A very refreshing fantasy story that manages to grip its reader's attention very quickly.

Getting into the book proved to be rather easy, which I highly appreciate. From the very beginning, you get a sense of the truly unique magic system and it wasn't difficult to understand or to follow. Very quickly I also realized that the world-building was done properly, and it wasn't one-dimensional at all. Every island was distinct from each other, and in my head, I didn't confuse them all the time. The same goes for the characters. All the characters, may they have been the protagonists or the side characters, were easily distinguishable and it was almost impossible to confuse them.

Unfortunately, though, I didn't find myself caring for the characters or their relationship. I almost wish the romance would've been left out completely as I didn't feel the connection between the characters. I also have to say that any of the characters could've died and I wouldn't have cared that much.

The ending does make the sequel sound very promising and I'll certainly pick it up because I'm curious to see how the story continues.

Thanks to Titan Books and NetGalley for the Advance Review Copy in exchange for an honest review.

I just couldn't get on with this book at all. I really disliked the main character and I felt that everything that happened was incredibly predictable. It just wasn't for me, review not posted anywhere else.

First of all, look at this amazing cover! It's so beautiful!

I so didn't expect to enjoy this. Especially given my recent failures with Ya, I was afraid that I wouldn't like this one either but... Honestly, give me some pirates and I'm all sold, this was really good. Kind of reminded me of The Daughter of the pirate King but that's mostly bc it has pirates and mermaids in it, not because it's similar in any way.

I liked the story, the characters and the magic! It's not often we see blood magic in books 😍

This book was really cute and entertaining! It was a fast read that I would definitely recommend. I read it over the summer and it was the perfect fantasy book for it.

3.5 stars

Princess Amora Montara will one day replace her father as ruler of Visidia and High Animancer.
Each island in Visidia is home to a different kind of magic, but only the Montaras can perform soul magic, which is extremely dangerous.
Amora must prove herself ready to rule by giving a display of her magic, but when this goes terribly awry, Amora ends up fleeing her home with the aid of Bastien, a pirate. Bastien agrees to help Amora on the condition that she will aid him in his quest to get his stolen magic back.
As Amora travels the seas of the kingdom, she encounters danger, a terrible new kind of magic, and dark secrets that threaten to destroy the everything.
Can Amora save Visidia?
Can she prove that she is worthy of the crown?

All the Stars and Teeth was one of my most anticipated releases of 2020 and I was very excited when I heard that Titan Books would be publishing it in the UK.
Amora is one of the best YA fantasy protagonists I've encountered for a long while. She was relatable, likeable, and would do anything for her people. Amora wasn't afraid to get her hands dirty, and while she wasn't perfect (which I always appreciate when it comes to characters), Amora was definitely someone I would want to have on my side - I would not want her as my enemy, that's for sure!
Vataea was one of my favourite characters and I would love to find out more about her. I also liked Ferrick and Bastien, and while I didn't like Bastien quite as much as I thought I would, I still found him witty and charming at times.
The romance wasn't one of my favourites that I've read, but there were moments where it was quite sweet.
The magic was really interesting, especially the soul magic. I liked that Amora's magic was rather dark - it was different and refreshing as usually it's the baddies that have darker magic.
I really liked that there was period representation, which I haven't seen often in books I've read.
The plot was interesting and held my attention throughout. There were a few things that I didn't see coming, but I wasn't on the edge of my seat.
The writing was easy to follow and I would definitely read another book by this author.

Overall, this was an enjoyable, unique read that I would recommend.

All the Stars and Teeth is the kind of fast-paced YA fantasy that will pull readers in from the start, with magic and action, and a compelling sea setting. I think many people will fall in love with the world Adalyn Grace created, with its different islands and magics, with sea monsters and other legendary creatures, and a princess meant to prove her worth as the next High Animancer—and, ultimately, the future queen.

What I really liked about his book was the friendship group, the Keel Haul crew; made up of a princess on a quest to redeem herself, a pirate whose magic has been stolen, a noble with the power to heal himself and others, and a cunning mermaid. Their friendship really made this book for me, and I started to truly enjoy the story as soon as they all came together and worked towards the same goal.

The starting point of this story surprised me, too, and I enjoyed that a lot. It was different from what I expected, because the protagonist, Amora, is unquestionably morally grey in her actions and believes. Especially in the beginning she makes a lot of mistakes, which leads to her having to prove her worth to the kingdom and her subjects for the entirety of the book.

I think All the Stars and Teeth is an ambitious debut with a wonderfully sea-centered setting and a magical world that promises adventure and many breathless moments to all its readers. I would’ve liked to learn a bit more about the different kinds of magic, about the islands and their people, about the legendary creatures and weapons—I also would’ve liked to get more of a glimpse into the motivations of the side characters, and even the villain, because although I liked Amora as a protagonist, this story was very focused on her and her journey.

