Monday, November 14, 2011

The Mark of the Golden Dragon by L.A. Meyer

The full title is actually The Mark of the Golden Dragon, Being an Account of the Further Adventures of Jacky Faber, Jewel of the East, Vexation of the West, and Pearl of the South China Sea. It is the ninth book in the Jacky Faber series (see the full list here), which centers on Jacky Faber, an orphan from a poor area of England who ran away to sea in the first book (when she was like 10 or 12) and has been having exciting adventures one the high seas  and trying to live happily ever after with Jaimy Fletcher, love of her life, ever since (she's now 17 or 18). Before I jump into my review of the most recent one, I'll do a quick review of what we've had so far.
  1. Bloody Jack
  2. The Curse of the Blue Tattoo
  3. Under the Jolly Roger
  4. In the Belly of the Bloodhound
  5. Mississippi Jack
  6. My Bonny Light Horseman
  7. Rapture of the Deep
  8. In the Wake of the Lorelei Lee
So, Jacky pretended to be a boy, ran away to sea, became a pirate, escaped from a slave ship, came to America, fought in the Napoleonic War, searched for treasure and escaped from a convict ship (her own ship) bound for New South Wales, Australia. Currently, she is marooned on Burma with a small boy (Ravi) she picked up in India and everyone she knows thinks she's dead! 

On to the actual review!

My Thoughts:
  1. This is a good installment, in my opinion. Adventure, romance, intrigue - it's all there. 
  2. Some might think a series gets a little ridiculous by the 9th installment, and, in this case, they'd be partially right. This series isn't classic literature nor is it going for a realistic depiction of early nineteenth-century life. However, it is a fun, interesting, and entertaining read. 
  3. Jacky is fun and likable, and her ongoing romance with Jaimy (and Randall and Jared and Arthur and Richard) is equal parts adorable, angsty, and amusing. 
Who Should Read It:
  • People who have read the rest of the series. If you liked that, you'll like this.
  • If you like historical fiction, you'll probably enjoy this one. 
Final Score:
  • Entire series: 10/10
  • Mark of the Golden Dragon: 9/10
For more information, check out the author's website here

Next, I'll probably reviewing Beautiful Chaos by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl, so stay tuned!

    4 comments:

    1. Sounds very interesting! I love your blog, I have so many books I need to read now thanks to your blog!

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    2. I'll have to check this one out. Out of curiosity, have you ever read The Golden Compass or The Hornblower Chronicles? Both great alternate history/historical fiction books.

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    3. @Conlon No, I haven't, but I might check them out! thanks for the rec! :)

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    4. This sounds like it would be a good read. Although I haven't read this story, I couldn't help but laugh when you listed the multiple people that the character has had ongoing romances with. It really shows that you get into books, especially when reading your reviews!

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