Steel Tide (Seafire Series #2)

by Natalie C. Parker

Overview

The second book in a heart-stopping trilogy that follows the captain of an all-female ship hellbent on taking down a vicious warlord's powerful fleet, which Kirkus Reviews called "an immersive, adventurous pleasure that improves on the first book."

Caledonia may have lost her crew, but she's not done fighting yet. After nearly dying at the hand of a powerful foe, Caledonia is pulled from the sea and nursed back to health by a crew of former Bullets who call themselves Blades. The Blades escaped Aric Athair's clutches and now live a nomadic existence, ready to disappear at a moment's notice should trouble come their way.

But Caledonia wants to do more than just hide. She wants to find the Mors Navis and her beloved sisters. She wants to continue fighting Aric's fleet and to take back the Bullet Seas. She'll need to do everything in her power to convince the Blades that fighting is their only option, that there has to be a life better than the one under Aric Athair's reign, and that finding the women of the Mors Navis is the first step to revolution.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780451478849
Publisher:	Penguin Young Readers Group
Publication date:	09/22/2020
Series:	Seafire Series , #2
Pages:	448
Sales rank:	133,825
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.20(h) x 1.30(d)
Lexile:	800L (what's this?)
Age Range:	12 - 17 Years

About the Author

Natalie C. Parker is the author of the Beware the Wild duology, the Seafire trilogy, and the editor of Three Sides of a Heart. She earned her BA in English literature from the University of Southern Mississippi and her MA in gender studies from the University of Cincinnati. She grew up in a navy family finding home in coastal cities from Virginia to Japan. Now she lives surprisingly far from any ocean on the Kansas prairie where she runs Madcap Retreats with her wife. She tweets @nataliecparker.

Editorial Reviews

"Will have readers eager for the final installment. An immersive, adventurous pleasure." —Kirkus

"Parker delivers the same electricity and magic here as she did in Seafire, maintaining a gripping pace and high tension. The story's perilous situations, non-stop adventure, and refreshingly unpredictable plot twists rise easily to the surface, but the tale also plumbs the depths of war's gray areas, questioning whether any side in a war can truly be all good or all bad." —Booklist

"Steel Tide returns readers to the exciting world of piracy and peril but also distinguishes itself as a character-driven saga, led by a dynamic female protagonist and filled with riveting secondary characters. In this tale of heroism and heart, readers will find themselves delightfully captured by Caledonia and her crew, quickly turning page after page and savoring each moment of the journey." —VOYA

PRAISE FOR SEAFIRE:

"One of the most spell-binding adventures of the year. This is female piracy at its best." —The San Francisco Chronicle

"The best kind of fantasy. . . . impossible to put down." —Paste

"The pace of the book is fast and relentless, and the action sequences tense and believable, but the best moments are the ones in which the female relationships shine." —NPR

"One of the year's most anticipated new fantasies." —Entertainment Weekly

"A fast-paced, thrilling tale." —BuzzFeed

“Incredible.” —SyFy Wire

"This is Mad Max by way of Davy Jones, a high-energy, breathless adventure." —Booklist

"A gutsy tale of sisterhood, courage, and unshakeable trust. You don’t want to miss this book!” —Julie Murphy, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Dumplin'
 
“In these turbulent times, Seafire gives teens just what they need: A reminder that with unity and courage, they can rise up and ultimately change the world." —Dhonielle Clayton, New York Times bestselling author of The Belles series
 
“As smart, ferocious, and uncompromising as its crew, Seafire is the adventure you’re looking for. I have such a crush on this book!" —Kiersten White, New York Times bestselling author of And I Darken

From the Publisher

2019-06-15
Following Seafire (2018), Caledonia needs new allies in her continuing fight against Aric's tyranny.

After being badly wounded, Caledonia wakes up in a camp of renegade former Bullets. Having shaken their forced drug addictions to Silt, they call themselves Blades and have built a small culture where consent is paramount. Caledonia's convalescence with the Blades opens the door for more worldbuilding but soon is interrupted by Bullet hostility. Caledonia, who's been eager to get back to sea, rallies the Blades in a scheme to steal a ship with a deal—they help her get a ship, and she'll help them break the Net and escape Aric's sphere of control. But a revelation intensifies her need to find her crew without delay. The fast-paced plot—packed with fight scenes, naval battles, and adventurous sailing—still manages to devote time to fleshing out the philosophies and agency of secondary characters as well as Caledonia's struggles and growth as a leader of an unconventional coalition. Romantic storylines for the most part take a back seat in favor of more pressing survival concerns, though queer relationships are positively represented. Race's only significance is descriptive—most characters are varying shades of brown, though some—like Caledonia—are white. The explosive finale breaks the fictional world's status quo in a way that will have readers eager for the final installment.

An immersive, adventurous pleasure that improves on the first book. (Post-apocalyptic/science fiction. 12-adult)

Kirkus Reviews