Overall, I think that All the Stars and Teeth is an imaginative debut and I recommend it to fans of To Kill a Kingdom, or just books with morally grey protagonists in general—readers who enjoy main characters that have a darker side to them, that are ambitious to a fault, but that also fight for what they believe in: this book is for you.

My favourite thing about this book was that it was set at sea!

Overall
This will sound harsh but bear with me: I struggled a bit in the beginning. The story felt boring in the beginning. Elements of the story were predictable from the start and I could see where the main turns would be from the first few chapters. As the characters got on the ship (which is only a few chapters in) I started to enjoy it more. I think this had something to do with the main character enjoyed her life more too. I seem, throughout the story, to have the same feelings as the main character. When she didn't enjoy it, I didn't enjoy it either. When she was enjoying it, so was I. And I only realised this in the end. I think this is a solid complement to the writing of the story, to make me feel the same way. The journey turned out to be a fun ride however my predictions did come true and didn't surprise me which was a shame but expected.

Magic system
This was interesting. There are lots of magic in here. It's all surrounding your own abilities but you can choose which direction to go. It felt like everyone had magic to varying degrees but their speciality was depending on their interest, like choosing your university major. There was healing, enchantments, soul, curses and water magic to name a few. A lot of the story centres around the magic and how the kingdom is built around it.

Writing
The writing was fine. I had no obstacles to the writing but it didn't blow me away either. It was easy to read and flowed nicely. It felt like a debut author (which she is), I look forward to seeing her build her skills and develop her language in the future.

Summary
An enjoyable read set at sea but not my favourite of the year. I will definitely check out the next book in the series :)

A good fantasy novel with an excellent world building and magical system.
It's engrossing and entertaining even if a bit slow at times.
I liked the characters but I hope there will be more character development in the next instalment.
There's a strong feminist tone and even if it uses tropes like pirates and princesses they are well done and interesting.
I look forward to reading the next instalment, recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

Thank you to Netgalley, Titan Books & Adalyn Grace for my arc of All the Stars and Teeth in exchange for an honest review.

Synopsis: Amora Montara has spent her whole life learning the soul magic of her family. As princess set to inherit the title of High Animacer she knows the importance of protecting her people from the Beast who would kill them all should this dangerous magic not be kept under control. To prove her mastery of the magic she must perform for the people and show them she is capable of ruling. But when things take an unexpected and terrible turn for the worst, Amora runs away from her island with the mysterious and rather handsome pirate Bastian. If Amora will help him reclaim his stolen magic he will help her reclaim the respect of her people and her right to rule. But there is much at stake with dangerous new magic afoot, perilous seas, mermaids and curses can Amora and Bastian truly bring peace back to the kingdom?

Ok so this was hands down the BEST fantasy book I've read for a while. I loved Amora's world, the PERFECT flirting/frenemies to lovers vibe going on between her and Bastian. The lore and magic was so original and wonderfully dark it didn't shy away from elements which some might find a little icky to say the least! I loved how Amora wasn't portrayed as a typical princess but a perfectly REAL person, a perfectly REAL girl. Yes she loves fashion and dresses but yes she also loves ships and sailing and dark magic that involves stripping the meat off people's bones and I am here for her so much. I loved how flawed her character was, I loved the way she was so independent and determined to rely on nobody else. Fantastic character driven story and I cannot wait for the next instalment, highly recommended!

All the Stars and Teeth has an interesting premise – a princess with a unique and dangerous magic who must take her throne by showing her might, but ends up on the run with a mysterious and snarky pirate who wants to save the world. It has all the elements of a good YA fantasy, but unfortunately I just didn’t find this unique enough to stand out.

I really enjoyed the sea aspects of the story. Grace makes it very easy for the reader to imagine this magical island world, where each island represents a different type of magic. We have wind weavers and healers, time manipulators and soul stealers. Each magical system feels distinct and interesting, but I don’t think we really got to examine a lot of the world itself to fully appreciate this.

There’s also plenty of action, and the pacing is pretty good as we hop from island to island, but the plot itself is extremely predictable and one I’ve seen done a hundred times before. AT times, the logic is also rather questionable, with characters with specific traits that are needed to advance the plot just happening upon our group. I won’t even go into all the ways the mermaid character just didn’t make sense to me, how she is basically just there as a deus ex machina, and woefully underdeveloped. She had so much potential to be this sassy, smart mouthed independent woman…and she just felt very one dimensional.

