The Wicked Bargain by Gabe Cole Novoa: Worth It?

The Wicked Bargain by Gabe Cole Novoa: Worth it?

By Haylee Crapo

Raging oceans, ships engaging in battle, breaking out of jail–this novel has it all and more. Interested in pirates, demons, and deals with the devil? Keep reading to hear about the book that might have just piqued your interest.

Mars is a transmasculine nonbinary teenager just trying to get through their life as a pirate, while also having to hide the fact that they have magical powers. With the ability to manipulate and create both fire and ice, they must keep this secret hidden within them, lest risk hurting themself and others around them. For the first sixteen years of their life, Mars lives as an undefeated son of an almighty pirate captain…but it all comes crashing down when El Diablo, the devil, comes to town.

El Diablo reveals a secret deal that their father made that had protected Mars for their entire life; now, their father needed to uphold his end of the bargain–the ship, and his life, for the safety of Mars. Now that El Diablo has stolen their father, killed their family, and left Mars with nothing but a deal offer, how will Mars survive? Will they join forces with a different pirate crew, whilst also hiding their magic, or will they take the deal given to them and follow in their father’s footsteps?

The Wicked Bargain was an enjoyable read…however, that was all that I can really say about it. I loved the mixture of magic and pirates, loved the queer representation, but other than that I wasn’t a big fan. The writing style and plot was mostly where I got hung up on; it read like the author's first novel, just somebody dipping their toes into the water of publishing. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, I just wasn’t a fan. The plot was rushed and didn’t make sense at multiple parts, there were different plot points that weren’t explored at all and left me feeling disappointed, and the characters weren’t developed enough at all. Mars and the other supporting cast just didn’t change enough by the end of the novel. When characters did go under development, the way that they did so didn't make sense.

For a spoiler free example: Mars spends most of the novel dealing with the fact that they have these powers that they're scared of and need to keep hidden. In order to overcome this, they must be faced with challenges that, well, challenge them and their feelings towards their powers. This…barely happens. There is one singular event that challenges their feelings towards their powers, and it’s just a convenient event that doesn’t make sense with the world building that we know. It left me more confused and unsatisfied than anything.

Either way, I didn’t enjoy this as much as I wanted to. That’s not to say that it’ll be like this for everyone. If you like pirates and magic then this is a book for you, just heed my warnings first.

2.5/6 stars