by Victoria McCombs
publisher’s synopsis
It’s dangerous to be a pirate.
The seas have become more threatening than ever, with enemies closing in on all sides. War isn’t just brewing—it’s here, knocking on their doorsteps, threatening to devour them all. And just as she was warned, Emme might have been the one to create the chaos.
In her desperate attempt to keep the fight away, Emme hatches a plan that involves trapping the only one who can put an end to the battles.
But as plans go awry, she discovers she’s not the only one scheming. Eventually she’ll have to accept that she’s no longer playing a role: She’s a pirate now. A pirate who will do what it takes to save her crew, even if it means oathbinding herself one final time.
Savage Bred picks up a little bit after the ending of Silver Bounty, and things are changing for the crew of the Royal Rose.
I rarely find negative character arcs in the main characters, but McCombs did a nice job with Ontario’s negative arc. The progression flowed naturally throughout Savage Bred and was established in the previous two novels. McCombs wrote all of the various characters relationships and arc conclusions well.
Personally, two things created “bumps” in the plot for me. The technology subplot that Ontario gets involved in was a little random at first to me. There didn’t seem to be any foreshadowing in any of the other books for it. While the technology was needed in the plot, I think that the items might have worked better as magical items instead, since that was already established in the story world.
Secondly, Calypso’s orphan ship felt a little off-kilter as well. While it was a sweet element to Calypso’s character, I had some questions about how the children were able to manage the ship and survive while she was gone. That information might have been clumsy to work into the story, but I think it would have grounded that element more. The romance between her and Emeric also felt a little weird after Emeric and Coral being together in the first two books.
Despite the few bumps in my reading experience, Savage Bred was an enjoyable read and conclusion to The Royal Rose Chronicles.
Cautions: semi-graphic moderate/heavy violence; moderate romance; several kisses *
*it’s been a little bit since I finished Savage Bred, so I might have forgotten a caution
Thoughts on the Series: Overall
The Royal Rose Chronicles is a fun YA fantasy pirate adventure. The unreliable narrators create plenty of twists and turns. I found a few world-building elements to be bumps along the way, but the books were still enjoyable. Fans of Pirates of the Caribbean will very likely enjoy the trilogy.
Hailey Huntington 
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