I also didn’t really feel connected to the other characters. Amora is a very stereotypical YA princess, one of those ‘I’m just a girl’ chosen types who can miraculously slay sea demons and wants to do everything for the better of the kingdom. It got old rather quickly, and I just wanted to see more of a personality and character growth. The hints of romance were quite good, and I did get invested in the overt sexual tension and sort of love triangle that isn’t – but again, why try and pair everyone off? Not everyone needs a love interest to be a worthwhile character.

That said, this was a reasonably fun ride despite the tropes. The writing is good, and I felt invested enough in the plot to want to find out what happened. I just won’t be in a hurry to pick up the concluding book.

[insert all the hearteyes here] – All the Stars and Teeth is magnificent! Best thing about it? Not. A. Single. Moment. of. Cringe. But banter, charisma and wondrous adventure is plentiful. And the writing…

Oh, the writing! Sublime. I swallowed every word of description, dialogue and backstory. I mean, something as mundane as sailing with a ship was described so well, I wanted to set sail, ahoy!

On top of a complicated and dangerous magical system, we have some royalty having to face the music of decisions past. Yes, the premise revolves around royalty but it’s anything but simple, rinse-repeat court drama- it’s a breathtaking adventure on sea, a quest to clear a name, save a people and win a rightful place. All the while there are some mega kick-ass feels bouncing off the page, driven by solid characters.

Yes, there is nothing complicated in the entirety of the book and yet the magic system is intriguing, unique and poses an interesting conflict. There is after all, beauty and cleverness to be found in simplicity. But, I can’t help and say I felt entirely excited throughout the whole story. It simply is fresh and utterly enjoyable. Some books simply have that magic. You can’t quite put your finger on it, what makes it so brilliant, but there it is, all-consuming!

If at the end of the book there were words ‘mic drop’ instead of ‘The End’ then they would be completely justified. All the Stars and Teeth is positively engrossing with the princess, the pirate, the mermaid… For me, it is 2020’s biggest YA fantasy and I cannot wait to read what happens next…

I really enjoyed this book and was hooked from the start. This book had a great sense of adventure, which is something that other YA fantasy books have been lacking lately. It was fun to read but also had a darker plot and was actually pretty gory.

The world was really interesting and I loved the magic. I thought the world building was good throughout and we got to see a lot of the world but also the history of Amoras family and magic. I liked that there was a lot of different kinds of magic that were useful for different things. The plot was very enjoyed and well paced throughout! There was a lot of action and fight scenes that were pretty violent for a YA but I enjoyed this, it did not shy away from blood and guts.

I really liked the characters, Amora especially, she was badass and scary in a fight but she was also very caring and wanted the best for her people. I did like watching them all become a crew and interact. I did think that the romance could have included more flirting before the kissing but thats a minor issue. Some good friendships have formed from this adventure which will be needed in the next book!

I really enjoyed this book but I did find some of the plot to be quite basic and similar to other fantasies. But I think it was done really well and I was hooked. I loved the adventure and it was a fun read! Overall a really great adventure with lots of fighting, great characters, good plot and lots of gore! I'm looking forward to the sequel.

I didn’t get a chance to read this or download it before it was archived but I have seen many amazing reviews for this book and about the author that I will be buying it so I can read it.

I read a lot of YA fiction and am partial to fantasy. I’d heard a lot of good things about this book and was really looking forward to reading it. I really loved it. Amora is a great character, feisty and determined. She’s been raised in privilege as a Princess expected to rule the kingdom one day. When she discovers the truth about the kingdom, the atrocities her father has washed his hands off and turned away from she steps up, determined to help her people and right her father’s and ancestors wrongs. You go girl! I loved the way magic is portrayed in this book, it’s so unique and interesting especially Amora’s soul magic which is really creepy and intense. The other characters are all well-written. This is a well-written, engaging and completely original book. I loved it. The ending makes it clear there will be a sequel which I can’t wait to read.

I was actually pleasantly surprised by this! I found this to be very enjoyable, if a bit predictable and typical YA fantasy. I thought the characters all had distinct voices and their dynamics were lots of fun to read about. I also found the first half of the book to be a bit of a trudging match, however I feel this is just a common trend with books that are first in their series. I’ll definitely have to keep my eyes peeled for book two.

The book follows Amora, a Princess who must pass a trial to be officially considered and accepted as the heir to the throne. She wields a dangerous magic that only her family has access to. When she fails the gruesome trial, she flees with the help of a pirate and her betrothed, who follows them to an enchanted ship. Amora has a plan. Defeat Kaven, a rogue man who took control of a prohibited island and who threatens to destroy her family, and go back to her island to take her place as the heir and High Animancer. But her journey uncovers ugly truths about her family and their actions which makes her question whether or not she deserves the throne at all.

