Tiger's Voyage by Colleen HouckSeries: The Tiger Saga #3
Published by: Sterling on November 1, 2011
Genre: Adventure, Fantasy, Mythology, Paranormal, Romance
Pages: 543
Source: Purchased
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Rating: ★★★
Danger. Heartbreak. Choices.
Is forever too long to wait for true love?
Five mythical Chinese dragons and the open sea beckon nineteen-year-old Kelsey who must embark on a third voyage—this time to find the goddess Durga's Black Pearl Necklace and free her beloved Ren from both the tiger's curse and his sudden amnesia. Ren's bad-boy brother, Kishan, however, has other plans, and the two vie for her affection and try to outsmart those intent on foiling their goal.
Tiger's Voyage, the third book in the Tiger's Curse series, spins a deliciously suspenseful tale of enchanted creatures, love-torn hearts, and edge-of-your-seat action as Kelsey, Ren, and Kishan journey toward their true destiny.
My feelings for Tiger’s Voyage are very similar to my feelings for Tiger’s Quest: UGGGHHH!!
First of all, this book in the series starts reeking of Twilight. We have an annoying love triangle, Ren is in physical pain when he’s near to or touching Kelsey, he decides to leave Kelsey because he “can’t protect her” or “can’t save her” or “might hurt her” or some crap and in order to get Kelsey to take him seriously he has an “I don’t love you” speech, and after Ren’s rejection Kelsey turns to the “second best” option (Kishan), and then there’s the whole thing with every man in the universe drooling over Kelsey — the supposedly ‘plain’ and ‘average’ girl. I feel like the love triangle is completely ruining this series.
Kishan actually turns out to be an okay guy, but only because he completely turns into “the old Ren” (Ren before he lost his memory and became a giant annoying douche). So although I liked his character, I hated that he basically stole Ren’s personality. He becomes the sweet, caring, selfless guy, who will “always be there for Kelsey no matter what,” and so on. I mean it’s sweet and they have some great moments, but I couldn’t enjoy it because if we did a search and replace from “Kishan” to “Ren,” I would have 100% believed Kishan was Ren. Kishan’s personality in Tiger’s Voyage is vastly different from who he was in Tiger’s Curse. That’s not usually a horrible thing, because I know people change, but I literally felt like he just morphed into Ren.
And then on the flip side, Ren becomes a pretentious asshole. I hated who he became when lost his memories of Kelsey. He literally said something to Kishan like, “How did I fall in love with her? She’s not even that pretty.” That’s major paraphrasing, but that was the gist of his meaning. Then, after he and Kelsey start trying to make things work and he decides to break up with her, he starts flirting with completely shallow bimbos and just acting like a completely different person. Then later, he starts demanding that Kelsey wear her hair a certain length, even though she wants it cut differently.. what the heck!
If it weren’t for this insanely annoying and frustrating love triangle (which at one point became more like 3 guys drooling over Kelsey), Tiger’s Voyage would have been an awesome book. Like with the first two, the mythology and adventure is absolutely amazing. We get to read about some fabulous Indian and Chinese stories, and oh my god, we get DRAGONS!!! The dragons were completely different from what I expected, but in a fabulous way. I was expecting crazy fearsome beasts, but they’re actually very intelligent beings that have to give Kelsey & Co. guidance and direction. They have very specific purposes and places in the world. Reading about this dragon mythology was definitely the highlight of the book!
What sucks is that if it weren’t for the love triangle disaster, I think this would be one of my all time favourite books/series. The story is so incredible and I love all the details and the mythology and the fantasy! And when the romance is going the way I like it—with Ren and Kelsey happily together—it is so gorgeous and swoony and I love every second of it. But this horrible love triangle that dominates and destroys the second and third books is really ruining this series for me. 🙁 I will continue reading it through to the end, but it’s still just so frustrating!
The Verdict
I know how you feel… it’s always a little icky when the romance kinda feel less than enjoyable 🙁 but I’m glad that you find the mythology and adventure intriguing 🙂 Hopefully the romance will turn out better in book four.
Yeah I have my fingers crossed for book 4! I’m hoping that the love triangle will finally come to an end so I can just enjoy the yummy romance!
Great review, and I definitely understand how love triangles ruin series. It’s happened to me numerous of times. I really never read or heard about this series until maybe a month or two ago, but the dragon lore but be really interesting 🙂
Thanks Courtney Ann! The first book in the series—Tiger’s Curse—is awesome! I totally loved it. The fantasy/lore/mythology in all of the books has been phenomenal, so if you can endure a psychotic love triangle then maybe you should give it a try! 😀
I might put myself through it. It does sound really good 🙂
How frustrating! I was hoping the third installment would redeem the hiccups from the second book. And now, I’m a bit wary of getting attached to Tiger’s Curse. I still plan to read it, but I think a few other books are getting squeezed in before it. Sometimes a triangle can be okay…like when the protag figures out pretty quickly who it is they want. Of course new circumstances can shake that up, but I’m not a big fan of back-and-forth wishy washy stuff. Thanks for your review! xo
I know! I was really hoping that this absurd love triangle would finally be resolved, but that’s so not the case! I’m still holding out for book 4 though… I think the series is supposed to be 5 books long so I assume the closer we get to the end, the more likely the character will finally pick her man!
I agree that love triangles can definitely be okay in a story if it doesn’t totally dominate it and if the main characters makes a fast decision. But the indecision in The Tiger Saga is so frustrating. It’s kind of spoilerish to say more, so I won’t, but if you do end up reading it you’ll probably be throwing rocks at the main character!
Ashley, you have no idea how much I love reading your passionate reviews. I agree, the triangle can drive you UP THE WALL. I look at the psychology behind it and it keeps me sane. It’s no secret, Tiger’s Curse is my all-time favorite YA series. Book 4 is full of even more mythology and action than ever before. This triangle WILL be resolved, one way or another. How? I cannot say. But I am glad that you will have the chance to read it soon and find out. GREAT review, even with the mid-rating. 😉
Thank you so much Jenna! 🙂 I think you’re actually the one who turned me onto the The Tiger Saga. I remember seeing it on your blog when you went to one of Collen Houck’s signings. That’s where I first heard about these books!
I have already preordered the 4th book and I’m definitely looking forward to more epic fantasy and adventure!!
Oh no! I hate to think I was the instigator of so much frustration! BUT… I am glad you have read the series this far through. I *think* you will have an easier time with book 4. Just have faith that Colleen herself promises EVERYONE a happy ending. 😉 Can’t wait to read your thoughts for book 4!
Hehe well despite my frustration, I am definitely glad that I got started on The Tiger Saga, so thank you! 🙂