Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales: The Brightest Star in the North: The Adventures of Carina Smyth by Meredith Rusu

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales: The Brightest Star in the North: The Adventures of Carina Smyth Reviews

• 
  Rob Chappell

  I finished reading this book within 5 days of buying it at my local Barnes & Noble store. The narrative was fast-paced, action-packed, and very engrossing. Its portrayal of how women were locked out of the scientific enterprise in the 18th century (and before) is accurate and, at times, heart-wrenching. The tie-ins with the world of Pirates of the Caribbean were well-orchestrated, with just the right amount of background information given, and lengthy expositions were kept to a minimum. Readers can definitely appreciate this tale without any prior knowledge of the Disney pirates and their cinematic legendarium.
  
  I gave this book 4 stars instead of 5 because it contains some rather glaring astronomical inaccuracies. For example, there is no star named Carina in the northern hemisphere of the sky's dome; rather, Carina is the name of an entire constellation in the southern hemisphere of the sky's dome. Ouch! Also, the "blood moon" phenomenon was not adequately explained as being total eclipses of the Moon. Historical inaccuracies can be found here and there, and are to be expected in a fantasy novel, but the one inaccuracy that stands out for me is the fact that the execution of alleged witches did not take place in the British Empire after the early years of the 18th century. Finally, it would have been nice if the author had mentioned some female scientists in her narrative, by way of comparison with Carina, the young woman who became a self-educated astronomer during the course of the narrative. I'm thinking here of luminaries like Hypatia of Alexandria, Galileo's daughter (Sister Maria Celeste), and Caroline Herschel.
  
  All in all, a ripping good yarn -- just beware of these inaccuracies, but don't let them detract from your enjoyment of an otherwise fascinating and well-plotted tale.
• 
  Nicole

  **SPOILERS**
  I have to say I really love this book. When I saw Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, I liked Carinas character so I was really glad they made a book on her backstory. Even though she made me nervous a few times when she would sneak out or sneak around, but overall I found her adventurous and inspiring. I also liked that that we got to see her thoughts during the Dead Men Tell No Tales storyline.
  The scene where Carina asks Barbossa what she is to him and he answers treasure. I swear I cried so much. I never liked Barbossa that much but that scene was just beautiful. We have never seen that side of Barbossa and it was nice to see that protective/loving father come out. I wish Carina and Barbossa got to know each other more.
  One last thing I wanted to add is the relationship between Carina and Henry. When the preview first came out about Henry seeing her ankles, I immediately shipped them. Those two throughout the story were absolutely adorable. The little teasing and the blushing. So adorable. I hope we get a 6th Pirates movie. I want another adventure with Will and Jack, and Henry and Carina.
• 
  Robin

  Loved being back in the POTC world, seeing things from Carina her point of view. It was a quick but fun read.
• 
  dani

  Ugh yes. All of the Pirates things always.
• 
  Raymond Just

  An enjoyable prequel/novelization of the latest film in the franchise.
• 
  Cynthia

  I really enjoyed the first three parts of the story, when it was closed third person point of view with Carina's thoughts. This was all new material and helped explain the phrase of how she cataloged over two hundred stars, as stated in the fifth Pirates of the Caribbean movie, Dead Men Tell No Tales. She always was a spunky girl, though orphaned at birth; getting into trouble, but being able to turn the situation to her needs. Galileo Galilei's journal, her birthright, was left with her by her father and it's this artifact that she constantly looks to for guidance and a moral compass.
  
  The fourth part of the novel is a retelling of the movie, changing to omniscient third person point of view, so we get all the action. There's very little of Carina's inner thoughts mixed in. We don't get her reasoning for why she likes Henry Turner, other than they both are looking for their fathers. For being strictly a woman of science, it's also not explained how she comes to terms with the magical world she now finds herself in; she's seen Ghost Pirates and witnessed the transformation of a ship in a bottle becoming a real life ship. Also, we did not get any hints or clues that she started to figure out who her father might be. As I said, it was a play by play of the movie, so we got surface details, nothing going too deep.
  
  Reading this definitely makes me want to watch POTC Dead Men Tell No Tales!
• 
  Cathie Maud

  Carina Smyth's backstory was fast-paced and intriguing, although plot-wise, very conveniently lucky every single time. However, it was on the whole, engagingly told. As soon as her story caught up with the movie though, the narration became stilted and forced, trying excessively hard to stick to the movie story-line (which is understandable) and yet not adding in any of the previous writing flair and style that the author exhibited (a great shame).
  
