Eh... There were some glaring errors, like the elderly lady being 88 in the first book, and then said to be close to 100 and in her 90's within the same section in this one. I'm not sure if that was meant to be a blatant error, or if the author just forgot what age she'd assigned the woman.
I found myself rolling my eyes more and more. "Pirates? We know those don't exist anymore." I was under the impression the sisters, at least the oldest two with their fancy degrees, were smart, but this book makes them all look like ignorant idiots. The repetition of the pirate thing got old fast, and made them look more and more ignorant. I was getting so annoyed with it, but was glad there was a character who knew some things. They live in the modern age though, so, pull up Google now and then, huh? Especially the sister who is "good with computers."
Then there's the, let's follow the cat, no questions asked, vs, what is that weirdo cat doing? There's no way I'm following that cat. Why would I follow her digging when the last two or three times she dug up something important and we all know that?!
Then there's the very clear clues, the answers thought about either hours or a day prior, then the sisters just having no clue at all when these clues come up. It's so very clear, and I did not think they were this stupid in the first book.
In the first book, I was annoyed by the excessive use of "Well" to start a sentence. I brushed it off as a thing all the sisters do because when you live around people, you will mimic them. But in this book, everyone does it. Even the people not from the area. So it looks like it's a way the author likes to start dialogue and either an editor missed the excessive repetition, or the author ignored the note. The more I hear it, the more annoyed I get. It makes all the characters blend in together, and lessens their individuality. If I had the ability to see how many well's are in this book, I'd list them here. It's too much!
I liked this one less than the first. I'm going to continue because I got a box set. I also think the narrator just rubs me the wrong way with her breathy noises, mouth sounds, inability to separate the characters dialogue wise, and the weird accent she uses that isn't at all like the accent I think she's trying to do.
Had I not already bought a box set, I would have given up by now. This series just isn't for me. The inconsistencies, repetition, and unlikable, idiotic characters that shouldn't be as stupid as they are are becoming an annoyance. It is also so weird how, you've got a sister who went into gems, sells them, knows what they do, but is surprised when they work? Then seems to struggle with how weird it is, how she didn't think they could do this. Then why did you get into this to begin with? I can get it to an extent, like it would have made better sense if it was written as a, "oh, I know these things can do this, but to actually heal a wound seems strange." This would work better than, "I say these rocks have these properties and use them and sell them for these properties, but woah, it worked? How strange. Didn't think that could happen."
I think the story isn't bad, the plot isn't bad, and I am curious as to what kind of magical properties are potentially being introduced. If the characters were written better, it would be easier to get into.