect choice for the setting. I couldn’t put it down and devoured it every chance I got. Ramsey and Maren were a fantastic pair—the possessive, dirty-talking pirate and the sweet yet fierce little syren were just perfect together. I’m also really intrigued by a few of the side characters and hope they get their own stories soon.

Everything you would want out of a fantasy book. I loved the pirate/mermaid combination. The storyline moved effortlessly and was filled with the perfect amount of spice and adventure. It was impossible not to fall in love with bones and Maren. If you are an “Ever King” fan I think you will really enjoy this!

“𝙄’𝙫𝙚 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙘𝙪𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪, 𝙢𝙞𝙡𝙖𝙙𝙮,” 𝙄 𝙩𝙚𝙡𝙡 𝙝𝙚𝙧, 𝙛𝙡𝙖𝙨𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙖 𝙜𝙧𝙞𝙣 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙥𝙞𝙩𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙨𝙚𝙖 𝙬𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙧.𝙄 𝙚𝙭𝙥𝙚𝙘𝙩 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙤 𝙨𝙘𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙢 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙝𝙚𝙡𝙥 𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙧𝙮 𝙩𝙤 𝙨𝙬𝙞𝙢 𝙖𝙬𝙖𝙮.𝙄𝙣𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙖𝙙, 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙘𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙥𝙪𝙣𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙨 𝙢𝙚 𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙖𝙘𝙚.Well that was a fun little pirate adventure.This is a bit of a mashup between 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘓𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦 𝘔𝘦𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘪𝘥 and 𝘗𝘪𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘊𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘣𝘣𝘦𝘢𝘯, where Aerick is an abusive jerk, there are monsters, and definitely a few twists and turns.I loved how Maren’s character grew during the story, and the grittier she got, the more feral Ramsay was for her.The side characters were great, especially the crew.There were fun battles, some between ships, and some with sea creatures and other monsters that added to the enjoyment, especially during the final sequences.All in all, an enjoyable time across the sea, and I am definitely interested in reading her new book set in this universe.What this book is giving:✅ Pirate Fantasy Romance✅ Dual POV✅ Captor/Captive✅ Mermaid/Syrens✅ Monsters✅ Ship Battles✅ RevengeRating:⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ / 5🌶️🌶️🌶️½ / 5

“I’ve never had an addiction before,” he says hoarsely. “But I think you’ll be mine.”A little mermaid retelling where the mermaids are claws out, teeth bloody and downright vicious beasties?!?! SIGN. ME. UP! 🧜‍♀️🩸🧜‍♀️🩸The book completely took me by surprise - I was not expecting to love it and I absolutely did!This book had ferocious mermaids that do much naughtier and darker things to mortal creatures than just sing at them 🩸☠️🩸☠️ Let me tell you this is a yummy dark romance with the forced proximity trope and it is SO SO SOOO GOOD. I literally recommend this book to anyone who likes fantasy and romance. Also I am an absolute sucker for the violent introduction of two love interests:"I expected her to scream for help or try to swim away. Instead, the princess punches me right in the face"The characters were complex, the plot robust and the romance... the SPICE....someone bring me a fan, maybe two actually.“Darling, your body would bring any man to their knees where they would be in the right position to worship you. It’s a body carved by god yet meant for sin, and it would become anyone’s salvation.”Also, the writing was beautiful. Like suck you in so deep you don't want to leave beautiful.“Of all the battles we fight, grief is the one that we cannot win. There is no winning and there is no losing. Grief makes a home within your bones so that you’ll carry it for all time.”Rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Spice 🌶️🌶️🌶️.5Tropes:🌊 Forced Proximity🏴‍☠️Revenge Plot🌊Retelling🏴‍☠️Enemies to Lovers🌊Morally Grey🏴‍☠️Monsters and Magic🌊Dark Romance🏴‍☠️Pirates

I have read a lot of pirate romances. This one however hit differently. It is dark, like dark af — I’d say darker than Sea of Ruin. It’s a the little mermaid remake where the prince isn’t what he seemed and the grass isn’t greener. There’s pride, curses, action and pirates (duh obviously). This is a fantasy but the fantasy doesn’t overtake the whole book and the story is set in the 18-century?

Aaah amazing book....after so long i read Karina halle's book and it didn't disappoint me. I was hooked from the start and kept reading. It got intense as it moved forward. It was. Bittersweet ending. I was really sad for some characters. Maren and Ramsey I must say after so long im read a book where MFC is as equal to MMC.

