The Girl from Everywhere, Heidi Heilig

Received to review via Netgalley

I’d heard a little buzz around this book on Twitter, but didn’t know anything about it. Since it was ‘read now’ on Netgalley, and the blurb sounded interesting enough, I picked it up. It turned out to be a pretty quick read — I was surprised to find that it’s actually over 400 pages long — and there’s a lot of intriguing content. The whole concept of Navigating, and the limitations of it; the mythical aspects, especially those surrounding Honolulu; the interplay between the characters, particularly the bond between Nix and Kash.

I am less interested in the love triangle the story plays with; Blake’s regard for Nix rang true enough, but her attraction to him just didn’t seem to measure up against the bond with Kash. Particularly since Kash is charming, confident, knows Nix and has history with her, and says some very sweet things. I thought the flirtation with Blake was a dead end, but the way the ending brings all three together again makes me think it’s more of a love triangle than I originally thought.

Still, even if you find love triangles annoying, there might be enough here to sell you on the book anyway. The idea of being able to sail to anywhere you have a map of and believe in is pretty enchanting, and life aboard ship sounds kind of fun. There could’ve been more by way of development of the other characters — now that I try to think about them, only Slate, Nix and Kash really feel fleshed out, and I’d have especially liked to see more about Bee and her wife.

The ending is definitely open for more books, though I don’t know anything about the plans (series, trilogy, etc) or where exactly it’s going to go, but I’m intrigued enough that I’ll look out for more by Heidi Heilig.

Rating: 4/5