A review by charliauthor
Voyage of the Damned by Frances White

funny hopeful mysterious slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

'They would be exiled and killed if discovered. But they did it anyway. Because humans should help humans. Regardless of what side of a wall they were born on.'

Well that was a chore!

It took me a while to read this book simply because I wasn't really invested in the mystery or the main character and everything other than a new death, felt like filler or some poorly landed jokes and other forms of sarcasm.
While by the end there was some social/political commentary that I enjoyed, it wasn't enough to make this book truly stand out to me. True, the magic system was original but other than a snarky male MC, there wasn't much else going for it in my opinion. Its a murder mystery and the eventually reveal of who and why felt disappointing as I felt I had to suffer through so much to get to...that.

I did however like a lot of the humour and the diverse cast who didn't all necessarily feel forced. The main character himself is gay and there was a non binary character along with characters representing various races and nations which I loved.