Gaah this was so good. I laughed, i got HEATED and i even teared up a little. Listen i was on the train when i read that particular scene with the..mhnh mhm. The gasp i let out. If there's a second book im definitely here for it!

With a heavy hangover from Blood Orange I had this book preordered as soon as the prologue hit my mailbox and I wasn't disappointed. With a world building always so compelling and immersive Karina is quickly becoming one of my favourite authors in the genre. And while I was a little sceptical to begin with (I'm not a big fan of Pirates of the Caribbean and I never seen Little Mermaid either, just read the story as a child long time ago), to say that in the end I was happy I gave it a go would be a gross underestimation.This book picks up with little mermaid story pretty much where Disney left off, the life with prince Aerik being on the side of a harsh reality rather than a fairytale bliss. He's not Prince Charming by any means - unfortunately so for our mermaid (syren, I'm sorry Maren, syren of course!) who is forced to reconcile her naivete stemming from her young age and a sheltered life so far with the cruel fate at the hands of a wife abuser. But let's just say the insecure prick gets what he deserves (though still a too much of a merciful ending for him, as far as I'm concerned).Maren is a fierceful little thing and her character development is brilliant - from naive, shy and abused young girl to a strong woman confident in herself and her abilities. She has to come to terms with what she truly is as well as her life, and take back the control she got swindled out of.She blossoms into what she was always meant to be, all thanks to Bones who through his affection and admiration allows her to accept, even like, the monster within her.As for Captain Ramsey Bones Battista, well.. I actually had to reconcile myself with the name because you say Ramsey and I see Bolton - for those who know who I'm referring to: you know what I mean when I say that is not necessarily a bad thing but at the same time it very much is (and I'm fully aware that says more about me than it does about the author's choice of character names).But pass that, this Captain with magic in the sails of his dreaded pirate ship the Nightwind is the real Prince Charming here. He's dangerous, absolutely lethal, as handsome as they come, and a man strong enough to not be hiding his emotions. He's unscrupulous in the pursuit of his desires and confident enough to not be intimidated by a strong woman - he actually wants her by his side. He's everything we love and more.And I was chuffed to find out he has a lot in common with my beloved Valtu as well - who, by the way, I'm still reeling about (I read several books since Blood Orange and still can't shake off this masterpiece of Karina's imagination).The interactions between Ramsey and Maren are great - the banter is fun, the chemistry is off the charts and the spice is as hot as it comes. They are both scary monsters in their own right, wild and dangerous, feral and passionate, free out there in their kingdom of the high seas. They are a perfect match to each other.This isn't a super complicated story but it's a good fun, it flows well with plenty of action and in its own way it portrays a world just as romantic as Disney's fairytales, albeit quite a bit grittier and definitely not meant for children. It's closer to the original tale from Brothers Grimm in the atmospheric feel than the animated Disney world - the trade itself with the sea witch in the prologue sets the tone for what's to come. Though I'm actually not sure I would call it dark as the take on things is more grey rather than anything else, but alas that made a refreshing change to what I usually read.(Definitely check the triggers though in case any of that applies to you - it's not too heavy on them but there are still some.)A standalone story, no cliffhanger and all loose ends are nicely tied. While there is a bit of a distant connection to some of Karina's other books this is more about using tropes of a world already meticulously built rather than being an overlap or even a reference. It takes place in the past and while I can imagine Bones still being around to this day given all we know about him, there's no implication whatsoever that that's the case. Though I'd love to see how he would fit in with the likes of Solon or Valtu (pretty please, Karina, hint hint?).Overall a great read that I cannot but recommend and I would give it quite a bit more than just five stars if that was possible.Certainly worth the spend and I will be quite happy to read it all again in time.SPOILER (as vague as possible):The only thing I really didn't like (and I mean REALLY didn't like) was at the end where Maren pushed for hostages to be kept alive and released. I think that was unnecessary and it went against the nature of everyone on the Nightwind including Maren herself. It felt like it was there because HEA was only allowed for good characters, not the ones morally ambiguous. It felt forced for the sake of it and for me it took the edge off of the Nightwind. Like trying to apply current criminal code to a fantasy world to make it more palatable. Perhaps that's just me but I think it was out of place, out of character and it shouldn't have been there. It's not enough to warrant knocking a star off though, I just pretend it never happened:-)