Amora is a very driven character with a sprinkle of chosen one existential crisis thrown into the mix. Her lack of knowledge strikes me as lazy and naive, which is not supposed to be a trait associated with her. But I find it hard to believe that she couldn’t go to a library and look for old history books to find that her family is pretty much a bunch of power-hungry bastards. The fact that all her life she accepted whatever her father spoon fed her without question and yet knew he was hiding stuff from her didn’t feel consistent or logical.

Bastien is the typical mysterious boy who hates the protagonist but must work with her in order to succeed in his plan. He also has a few secrets that Amora is dying to know and he is a pirate so he’s very sexy...

Ferrick is the best friend in love with Amora and her betrothed. He is jealous and possessive of her, yet a perfectly nice and helpful character who follows her to make sure she’s not in danger with a random. I feel that his possessiveness is there as a reason for the MC to dislike him and kick him to the curb so she can smooch the pirate. Ferrick is a perfectly good guy imo and I wish the author hadn’t chosen this route to create romantic conflict.

I did like the boys, although Ferrick’s possessiveness was annoying. Amora was okay. I liked her drive and determination but there were inconsistencies with her character that made me roll my eyes.

The pacing and action was good. I liked that they visited different islands and lore was super interesting.

This is story has such a complex world-building with a very intriguing magic systems and that’s my favourite thing in fantasy books. I love the how the islands have different powers, colours and gems associated with them as well as lifestyles, clothing and appearances.

The plot was mostly basic with a few predictable twists but still enjoyable and gripping enough to keep me reading.

So, overall, I did enjoy it and think it has lots of potential to be a great series!

Amora Montara is the heir to Visidian throne, training to become the High Animancer — the master of souls. Only her family can wield the dangerous and powerful soul magic. When a demonstration of her power goes horribly wrong, Amora is forced to flee. With the help of her fiancée and a handsome but shady pirate she embarks on a journey to prove herself. But with time she discovers that dark forces are at work in her kingdom, and it will take all the power she has to defeat them.

This book is utterly original, and such a joy to read. Set in a vividly written and incredibly interesting world, the story is full of twists and turns and never goes where you expect it to. Amora is such a fantastic main character--I loved the way her character developed with time, and how her journey was not without (sometimes severe) set-backs. I found myself rooting for her so much, and cannot wait to find out how her story continues.

Another thing that makes this book great are the side characters. All of them are brilliantly written, from multi-faceted pirate Bastian to the completely badass mermaid Vataea. Every single sub-plot was so interesting, and even the smallest side characters felt real and fleshed-out.

This is a perfect book for fans of "Scavenge the Stars", "House of Salt and Sorrows" or "Bone Crier's Moon". It is a brilliantly original, page-turning adventure story set in a fascinating world, and I cannot wait for the sequel to come out!

I enjoyed this, a fun story to escape into, and has all the elements of childhood reading: pirates and princesses! But in this book our princess doesn't need to be rescued, she's got her own plans, so there's a strong feminist tone. The plot revolves around magic and the main setting is out on the ocean, and for a YA is doesn't hold back on the violence, so be warmed of you're sensitive. I'm not, so enjoyed the drama of the ride!
Great entertainment and storytelling for a fun afternoon read in this high octane fantasy world.

This was an enjoyable read and although I found the world building, magic system and oceanic setting really interesting and original, I really hope the second novel veers from those common tropes to spice it up a little and develop characters a little more!

Overall, I liked the characters and our main character Amora but it did take a little longer to warm up to her than I anticipated. I will definitely pick up the next novel in the series as I look forward to seeing what will happen next following some twists towards the ending. I hope the pacing in the next book picks up a little quicker now that the magics and world building have been established as I would love to delve into the relationships and nuances of this new YA series more!

A book about pirates, mermaids, princesses, dark magic and curses? Say no more! I couldn't resist to not read this book. Just look at the stunning cover. How you can not hear its screaming "Read me!"? If All the stars and teeth is not on your wishlist than it should!

I loved the story. I finished it so fast that I can't believe I have to wait for book 2. For me, the plot is unique and astonishing. The world building is interesting, it remembers me of The raven and the dove. My favourite is the map at the beginning and this one is really gorgeous. The idea of the different magics, especially the soul magic, is what it got me. The soul magic makes the book darker because it's not just a soul reading as you think at first. It's more! And dangerous!

Amora is my favourite character. The princess who doesn't need a prince to save her. Or a pirate. She just use him for her purpose. She trusts no one, she has her secrets, she has just her will to change the world. And her magic. Bastian is different. He has his problems, his secrets. A pirate who wants to save the world. Not just his rum.

The book is full with adventures, sea monster, twists and more. A YA fantasy that should be in everyone's shelves. Thank you TitanBooks for the book in exchange for an honest review.