Pirate's Honor

Bookworm Speaks!Pathfinder Tales: Pirate’s Honorby Chris A. Jackson****Acquired: Amazon.comSeries: Pathfinder TalesPaperback: 400 PagesPublisher: Paizo Inc (May 14, 2013)Language: EnglishSubject: Fantasy, Gaming****The Story: A pirate captain of the Inner Sea, Torius Vin makes a living raiding wealthy merchant ships with his crew of loyal buccaneers. Few things matter more to Captain Torius than ill-gotten gold-but one of those is Celeste, his beautiful snake-bodied navigator. When a crafty courtesan offers the pirate crew a chance at the heist of a lifetime, it's time for both man and naga to hoist the black flag and lead the Stargazer's crew to fame and fortune. But will stealing the legendary Star of Thumen chart the corsairs a course to untold riches-or send them all to a watery grave?The Review: Pirates have been a mainstay of fiction for nearly as long as there have been pirates in the real world. Long John Silver and Captain Blackbeard are practically part of modern day mythology and eye-patched, peg legged figures have been staples of books, toys, video games, movies and much more. The downside to this, is that it can take a bit more effort for prospective creatorsThe best thing about this book is how it takes many familiar aspects of pirate lore and yet give them a distinctive level of detail that sets it apart from many other ‘traditional’ tales of the Seven Seas. It is refreshingly diverse tale in its story as well as characterization and settings.People of Color Characters: Check.Strong Female Characters: Check!A Non-traditional Romance: Check!A culture that is not based entirely on Western Culture: Check!This book hits all the right marks and makes into a clear step in the right direction for writers of fiction while maintaining enough familiar threads to engage long time readers. There is plenty of swashbuckling, high seas action to sate any reader familiar with pirate lore but it takes itself in its own direction that makes it unique. This book takes place in a region of Golarian, the world that Pathfinder takes place in, called the Inner Seas. Unlike a lot of other pirate fiction which is more or less inspired by the pirates of the Caribbean, this book takes a great amount of inspiration from Arabic culture. Torias and other characters are often described as wearing turbans and kaftans and other such garbs and the main antagonist of the final third is described as having dark skin along with other inhabitants of his realm. The importance of diversity in literature cannot be understated.One of the best aspects of the entire novel is the relationship between Celeste and Torias Vin. For starters, while interspecies relationships are not exactly new territory for speculative fiction writers, this one is one of the first where Bookworm one where it was explicitly between a human and distinctly non human character. In this case, a lunar naga in the form of Celeste. For those unfamiliar with the world of Pathfinder, Lunar nagas do not have arms and manipulate objects with magic. They are nocturnal, venemous and can shape shift for brief periods of time. As one could expect, this would create some sharp divisions in a relationship. Celeste is very strong and memorable as a character who possess a certain innocence about her alongside her badass magical skills.Other memorable female characters are the courtesan Vreva Jhafae and the gnome Snick. These and other characters really make this story and each one had a distinctive voice that could be recognized regardless of the context. Just hearing these characters talk to each other was entertaining on its own.This book is not afraid to tackle some important issues that readers can take with them into the real world. What constitutes a healthy relationship is one of them. Without giving too much away…there is a real crisis in the relationship between Torias and Celeste that can leave the reader on the edge of their seats. It doesn’t feel like the forced contrivance that so often plaques fictional romances, it actually feels like something that would crop over the course of such a relationship. While Bookworm did enjoy such a plot thread, they can see how some readers would not be so enthusiastic. Indeed, at times Bookworm did want to get back to the action and not awkward conversations between the pirate and the snake lady. We came here for swords and magic not relationship drama. Thankfully, it is only a single part of a very wide ranging story with plenty of action.The theme of addiction and its devastating consequences is a central theme to this novel. Drugs crop up fairly frequently in speculative fiction but rarely does addiction. The text is not afraid to confront such things in manner that feels realistic rather than preachy. Major kudos to the author for daring to touch upon such a sensitive issue.The plot as whole suffers from perhaps a few too many character perspective and plot threads that really makes the story a bit of mess. The author may have a little trouble making up their mind about what kind of story they were meaning to tell. It comes together by the end of the first act but it all comes out as a bit wobbly on its feet. The narrative was struggling to balance the various plot points. While it succeeds in the end, it did not come off as particularly graceful. The characters and action create enough suspense to keep Bookworm engage but at the same time, Bookworm was telling the story to get on with it and wrap upThe Final Verdict: The best part in reading this novel is that it does not require intimate knowledge of the Pathfinder Universe. This novel can stand on its own as action-packed seafaring adventure with colorful characters that anyone can enjoy.Rating: Four Cutlasses out of Fivethecultureworm.blogspot.com