  Good to read this once, if only for the little history tidbit that women were once forbidden to study/learn in the field of science.
• 
  Kimberly

  I read through in one sitting. Definitely a good story because I knew I liked a lot of the characters
• 
  Gloria Michelle

  I didn't think this could be possible, but this book made me appreciate Carina even more. Great character, if there will be more movies I hope we'll see more of her.
• 
  Dee Jane

  Although I'm still wondering how did the woman and men in the festival know about Carina's diary and what's the reason why her father brought her to an orphanage and left with her the diary, I still love this book! There was never a dull moment reading this book and just like that it became my favorite! I especially love the adventure! I'm just glad I watched the movie because the second half of this book is just similar to the movie. It's good as I was recollecting memories from the movie reliving it once more as I was reading this. Carina is truly a favorite character in this book no question. She is persistent, very cunning and does not back down easily despite the outcome of her quest to find the truth. When I was watching the movie I was very curious of this woman and so when I saw this book at the book sale I did not hesitate to buy it. I thought this is going to be good and I was not wrong at all. I want more of her she is insatiable.
  
  The author's writing is one thing also I love about this book. It is precise and well written at least for my liking.
  
  I will re read this for sure...
• 
  Nicole

  I really liked Carina in the film, so I was excited to see that she has her book. I enjoyed reading about her life prior to meeting Jack and Henry, especially her friendships and how she broke barriers to become an astronomer.
  
  She goes through a lot of struggle, which I liked seeing because it made her actions even greater. She is too curious for her own good, but that’s what makes her an amazing character.
  
  That said, it could have focused more on her life before Jack and Henry. Too much of it was straight from the film, which is fine because we do get more of her perspective during such scenes and the Barbossa reveal is amazing, but I’ve watched the movie. It didn’t feel different or groundbreaking.
  
  Still a fun read about a wonderful female character.
• 
  Книжни Криле

  Докато страховитите (и в някои случаи чаровни) карибски пирати се готвят отново да вземат на абордаж кино салоните, вълните изхвърлиха на брега едно ново четиво с логото на една от най-обичаните и успешни поредици на „Дисни”. От „Егмонт България” до нас достига „Карибски пирати: Най-ярката звезда на Севера”, нов младежки роман, който да ви подгрее за премиерата на „Отмъщението на Салазар”. Прочетете ревюто на "Книжни Криле":
  
  
  https://knijnikrile.wordpress.com/201...
• 
  Amanda Wilcox

  As many reviews state, this book starts as a prequel to the last Pirates of the Caribbean movie. It focuses on Carina Smyth's back story from birth until 19, and then the last quarter of the book is a very well written version of the movie from her perspective. It transitions seamlessly and kept me turning pages the whole time. I love all things pirates and this book didn't disappoint! If you enjoy pirates in general or specifically the movie series, you need to give this story a go. Definite recommend.
• 
  Stephanie Melchiore

  It took me a while to get into this book. I love the movies so much so reading about my favorite characters is always a nice thing. It had a lot of lead up story that was honestly a bit dragging. Some of what happens is really ‘convenient’ and unlikely. But once the story got going it went too fast and was jumbled into a few chapters. I would’ve liked a slower ending and a faster beginning. All in all it was a fun read.
• 
  Alandra

  I honestly enjoyed this book more than the movie; they toned down the questionable comments that demean women (it is targeted for MG, after all), and several of the nuances were clearer to me in print than in film.
  
  Overall, adventurous and fun! (If you can get past the four titles.) It's not intended to be historically accurate so I didn't take it to be. :)
  
  Enjoy!
• 
  Tabitha

  This book is fun and very fast paced. I do wonder if someone who hasn't seen the movies would understand the second half, though. But if you like the movie(s) and you like Carina Smythe as a character, it's a fun book that you can read in a few hours.
• 
  Amber

  The story of Carina Smyth. Not much else to say really. Well-written and entertaining. Though the detail is very light throughout the movie portion.
• 
  Hettie

  The first half of this book was enjoyable, the second half was literally just trying to write out the film in the clumsiest way possible
• 
  Anna Stokes

  I read this with my 11 year old step son. He and I both loved it!
• 
  Shayla

  Loved every bit of this adventure from start to finish!
• 
  Leona

  Every time I read the part where Carina realized that Barbossa is the father she's been searching for, I always end up in tears up to this date. It's a pirate's life for Hector, Indeed.
• 
  Denise Mitchell

  i had a reading slump early this year and i was looking for the right piece to draw me into reading again. thank god i found this treasure. i really enjoyed every bit of this book.
• 
  Nora

  If you love the movie you will love the book more. I could not put it down and finished it in a day :)
• 
  Elizabeth

  Super cute book I really enjoyed it