Worse Than Wicked is all about Sofi! She a great character, and the author made her believable. So much so, that I wish I knew her. The only thing I must say is that it started off a bit slow, but I didn't give up. I'm glad I finished the book. Hope to read more by this author in the future.

I read this book in 2 hours or less it just sucked me right in. Great story and characters! Would love to see more by this author

I geuinely had a fun time reading this book. I really enjoyed the book. Perfect for those looking for a fun and quick YA novel

Worse than Wicked by Kathryn Jankowski is a YA fable inspired by aspects of Eastern European folklore. The book follows sixteen year old Sofi on a quest to reclaim a magical artefact and rescue her mother who is being imprisoned by the Queen of the Merfolk. The sting in the tale is that Sofi is the grand daughter of this powerful queen, her mother was cast out of the kingdom years before when she fell in love with Sofi's father, who was not only human, but also a son of the Gypsy King. Once Sofi learns about the secret history of her family she is determined to reclaim the artefact which was stolen from the Baltic Sea years before, feeling sure that the sea in her blood will give her the power she needs. Along the way she will meet some family members from both sides and will face some very difficult decisions.
While the book is a little slow to start, once Sofi sets out on her adventures it does pick up pace and that pace is maintained to the end of the book. I liked that the author used the story to look at the concept of vengeance and the damage it can do , and the question of how to wield power fairly .
I read a review copy courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher ,all opinions are my own.

Did not finish. Did not like this book.

I couldn't get into it.

The writing was awful and the characters were just dull. The story dragged too much for me.

I like to give books a chance with the first 100 pages and I did and I just couldn't read anymore.

With a bit more story development, this book would have potential for now it was just not for me.

I really enjoyed this!

This book is innovative and delightful. For the most part I really liked all the characters, the flaws and all. The world building was perfect and the growth of the characters throughout the book kept it from getting stale. The only reason I'm giving this 4/5 Stars is because there were moments where things moved slowly. Other than those few moments, the pages seemed to disappear quickly.

There was a lot of potential in this story. It sadly it's hold me as much as I was hoping. It wasn't as memorable, nor did I reach for it when I wanted to continue reading. But I didn't hate it. Bonus.

Sofi is your 16yo idealistic teenage girl, who knows the hounds of bullying and being made to feel invincible. All because of her starfish scar on her cheek. A mark held in high regard of the Mermaid Queen of the Baltic Sea, and Lithuanian Lands.

When Sofi learns of her true heritage, her mother, Undine, is held captive by this Mermaid Queen. The quest Sofi must embark on is that of perilous trials, all to retrieve a magical tree bestowed by the Gods. During this journey, Sofi comes into her own, and learns some very valuable lessons. Lessons about family, secrets, and the true victims of vengeance. Empathy and Compassion go a long way.

If you like mermaid stories, definitely give this one a go. You may end up liking it more than I.

This book was fantastic, the cover was what drew me to it in the first place, but it is filled with folk-lore, as deep as the ocean and world building that is so easy to imagine.

Worse Thank Wicked by Kathryn Jankowski came across a lot like Alice in Wonderland for me. A young girl going on a quest meeting many foes and a few friends along the way.

I liked the idea of the book but found too many characters introduced with not enough time spent on them. This may have been better as a series so you could get to know Sofija a lot more to understand her reasons why she did certain things.

Great engaging book. Felt more real than most of the mermaid type books I've read. I loved that you didn't really know what she would choose to do because she kept changing her mind like a human would do. A non book character. I'll definitely be reading more from this author and can't wait till I can add this one to my bookshelf

I didn't get to download this one from here, but i did buy it last week and WOW. I'm actually sad I didn't download this sooner.
The world building was impressive and thrilling. I absolutely loved the characters, they had so much depth and their growth throughout the book kept it from getting stale. Very well written.This is the first book I've read by this author and I'm looking forward to reading more of her work!

OMG I just couldn't finish this... I can't even read half of it!

I was so excited when I read the summary first. It fels like a breath of fresh air to have a book taking place in an Eastern European country that's not Russia. The inclusion of Roma people was also something that got me very eager to read Worse Than Wicked.

But once I started, it felt like a torture. There was no world building whatsoever - people and sea creatures live together, deal with it. How did that happen you want to know? Well, you never will.

Sofi, a 16-year-old girl, is allowed to face a coven of hedgewitches because she feels responsible for the mermaid queen stealing her mother. But Sofi's mother is actually a mermaid herself and the daughter of the mermaid queen for that matter. So, is she actually in prison or is it more like visiting her family? And the way this big family secret gets revealed is plain silly: the dad just blurted it out because he was angry with Sofi... Not to mention, it happens in the first 20 pages.

There were so many issues that got me agitated but the main one has to be the style of writing. It was just so jumpy and sloppy, and incohesive. There was no smooth transition from one sentence to the next. It went from one event to the other without much explanation or connection between the two. It really felt like the author just wanted to finish this as soon as possible without actually giving it any thought. A few more drafts and a good editor would've fixed those problems and would've made the book more enjoyable. 

I feel like there is potential to that story and it seems like people are liking it. That said,  there are a lot more interesting books on my to-read list right now so, Worse Than Wicked will have to be shelved for the foreseeable future.

I will give a more in-depth review once I find the strenght to finish this book.

I love that it was great stead understand why Sophie and the Queen then get along. I love Sophie's character she's smart and funny and caring and beautiful and our own way

An interesting adventure about a teenage girl who desires to grab attention and be liked by others gone wrong when she wanted to meet the Mermaid Queen of the Sea. The adventure was mildly interesting, but easy to read for young readers. The twist of the story came out too soon, but it was a good adventure and unique story involving a lot of family members either aiding or destroying her, accepted her as a half mermaid or dislike her. The Valdzia brainwashing her, making her judgment askew and harming people rather than doing a good deed...this is a good read for young adults and juvenile/middle school readers. (Rating: 4.3 out of 5)

I really enjoyed this!

This book is innovative and delightful. For the most part I really liked all the characters, the flaws and all. The world building was perfect and the growth of the characters throughout the book kept it from getting stale. The only reason I'm giving this 4/5 Stars is because there were moments where things moved slowly. Other than those few moments, the pages seemed to disappear quickly.

Really interesting read, I wasn’t sure if I was going to enjoy at the beginning but it really impressed me, great to watch a MC struggle and not have an say ride, that the questions of power and using it are considered here is great which isn’t always looked at. Interesting read with great questions raised along with a great story

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

When I first started reading this book I couldn't get into it, but then it caught my interest and I couldn't put it down.

This was a great book! 4.5 stars

I have to say that I had low expectations when I started it, but the more I read it, the more I loved it.

It's a story about a girl named Sofi who begged her parents every year to take her to the Queen of mermaids. And they would always tell her that the Queen didn't want her there.

When Sofi meets the Queen and finds the truth about her family and herself, she has to go on a quest to find an ancient magic in order to save her mother.