This book as well as the other two by the same author in the pathfinder tales serires. 'Pirate's promise' and 'Pirate's prophecy' are probably my favorite books as of this time. All around good read. Cool characters all with depth. The main character is fun and relateable while still being serious and competent. The love story between himself and Celeste is interesting and has moments that genuinely make you feel for them while still not overshadowing the rest of the plot. As I said before probably my favorite books to date. Much praise to Chris Jackson for these books.

Torvus is a rare pirate, he has a sense of honor going after items already stolen and with a hatred of slavery. With his lovely navigator Celeste they ply the Inner Sea, but when an offer to steal an ancient necklace comes up, he has to jump at the chance (after all he need to pay his crew). But when the necklace leads the crew into danger due to a grudge by a past caper, Torvus and Celeste must get the help of a famous courtesean to bring about the ultimate heist - and to bring about a good taste of revenge as only a pirate can.The cast and characters are great, from the half orc bosun, to the gnomish artificer Snick. But it is the Captain and Celeste the navigator that really shine in this book. Two different individuals, but with a bond that transcends their lives and species. I hope this gets a series of stories, as I would love to see what this lively cast does next. A must read.

I like the characters of this book, the story and the attention to enough details of old sea travel without bogging the story down with technical minutiae. The characters are colorful, memorable and make sense within the context of the chosen setting. Definitely worth a read if you like golarion, pirate stories or swords & sorcery. The Romance between the captain and his navigator was handled remarkably well given the types of characters they are without glossing over the existence of same or handling it with tasteless attention.Worth the cost of the book and I have recommended the trilogy to other Pathfinder players.

I thought the book was great. I would have liked more explanation of the magic, but I'm sure that's not what the audience for this book was looking for. It was a fantastic read and had a very detailed setting. As a reader, you could tell that Chris is a nautical aficionado.

Pirate's Honor is untarnished. Great read, with a great look at a crew who would follow their Captain to the grave. This Ocean's 13 meets Pirates of the Caribbean hybrid tells a fun and exciting story!

I did not like the characters or the plot and storyline of this book. I couldn't get past the captain loving the female wormish/snake-liked bottomed naga. The story seemed exist only to show how useful it was to a have a Lunar naga aboard.

One of my favorite tales of the Pathfinder series. I mean the story is about pirates, so you can't go wrong.

Ein ehrbarer Pirat? Vielleicht eher ein charmanter Schurke - so könnte man Thoris Vin, Kapitän der "Stargazer" bezeichnen. Konfrontiert mit einem Feind, der sich in Form seiner mächtigen Verbündeten das Ziel setzte ihn und sein Schiff auf den Grund des Meeres zu schicken, verlangt es dem trickreichen Piraten alles ab um einfach nur zu überleben. Er wäre allerdings ein schlechter Pirat, behielte er nicht ein Auge auf die klassische Truhe Gold gerichtet.Ansprechend geschrieben und durch tolle Charaktere lebendig geworden verliert Pirates Honor nie an Fahrt. Volle 5 Sterne für eine spannende Reise, die nicht aufhören sollte...